Ernst Heinrich Ehlers (11 November 1835 – 31 December 1925) was a German

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and d ...

born in

Lüneburg Lüneburg (officially the ''Hanseatic City of Lüneburg'', German: ''Hansestadt Lüneburg'', , Low German ''Lümborg'', Latin ''Luneburgum'' or ''Lunaburgum'', Old High German ''Luneburc'', Old Saxon ''Hliuni'', Polabian ''Glain''), also called ...

. He studied medicine and

natural sciences Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

, earning his doctorate in 1861. Here he was influenced by Rudolf Wagner (1805–1864) and

Wilhelm Moritz Keferstein Wilhelm Moritz Keferstein (7 June 1833, Winsen (Luhe) – 25 January 1870) was a German naturalist. He described a number of reptiles and amphibians for the first time. He originally studied hydraulic engineering in Hanover, later becoming a ...

(1833–1870). In 1869 he became a full professor of

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

, comparative anatomy and

veterinary medicine Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...

at the

University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. From 1874 to 1919, he was a professor of zoology and comparative anatomy in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

. In 1890 he was one of the founders of the ''Deutschen Zoologischen Gesellschaft'' (German Zoological Society). He was a leading authority on

polychaete Polychaeta () is a paraphyletic class of generally marine annelid worms, commonly called bristle worms or polychaetes (). Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made ...

s, and is credited with describing many

invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...

species new to science. The polychaete genus ''Ehlersia'' ( de Quatrefages, 1866) from the family Syllidae is named after him.

Selected writings

* ''Die Borstenwürmer (Annelida Chaetopoda) nach systematischen und anatomischen Untersuchungen dargestellt'', (1864-68) –

Bristle worm Polychaeta () is a paraphyletic class of generally marine annelid worms, commonly called bristle worms or polychaetes (). Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are ...

s (Annelida Chaetopoda) according to systematic and anatomical studies. * ''Polychaeten'', 1897 – Polychaetes. * ''Polychaeten Hamburger Magelhaensische Sammelreise'', 1897 – Polychaetes from the Hamburg Magellanic collection mission. * ''Die Polychaeten des Magellanischen und Chilenischen Strandes'', 1901 – Polychaetes of the Magellanic and Chilean shores. * ''Neuseelandische Anneliden'', 1904 – New Zealand annelids. * ''Polychaeten von Java und Amboina. Ein beitrag zur kenntnis der malaiischen strandfauna'', 1920 – Polychaetes of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

and

Amboina Amboyna or amboina may refer to: * ''Amboyna'' (play), a play by John Dryden *Amboyna massacre, in 1623 in Indonesia * Amboina box turtle (''Cuora amboinensis''), of Asia * Amboina king parrot (''Alisterus amboinensis''), of Indonesia * ''Amboyn ...

.
'' Anales del Instituto de la Patagonia'' versión On-line ISSN 0718-686X

References

translated biography @ Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie {{DEFAULTSORT:Ehlers, Ernst People from Lüneburg 1835 births 1925 deaths University of Erlangen-Nuremberg faculty University of Göttingen faculty 19th-century German zoologists