Robert-Philippe Dollfus (20 July 1887 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France – 19 February 1976 in

, France) was a French

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

and parasitologist. Stunkard, H.W. 1977. In Memoriam Robert-Philippe Dollfus (1887–1976). Journal of Parasitology 63: 706 & 727. Grabda, E. 1977. Robert Ph. Dollfus (1887–1976) Wspomnienie Pośmiertne. ''Wiadomości Parazytologiczne'' 23: 463–465.

Career

Robert-Philippe Dollfus was born in Paris on July 20, 1887, in a family of Protestant tradition. His father was Gustave Frédéric Dollfus, famous French

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

and

malacologist Malacology, from Ancient Greek μαλακός (''malakós''), meaning "soft", and λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (molluscs or mollusks), the second-largest ...

. Very early on, he attended the laboratories of Alfred Giard and that of Alfred Blanchard. As early as 1912, at the age of 25, he established the notion of metacercaria, a stage of the lifecycle of

Digenea Digenea (Gr. ''Dis'' – double, ''Genos'' – race) is a class of trematodes in the Platyhelminthes phylum, consisting of parasitic flatworms (known as ''flukes'') with a syncytial tegument and, usually, two suckers, one ventral and one or ...

. In 1914, he was on an oceanographic mission aboard the Research Vessel " Pourquoi Pas?" under the orders of Jean-Baptiste Charcot. During the Second World War, he was a stretcher bearer and auxiliary doctor. Between the wars, he occupied the very modest function of "préparateur" in a laboratory of the

National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. With 4.4 ...

in Paris. However, he was able to carry out scientific expeditions in Morocco (1923-1928), the Red Sea (1928-1929) and in 1929-1930 in the Atlantic on the RV "Pourquoi Pas?". He then studied fish and crustaceans, but began to study parasites, under the supervision of famous French parasitologist Émile Brumpt. In 1941, he defended his thesis on Trypanorhyncha

Cestodes Cestoda is a class of parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum (Platyhelminthes). Most of the species—and the best-known—are those in the subclass Eucestoda; they are ribbon-like worms as adults, commonly known as tapeworms. Their bodies con ...

, published in 1942. He was elected President of the Zoological Society of France in 1940. He then became Director of a laboratory at the École Pratique des Hautes Etudes in Paris. After the Second World War, he became a confirmed and famous helminthologist and parasitologist, but never succeeded in obtaining a post of Professor at the National Museum of Natural History. In 1957, despite his retirement, he continued to work every day at the National Museum of Natural History, practically until his death in 1976. In 1962, he was elected President of the French Society of Parasitology. Every spring, Robert-Philippe Dollfus went to Morocco, where his daughter lived, to work at the Institut Scientifique Chérifien. He produced articles on

helminths Parasitic worms, also known as helminths, are a polyphyletic group of large macroparasites; adults can generally be seen with the naked eye. Many are intestinal worms that are soil-transmitted and infect the gastrointestinal tract. Other par ...

and a Catalog of Fishes from the Atlantic Coast of Morocco. Robert-Philippe Dollfus’s immense scientific collections are now in the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.

Eponymous taxa

A number of taxa, generally parasites, were named in his honour. Genera include the

digenea Digenea (Gr. ''Dis'' – double, ''Genos'' – race) is a class of trematodes in the Platyhelminthes phylum, consisting of parasitic flatworms (known as ''flukes'') with a syncytial tegument and, usually, two suckers, one ventral and one or ...

n ''Dollfustrema'' Eckmann, 1934, the

cestode Cestoda is a class of parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum (Platyhelminthes). Most of the species—and the best-known—are those in the subclass Eucestoda; they are ribbon-like worms as adults, commonly known as tapeworms. Their bodies co ...

''Dollfusiella'' Campbell & Beveridge, 1994, and the Acanthocephala ''Dollfusentis'' Golvan, 1969.Golvan, Y.J. (1969). Systematique des Acanthocephales (Acanthocephala Rudolphi, 1801), L'ordre des Palaeacanthocephala Meyer, 1931, La superfamille des Echinorhynchidea (Cobbold, 1876) Golvan et Houin 1973. Mémoires du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle. 47:1-373. Species include the

nematode The nematodes ( or ; ; ), roundworms or eelworms constitute the phylum Nematoda. Species in the phylum inhabit a broad range of environments. Most species are free-living, feeding on microorganisms, but many are parasitic. Parasitic worms (h ...

'' Hassalstrongylus dollfusi'' (Díaz-Ungría, 1963) Durette-Desset, 1971. Durette-Desset, M.C. 1971. Essai de classification des nématodes héligmosomes. Correlations avec la paléobiogéographie des hôtes. Mémoires du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris (A)69:1–126.

Awards

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(1953)

Books

* Dollfus, R. P. (1942). Notes diverses sur les Tétrarhynques. Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris, 41p. (Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle - Nouvelle Série (1935-1950); 22 (5)). * Dollfus R. P. 1946. Parasites (animaux et végétaux) des Helminthes. Hyperparasites, ennemis et prédateurs des Helminthes parasites et des Helminthes libres. Essai de compilation méthodique. Encyclopédie Biologique, volume XXVII. Paul Lechevalier, Paris, 483 pages. * Dollfus, R. P. F. (1953). Aperçu général sur l'histoire naturelle des parasites animaux de la morue Atlanto-Arctique, ''Gadus callarias'' L. (''Morhua'' L.) (Vol. 43). Paul Lechevalier, Paris. * Dollfus, R. P. 1968. Les Trématodes de l’histoire naturelle des Helminthes de Félix Dujardin (1845). Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris, 77p. (Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Sér. A – Zoologie (1950-1992); 54 (3)).

A few articles

A few articles are listed here, among more than 160 published by Robert-Philippe Dollfus. * * * * * *

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dollfus, Robert-Philippe 1887 births 1976 deaths French parasitologists 20th-century French zoologists French taxonomists Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France) Officers of the Legion of Honour National Museum of Natural History (France) people Scientists from Paris