Edgar Alexander Mearns
Encyclopedia
Edgar Alexander Mearns was a notable American ornithologist and field naturalist.
Mearns was born to Alexander and Nancy Reliance Mearns née Clarswell. His grandfather Alexander was of Scottish origin and moved to Highland Falls in 1815. Edgar Alexander Mearns was educated in the Donald Highland Institute (Highland Falls) and attended the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons where he graduated in 1881. In 1881 he married Ella Wittich of Circleville, Ohio
Circleville, Ohio
Circleville is a city in and the county seat of Pickaway County, Ohio, United States, along the Scioto River. The population was 13,485 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. The couple had one son and one daughter. Their son was born in 1886 and died in 1912. From 1882 to 1899 he served the military service as a surgeon. From 1899 to 1903 he was a medical officer in several army institutions. From 1903 to 1904 and 1905 to 1907 he traveled to the Philippines. He had to interrupt his journey in 1904 because he came down with a parasitic disease. In 1905 a trip led him to Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
.
As Major and Surgeon in the Army, Mearns was appointed medical officer to the International Boundary Commission and reported on the fauna and trees of the boundary between Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and the United States in his 1907, Mammals of the Mexican Boundary of the United States.
In 1909 he retired from the army with a rank of a Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
. After that he joined Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
with whom he was befriended on a trip to Africa. From 1911 to 1912 he was in Africa for a second time.
Mearns belongs to the co-founders of the American Ornithologists' Union
American Ornithologists' Union
The American Ornithologists' Union is an ornithological organization in the USA. Unlike the National Audubon Society, its members are primarily professional ornithologists rather than amateur birders...
in 1883. He scientifically described several birds and other animal species, like the Taita Thrush
Taita Thrush
The Taita Thrush , also known as Taita Olive Thrush or Heller's Ground Thrush, is a critically endangered bird from the family of thrushes , endemic to the Taita Hills in Kenya.-Description:...
, the Apo Sunbird
Apo Sunbird
The Apo Sunbird is a species of bird in the sunbird family Nectariniidae. It is endemic to the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.Its natural habitat is tropical moist montane forest...
, the Boran Cisticola
Boran Cisticola
The Boran Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Sudan....
, the Chihuahuan Grasshopper Mouse
Chihuahuan Grasshopper Mouse
The Chihuahuan Grasshopper Mouse or Mearns's Grasshopper Mouse is a grasshopper mouse found in southwestern New Mexico, west Texas, and north-central Mexico. They are similar to Onychomys torridus, but differ in karyotype and size. The Chihuahuan Grasshopper Mouse is smaller.They are found in...
, and the Rufous-headed Tailorbird
Rufous-headed Tailorbird
The Rufous-Headed Tailorbird is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found only in the Philippines....
. Animal taxa like Mearns' Pocket Gopher (Thomomys bottae mearnsi) or the Banded rock lizard
Banded rock lizard
The banded rock lizard is a species of phrynosomatid lizard. The specific name, mearnsi, is in honor of American naturalist Edgar Alexander Mearns, who collected the first specimens.-Geographic range:...
(Petrosaurus mearnsi) were named after him.