Stanley Wells Kemp
Encyclopedia
Stanley Wells Kemp, FRS (14 June 1882 – 16 May 1945) was a British marine biologist.
He was born in London, the second of three sons of Stephen Kemp, a professor at the Royal Academy and Royal School of Music. As a boy he took an interest in animals, collecting water beetles and maintaining them in aquariums and was a member of the local natural history society. He studied at St Paul's School and later went to Trinity College
in Dublin from where he graduated with a Gold Medal in 1903. He studied botany under H. H. Dixon
.
In 1910 he joined the Zoological and Anthropological section of the Indian Museum
and when the organization was converted in 1916 to the Zoological Survey of India
, he became Superintendent and took up the study of crustacean
s to continue work started by James Wood-Mason
and Alfred William Alcock
. He spent fourteen years in India during which he published seventeen papers on the decapods
in the Indian Museum. In 1918 he made a trip to Baluchistan along with Thomas Nelson Annandale. Other expeditions were made to the Andaman Islands
, the Garo Hills
and Rameshwaram. In 1913 he married Agnes Green, daughter of Reverend William Spotswood Green
who was the first to climb Mount Cook in New Zealand
. In 1910 he became a Fellow of Calcutta University and a Fellow of the Asiatic Society
. In 1924 he returned to Ireland to become the first director of research in the Discovery Investigations.
Among the discoveries he made were the first onychophoran from the Indian region which he named as Typhloperipatus williamsoni
.
He died in Plymouth, Devon in 1945.
He was born in London, the second of three sons of Stephen Kemp, a professor at the Royal Academy and Royal School of Music. As a boy he took an interest in animals, collecting water beetles and maintaining them in aquariums and was a member of the local natural history society. He studied at St Paul's School and later went to Trinity College
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
in Dublin from where he graduated with a Gold Medal in 1903. He studied botany under H. H. Dixon
Henry Horatio Dixon
Henry Horatio Dixon was a plant biologist and professor at Trinity College Dublin. Along with John Joly, he put forward the cohesion-tension theory of water and mineral movement in plants....
.
In 1910 he joined the Zoological and Anthropological section of the Indian Museum
Indian Museum
The Indian Museum is the largest museum in India and has rare collections of antiques, armour and ornaments, fossils, skeletons, mummies, and Mughal paintings...
and when the organization was converted in 1916 to the Zoological Survey of India
Zoological Survey of India
The Zoological Survey of India is a premier Indian organisation in zoological research and studies. It was established on 1 July 1916 to promote the survey, exploration and research of the fauna in the region...
, he became Superintendent and took up the study of crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
s to continue work started by James Wood-Mason
James Wood-Mason
James Wood-Mason was a Scottish zoologist who worked in the Indian Museum at Calcutta from 1877 succeeding Prof. John Anderson. He made many collections of marine animals and lepidoptera.-Publications:...
and Alfred William Alcock
Alfred William Alcock
Alfred William Alcock was a British physician naturalist and carcinologist.Alcock was the son of a sea-captain, John Alcock in Bombay, India who retired to live in Blackheath...
. He spent fourteen years in India during which he published seventeen papers on the decapods
Decapoda
The decapods or Decapoda are an order of crustaceans within the class Malacostraca, including many familiar groups, such as crayfish, crabs, lobsters, prawns and shrimp. Most decapods are scavengers. It is estimated that the order contains nearly 15,000 species in around 2,700 genera, with...
in the Indian Museum. In 1918 he made a trip to Baluchistan along with Thomas Nelson Annandale. Other expeditions were made to the Andaman Islands
Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
, the Garo Hills
Garo Hills
The Garo Hills are part of the Garo-Khasi range in Meghalaya, India. They are inhabited mainly by tribal dwellers. Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, is located in this range. It is one of the wettest places in the world. The range is part of the Meghalaya subtropical forests ecoregion.Garo Hills...
and Rameshwaram. In 1913 he married Agnes Green, daughter of Reverend William Spotswood Green
William Spotswood Green
William Spotswood Green was an Irish naturalist, specialized on marine biology.Born at Youghal and educated at Trinity College in Dublin, he was ordained a priest in 1873. Already before he left the services of the Church in 1890, he had worked on marine biology...
who was the first to climb Mount Cook in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. In 1910 he became a Fellow of Calcutta University and a Fellow of the Asiatic Society
Asiatic Society
The Asiatic Society was founded by Sir William Jones on January 15, 1784 in a meeting presided over by Sir Robert Chambers, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court at the Fort William in Calcutta, then capital of the British Raj, to enhance and further the cause of Oriental research. At the time of...
. In 1924 he returned to Ireland to become the first director of research in the Discovery Investigations.
Among the discoveries he made were the first onychophoran from the Indian region which he named as Typhloperipatus williamsoni
Typhloperipatus williamsoni
Typhloperipatus williamsoni is a species of onychophoran known from northeastern India. It is the only member of its genus and is the only South Asian species in the phylum. It is said to be evolutionarily close to the Sumatran Eoperipatus...
.
He died in Plymouth, Devon in 1945.