Knut Dahl
Encyclopedia
Knut Dahl was a Norwegian
zoologist
and explorer who made important bird collections
in northern Australia
.
where he studied zoology. In 1893, at the age of 21, he was given the opportunity to conduct a scientific expedition to South Africa
and Australia to collect animal specimens for the University’s Zoological Museum. In South Africa he occupied himself with some big game hunting
as well as the collection of scientific specimens.
), accompanied by his taxidermist
Ingel Holm, and journeyed to Australia where he moved from Adelaide to Sydney
and then to Darwin
in Australia’s Northern Territory
.
From Darwin Dahl and Holm went to the Uniya Mission Station on the Daly River
where they stayed for several months, making long trips by dinghy on the river and collecting specimens. They later travelled to the Victoria and Alligator Rivers
where they collected two new pigeons and a parrot. The new birds were the Chestnut-quilled Rock-Pigeon
, the Arnhem Land
subspecies of the Banded Fruit-dove
, and the Hooded Parrot
, all described by R. Collett in 1898 in the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London
.
After a visit to Batavia and Singapore
Dahl and Holm returned to Western Australia
where they collected in the vicinity of Roebuck Bay
. They finally departed Australia in March 1896, arriving back in Norway on 4 May.
, especially salmonids, and was stationed for many years at Trondheim
and Bergen
.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
zoologist
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
and explorer who made important bird collections
Bird collections
Bird collections are curated repositories of scientific specimens consisting of birds and their parts. They are a research resource for ornithology, the science of birds, and for other scientific disciplines in which information about birds is useful...
in northern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Early years
Dahl grew up in Hakadal, Norway, where his father was an estate manager. Surrounded by forests, lakes and rivers, Dahl became an excellent shot and a skilled angler. In 1889 he entered the University of OsloUniversity of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
where he studied zoology. In 1893, at the age of 21, he was given the opportunity to conduct a scientific expedition to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Australia to collect animal specimens for the University’s Zoological Museum. In South Africa he occupied himself with some big game hunting
Big game hunting
Big game hunting is the hunting of large game. The term is historically associated with the hunting of Africa's Big Five game , and with tigers and rhinos on the Indian subcontinent. In North America, animals such as bears and bison were hunted...
as well as the collection of scientific specimens.
Travels in Australia
In March 1894 he left Port Natal (DurbanDurban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
), accompanied by his taxidermist
Taxidermy
Taxidermy is the act of mounting or reproducing dead animals for display or for other sources of study. Taxidermy can be done on all vertebrate species of animals, including mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians...
Ingel Holm, and journeyed to Australia where he moved from Adelaide to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and then to Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
in Australia’s Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
.
From Darwin Dahl and Holm went to the Uniya Mission Station on the Daly River
Daly River, Northern Territory
Daly River is the name of a river and a town in the Northern Territory of Australia. At the 2006 census, Daly River had a population of 468.- History :...
where they stayed for several months, making long trips by dinghy on the river and collecting specimens. They later travelled to the Victoria and Alligator Rivers
Alligator Rivers
The Alligator Rivers is the name of a region in the Arnhem Land region of the Northern Territory of Australia, containing three rivers the East, West and South Alligator River...
where they collected two new pigeons and a parrot. The new birds were the Chestnut-quilled Rock-Pigeon
Chestnut-quilled Rock-Pigeon
The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon is a species of bird in the Columbidae family.It is endemic to Australia....
, the Arnhem Land
Arnhem Land
The Arnhem Land Region is one of the five regions of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around 500 km from the territory capital Darwin. The region has an area of 97,000 km² which also covers the area of Kakadu National...
subspecies of the Banded Fruit-dove
Banded Fruit-Dove
The Banded Fruit Dove is a large pigeon with white head, neck and upper breast; black back and upperwing grading to grey on rump; black tail with broad grey terminal band; underparts grey, demarcated from white head and neck by broad black band.-Distribution:Bali, Lesser Sunda Islands and...
, and the Hooded Parrot
Hooded Parrot
The Hooded Parrot, Psephotus dissimilis is a medium-sized, up to 26cm long, turquoise blue parrot with black head, green wing, brown back and greenish blue-bronze tail feathers edged with white. It has pale grey beak, greyish brown legs and brown eye...
, all described by R. Collett in 1898 in the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London
Journal of Zoology
The Journal of Zoology is a scientific journal concerning zoology, the study of animals. It was founded in 1830 by the Zoological Society of London and is published by Wiley-Blackwell. It carries original research papers, which are targeted towards general readers...
.
After a visit to Batavia and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
Dahl and Holm returned to Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
where they collected in the vicinity of Roebuck Bay
Roebuck Bay
Roebuck Bay is a bay on the coast of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Its entrance is bounded in the north by the town of Broome, and in the south by Bush Point and Sandy Point. It is named after HMS Roebuck, the ship captained by William Dampier when he explored the coast of...
. They finally departed Australia in March 1896, arriving back in Norway on 4 May.
Later life
On Dahl’s return to Norway he wrote books about his experiences in South Africa and Australia; his account of the latter was first published in Norwegian in 1898, then titled “In Savage Australia” when it was eventually translated and published in English in 1926. He became an eminent scientific authority on fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, especially salmonids, and was stationed for many years at Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
and Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
.