William Morton Wheeler
Encyclopedia
William Morton Wheeler, Ph.D. (March 19, 1865 - April 19, 1937) was an American
entomologist, myrmecologist and Harvard professor.
Anderson) in Milwaukee, he was transferred from public school to a local German
academy due to, in his own words, "persistently bad behavior". They had a small museum which Wheeler had studied since he was a child, and when Ward's Natural Science Establishment in early 1884 brought a collection of stuffed and skeletonized animals to the academy, to persuade the city fathers to purchase them, Wheeler volunteered to spend the nights in helping Ward to unpack and install the specimens. The latter was so impressed that he offered Wheeler a job in his Rochester, New York
establishment. Here he identified birds and mammals, and later collections of shells, echinoderms and sponges. His shell catalogue was still in use by collectors in the late 1920s.
embryologist, having studied under Baur
, Dohrn
and Whitman
, but he became the leading authority on the behaviour of social insects, achieving particular renown for his studies of social behaviour of ant
s. He was instrumental in the development of ethology
and first popularized the term in a 1902 paper in Science.
, Pogonomyrmex maricopa
, the most venomous insect in the world, being among them. Professor Wheeler was curator of invertebrate
zoology
in the American Museum of Natural History
in New York from 1903 to 1908. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences
.
A close contact of the British
myrmecologist and coleopterist Horace Donisthorpe
, it was to Wheeler that Donisthorpe dedicated his first major book on ants in 1915. Donisthorpe and Wheeler also frequently exchanged specimens, leading the latter to first develop the idea that the Formicinae
subfamily had its origins in North America.
For his work, Ants of the American Museum Congo Expedition, Wheeler was awarded the Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
from the National Academy of Sciences in 1922. He was professor of applied biology at Harvard University
's Bussey Institute
, which had one of the most highly regarded biology programs in the United States. One of his pupils there was Alfred Kinsey
.
His work includes 467 titles.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entomologist, myrmecologist and Harvard professor.
Early life
Born as the son of Julius Morton and Caroline Georgiana Wheeler (néeMarried and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Anderson) in Milwaukee, he was transferred from public school to a local German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
academy due to, in his own words, "persistently bad behavior". They had a small museum which Wheeler had studied since he was a child, and when Ward's Natural Science Establishment in early 1884 brought a collection of stuffed and skeletonized animals to the academy, to persuade the city fathers to purchase them, Wheeler volunteered to spend the nights in helping Ward to unpack and install the specimens. The latter was so impressed that he offered Wheeler a job in his Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
establishment. Here he identified birds and mammals, and later collections of shells, echinoderms and sponges. His shell catalogue was still in use by collectors in the late 1920s.
Training
Wheeler was trained as an insectInsect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
embryologist, having studied under Baur
Georg Baur (paleontologist)
Georg Baur was a vertebrate paleontologist and Neo-Lamarckian who studied reptiles of the Galapagos Islands in the 1890s.He held the position of Docent in osteology and paleontology, Clark University, from 1890 to 1892, and after that, professor at the University of Chicago until his death in...
, Dohrn
Anton Dohrn
Felix Anton Dohrn was a prominent German Darwinist and the founder and first director of the Stazione Zoologica, Naples, Italy.-Family history:...
and Whitman
Charles Otis Whitman
-External links:***-Notes:...
, but he became the leading authority on the behaviour of social insects, achieving particular renown for his studies of social behaviour of ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s. He was instrumental in the development of ethology
Ethology
Ethology is the scientific study of animal behavior, and a sub-topic of zoology....
and first popularized the term in a 1902 paper in Science.
Career
As a taxonomist, Wheeler was responsible for the descriptions of innumerable speciesSpecies
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
, Pogonomyrmex maricopa
Pogonomyrmex maricopa
The Maricopa harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex maricopa, is one of the most common species of harvester ant species found in Arizona, USA. Its venom is believed to be the most toxic insect venom in the world....
, the most venomous insect in the world, being among them. Professor Wheeler was curator of invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
in the American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History , located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, is one of the largest and most celebrated museums in the world...
in New York from 1903 to 1908. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
.
A close contact of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
myrmecologist and coleopterist Horace Donisthorpe
Horace Donisthorpe
Horace St. John Kelly Donisthorpe was an eccentric British myrmecologist and coleopterist, memorable in part for his enthusiastic championing of the renaming of the genus Lasius after him as Donisthorpea, and for his many claims of discovering new species of beetles and ants.He is often considered...
, it was to Wheeler that Donisthorpe dedicated his first major book on ants in 1915. Donisthorpe and Wheeler also frequently exchanged specimens, leading the latter to first develop the idea that the Formicinae
Formicinae
Formicinae is a subfamily within the Formicidae containing ants of moderate evolutionary development.Formicines retain some primitive features such as the presence of cocoons around pupae, the presence of ocelli in workers, and little tendency toward reduction of palp or antennal segmentation in...
subfamily had its origins in North America.
For his work, Ants of the American Museum Congo Expedition, Wheeler was awarded the Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
The Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal is awarded by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences "for meritorious work in zoology or paleontology published in a three- to five-year period." Named after Daniel Giraud Elliot, it was first awarded in 1917....
from the National Academy of Sciences in 1922. He was professor of applied biology at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's Bussey Institute
Bussey Institute
The Bussey Institute was a respected biological institute at Harvard University. It was named for Benjamin Bussey, who, in 1835, endowed the establishment of an undergraduate school of agriculture and horticulture and donated land in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts that became the Arnold Arboretum...
, which had one of the most highly regarded biology programs in the United States. One of his pupils there was Alfred Kinsey
Alfred Kinsey
Alfred Charles Kinsey was an American biologist and professor of entomology and zoology, who in 1947 founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University, now known as the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, as well as producing the Kinsey Reports and the Kinsey...
.
His work includes 467 titles.