Franz Steindachner(11 November 1834 inVienna– 10 December 1919 in Vienna) was anAustrianzoologist,ichthyologist,andherpetologist.He published over 200 papers on fishes and over 50 papers on reptiles and amphibians.[1]Steindachner described hundreds of new species of fish and dozens of new amphibians and reptiles.[2]At least seven species of reptile have been named after him.[3]
Work and career
editBeing interested innatural history,Steindachner took up the study offossil fisheson the recommendation of his friendEduard Suess(1831–1914). In 1860 he was appointed to the position of director of the fish collection at theNatural History Museum, Vienna,a position which had remained vacant since the death ofJohann Jakob Heckel(1790–1857).[4]
Steindachner's reputation as anichthyologistgrew, and in 1868 he was invited byLouis Agassiz(1807–1873) to accept a position at the Museum of Comparative Zoology atHarvard University.Steindachner took part in theHasslerExpeditionof 1871–1872 (a journey that circumnavigated South America from Boston to San Francisco). In 1874 he returned to Vienna, and in 1887 was appointed director of the zoological department of the Natural History Museum. In 1898 he was promoted to director of the museum.[4]
He travelled extensively during his career, his research trips taking him throughout theIberian Peninsula,theRed Sea,theCanary Islands,Senegal,Latin America, et al. In his zoological studies, his interests were mainly from asystematicandfaunisticstandpoint.[5]
Among his better known works in ichthyology areIchthyologische Notizen(1863, published over 8 editions),Ichthyologische Beiträge(1874), andBeiträge zur Kenntniss der Flussfische Südamerikas(1879), the latter work dealing with river fish of South America. In the field ofherpetology,he publishedDie Schlangen und Eidechsen der Galapagos-Inseln(Snakes and lizards of theGalápagos Islands,1875).[6]
From 1875, he was member of theVienna Academy of Sciences.In 1892 he became a member of theGerman National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.[5]
Eponymy
editA number of taxa have been named from Steindachner's collections after him:
Fish genera
- Steindachneria,a fish genus of the western Atlantic;[7](Steindachneria argentea,commonly known as theluminous hake).
- Steindachneridion,a genus of fish in South America discovered by Steindachner, is named after him.[8]
- Steindachnerina,a genus of fish in South America.[9]
Fish species
- Leptagoniates steindachneri,an Amazon river fish
- Istiblennius steindachneri,a combtooth blennie from the Western Indian Ocean
- Nosferatu steindachneri,a Mexican Cichlid
- Bario steindachneri,a characin from Peru and Brazil
- Taractichthys steindachneri(Döderlein,1883),apomfretfrom the Indo-Pacific.
- Synodontis steindachnerifrom Africa, an upside down catfish
- Trachydoras steindachneri,a thorny catfish from the Amazon
- Labeobarbus steindachneri,a barb from the Cameroons
- Phoxinus steindachneri,from north east Asian
- Raiamas steindachneri,a cyprinid
- Rhinoptera steindachneri,the Golden Cownosed ray
- Cathorops steindachneri,Steindachner's sea catfish
- Gymnothorax steindachneri,a Brown Speckled Morey eel
- Gnathocharax steindachneri,a characin from the Amazon and Orinoco
- Geophagus steindachnerithe Redhump Eartheater
- Luciobarbus steindachneri,a cichlid from Northeast South America, the Iberian peninsula
- Ophioblennius steindachneri,a blennie from the Eastern Pacific
- Petrocephalus steindachneriFowler,1958,aMormyridfromTanzania[10]
- Cynoscion steindachneri,a drum
- Hypoptopoma steindachneri,a Loricariid
- Haemulon steindachneri,a chere-chere grunt
- Umbrina steindachneri,a drumand
- Hypomasticus steindachneri,a south American Headstander
Reptile species
- Amphisbaena steindachneri,a worm lizard from South America
- Chelodina steindachneri,a long necked turtle from Australia
- Lucasium steindachneri,a gecko from Australia
- Kinosternon steindachneri,a Florida mud turtle
- Lioscincus steindachneri,a skink from New Caledonia
- Micrurus steindachneri,a snake
- Palea steindachneri,a softshell turtle from China and Southeast Asia,
- Phrynocephalus steindachneri,a lizard (synonym ofPhrynocephalus przewalskii),
- Pseudalsophis steindachneri,a species of snake from theGalápagos Islands.[11]
Bird species and subspecies
- Speckle-chested piculet,Picumnus steindachneri
- Australasian pipit,Anthus novaeseelandiae steindachnerfrom theAntipodes Islands.
Amphibian species
- Hyperolius steindachnerifrom Africa
- Sclerophrys steindachneri,a toad found throughout sub tropical Africa
Invertebrates
- Aphonopelma steindachneri,a spider from the area of Southern California to Baja California.
- Bombus steindachneri,a Mexican bumblebee
- Neduba steindachneri,a katydid
- Stenomax steindachneri,a beetle
- Copiopteryx steindachneri,a moth
- Onchidella steindachneri,a sea slug
- Abralia steindachneri,a squid
- Ceratothoa steindachneri,a fish parasite
See also
editReferences
edit- ^Kähsbauer, P. (1959). "Intendant Dr. Franz Steindachner, sein Leben und Werk".Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums Wien63:1–30. (in German).
- ^"Steindachner search results".Reptile Database.
- ^"steindachneri search results".The Reptile Database.
- ^ab"Naturhistorisches Museum Wien".(in German).
- ^abKilly, Walther;Vierhaus, Rudolf,eds. (30 November 2011)."Steindachner, Franz".Dictionary of German Biography.Vol. 9. Walter de Gruyter. p. 501.ISBN9783110966299.
- ^"Steindachner, Franz 1834–1919".Library of Congress Linked Data Service.
- ^Jordan DS,Evermann BW(1898)."The Fishes of North and Middle America: a Descriptive Catalogue..."Bulletin of the United States National Museum.Number 47, Part III.
- ^"Steindachneridion parahybae".
- ^"Steindachnerina amazonica".FishBase.
- ^Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (22 September 2018)."Family MORMYRIDAE Bonaparte 1831 (Elephantfishes)".The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database.Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara.Retrieved12 November2024.
- ^Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011).The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles.Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp.ISBN978-1-4214-0135-5.( "Steindachner", p. 252).
Further reading
edit- Pietschmann, V.(1919). "Franz Steindachner".Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien33:47–48. (in German).
External links
edit
Media related toFranz Steindachnerat Wikimedia Commons- "The Herpetological Collection",Natural History Museum, Vienna(in English)
- V. Stagl."Steindachner, Franz".Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon ab 1815(online) (in German). Vol. 13.Austrian Academy of Sciences.p. 164.
