Gabriel Bibron (20 October 1805 – 27 March 1848) was a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

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 ...

and

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning " reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and r ...

. He was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. The son of an employee of the

Museum national d'histoire naturelle The French National Museum of Natural History, known in French as the ' (abbreviation MNHN), is the national natural history museum of France and a ' of higher education part of Sorbonne Universities. The main museum, with four galleries, is loc ...

, he had a good foundation in natural history and was hired to collect

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxon, taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () (chordates with vertebral column, backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the ...

s in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. Under the direction of

Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent Jean-Baptiste Geneviève Marcellin Bory de Saint-Vincent was a French naturalist, officer and politician. He was born on 6 July 1778 in Agen (Lot-et-Garonne) and died on 22 December 1846 in Paris. Biologist and geographer, he was particularly ...

(1778–1846), he took part in the

Morea expedition The Morea expedition (french: link=no, Expédition de Morée) is the name given to the land intervention of the French Army in the PeloponneseMorea is the name of the Peloponnese region in Greece, which was mainly used from the medieval period ...

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge whi ...

. He classified numerous reptile

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

with

André Marie Constant Duméril André Marie Constant Duméril (1 January 1774 – 14 August 1860) was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became professor of herpetology and ichthyology. ...

(1774–1860), whom he had met in 1832. Duméril was interested mainly in the relations between

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial ...

, and he left to Bibron the task of describing the species. Working together they produced the ''Erpétologie Générale'', a comprehensive account of the

reptiles Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephali ...

, published in ten volumes from 1834 to 1854. Also, Bibron assisted Duméril with teaching duties at the museum and was an instructor at a primary school in Paris. Bibron contracted

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...

and retired in 1845 to

Saint-Alban-les-Eaux Saint-Alban-les-Eaux () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Death place of Gabriel Bibron (1845). Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 323 communes of the Loire departm ...

, where he died at the age of 42.

Taxa named in honor of Bibron

Bibron is commemorated in the scientific names of ten species of reptiles.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Bibron", p. 25). *''

Afrotyphlops bibronii Bibron's blind snake (''Afrotyphlops bibronii)'' is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae. The species is native to southern Africa. Branch, Bill (2004). ''Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa''. Third Revised editio ...

'', a

blind snake The Scolecophidia, commonly known as blind snakes or thread snakes, are an infraorder of snakes. They range in length from . All are fossorial (adapted for burrowing). Five families and 39 genera are recognized. The Scolecophidia infraorder is mos ...

*''

Atractaspis bibroni :''Common names: Southern stiletto snake'','' Bibron's stiletto snake'','' Side-stabbing snake'','' previously known'' ''as Bibron's burrowing asp,Spawls, Stephen; Branch, Bill (1995). ''The Dangerous Snakes of Africa''. Dubai: Oriental Press / R ...

'', a

venomous snake Venomous snakes are species of the suborder Serpentes that are capable of producing venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The venom is typically delivered by injection using hollow or ...

*''

Calliophis bibroni ''Calliophis bibroni'', commonly known as Bibron's coral snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to India. Etymology The specific name, ''bibroni'', is in honor of Gabriel Bibron (1806–1848), Frenc ...

'', a venomous snake *''

Candoia bibroni ''Candoia bibroni'', commonly known as Bibron's bevel-nosed boa, Bibron's keel-scaled boa, the Pacific tree boa, or the Fiji boa, Mehrtens JM (1987). ''Living Snakes of the World in Color''. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . is a boa spec ...

'', a

boa Kwon Bo-ah (; born November 5, 1986), known professionally as BoA, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer and actress. One of the most successful and influential Korean entertainers, she has been dubbed the " Queen of K- ...

*''

Chondrodactylus bibronii ''Chondrodactylus bibronii'', commonly known as Bibron's thick-toed gecko, Bibron's sand gecko, or simply Bibron's gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to southern Africa. ''C. bibronii'' has been used as ...

'', a

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos ar ...

*'' Diplolaemus bibronii'', a lizard *'' Enyalius bibronii'', a lizard *''

Eutropis bibronii ''Eutropis bibronii'', also known commonly as Bibron's mabuya, Bibron's skink, and the seashore skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is native to India and Sri Lanka. Etymology The specific name, ''bibronii'', is ...

'', a

skink Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. S ...

*''

Liolaemus bibronii ''Liolaemus bibronii'', Bibron's tree iguana, is a species of lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The g ...

'', a lizard *''

Pelochelys bibroni The southern New Guinea giant softshell turtle (''Pelochelys bibroni'') is a species of softshell turtle in the family Trionychidae. The species is endemic to the lowlands of southern New Guinea with occasional vagrant individuals sighted off th ...

'', a turtle An eleventh species, which was more commonly known as ''Agama impalearis'', had been named ''

Agama bibronii ''Agama bibronii'', Bibron's agama or the North African rock agama, is a species of lizard belonging to the family Agamidae from north western Africa. Description ''Agama bibronii'' is a medium-sized lizard, growing to up to 25–30 cm in t ...

'' by André Marie Constant Duméril in 1851, however a decision by the ICZN in 1971 confirmed that the correct name was ''A. bibroni''.

References

External links

SSARHerps
(biography). 1805 births 1848 deaths French zoologists French herpetologists National Museum of Natural History (France) people Scientists from Paris Tuberculosis deaths in France 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis {{France-zoologist-stub