Maria Tonelli-Rondelli (1899 – 1970) was an Italian entomologist who studied the taxonomy and identification of ticks (Ixodidae), especially South American species.

Early life and education

She was born in Turin in 1899, the daughter of Alipio Rondelli and Maria Pia (Marina) Zanetti. She studied at

University of Turin The University of Turin (Italian language, Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public university, public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the List ...

, graduating in natural sciences in 1921 and then geography in 1923. After graduating she worked at the university. She married the mathematician Leonida Tonelli in 1927. He died in 1946.

Career

She began her career by translating into Italian volumes of ''Zoology'' by Rémy Perrier. This was published with a preface by the Italian zoologist Umberto Pierantoni. However the focus of her career was on

tick Ticks are parasitic arachnids of the order Ixodida. They are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, and species, but can become larger when engorged. Ticks a ...

s. She examined specimens in the collections at Milan and Turin museums and specimens from scientific expeditions. In 1928 she described a new species, ''Ixodes nivalis'' from specimens obtained in the

Gran Paradiso National Park Gran Paradiso National Park (; ) is an Italian national park in the Graian Alps, between the Aosta Valley and Piedmont regions. The park is named after Gran Paradiso mountain, which is located in the park; it is contiguous with the French Vanois ...

in Italy. She worked especially on ticks found in South America. These included

Amblyomma ''Amblyomma'' is a genus of hard ticks. Some are disease vectors, for example the Rocky Mountain spotted fever in United States or ehrlichiosis in Brazil. This genus is the third largest in the family Ixodidae, with its species primarily ...

, a genus of hard ticks which are particularly diverse in the Americas. Some species are vectors of disease. She was able to re-examine specimens described by

Carl Ludwig Koch Carl Ludwig Koch (21 September 1778 – 23 August 1857) was a German entomologist and arachnologist. He was responsible for classifying a great number of spiders, including the Brazilian whiteknee tarantula and common house spider. He was born ...

in 1844 and provide improved illustrations and descriptions. She also proposed that, because of differences in the

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines *Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts *Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies, ...

among specimens of the species '' Amblyomma cajennense'', it should be divided into several different species. ''A. cajennense'' can transmit

Rocky Mountain spotted fever Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is a bacterial disease spread by ticks. It typically begins with a fever and headache, which is followed a few days later with the development of a rash. The rash is generally Petechial rash, made up of small s ...

so its unambiguous identification was important. Later workers considered that these differences were inherent variation between individuals of only one species and not sufficient to define new species. The application of molecular taxonomic methods in the twenty-first century has, however, demonstrated that some of these morphological distinctions indeed mark distinct species.

Legacy

In 2014 the new species ''Amblyomma tonelliae'' was named after her.

Publications

* Translation into Italian of ''Zoology'' by Rémy Perrier * Tonelli-Rondelli M. Ixodoidea del museo di Torino. ''Boll Mus Zool Anatom Comp.'' 1931;41:1–19. * Tonelli-Rondelli M. Ixodoidea. Parte I.-Amblyomma ovale Koch, Amblyomma cajennense Fabricius e le specie a loro affini nuove o poco note. ''Riv Parassitol.'' 1937;1:237–99. * Tonelli-Rondelli M. A contribution to the knowledge of the South American fauna of Ixodoidea. ''Riv Parassitol.'' 1939;3:273–300. * Tonelli-Rondelli M. Ixodoidea Parte II—contributo alla conoscenza della fauna ixodologica Sud-Americiana. ''Riv Parassitol.'' 1939;3:39–55.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tonelli-Rondelli, Maria 1899 births 1970 deaths Italian biologists Italian women scientists Acarologists