Peter Johns (entomologist)

Peter Malcolm Johns
Born (1935-06-03) 3 June 1935
Wanganui, New Zealand
Alma materUniversity of Canterbury
Scientific career
FieldsEntomology

Peter Malcolm Johns (born 3 June 1935) is a New Zealand entomologist and taxonomist who has made significant contributions to the field of entomology. He is a leading expert in various groups, including cockroaches[1], craneflies, wētā[2] and millipedes.[3][4]

Early life

Born in Wanganui, he is the second son of Malcolm Johns, a surveyor and Hattie Johns, a research assistant.[5] He was educated at Wanganui East Primary School and Wanganui Collegiate School. Johns started attending the University of Canterbury in 1953, majoring in chemistry and zoology.[6] He gained a masters degree in Zoology with a thesis focused on snakeskin chiton.[7]

Career

Johns began lecturing in Zoology at the University of Canterbury in 1959 at the age of 24, and was appointed to a permanent position in 1964 as an assistant lecturer and later as lecturer.[8] Over his 57 year career, Johns interest slowly shifted towards terrestrial invertebrates, eventually amassing a large collection of 140,000 specimens held at Canterbury Museum.[9]

Johns is currently a research fellow at Canterbury Museum and a Fellow of the Entomological Society of New Zealand.[10][11]

Taxa named by Johns

Taxa named in Johns' honour

  • Cantuaria johnsi (Forster, 1968)
  • Meropathus johnsi (Ordish, 1971) [12]
  • Campbellonemertes johnsi (Moore & Gibson, 1972) [13]
  • Parisolabis johnsi (Hudson, 1975)
  • Nesoperla johnsi (McLellan, 1977) [14]
  • Hydrobiosis johnsi (McFarlane, 1981)
  • Peterjohnsiidae (Mauriès, 1987)
  • Mimopeus johnsi (Watt, 1988) [15]
  • Parentia johnsi (Bickel, 1992) [16]
  • Kupeharpalus johnsi (Larochelle & Larivière, 2005) [17]
  • Lissodesmus johnsi (Mesibov, 2006)
  • Nothotrichocera johnsi (Krzeminska, 2006) [18]
  • Zalea johnsi (McAlpine, 2007) [19]
  • Agathodesmus johnsi (Mesibov, 2009) [20]
  • Hemiandrus johnsi Trewick & Morgan-Richards, 2026[21]

Selected works

  • Johns, P. M. (1962). "Introduction to the endemic and introduced millipedes of New Zealand." New Zealand Entomologist 3(1): 38-46.[22]
  • Johns, P. M. (1964). "Insects of Campbell Island. Chilopoda, Diplopoda (preliminary note on the Myriapoda of the New Zealand subantarctic islands)." Pacific Insects Monograph 7: 170-172.[23]

References

  1. ^ Johns, P. J. (1966). "The cockroaches of New Zealand". Records of the Canterbury Museum. 8 (2): 93–136.
  2. ^ Johns, P. J. (1997). "The Gondwanaland weta: family Anostostomatidae (formerly in Stenopelmatidae, Henicidae or Mimnermidae): nomenclatural problems, world checklist, new genera and species". Journal of Orthoptera Research. 6: 125–138.
  3. ^ "'I get bored': the 90-year-old 'bug man' still on the tools". The Press. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  4. ^ "'Extinct' bug found alive and well in high-country reserve". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  5. ^ "Fellowship Citations" (PDF). Entomological Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  6. ^ "Fellowship Citations" (PDF). Entomological Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  7. ^ Johns, PM (1960). Chiton pelliserpentis (Mollusca : Amphineura) : a study in the taxonomy of a species in relation to its breeding, biology and ecology. University of Canterbury. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  8. ^ "Fellowship Citations" (PDF). Entomological Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  9. ^ "Lottery Grant for Internationally-significant Insect Collection". Canterbury Museum. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  10. ^ "Our researchers". Canterbury Museum. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  11. ^ "Fellowship of the Society". Entomological Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  12. ^ Ordish, R.G. (1984). "Hydraenidae (Insecta: Coleoptera)" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 6.
  13. ^ Moore, J. & Gibson, R. (1972). "On a new genus of freshwater hoplonemertean from Campbell Island". Freshwater Biology. 2 (3): 187–202. Bibcode:1972FrBio...2..187M. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2427.1972.tb00048.x.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ I.D., McLellan (1977). "New alpine and southern plecoptera from New Zealand, and a new classification of the gripopterygidae". New Zealand Journal of Zoology. 4 (2): 119–147. doi:10.1080/03014223.1977.9517945.
  15. ^ Watt, J.C. (1992). "enebrionidae (Insecta: Coleoptera): catalogue of types and keys to taxa" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 26.
  16. ^ Bickel, D.J. (1991). "ciapodinae, Medeterinae (Insecta: Diptera) with a generic review of the Dolichopodidae" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 23.
  17. ^ Larochelle, A., Larivière, M.C (2005). "Harpalini (Insecta: Coleoptera: Carabidae: Harpalinae)" (PDF). Fauna of New Zealand. 53: 160 pp.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ Krzemiń, Ewa (2006). "A new species of Nothotrichocera from New Zealand, and a replacement name for the genus Adura (Diptera: Trichoceridae)". New Zealand Journal of Zoology. 33 (3): 229–231. doi:10.1080/03014223.2006.9518450.
  19. ^ McAlpine, David K. (2007). "The surge flies (Diptera: Canacidae: Zaleinae) of Australasia and notes on tethinidcanacid morphology and relationships" (PDF). Records of the Australian Museum. 59 (1): 27–64. doi:10.3853/j.0067-1975.59.2007.1468.
  20. ^ Mesibov, R. (2009). "Revision of Agathodesmus Silvestri, 1910 (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Haplodesmidae)". ZooKeys (12): 87–110. Bibcode:2009ZooK...12...87M. doi:10.3897/zookeys.12.206.
  21. ^ Trewick, Steven A.; Morgan‐Richards, Mary (2026). "Five New Species of New Zealand Hemiandrus Ander 1938 Ground wētā (Orthoptera: Anostostomatidae)". New Zealand Journal of Zoology. 53 (1). doi:10.1002/njz2.70007. ISSN 0301-4223.
  22. ^ Johns, PM (1962). "Introduction to the endemic and introduced millipedes of New Zealand". New Zealand Entomologist. 3 (1): 38–46. Bibcode:1962NZEnt...3...38J. doi:10.1080/00779962.1962.9722813. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
  23. ^ Johns, PM (1964). "Insects of Campbell Island. Chilopoda, Diplopoda (preliminary note on the Myriapoda of the New Zealand subantarctic islands)" (PDF). Pacific Insects Monograph. 7. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
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