Edward Pierson Ramsay
Edward Pierson Ramsay | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | 3 December 1842 Dobroyd Estate, Long Cove, Sydney, Colony of New South Wales |
| Died | 16 December 1916 (aged 74) |
| Occupation | Zoologist, ornithologist |
Edward Pierson Ramsay (3 December 1842 – 16 December 1916) was an Australian zoologist who specialised in ornithology.[1]
Early life
Ramsay was born in Dobroyd Estate, Long Cove, Sydney, and educated at St Mark's Collegiate School, The King's School, Parramatta. He studied medicine from 1863 to 1865 at the University of Sydney but did not graduate.
Career
Although he never had had any formal scientific training in zoology, Ramsay had a keen interest in natural history and published many papers.
In 1883 Ramsay traveled to London to attend the International Fisheries Exhibition. At that time he met Military Surgeon Francis Day who had collected fishes over several decades in India, Burma, Malaysia and other areas in southern Asia. Ramsay negotiated purchase a portion of Day's collection, including about 150 of Day's type specimens.
Presumably during the same trip to Britain he visited Edinburgh, as he was elected an Ordinary Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (requiring his physical presence) in April 1884. His proposers were Sir John Murray, Sir William Turner, James Geikie and William Carmichael McIntosh.[2]
Late life
After his resignation as Curator, Ramsay served the Australian Museum as "consulting ornithologist" until 1909. He died on 16 December 1916 because of carcinoma.
Taxa described by him
Among organisms Ramsay described are:
- northern death adder (Acanthophis praelongus)[3]
- the pig-nosed turtle (Carettochelys insculpta)[3]
- the giant bandicoot (Peroryctes broadbenti)
- the grey-headed robin (Heteromyias cinereifrons)
- The freshwater anchovy (Thryssa scratchleyi)
- Papuan king parrot (Alisterus chloropterus)
See Category:Taxa named by Edward Pierson Ramsay.
Taxa named in his honor
Ramsay is commemorated in the scientific names of two species of Australian snakes, Aspidites ramsayi and Austrelaps ramsayi.[4]
The Spotted grubfish Parapercis ramsayi is believed to be named after him.[5]
Ramsayornis is a meliphagid genus which is named after him. It contains two species:
- Bar-breasted Honeyeater Ramsayornis fasciatus (Gould, 1843)
- Brown-backed Honeyeater Ramsayornis modestus (Gray, GR, 1858)
References
- ^ Etheridge, R. (1917). "Obituary—Edward Pierson Ramsay, LL.D. Curator, 22nd September, 1874 to 31st December, 1894". Records of the Australian Museum. 11 (9): 205–217. doi:10.3853/j.0067-1975.11.1917.916. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
- ^ Biographical Index of Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002 (PDF). The Royal Society of Edinburgh. July 2006. ISBN 0-902-198-84-X. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ a b "Ramsay". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
- ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Ramsay", p. 216).
- ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (22 September 2018). "Order URANOSCOPIFORMES: PINGUIPEDIDAE, CHEIMARRICHTHYIDAE, AMMODYTIDAE and URANOSCOPIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2022.