François Marie Daudin
François Marie Daudin was a French zoologist.
Biography
With legs paralyzed by childhood disease, he studied physics and natural history but ended up being devoted to the latter.Daudin wrote Traité élémentaire et complet d'Ornithologie in 1799–1800. It was one of the first modern handbooks of ornithology, combining Linnean binomial nomenclature with the anatomical and physiological descriptions of Buffon. While an excellent beginning, it was never completed.
In 1800, he also published Recueil de mémoires et de notes sur des espèces inédites ou peu connues de mollusques, de vers et de zoophytes.
Daudin found his greatest success in herpetology. He published Histoire naturelle des reinettes, des grenouilles et des crapauds in 1802, and Histoire naturelle, générale et particulière des reptiles in 1802–1803. This latter work contained descriptions of 517 species, many for the first time, based on examining over 1100 specimens.
He was assisted by his wife "Adèle", who drew the illustrations. Although his books were commercial failures the couple did not live in poverty, due to the family fortune. She died of tuberculosis in late 1803, and he followed shortly thereafter, also of tuberculosis, not yet 30 years old.
Taxonomic credits
Despite his short life, Daudin made a lasting contribution to taxonomy.Birds
Accipiter minullus, little sparrowhawkAccipiter tachiro, African goshawkAnhinga rufa, African darterAnthochaera paradoxa, yellow wattlebirdCiccaba huhula, black-banded owlCircus ranivorus, African marsh harrierCoracias naevius, Purple rollerCorvus leucognaphalus, white-necked crowCrypsirina temia, black racket-tailed treepieFalco chicquera, red-necked falconFalco rufigularis, bat falconFalco tinnunculus rupicolus, rock kestrelGymnasio nudipes, Puerto Rican owlHaliaeetus vocifer, African fish eagleLamprotornis ornatus, Principe glossy-starlingLophaetus occipitalis, long-crested eagleLophostrix cristata, crested owlLoxigilla portoricensis, Puerto Rican bullfinchMalimbus malimbicus, crested malimbeMelanerpes portoricensis, Puerto Rican woodpeckerMelierax gabar, Gabar goshawkMorphnus guianensis, crested eagleOnychognathus nabouroup, pale-winged starlingParadisaea rubra, red bird-of-paradisePhaethon lepturus, white-tailed tropicbirdPloceus baglafecht, baglafecht weaverPolemaetus bellicosus, martial eagleSaltator fuliginosus, black-throated grosbeakSeleucidis melanoleucus, twelve-wired bird-of-paradiseSpizaetus ornatus, ornate hawk eagleSporopipes frontalis, speckle-fronted weaverSturnus melanopterus, black-winged starlingTerathopius ecaudatus, bateleurReptiles
- Genus Acanthophis, death adders
- Genus Bungarus, kraits
- Genus Corallus, tree boas
- Genus Eryx, Old World sand boas
- Genus Lachesis, bushmasters
- Genus Pelamis, yellow-bellied sea snakes
- Genus Python, pythons
- Genus Ophisaurus, glass lizards
- Genus Takydromus, Oriental racersAlligator mississippiensis, American alligatorAnolis auratus, anole, no common nameAnolis punctatus, Amazon green anoleAtretium schistosum, split keelback Bitis cornuta, many-horned adderBoa constrictor imperator, common northern boaCaiman latirostris, broad-snouted caimanCaiman yacare, yacare caimanClelia clelia, black mussuranaCoronella girondica, southern smooth snakeCuora amboinensis amboinensis, Malayan box turtleDendrelaphis tristis, bronzeback Disteira nigrocincta, no common name, venomous sea snakeDracaena guianensis, caiman lizardElaphe helena, trinket snakeEnhydrina schistosa, beaked sea snakeEumeces schneiderii, Schneider's skinkGopherus polyphemus, Florida gopher tortoiseHemidactylus triedrus, termite hill geckoHydrophis cyanocinctus, annulated sea snakeHydrophis mamillaris, Bombay sea snakeHydrophis obscurus, Russell's sea snakeKentropyx striata, striped Kentropyx Lacerta bilineata, western green lizardLycodon capucinus, common wolf snakeLycodon nympha, common bridal snakeMicrurus psyches, carib coral snakeOxybelis fulgidus, green vine snakePituophis melanoleucus, pine snakeRafetus euphraticus, Euphrates softshell turtleRamphotyphlops braminus, brahminy blind snakeRhinoclemmys punctularia, spot-legged turtleSceloporus undulatus undulatus, eastern fence lizardScelotes gronovii, Gronovi's dwarf burrowing skinkSiphlophis compressus, red vine snakeTakydromus sexlineatus, Asian grass lizardTeius teyou, no common name, family Teiidae Timon lepidus, ocellated lizardTripanurgos compressus, mapepire de fe Varanus albigularis, rock monitorVaranus bengalensis, Bengal monitorVaranus griseus, desert monitorVaranus indicus, mangrove monitorXenoxybelis argenteus, green striped vine snake
Amphibians
Caecilia albiventris, no common name, CaecilianCryptobranchus alleganiensis, hellbender Elachistocleis surinamensis, sapito apuntado de SurinamHoplobatrachus tigerinus, Indian bullfrogHyla surinamensis Pelodytes punctatus, common parsley frogPhyllomedusa hypochondrialis, rana lemur de flancos rojosPseudacris ocularis, little grass frogSphaenorhynchus lacteus, rana fantasma Xenopus laevis, African clawed frogMolluscs
- Genus Spiroglyptus, wormsnails, family Vermetidae
- Genus Vermetus, wormsnails, family Vermetidae
Annelids
- Genus Spirorbis, hard tube worms