Benjamin Leadbeater (12 January 1773 – 22 March 1851) was a British naturalist,

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

and

taxidermist Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body via mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proc ...

. Benjamin Leadbeater was a renowned merchant of natural history materials in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

. His shop was located at 19 Brewer Street, Piccadilly. Leadbeater employed many naturalists around the world and supplied specimens to museums. By 1824, his business was known as "Leadbetter & Son" and, by 1838, it was called "John Leadbetter". Around 1858, the business had returned to the name "Leadbetter & Son". Several species are named in his honour, including the

southern ground-hornbill The southern ground hornbill (''Bucorvus leadbeateri''; formerly known as ''Bucorvus cafer'') is one of two species of ground hornbill, both of which are found solely within Africa, and is the largest species in the hornbill order worldwide. I ...

(''Bucorvus leadbeateri''),

Major Mitchell's cockatoo Major Mitchell's cockatoo (''Lophochroa leadbeateri''), also known as Leadbeater's cockatoo or the pink cockatoo, is a medium-sized cockatoo that inhabits arid and semi-arid inland areas of Australia, though it is seen regularly in other clima ...

(''Lophochroa leadbeateri'') and

violet-fronted brilliant The violet-fronted brilliant (''Heliodoxa leadbeateri'') is a species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.HBW and BirdLife International (20 ...

(''

Heliodoxa leadbeateri The violet-fronted brilliant (''Heliodoxa leadbeateri'') is a species of hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Ala ...

''). He described

Lady Amherst's pheasant Lady Amherst's pheasant (''Chrysolophus amherstiae'') is a bird of the order Galliformes and the family Phasianidae. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''khrusolophos'', "with golden crest". The English name and ''amherstiae'' commemorates Sar ...

, ''Chrysolophus amherstiae,'' in 1829.

References

* Bo Beolens and Michael Watkins (2003). ''Whose Bird ? Common Bird Names and the People They Commemorate.'' Yale University Press (New Haven and London). *Christopher Frost, 1987 ''A history of British taxidermy''. Long Melford, Suffolk 1760 births 1837 deaths British ornithologists {{UK-ornithologist-stub