Thomas Say.

Thomas Say (June 27, 1787 – October 10, 1834) was an American naturalist, entomologist, malacologist and carcinologist. He was a taxonomist and is often considered to be the founder of descriptive entomology in the United States and one of the founding fathers of the Entomological Society of America (ESA). ESA maintains several series of publications and awards that are named after Say. Image File history File links Say_Thomas_1787-1834. ... Image File history File links Say_Thomas_1787-1834. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 1787 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... October 10 is the 283rd day of the year (284th in Leap years). ... 1834 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Table of natural history, 1728 Cyclopaedia Natural history is an umbrella term for what are now usually viewed as several distinct scientific disciplines. ... Entomology is the scientific study of insects. ... Classes Caudofoveata Aplacophora Polyplacophora - Chitons Monoplacophora Bivalvia - Bivalves Scaphopoda - Tusk shells Gastropoda - Snails and Slugs Cephalopoda - Squids, Octopuses, etc. ... Lobster Carcinology is a branch of both zoology and biology that deals with the science of crustaceans. ... Taxonomy (from Greek ταξινομία from the words taxis = order and nomos = law) may refer to either a hierarchical classification of things, or the principles underlying the classification. ... Entomology is the scientific study of insects. ... The Entomological Society of America (ESA) was founded in 1889 and today has more than 6,000 members, including educators, extension personnel, consultants, students, researchers, and scientists from agricultural departments, health agencies, private industries, colleges and universities, and state and federal governments. ...

Thomas Say was born in Philadelphia into a prominent Quaker family. He was the great grandson of John Bartram, and the great-nephew of William Bartram, whom Say frequently visited as a boy with butterfly and beetle specimens. Philadelphia is a village located in Jefferson County, New York. ... The Religious Society of Friends (commonly known as Quakers or Friends) was founded in England in the 17th century by people who were dissatisfied with the existing denominations and sects of Christianity. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... William Bartram (April 20, 1739 -July 22, 1823) was an American naturalist, the son of John Bartram. ...

Say became an apothecary in his native town, but his interests soon turned to nature and he became a self-taught naturalist. In 1812 he became a charter member and founder of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANSP). The Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia was founded in 1812 to expand knowledge of the natural world. ...

In 1816 he met Charles Alexandre Lesueur (1778-1846), a French naturalist, malacologist, and ichthyologist who also became a member of the Academy and later its curator, between 1816 and 1824. Lesueur in 1818, painted by Charles Wilson Peale. ...

Say began his work on American Entomology at the Academy. He began a tradition of expeditions to collect specimens of insects. These expeditions were not without risks: Indian attacks, dangers of the frontier, hazards of traveling in wild countryside.

In 1818 Say accompanied his friend William Maclure (1763-1840), president of the ANSP (1817-1840) and father of American geology, Gerhard Troost, a geologist, and other members of the Academy on a geological expedition to the off-shore islands of Georgia and Florida, then a Spanish colony. William Maclure (1763 - March 23, 1840) was an American geologist. ... The Blue Marble: The famous photo of the Earth taken en route to the Moon by Apollo 17s Harrison Schmitt on December 7, 1972. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

In 1819-1820, Major Stephen Harriman Long led an exploration to the Rocky Mountains and the tributaries of the Missouri River with Thomas Say as zoologist. The official account of this expedition included the first descriptions of the Coyote, Swift Fox, Western Kingbird, Band-tailed Pigeon, Rock Wren, Say's Phoebe, Lesser Goldfinch, Lark Sparrow, Lazuli Bunting and Orange-crowned Warbler. Stephen Harriman Long (1784 - 1864) was a U.S. army officer and explorer. ... White Goat Wilderness Area, Alberta, Canada View of the Rocky Mountains as depicted on the Colorado state quarter The Rocky Mountains, often called the Rockies, are a broad mountain range in western North America. ... The Missouri River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the United States. ... This article or section seems not to be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopaedia entry. ... Binomial name Vulpes velox (Say, 1823) The Swift Fox (Vulpes velox) is a small fox found in the western grasslands of North America, for example in Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. ... Binomial name Tyrannus verticalis Say, 1823 The Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis) is a large Tyrant flycatcher. ... Binomial name Columba fasciata (Say, 1823) The Band-tailed Pigeon, Columba (or Patagioenas) fasciata, is a medium-sized bird of the Americas. ... Binomial name Salpinctes obsoletus (Say,, 1823) The Rock Wren, Salpinctes obsoletus, is a small songbird of the Wren family. ... Binomial name Sayornis saya (Bonaparte, 1825) The Says Phoebe, Sayornis saya, is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family. ... Binomial name Carduelis psaltria (Say, 1823) The Lesser or Dark-backed Goldfinch, Carduelis psaltria, is a very small songbird of the Americas. ... Binomial name Chondestes grammacus (Say, 1823) The Lark Sparrow, Chondestes grammacus, is a fairly large sparrow. ... Binomial name Passerina amoena (Say, 1823) The Lazuli Bunting is an North American songbird named for the gemstone lapis lazuli. ... Binomial name Vermivora celata (Say, 1823) The Orange-crowned Warbler, Vermivora celata, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. ...

In 1823, Say served as chief zoologist in Long's expedition to the headwaters of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi River, derived from the old Ojibwe word misi-ziibi meaning great river (gichi-ziibi big river at its headwaters), is the second-longest river in the United States; the longest is the Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi. ...

Papilio turnus, from 'American Entomology'

Thomas Say travelled on the famous "Boatload of Knowledge" to an utopian society experiment, the "New Harmony Settlement" in Indiana (1826-1834), a venture of Robert Owen. One of the passengers was Lucy Way Sistare, whom Say married secretly near New Harmony on January 4, 1827. She was an artist and illustrator of specimens (such as in the book 'American Conchology') who later became the first female member of the Academy. He was accompanied by Maclure, Lesueur, Francis Neef, an educator, and Gerhard Troost. There he later met another naturalist, Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (1783-1840). Download high resolution version (431x700, 30 KB)Papilio. ... Download high resolution version (431x700, 30 KB)Papilio. ... It has been suggested that utopianism be merged into this article or section. ... New Harmony is a town located in Posey County, Indiana. ... Official language(s) English Capital Indianapolis Largest city Indianapolis Area  Ranked 38th  - Total 36,418 sq mi (94,321 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 270 miles (435 km)  - % water 1. ... Robert Owen Robert Owen continues to be looked up to in this Manchester statue Robert Owen (May 14, 1771 – November 17, 1858) was a Welsh socialist and social reformer. ... C. S. Rafinesque Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (October 22, 1783-September 18, 1840) was a nineteenth-century polymath who led a chaotic life. ...

In the settlement of New Harmony, Thomas Say carried on his monumental work describing insects and mollusks, leading to two classic works:

• American Entomology, or Descriptions of the Insects of North America, 3 volumes, Philadelphia, 1824-1828.
• American Conchology, or Descriptions of the Shells of North America Illustrated From Coloured Figures From Original Drawings Executed from Nature, Parts 1 - 6, New Harmony, 1830-1834; Part 7, Philadelphia, 1836.

During their years in New Harmony both Say and Lesueur experienced considerable difficulties. Say was a modest and unassuming man, living frugally, like a hermit, abandoning commercial activities and devoting himself to his studies. Conchology is the collection and study of the shells of mollusks. ...

He died, apparently from typhoid fever, in New Harmony, Indiana, on 10 October 1834, only 47 years old. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Say described over 1,000 new species of beetles and over 400 species of insects of other orders. No single individual before had discovered more new species than him. Suborders Adephaga Archostemata Myxophaga Polyphaga See subgroups of the order Coleoptera Beetles are one of the most diverse groups of insects. ... Classes & Orders See taxonomy Insects are invertebrate animals of the Class Insecta, the largest and (on land) most widely-distributed taxon within the phylum Arthropoda. ...

Other zoologists honored him by naming several species after him, such as

• Say's Mud Crab, Caribbean Mud Crab Dyspanopeus (Neopanope) sayi (Smith 1869)
• Lanceola sayana (Bovallius 1885), an amphipod from the family Lanceolidae
• Say's Phoebe, Sayornis saya (Bonaparte 1825), a bird in the tyrant flycatcher family.

Families about 200 partial list Alpheidae Ampeliscidae Amphilochidae Ampithoidae Anisogammaridae Aoridae Artesiidae Bogideillidae Bosminidae Caprellidae Corophiidae Crangonyctidae Eusiridae Gammaridae Hadziidae Haustoriidae Iphimediidae Ischyroceridae Leucothoidae Liljeborgiidae Lysianassidae Melitidae Phoxocephalidae Sebidae Talitridae Amphipoda (amphipods) include about 4600 different species of small, shrimp_like crustaceans. ... Binomial name Sayornis saya (Bonaparte, 1825) The Says Phoebe, Sayornis saya, is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family. ... Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte (May 24, 1803 – July 29, 1857) was a French naturalist and ornithologist. ... 1825 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Genera Many, see text. ...

Reference

• John L. Le Conte, The Complete Writings of Thomas Say on the Entomology of North America, two volumes, Baillière Brothers, New York, 1859

John Lawrence LeConte (May 13, 1825 - November 15, 1883) was the most important American entomologist of the 19th century, responsible for naming and describing a large number of insect taxa, particularly beetles. ...

External links

• Bird names honoring Thomas Say
• Insect names honoring Thomas Say
• Fishes named honoring Thomas Say
• New Harmony
• Thomas Say in New Harmony