John Latham

John Latham (June 27, 1740 - February 4, 1837) was an English physician, naturalist and author. Image File history File links Latham_John_1740-1837. ... Image File history File links Latham_John_1740-1837. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... Events May 31 - Friedrich II comes to power in Prussia upon the death of his father, Friedrich Wilhelm I. October 20 - Maria Theresia of Austria inherits the Habsburg hereditary dominions (Austria, Bohemia, Hungary and present-day Belgium). ... February 4 is the 35th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK 50. ... A physician is a person who practices medicine. ... Natural history is an umbrella term for what are now usually viewed as a number of distinct scientific disciplines. ... The word author has several meanings: The author of a book, story, article or the like, is the person who has written it (or is writing it). ...

Latham has been called the "grandfather" of Australian ornithology. He was able to examine specimens of Australian birds which reached England in the last twenty years of the 18th century, and was responsible for naming many of them. These included the Emu, White Cockatoo, Wedge-tailed Eagle, Superb Lyrebird and Australian Magpie. He was also the first to describe the Hyacinth Macaw. Ornithology (from the Greek ornitha = chicken and logos = word/science) is the branch of biology concerned with the scientific study of birds. ... Species Dromaius novaehollandiae Dromaius baudinianus (extinct) Dromaius ater (extinct) Note that the acronym EMU has several meanings. ... Binomial name Cacatua alba (Statius Muller, 1776) The Umbrella Cockatoo, Cacatua alba, of Indonesia at first appears to be a solid white parrot with brown eyes. ... Binomial name Aquila audax (Latham, 1802) The Wedge-tailed Eagle or Arrawa (Aquila audax) is a very large Australasian raptor and the most common of all the worlds large eagles. ... Species Menura novaehollandiae Menura alberti A Lyrebird is either of two large ground-dwelling Australian birds, most notable for their extraordinary ability to mimic natural and artificial sounds from their environment. ... Binomial name Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white bird, closely related to the butcherbirds and currawongs. ... Binomial name Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus (Latham, 1790) The Hyacinth Macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) is the largest species in the macaw family. ...

Latham practised as a physician at Dartford in Kent, where he collected the Dartford Warbler. He retired in 1796 and settled in Hampshire. His main works were A General Synopsis of Birds (1781-1801) and General History of Birds (1821-28). Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. ... Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... Binomial name Sylvia undata (Boddaert, 1783) The Dartford Warbler, Sylvia undata, is an Old World warbler which breeds in the warmer parts of south west Europe and northwest Africa. ... Hampshire (abbr. ...

A General Synopsis of Birds was Latham's first ornithological work and contained 106 illustrations by the author. It described many new species which Latham had discovered in various museums and collections. In this work, like Buffon, he did not attach importance to the names of the species which he described. Later, Latham realised that only the use of the Linnean binomial system would give him the honour of originating the species' scientific names. Thus he published in 1790, a Index Ornithologicus where he specified a binomial name for all the species which he had previously described. Unfortunately it was too late, as Johann Friedrich Gmelin had already published his own version of Linnaeus' Systema Naturæ in which he gave a scientific name to Latham's species; taking into account the rules of nomenclature, Gmelin has priority. Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (September 7, 1707 - April 16, French naturalist, mathematician, biologist, cosmologist and author. ... Johann Friedrich Gmelin (August 8, 1748 - November 1, 1804) was a German naturalist and botanist. ...

Latham maintained a regular correspondence with Thomas Pennant, Joseph Banks, Ashton Lever and others. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1775, and also took part in the creation of the Linnean Society. Thomas Pennant (June 14, 1726 - December 16, 1798) was a Welsh naturalist and antiquary. ... Joseph Banks Sir Joseph Banks, FRS (February 13, 1743 - June 19, 1820) was the English naturalist and botanist on Cooks first great voyage (1768-1771) and some 75 species bear Banks name. ... Sir Ashton Lever (March 5, 1729 - January 28, 1788) was an English collector of natural objects. ... The Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is claimed to be the oldest learned society still in existence. ... The Linnean Society of London is the worlds premier society for the study and dissemination about taxonomy. ...