Alphonse Milne-Edwards
Encyclopedia
Alphonse Milne-Edwards was a French
mammalologist, ornithologist and carcinologist. He was English in origin, the son of Henri Milne-Edwards
and grandson of Bryan Edwards, a Jamaican planter who settled at Bruges
(then in France
).
Milne-Edwards obtained a medical degree in 1859 and became assistant to his father at the in 1876. He became the director the in 1891, devoting himself especially to fossil
birds and deep-sea exploration. In 1881, he undertook a survey of the Gulf of Gascony with Léopold de Folin
and worked aboard the Travailleur and the Talisman on trips to the Canary Islands
, the Cape Verde
Islands and the Azores
. For this he received a gold medal of the Royal Geographical Society
.
His major ornithological works include published in two parts in 1867 and 1872, 1866–1874 and 1868–1874. His study of fossils led to the discovery of tropical birds such as trogon
s and parrot
s from prehistoric France. He worked with Alfred Grandidier
on .
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...
mammalologist, ornithologist and carcinologist. He was English in origin, the son of Henri Milne-Edwards
Henri Milne-Edwards
Henri Milne-Edwards was an eminent French zoologist.Henri Milne-Edwards was the 27th child of William Edwards, an English planter and militia colonel in Jamaica and Elisabeth Vaux, a French. He was born in Bruges, Belgium, where his parents had retired. At that time, Bruges was a part of the...
and grandson of Bryan Edwards, a Jamaican planter who settled at Bruges
Bruges
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country....
(then in France
French First Republic
The French First Republic was founded on 22 September 1792, by the newly established National Convention. The First Republic lasted until the declaration of the First French Empire in 1804 under Napoleon I...
).
Milne-Edwards obtained a medical degree in 1859 and became assistant to his father at the in 1876. He became the director the in 1891, devoting himself especially to fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
birds and deep-sea exploration. In 1881, he undertook a survey of the Gulf of Gascony with Léopold de Folin
Léopold de Folin
Léopold de Folin was an author, oceanographer, malacologist and early founder of the collections which were to become the Musée de la mer in Biarritz, France...
and worked aboard the Travailleur and the Talisman on trips to the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
, the Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
Islands and the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
. For this he received a gold medal of the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
.
His major ornithological works include published in two parts in 1867 and 1872, 1866–1874 and 1868–1874. His study of fossils led to the discovery of tropical birds such as trogon
Trogon
The trogons and quetzals are birds in the order Trogoniformes which contains only one family, the Trogonidae. The family contains 39 species in eight genera. The fossil record of the trogons dates back 49 million years to the mid-Eocene. They might constitute a member of the basal radiation of...
s and parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
s from prehistoric France. He worked with Alfred Grandidier
Alfred Grandidier
Alfred Grandidier was a French naturalist and explorer.From a very wealthy family, he and his brother, Ernest Grandidier , undertook a voyage around the world...
on .