Contributions to the Natural History of South Africa, &c.

Authors

  • Andrew Smith, M.D. M.W. S. &c. South African Museum Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21504/saqj.15.2588

Keywords:

Myriapoda, Crustacea, Mollusca, Pisces, Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves, Mammalia, Natural History of South Africa

Abstract

This document, taken from the South African Quarterly Journal No. V. (October 1831), presents Andrew Smith's Contributions to the Natural History of South Africa. The author champions the contemporary scientific method of forming new subdivisions, arguing that observation, not just theory, justifies the introduction of new genera and species. He suggests the universal adoption of the trivial name typicus to clearly denote the type species of any new genus.

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Author Biography

  • Andrew Smith, M.D. M.W. S. &c., South African Museum

    Sir Andrew Smith (1797–1872) was a highly influential British army surgeon and naturalist widely recognised as the "father of South African zoology." After obtaining his M.D. from the University of Edinburgh, he was posted to the Cape Colony in 1820, where he founded the South African Museum in 1825. He undertook several significant scientific and diplomatic expeditions into the interior, culminating in the 1834–1836 "Expedition for Exploring Central Africa." His foundational zoological work was published in the five-volume Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa (1838–1849), which described numerous new species across mammals, birds, and reptiles, including many species first named in the South African Quarterly Journal. Upon returning to Britain, he rose through the military ranks to become the Director-General of the Army Medical Services (1853–1858), where he was responsible for medical organisation during the Crimean War, before retiring as a Knight Commander of the Bath.

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Published

1831-06-24

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 5 (1831): South African Quarterly Journal

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Smith, A. (1831). Contributions to the Natural History of South Africa, &c. South African Quarterly Journal, 1(5), 9-24. https://doi.org/10.21504/saqj.15.2588

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