Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (sometimes Latinized as Johannes Antonius Scopolius) (3 June 1723 – 8 May 1788) was an Italian physician and naturalist. His biographer Otto Guglia named him the "first anational European" and the "

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, t ...

of the Austrian Empire".

Biography

Scopoli was born at

Cavalese Cavalese (''Cavalés'' in local dialect) is a ''comune'' of 4,004 inhabitants in Trentino, northern Italy, a ski resort and the main center in the Fiemme Valley. It is part of the Magnifica Comunità di Fiemme (Magnificent Community of Fiemme) a ...

in the

Val di Fiemme 300px, Location of the Fiemme Valley in Trentino. 300px, The Val di Fiemme, german: Fleimstal) is a valley in the Trentino Provinces of Italy">province, i.e. the southern half of the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol Regions of Italy, region, in nor ...

, belonging to the

Bishopric of Trent Bishopric of Trent may refer to: * Roman Catholic Diocese of Trent, spiritual jurisdiction of the bishop of Trent, an archdiocese since 1929 * Prince-Bishopric of Trent, secular jurisdiction of the bishop as a prince of the Holy Roman Empire be ...

(today's

Trentino Trentino ( lld, Trentin), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous regio ...

), son of Francesco Antonio, military commissioner, and Claudia Caterina Gramola (1699-1791), painter from a patrician family from Trentino. He obtained a degree in medicine at

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (german: Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck; la, Universitas Leopoldino Franciscea) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. ...

, and practiced as a doctor in Cavalese and

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

.Newton, Alfred 1881. ''Scopoli's ornithological papers.'' The Willoughby Society
Scanned version
/ref> Much of his time was spent in the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, ...

, collecting plants and

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

s, of which he made outstanding collections. He spent two years as private secretary to the bishop of Seckau, and then was appointed in 1754 as physician of the mercury mines in

Idrija Idrija (, in older sources ''Zgornja Idrija''; german: (Ober)idria, it, Idria) is a town in western Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Idrija. It is located in the traditional region of Inner Carniola and is in the Gorizia Statis ...

, a small town in the Habsburg realm, remaining there until 1769. In 1761, he published ''De Hydroargyro Idriensi Tentamina'' on the symptoms of

mercury poisoning Mercury poisoning is a type of metal poisoning due to exposure to mercury. Symptoms depend upon the type, dose, method, and duration of exposure. They may include muscle weakness, poor coordination, numbness in the hands and feet, skin rash ...

among mercury miners. Scopoli Harrier 1786

Scopoli spent time studying the local natural history, publishing '' Flora Carniolica'' (1760) as well as a major work on the insects of

Carniola Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region st ...

, '' Entomologia Carniolica'' (1763). He also published a series of ''Anni Historico-Naturales'' (1769–1772), which included first descriptions of birds from various collections. In 1769, Scopoli was appointed a professor of chemistry and metallurgy at Mining Academy at Schemnitz (now

Banská Štiavnica Banská Štiavnica (; german: Schemnitz; hu, Selmecbánya (Selmec), ) is a town in central Slovakia, in the middle of an immense caldera created by the collapse of an ancient volcano. For its size, the caldera is known as the Štiavnica Mountai ...

, Slovakia), and in 1777 transferred to the

University of Pavia The University of Pavia ( it, Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; la, Alma Ticinensis Universitas) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it on ...

. He became a bitter rival of

Lazzaro Spallanzani Lazzaro Spallanzani (; 12 January 1729 – 11 February 1799) was an Italian Catholic priest (for which he was nicknamed Abbé Spallanzani), biologist and physiologist who made important contributions to the experimental study of bodily function ...

, who was accused of stealing specimens from the Pavia museum. Spallanzani was tried and the prolonged trial resulted in acquittal. Shortly thereafter, Scopoli died of a stroke. His last work was ''Deliciae Flora et Fauna Insubricae'' (1786–1788), which included scientific names for birds and mammals in northwestern Italy described by

Pierre Sonnerat Pierre Sonnerat (18 August 1748 – 31 March 1814) was a French naturalist, colonial administrator, writer and explorer. He described numerous species of plants and animals on his travels and is honoured in the genus ''Sonneratia'' and in other ...

in the accounts of his voyages. Scopoli corresponded with

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, ...

, a Swedish botanist who laid the foundations of modern

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

. Scopoli communicated all of his research, findings, and descriptions (for example of the

olm The olm or proteus (''Proteus anguinus'') is an aquatic salamander in the family Proteidae, the only exclusively cave-dwelling chordate species found in Europe. In contrast to most amphibians, it is entirely aquatic, eating, sleeping, and b ...

and the

dormouse A dormouse is a rodent of the family Gliridae (this family is also variously called Myoxidae or Muscardinidae by different taxonomists). Dormice are nocturnal animals found in Africa, Asia, and Europe. They are named for their long, dormant hib ...

, two little animals hitherto unknown to Linnaeus). Linnaeus greatly respected him and showed great interest in his work. Because of a great distance, they never met. Scopoli is frequently mentioned by Gilbert White in his "Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne".

Works

''Flora Carniolica'' (1760)
a

flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...

, part of modern-day

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

Scopoli, Giovanni Antonio – Principia mineralogiae systematicae et practicae, 1772 – BEIC 11984140

** : A revised second edition of the first elaborate description of the flora of Carniola, undertaken when Scopoli lived in Idrija. It has 66 plates engraved by J. F. Rein after original drawings by Scopoli. Whereas the unillustrated first edition of 1760 of 600 pages had no binary names for the plant species, this edition has binary names and is written in the Linnaean tradition in all other respects as well. *''De Hydroargyro Idriensi Tentamina'' (1761): a medical work on the symptoms of mercury poisoning among miners. *''Entomologia Carniolica''. Vienna: Trattner. (1763): a major work on

entomology Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

containing many descriptions of new species. * *''Joh. Ant. Scopoli der Arzneywissenschaft Doktors, Ihro... Majest. Cameralphysici in der Bergstadt Idria ... Einleitung zur Kenntniß und Gebrauch der Foßilien,'' Hartknoch4031. Göttingen: Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Riga (1769). In German. Doctoral Thesis. *''Anni Historico-Naturales'' (1769–1772): This work included descriptions of new birds. * * *''Introductio ad historiam naturalem, sistens genera lapidum, plantarum et animalium hactenus detecta, caracteribus essentialibus donata, in tribus divisa, subinde ad leges naturae''. Prague. (1777): masterwork of natural history describing world genera and species. *''Fundamenta Botanica Praelectionibus publicis accomodata''. Papiae, S. Salvatoris (1783): A botanical classic with ten engraved plates each depicting ten to sixteen exact drawings. *With

Pierre Joseph Macquer Pierre-Joseph Macquer (9 October 1718 – 15 February 1784) was an influential French chemist. He is known for his ''Dictionnaire de chymie'' (1766). He was also involved in practical applications, to medicine and industry, such as the French dev ...

, ''Dizionario di chimica del Sig. Pietro Giuseppe Macquer … Tradotto dal francese e corredato di note e di nuovi articoli...'' Pavia: printed at the Monastery of San Salvatore for G. Bianchi (1783–1784): The chemist Joseph Macquer's Dictionnaire de chymie, the first dictionary of theoretical and general chemistry was written it in haste and concerned about his reputation, Macquer published it anonymously in 1766. Its huge success prompted the preparation of a revised second edition (1778). Then Scopoli translated and extensively augmented it. A second edition of the translated work, without further additions was published in Venice in 1784–1785. *''Deliciae Flora et Fauna Insubricae Ticini'' (1786–1788): an account including new descriptions of the birds and mammals collected by

on his voyages. * * *

Some taxa named by Scopoli

*'' Emerita'' (genus) 1777, mole crab, sand crab, sand bug (

Hippidae Hippidae is a family of decapod crustaceans, currently known by the English name as either mole crab or sand crab, and by an earlier English name as sand bug. They are closely related to the family Albuneidae, with which they are usually joined ...

), East Pacific sandy seashores *'' Battus'' (genus) 1777, Swallowtail butterfly (

Papilionidae Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the larges ...

), South America *''

Rhagonycha fulva ''Rhagonycha fulva'', the common red soldier beetle, also misleadingly known as the bloodsucker beetle, and popularly known in England as the hogweed bonking beetle is a species of soldier beetle (Cantharidae). Taxonomy ''Rhagonycha fulva'' was ...

'' 1763, soldier beetle (

Cantharidae The soldier beetles (Cantharidae) are relatively soft-bodied, straight-sided beetles. They are cosmopolitan in distribution. One of the first described species has a color pattern reminiscent of the red coats of early British soldiers, hence the ...

), Europe *'' Cucujus cinnaberinus'' 1763, flat bark beetle (

Cucujidae The Cucujidae, "flat bark beetles," are a family of distinctively flat beetles found worldwide (except Africa and Antarctica) under the bark of dead trees. The family has received considerable taxonomic attention in recent years and now consists ...

), Europe *'' Osmoderma eremita'' 1763, hermit beetle (

Scarabaeidae The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family has undergone significant change in recent years. Several sub ...

), Europe *''

Sargus bipunctatus ''Sargus bipunctatus'', the twin-spot centurion, is a European species of soldier fly. Description Body length 10 to 14 mm. Frons less broad than in '' Sargus cuprarius''. The mesonotum is metallic green; the abdomen brown, with a violet ...

'' 1763, soldier fly species ( Diptera), Europe *'' Bombus pascuorum'' 1763,

bumblebee A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related gene ...

species ( Hymenoptera), Europe *''

Aphis fabae The black bean aphid (''Aphis fabae'') is a small black insect in the genus ''Aphis'', with a broad, soft body, a member of the order Hemiptera. Other common names include blackfly, bean aphid, and beet leaf aphid. In the warmer months of the ye ...

'' 1763, bean aphid (Hemiptera), Worldwide *Proboscidea (Order, invalid) 1763, thrips, cicadas, Hemiptera: major grouping in ''Entomologia Carniolica'' *''

Amanita caesarea ''Amanita caesarea'', commonly known as Caesar's mushroom, is a highly regarded edible mushroom in the genus '' Amanita'', native to southern Europe and North Africa. While it was first described by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli in 1772, this m ...

'' 1772, Caesar's mushroom (edible and highly prized) *'' Laccaria laccata'' 1772, deceiver mushroom *Caudata (Order, invalid),

salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...

s: clade as major grouping of Amphibians *'' Dolichovespula sylvestris'' 1763, tree wasp, Europe and Asia

Some taxa dedicated to Scopoli

*''

Scopolia ''Scopolia'' is a genus of four species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae, native to Europe and Asia. The genus is named after Giovanni Scopoli (1723–88), a Tyrolean naturalist. The genus has a disjunct distribution, with two recog ...

'', a genus of plants, and the

alkaloid Alkaloids are a class of basic BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Th ...

scopolamine Scopolamine, also known as hyoscine, or Devil's Breath, is a natural or synthetically produced tropane alkaloid and anticholinergic drug that is formally used as a medication for treating motion sickness and postoperative nausea and vomit ...

isolated from such plants *''

'', a genus of moths *''

Cerambyx scopolii ''Cerambyx scopolii'' is species of longhorn beetle The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized by extremely lo ...

'' (Fuessly, 1775), a

longhorn beetle The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized by extremely long antennae, which are often as long as or longer than ...

(

Cerambycidae The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized by extremely long antennae, which are often as long as or longer than ...

), Europe *'' Dorcadion scopolii'' ( Herbst, 1784), a

(

), Europe

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Scopoli, Giovanni Antonio Physicians in the Holy Roman Empire 18th-century Italian botanists 18th-century Carniolan people 18th-century Austrian zoologists 1723 births 1788 deaths Austrian arachnologists Austrian mycologists Austrian ornithologists Austrian taxonomists Botanists with author abbreviations Carniolan botanists Carniolan geologists Carniolan physicians Italian emigrants to Austria Italian lepidopterists Italian mycologists Italian ornithologists People from Cavalese People from Tyrol (state) Phycologists Pteridologists 18th-century Latin-language writers 18th-century Italian zoologists