Hermann Engelhard von Nathusius (9 December 1809 – 29 June 1879) was a German

animal breeder Animal breeding is a branch of animal science that addresses the evaluation (using best linear unbiased prediction and other methods) of the genetic value (estimated breeding value, EBV) of livestock. Selecting for breeding animals with superior ...

. Born in

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

to industrialist Johann Gottlob Nathusius, Hermann von Nathusius studied the

natural science Natural science or empirical 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 ...

s. He took over from his father and turned it to agriculture, particularly cattle breeding. He introduced cattle breeds from England to Germany, and worked to promote the study of cattle breeding. He collected a large amount of information on his herds, whose breeding he personally oversaw, and amassed a collection of domesticated animal

skeleton A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of most animals. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is a rigid outer shell that holds up an organism's shape; the endoskeleton, a rigid internal fra ...

s; his writings became an important reference for the scientific treatment of animal breeding. He was opposed to his contemporary

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

's theory of

evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

, but data from his careful study of breeds was nonetheless used as support for that theory. He was a member of the

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

n ''Landesökonomiekollegium'' (Land Economic Council), director of the

province of Saxony The Province of Saxony (), also known as Prussian Saxony (), was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1944. Its capital was Magdeburg. It was formed by the merger of various territories ceded ...

's ''Landwirtschaftlicher Zentralverein'' (Central Agricultural Council), and president of the ''Deutsche Ackerbaugesellschaft'' (German Agricultural Society), among other positions. From the German Society for Züchtungskunde e. V. ( DGfZ) was the Hermann-von-Nathusius-Medaille donated in his honor in 1928.The Hermann-von-Nathusius-Medaille on the Webpage of the DGfZ
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Selected works

* ''Ansichten und Erfahrungen über die Zucht von Fleischschafen'' (1856) * ''Über die Konstanz in der Tierzucht'' (1860) * ''Die Rassen des Schweins'' (1860) * ''Über Shorthorn-Rindvieh'' (1861) * ''Vorstudien für Geschichte und Zucht der Haustiere'' (1864; Partly reprinted in the journal "Elemente der Naturwissenschaft" No. 85, 2006) * ''Deutsches Gestütalbum'' (1868–70) * ''Wandtafeln für den naturwissenschaftlichen Unterricht'' (1871–73) * ''Vorträge über Viehzucht und Rassenkenntnis'' (1872–80) * ''Über die sogenannten Leporiden'' (1876
digital edition

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nathusius, Hermann von 1809 births 1879 deaths Businesspeople from Magdeburg Scientists from Magdeburg People from the Province of Saxony 19th-century German scientists Businesspeople from the Kingdom of Prussia Scientists from the Kingdom of Prussia