Matteo Botteri, (1808 – 1877) also known as Matija Botteri, was a botanist,

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 collector.

Biography

Botteri was born on the island

Hvar Hvar (; Chakavian: ''Hvor'' or ''For'', el, Φάρος, Pharos, la, Pharia, it, Lesina) is a Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea, located off the Dalmatian coast, lying between the islands of Brač, Vis and Korčula. Approximately long, wi ...

to an Italian family. He began his early career in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, stre ...

and nearby areas in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

with

flora and fauna In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and fungi ...

, primarily

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of October ...

investigations, while headquartered in

. He, along with his contemporary , sent materials to

Georg von Frauenfeld Georg Ritter von Frauenfeld (3 June 1807, Vienna – 8 October 1873) was an Austrian naturalist and one of the leading scientists on board the Austrian frigate ''Novara'' during its round-the-world voyage. He was heavily involved in the deve ...

for his studies. He also sent material to Friedrich Kützing. In 1854, he travelled to Mexico to collect plants on behalf of the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (No ...

. He settled in

Orizaba Orizaba () is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located 20 km west of its sister city Córdoba, and is adjacent to Río Blanco and Ixtaczoquitlán, on Federal Highways 180 and 190. The city had a 2005 census ...

, where he founded a museum and became professor of languages and natural history at Orizaba College.

Philip Sclater Philip Lutley Sclater (4 November 1829 – 27 June 1913) was an English lawyer and zoologist. In zoology, he was an expert ornithologist, and identified the main zoogeographic regions of the world. He was Secretary of the Zoological Societ ...

commemorated him in the name of the

Botteri's sparrow Botteri's sparrow (''Peucaea botterii'') is a medium-sized American sparrow, sparrow. This passerine bird is primarily found in Mexico, with a breeding range that extends into the southeastern tip of the U.S. state of Arizona, and a small non-mi ...

, which Botteri collected as well as other birds in

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

in 1857. He amassed a collection of 120 unique bird species in the vicinity of Orizaba, including areas such as Tuxpango,

Tehuipango Tehuipango is a municipality located in the montane central zone in the Mexican state of Veracruz, about 110 km from the state capital Xalapa. It has a surface of 111.04 km2. It is located at . Santiago Tehuipango, it was a people belonging to ...

. His keeping of slaty vireo brought attention as its green color stood out among its genus. He died in Orizaba in 1877.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * 1808 births 1877 deaths Italian ornithologists 19th-century Italian botanists People from Hvar Naturalists from the Austrian Empire {{Ornithologist-stub