Johann Friedrich von Brandt
Encyclopedia
Johann Friedrich von Brandt (May 25, 1802 – July 15, 1879) was a German
naturalist
.
Brandt was born in Jüterbog
and educated at a gymnasium
in Wittenberg
and the University of Berlin
. In 1831 he was appointed director of the Zoological Department at the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences, where he published in Russian
. Brandt encouraged the collection of native animals, many of which were not represented in the museum. Many specimens began to arrive from the expeditions of Severtzov
, Przhevalsky
, Middendorff, Schrenck
and Gustav Radde
.
He described several birds collected by Russian explorers off the Pacific Coast of North America, including Brandt's Cormorant
, Red-legged Kittiwake
and Spectacled Eider
. He is also commemorated in Brandt's Bat
and Brandt's Hedgehog
.
Brandt was also an entomologist , specialising in Coleoptera (beetles) and Diplopoda (millipedes). He died in Merreküll, Estonia
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
naturalist
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
.
Brandt was born in Jüterbog
Jüterbog
Jüterbog is a historic town in north-eastern Germany, located in the Teltow-Fläming district of Brandenburg. It is located on the Nuthe river at the northern slope of the Fläming hill range, about southwest of Berlin.-History:...
and educated at a gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in Wittenberg
Wittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Germany in the Bundesland Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000....
and the University of Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
. In 1831 he was appointed director of the Zoological Department at the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences, where he published in Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
. Brandt encouraged the collection of native animals, many of which were not represented in the museum. Many specimens began to arrive from the expeditions of Severtzov
Nikolai Alekseevich Severtzov
Nikolai Alekseevich Severtzov was a Russian explorer and naturalist.On an expedition to the Syr Darya he was captured by bandits and freed after a month. In 1865-68 he explored the Tien Shan and Lake Issyk Kul...
, Przhevalsky
Nikolai Przhevalsky
Nikolai Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky and Prjevalsky, ; —), was a Russian geographer of Polish background and explorer of Central and Eastern Asia. Although he never reached his final goal, Lhasa in Tibet, he travelled through regions unknown to the west, such as northern Tibet, modern Qinghai and...
, Middendorff, Schrenck
Leopold von Schrenck
Leopold Ivanovich von Schrenck was a Russian zoologist, geographer and ethnographer.-Biography:Schrenck was a Baltic German born and brought up near Chotenj, south-west of St Petersburg. He received his doctorate from the University of Tartu, and then studied natural science in Berlin and Königsberg...
and Gustav Radde
Gustav Radde
Gustav Ferdinand Richard Radde was a German naturalist and explorer.Radde was born in Danzig, the son of a schoolmaster. He had little formal education, and began a career as an apothecary...
.
He described several birds collected by Russian explorers off the Pacific Coast of North America, including Brandt's Cormorant
Brandt's Cormorant
The Brandt's Cormorant is a strictly marine bird of the cormorant family of seabirds that inhabits the Pacific coast of North America. It ranges, in the summer, from Alaska to the Gulf of California, but the population north of Vancouver Island migrates south during the winter...
, Red-legged Kittiwake
Red-legged Kittiwake
The Red-legged Kittiwake is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae. It breeds in the Pribilof, Bogoslof and Buldir islands of the USA, and the Commander Islands, Russia. Adults are long, with an wingspan and a body mass of ....
and Spectacled Eider
Spectacled Eider
The Spectacled Eider is a large sea duck that breeds on the coasts of Alaska and northeastern Siberia.The lined nest is built on tundra close to the sea, and 5–9 eggs are laid. This species dives for crustaceans and molluscs...
. He is also commemorated in Brandt's Bat
Brandt's Bat
Brandt's Bat is a species of vesper bat in the Vespertilionidae family.It is found throughout most of Europe and parts of Asia.It is named for the German zoologist Johann Friedrich von Brandt.-Echolocation:...
and Brandt's Hedgehog
Brandt's Hedgehog
Brandt's Hedgehog is a species of desert hedgehog native to the Middle East and Middle Asia. Brandt's Hedgehog is approximately the size of the West European Hedgehog , but has distinctively large ears similar to the Long-eared Hedgehog and is a much faster runner due to lighter Brandt's Hedgehog...
.
Brandt was also an entomologist , specialising in Coleoptera (beetles) and Diplopoda (millipedes). He died in Merreküll, Estonia
Governorate of Estonia
The Governorate of Estonia or Estland, also known as the Government of Estonia or Province of Estonia, was a governorate of the Russian Empire in what is now northern Estonia.-Historical overview:...
.
Species
- Acipenser baerii Brandt, 1869 (Siberian sturgeon)
- Acipenser guldenstadtiRussian sturgeonThe Russian sturgeon is a species of fish in the Acipenseridae family. It is found in Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Romania, Russia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Ukraine. This fish can grow up to six feet and weigh almost 250 lbs...
(Caspian or Russian sturgeon) - Acipenser schrenckii Brandt, 1869 (Amur sturgeon)
- Holothuria leucospilota Brandt, 1835 (Black long sea cucumber)
- Idotea ochotensis Brandt, 1851
- Lasiopodomys brandtii (Brandt's vole)
- Mesocricetus brandti (Brandt's or Turkish hamster)
- Myotis brandtii (Brandt's bat)
- Paraechinus hypomelas (Brandt's hedgehog)
- Phalacrocorax penicillatus (Brandt's cormorant)
- Somateria fischeri Brandt, 1847 (Spectacled eider)
- Stichopus chloronotusStichopus chloronotusStichopus chloronotus is a species of sea cucumber.- Description :This species is deep black-green in colour, and has yellow or red tips to the papillae. They are often filled with sand, which they eat in large amounts.- Habitat :...
Brandt, 1835 (Black sea cucumber) - Trionyx maackiiChinese softshell turtleThe Chinese softshell turtle , formerly known as Trionyx sinensis, was described by Wiegmann in 1835. The species is also referred to as the Asiatic Soft Shelled Turtle....
Brandt, 1858 (Chinese softshell turtle)