Palisot de Beauvois
Encyclopedia
Ambroise Marie François Joseph Palisot, Baron de Beauvois 27 July 1752 Arras
- 21 January 1820 Paris
, was a French
naturalist
.
Palisot collected insects in Oware
, Benin
, Saint Domingue, and the United States
, during the period 1786 – 1797. Trained as a botanist, Palisot published a significant entomological paper entitled, "Insectes Recueillis en Afrique et en Amerique". Together with Frederick Valentine Melsheimer
, he was one of the first entomologists to collect and describe American insects. He described a large number of common insects and suggested an ordinal classification of Insects. He described many Scarabaeidae
as well as illustrating them for the first time. The study included 39 Scarabaeus
species, 17 Copris species, 7 Trox species, 4 Cetonia and 4 Trichius. Familiar beetles as Canthon viridis, Macrodactylus angustatus and Osmoderma scabra were first described by him. Many of the specimens that were labelled from America, were from Africa, and vice versa. He created type localities in America for species such as Dynastes hercules (L.), well outside the natural range.
Palisot’s expeditions were described inter alia by Chase (1925) and Merrill (1937) and a summary is provided here to explain the uncertain origins of his material. Palisot trained as a lawyer but pursued postgraduate studies in botany under Lestiboudois in Lille and Jussieu
in Paris.
He also did important early work on the classification of lycopods, notably the Lycopodiaceae
and Selaginellaceae.
at the mouth of the Niger River
in what is today called Nigeria
. Palisot merged specimens from there with collections from neighbouring Benin
. At intervals he sent material back to France, including the first liverwort
specimens to be collected from Africa and sent to Europe. Among his collections is a leaf bearing the type specimens of two epiphytic leafy liverworts, one of which has never again been collected. However, most of his collection was destroyed when the British invaded the colony and razed the trading post where his material was kept. An epidemic of yellow fever
spread through the colony.
where he had an uncle in Cape Francais. He recovered and returned to his collecting. He was admitted into the colonial assembly and the superior council, opposed the abolition of the slave trade, and in 1790 wrote a pamphlet in which he accused English philanthropists of sinister motives in supporting this project. He also went to the United States
to ask the aid of the government in reducing the slaves to obedience. On his return from this useless mission in June 1793, he found the island in insurrection. An uprising by slaves resulted in the town being burnt as was his uncle’s home and Palisot's collections. Palisot was imprisoned, but later freed under order of deportation. Because of his title, Palisot understandably was reluctant to return to France in the aftermath of the Revolution
.
. He joined the American Philosophical Society
, contributed to its Transactions, and resumed his collecting with the sponsorship of the French Attache, Paul Adet, a scientist in his own right.
Palisot’s collecting trips in the United States ranged from the Ohio River
in the west to Savannah, Georgia
in the south. He made several valuable discoveries, including that of a new species of rattlesnake
, and he passed several months among the Creek and Cherokee
Indians. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society
, to which he communicated a part of his observations.
Palisot finally received word from Paris that his citizenship had been restored, and began planning his return to Europe, especially the freighting of his collections. Dogged by misfortune, these collections were lost in a shipwreck off Nova Scotia
in 1798. Palisot returned to France in the same year.
Palisot invented a new method of classification for insects, and proposed another for quadrupeds. He observed the details of the reproductive organs in mosses, and, as the existence of these organs was denied, he confirmed his first researches by new observations.
Few of Palisot’s specimens have survived. His botanical specimens were sent to the Jardin Botanique at Geneva
. The herbarium at the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences has sheets that are marked "Beauv.", but show plants native to India, a place never visited by Palisot. Therefore, Palisot must have incorporated specimens from other collectors, which would explain the strange origin of some of the insects from his collection. Horn & Kahle (1937) state that some of Palisot’s beetles, the Elateridsae, were sent by Dejean to Godman and Salvin at the British Museum of Natural History to be included in the Biologia Centrali-Americana. Specimens were also sent by Chevrolat to Neervoort van de Poll of the Netherlands
, and these in turn were bequeathed to the BMNH
, but none of Palisot’s specimens has been found there.
The third volume of the Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia contains a paper by him on cryptogamic plants, and the fourth, one on a new plant of Pennsylvania (the Heterandra
raniformis) and on a new species of rattlesnake, etc. His “Description du mur naturel dans la Caroline du Nord” appears in vol. viii of the Annales du muséum d'histoire naturelle (Paris, 1811), and was reprinted in Warren's Description of the United States (vol. i).
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
- 21 January 1820 Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
naturalist
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
.
Palisot collected insects in Oware
Oware
Oware is an abstract strategy game of Akan origin. Part of the mancala family, it is played throughout West Africa and the Caribbean. Among its many names are Ayò , Awalé , Wari , Ouri, Ouril or Uril , Warri , Adji , and Awélé...
, Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
, Saint Domingue, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, during the period 1786 – 1797. Trained as a botanist, Palisot published a significant entomological paper entitled, "Insectes Recueillis en Afrique et en Amerique". Together with Frederick Valentine Melsheimer
Frederick Valentine Melsheimer
The Reverend Frederick Valentine Melsheimer was a Lutheran clergyman and early American entomologist, called the "Father of American Entomology" by successor Thomas Say...
, he was one of the first entomologists to collect and describe American insects. He described a large number of common insects and suggested an ordinal classification of Insects. He described many Scarabaeidae
Scarabaeidae
The family Scarabaeidae as currently defined consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide. The species in this large family are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family is fairly unstable, with numerous competing theories, and new proposals appearing quite...
as well as illustrating them for the first time. The study included 39 Scarabaeus
Scarabaeus
The genus Scarabaeus consists of a number of Old World dung beetle species, including the "sacred scarab beetle", Scarabaeus sacer. These beetles feed exclusively on dung, which they accomplish by rolling a piece of dung some distance from where it was deposited, and burying it in order to feed on...
species, 17 Copris species, 7 Trox species, 4 Cetonia and 4 Trichius. Familiar beetles as Canthon viridis, Macrodactylus angustatus and Osmoderma scabra were first described by him. Many of the specimens that were labelled from America, were from Africa, and vice versa. He created type localities in America for species such as Dynastes hercules (L.), well outside the natural range.
Palisot’s expeditions were described inter alia by Chase (1925) and Merrill (1937) and a summary is provided here to explain the uncertain origins of his material. Palisot trained as a lawyer but pursued postgraduate studies in botany under Lestiboudois in Lille and Jussieu
Antoine Laurent de Jussieu
Antoine Laurent de Jussieu was a French botanist, notable as the first to propose a natural classification of flowering plants; much of his system remains in use today.-Life:...
in Paris.
He also did important early work on the classification of lycopods, notably the Lycopodiaceae
Lycopodiaceae
The Lycopodiaceae is a family of primitive vascular plants, including all of the core clubmosses. These plants bear spores on specialized structures at the apex of a shoot; they resemble a tiny battle club, from which the common name derives...
and Selaginellaceae.
Early years
After finishing his studies he was appointed advocate to the parliament of Paris in 1772, and afterward receiver general. He then devoted himself to the study of natural history, especially botany.Africa
In 1786 he set out to found a colony at OwareOware
Oware is an abstract strategy game of Akan origin. Part of the mancala family, it is played throughout West Africa and the Caribbean. Among its many names are Ayò , Awalé , Wari , Ouri, Ouril or Uril , Warri , Adji , and Awélé...
at the mouth of the Niger River
Niger River
The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...
in what is today called Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Palisot merged specimens from there with collections from neighbouring Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
. At intervals he sent material back to France, including the first liverwort
Marchantiophyta
The Marchantiophyta are a division of bryophyte plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like other bryophytes, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information....
specimens to be collected from Africa and sent to Europe. Among his collections is a leaf bearing the type specimens of two epiphytic leafy liverworts, one of which has never again been collected. However, most of his collection was destroyed when the British invaded the colony and razed the trading post where his material was kept. An epidemic of yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
spread through the colony.
Haiti
Palisot became so debilitated with yellow fever that in 1788 he was placed on a slave ship bound for HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
where he had an uncle in Cape Francais. He recovered and returned to his collecting. He was admitted into the colonial assembly and the superior council, opposed the abolition of the slave trade, and in 1790 wrote a pamphlet in which he accused English philanthropists of sinister motives in supporting this project. He also went to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to ask the aid of the government in reducing the slaves to obedience. On his return from this useless mission in June 1793, he found the island in insurrection. An uprising by slaves resulted in the town being burnt as was his uncle’s home and Palisot's collections. Palisot was imprisoned, but later freed under order of deportation. Because of his title, Palisot understandably was reluctant to return to France in the aftermath of the Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
United States
He boarded a ship bound for the United States and on the voyage was robbed of his remaining worldly goods and arrived in Philadelphia totally destitute. He joined a circus as a musician to earn some money, and finally obtained work curating the private botanical collection of Charles Willson PealeCharles Willson Peale
Charles Willson Peale was an American painter, soldier and naturalist. He is best remembered for his portrait paintings of leading figures of the American Revolution, as well as establishing one of the first museums....
. He joined the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
, contributed to its Transactions, and resumed his collecting with the sponsorship of the French Attache, Paul Adet, a scientist in his own right.
Palisot’s collecting trips in the United States ranged from the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
in the west to Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
in the south. He made several valuable discoveries, including that of a new species of rattlesnake
Rattlesnake
Rattlesnakes are a group of venomous snakes of the genera Crotalus and Sistrurus of the subfamily Crotalinae . There are 32 known species of rattlesnake, with between 65-70 subspecies, all native to the Americas, ranging from southern Alberta and southern British Columbia in Canada to Central...
, and he passed several months among the Creek and Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
Indians. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
, to which he communicated a part of his observations.
Palisot finally received word from Paris that his citizenship had been restored, and began planning his return to Europe, especially the freighting of his collections. Dogged by misfortune, these collections were lost in a shipwreck off Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
in 1798. Palisot returned to France in the same year.
France
Using material that had survived all the disasters, as well as his sketches, he published a number of booklets on plants and insects, between 1805 and 1821. Griffin (1932, 1937) supplies the date of publication for each booklet which consisted of five to six plates, each depicting six or nine of the insects described in the text, and it is through these sketches, rather than by specimens, that Palisot’s species are often identified.Palisot invented a new method of classification for insects, and proposed another for quadrupeds. He observed the details of the reproductive organs in mosses, and, as the existence of these organs was denied, he confirmed his first researches by new observations.
Few of Palisot’s specimens have survived. His botanical specimens were sent to the Jardin Botanique at Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. The herbarium at the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences has sheets that are marked "Beauv.", but show plants native to India, a place never visited by Palisot. Therefore, Palisot must have incorporated specimens from other collectors, which would explain the strange origin of some of the insects from his collection. Horn & Kahle (1937) state that some of Palisot’s beetles, the Elateridsae, were sent by Dejean to Godman and Salvin at the British Museum of Natural History to be included in the Biologia Centrali-Americana. Specimens were also sent by Chevrolat to Neervoort van de Poll of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and these in turn were bequeathed to the BMNH
BMNH
BMNH may refer to:*British Museum of Natural History, commonly known as Natural History Museum, in London, the United Kingdom*Beijing Museum of Natural History, in Beijing, China...
, but none of Palisot’s specimens has been found there.
Publications
Bookseller Image- Ueber die Einwohner des Königreichs Benin auf der Westküste des Tropischen Afrika or As to the inhabitants of the Kingdom of Benin on the West Coast of Tropical Africa (Industrie-Comptoirs, Weimar, 1801)].
- Mémoire sur les palmiers au général et en particulier sur un nouveau genre de cette famille (Paris, 1801)
- Prodrome des cinquième et sixième familles de l'Æthéogamie, les mousses, les lycopodes (1805)
- Essai d'une nouvelle agrostographie (1812)
- Réfutation d'un écrit intitulé resumé des temoignages, etc., touchant la traite des nègres (1814)
- Flore d'Oware et de Benin (1804-1821, 2 vols., 120 plates)
- Insectes recueillis en Afrique et en Amérique (Paris, 1805-1821, 90 plates)
- Muscologie ou traité sur les mousses (1822)
The third volume of the Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia contains a paper by him on cryptogamic plants, and the fourth, one on a new plant of Pennsylvania (the Heterandra
Heterandra
Heterandra is a genus of moths of the Noctuidae family.-References:*...
raniformis) and on a new species of rattlesnake, etc. His “Description du mur naturel dans la Caroline du Nord” appears in vol. viii of the Annales du muséum d'histoire naturelle (Paris, 1811), and was reprinted in Warren's Description of the United States (vol. i).
External links
- Palisot biography - Scarab Workers
- Insectes Recueillis en Afrique et en Amérique (Paris: 1805) - digital facsimile, Linda Hall Library