阿尔贝特·金特1830—1914

生平

金特出生于施瓦本的埃斯林根，早年曾研读神学和药剂学，1857年就职于大英博物馆，专攻鱼类学，到1870年，他完成了8卷本的《鱼类分类》。1875年，由于他在动物学上的成就，被英国自然历史博物馆聘为动物馆馆长。1865年，金特被选入皇家学会，并曾在1875年出任副会长。1877年，他成为林奈学会会员，并在1896年至1900年间担任会长。1914年2月1日在邱园逝世。

所命名的分类

（列表可能不完整）

51个阿尔贝特·金特命名的分类单元

Albert Karl Ludwig Gotthilf Günther, also Albert Charles Lewis Gotthilf Günther (3 October 1830 – 1 February 1914), was a German-born British zoologist, ichthyologist, and herpetologist. Günther is ranked the second-most productive reptile taxonomist (after George Albert Boulenger) with more than 340 reptile species described and the third-most productive fish taxonomist with about 1600 fish species described.

Early life and career

Günther was born in Esslingen in Swabia (Württemberg). His father Friedrich Gotthilf Günther (1800–1835) was a Stiftungs-Commissar in Esslingen and his mother, Eleonora Louise née Nagel (1806–1899)l, was from Bremen. He initially schooled at the Stuttgart Gymnasium. His family wished him to train for the ministry of the Lutheran Church for which he moved to the University of Tübingen. A brother shifted from theology to medicine, and he, too, turned to science and medicine at Tübingen in 1852. His first work was "Ueber den Puppenzustand eines Distoma" (On the pupal state of Distoma). He graduated in medicine with an M.D. from Tübingen in 1858, the same year in which he published a handbook of zoology for students of medicine. His mother moved to England, and when he visited the country in 1855, he met John Edward Gray and Professor Richard Owen at the British Museum. This led to an offer to work at the British Museum in 1857, where his first task was to classify 2000 snake specimens. After the death of John Edward Gray in 1875, Günther was appointed Keeper of Zoology at the Natural History Museum, a position he held until 1895. The major work of his life was the eight-volume Catalogue of Fishes (1859–1870, Ray Society). He also worked on the reptiles and amphibians in the museum collection. In 1864, he founded the Record of Zoological Literature and served as editor for six years. He was one of the editors for the Annals and Magazine of Natural History for more than thirty years.

Royal Society

Günther was elected fellow of the Royal Society in 1867 and served as vice-president 1875–6. He served on the council of the Zoological Society for nearly 40 years (1868–1905). He was elected a fellow of the Linnaean Society in 1877 and was president 1896–1900. He became a naturalised British citizen in 1874. Günther died at Kew Gardens on 1 February 1914.

Family

Günther married, firstly, in 1868, Roberta Mitchell née McIntosh (1842–1869), sister of William M'Intosh. They had one son, the historian Robert William Theodore Günther (1869–1940). Roberta died shortly after his birth.

In 1879 he married again, to Theodora Dowrish née Drake (1863–1944). They had a son Frederic Albert Günther (1883–1953), a merchant; and a daughter Theodora Alberta Günther (1889–1908) who died aged nineteen.

Taxon described by him

See Category:Taxa named by Albert Günther

Legacy

Albert Günther is commemorated in the scientific names of many species of reptiles.

• Aparallactus guentheri – an African venomous snake
• Aspidura guentheri – a Sri Lankan snake
• Atractus guentheri – a Brazilian snake
• Chalcides guentheri – a Near Eastern lizard
• Christinus guentheri – an Australian lizard
• Coluber gracilis– an Indian snake, known as Günther's racer
• Draco guentheri – a Philippine lizard
• Elapsoidea guentherii – an African venomous snake
• Erythrolamprus albertguentheri – a South American snake
• Erythrolamprus guentheri – a South American snake
• Euspondylus guentheri – a South American lizard
• Holaspis guentheri – an African lizard
• Lycodryas guentheri – a Malagasy snake
• Monopeltis guentheri – an African amphisbaenian
• Perochirus guentheri – a South Pacific lizard
• Phelsuma guentheri – a Mauritian lizard
• Plectrurus guentheri – an Indian snake
• Proctoporus guentheri – a South American lizard
• Ramphotyphlops guentheri – an Australian snake
• Riopa guentheri – an Indian lizard
• Ristella guentheri – an Indian lizard
• Scelotes guentheri – an extinct South African lizard
• Sphenodon guntheri – a New Zealand rhynchocephalian
• Stegonotus guentheri – a Papua New Guinean snake
• Stenocercus guentheri – a South American lizard
• Trachischium guentheri – an Asian snake
• Uroplatus guentheri – a Malagasy lizard
• Urotheca guentheri – a Central American snake
• Xenodon guentheri – a Brazilian snake
• Amphibians
• The Brazilian Frog, Boana guentheri (Boulenger, 1886)
• The Solomon Island Leaf Frog Cornufer guentheri (Boulenger, 1884
• The Andean Frog Gastrotheca guentheri (Boulenger, 1882)
• The South American Frog, Ischnocnema guentheri (Steindachner, 1864)