Sébastien René Lenormand (2 April 1796, in

Condé-sur-Noireau Condé-sur-Noireau () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Condé-en-Normandie. It is situated on the Noireau River. In the fi ...

– 10 December 1871) was a French lawyer and

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

who specialized in the field of

phycology Phycology () is the scientific study of algae. Also known as algology, phycology is a branch of life science. Algae are important as primary producers in aquatic ecosystems. Most algae are eukaryotic, photosynthetic organisms that live in a ...

. From 1817 he studied law in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, and following graduation (1820), practiced law in the town of

Vire Vire () is a town and a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Vire Normandie. Geography The town is located on the river Vire. Much o ...

. In 1835 he quit the legal profession, moved to an estate called "Lénaudières", from where he focused his energies towards botany. As a botanist, he created an impressive

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant biological specimen, specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sh ...

, consisting mainly of

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

species. Although he never left France, he collected a large number of botanical specimens from naturalists who travelled to all parts of the globe. He edited two exsiccatae, ''Thalissophytes de France. Series I'' and ''Thalissophytes de France. Series II''. The algae genus ''Lenormandia'' (family

Rhodomelaceae Rhodomelaceae is estimated to be the largest red algae family, with about 125 genera and over 700 species. Included taxa Rhodomelaceae includes the following tribes and genera: ''Incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology ...

) was named in his honor by

Otto Wilhelm Sonder Otto Wilhelm Sonder (18 June 1812, Bad Oldesloe – 21 November 1881) was a German botanist and pharmacist. Life A native of Holstein, Sonder studied at Kiel University, where he sat pharmaceutical examinations in 1835, before becoming the pro ...

in 1845. Specimens collected by Lenormand are cared for in herbaria worldwide, including the

National Museum of Brazil National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

herbarium (MN), the

National Museum of Natural History, France The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the ...

(MNHN), the

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

herbarium, and the

National Herbarium of Victoria The National Herbarium of Victoria (Index Herbariorum code: MEL) is one of Australia's earliest herbaria and the oldest scientific institution in Victoria. Its 1.56 million specimens of preserved plants, fungi and algae—collectively known ...

(MEL),

Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV) are botanical garden, botanic gardens across two sites–Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne, Melbourne and Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne, Cranbourne. Melbourne Gardens was founded in 1846 when land w ...

Written works

* ''Note sur l'emploi du sulfure de carbone pour la conservation des herbiers'' (1858) – On the usage of

sulfur Sulfur ( American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur ( Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms ...

and

carbon Carbon () is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalence, tetravalent—meaning that its atoms are able to form up to four covalent bonds due to its valence shell exhibiting 4 ...

for preservation of

herbaria A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

. * ''Catalogue des plantes recueillies a Cayenne'' (1859, with

Émile Deplanche Émile Deplanche (22 June 1824 in Argentan – 30 March 1874) was a French physician and naturalist. He studied medicine and zoology in Caen. In 1854 he served as a surgeon in the Crimean War, and later the same year, he travelled as a surgeon to ...

) – Catalog of plants collected in

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

.WorldCat Search
publications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenormand, Sebastien Rene 1796 births 1871 deaths People from Condé-sur-Noireau 19th-century French botanists French phycologists