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Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter

May 04, 2023

G.D. Hale Carpenter MBE (26 October 1882 in Eton, Berkshire – 30 January 1953 in Oxford) was a British entomologist and medical doctor. He worked first at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and in Uganda, on tse-tse flies and sleeping sickness. His main work in zoology was on mimicry in butterflies, an interest he developed in Uganda and Tanganyika. He succeeded E.B. Poulton as Hope Professor of Zoology at Oxford University from 1933 to 1948.[1]

G.D. Hale Carpenter
Born26 October 1882
Eton College, Berkshire, England
Died30 January 1953 (1953-01-31) (aged 70)
Oxford, England
NationalityBritish
Scientific career
FieldsEntomology
InstitutionsJesus College, Oxford
InfluencesEdward Bagnall Poulton
InfluencedE.B. Ford, P.M. Sheppard

Biography

Douglas was a son of Philip Herbert Carpenter DSc FRS, a schoolmaster at Eton College; a grandson of the naturalist and physiologist William Benjamin Carpenter; and a great-grandson of Lant Carpenter, a Unitarian minister.

Carpenter attended St Catherine's College, Oxford, graduating in 1904. He studied medicine at St George's Hospital, London, graduating as a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (the standard combined medical degree at the University of London at that time) in 1908. He then joined the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and became a Doctor of Medicine in 1913 with a dissertation on the tsetse fly (Glossina palpalis) and sleeping sickness.

In 1919 he married Amy Frances Thomas-Peter from Cornwall. The marriage had no issue.

Career

In 1910 he joined the Colonial Medical Service, where he worked in Uganda on the north shore of Lake Victoria. Upon the outbreak of World War I, Carpenter was called to service in the British Army Medical Corps. He was stationed with the troops at the border between Uganda and German East Africa. In December 1914 he was appointed Medical Officer at the fort in Kakindu, southern Uganda. As it turned out, he had plenty of spare time, and spent it studying the local butterflies. "The hosts of butterflies at Kakindu passed beyond anything I had ever see; some days are quite unforgettable".[2]

From May 1916 to January 1918, he worked in Tanganyika (former German E. Africa), 200 miles south to south-east of Lake Victoria. Here he conducted experiments on palatability with young insectivorous monkeys. He tested the edibility of cryptic and aposematic insects. This was propitious, because later, back at Oxford, both he and E.B. Poulton worked on the role of predators in shaping mimicry. The standard theory was that cryptic forms were palatable, and aposematic forms were distasteful, implying that palatable mimics of distasteful forms could gain protection from predation. The question at stake was whether the observations, which dated from work by naturalists in the 19th century, could be accounted for by natural selection.

Mimicry

Further information: Mimicry

In England the geneticist R.C. Punnett, and in America the ornithologist W.L. McAtee, doubted both that birds could distinguish distasteful forms, and that their predation was heavy enough to bring about the colour forms found in butterflies. Punnett's 1915 Mimicry in butterflies rejected selection as the main cause of mimicry. He noted:

1. The absence of transitional forms and the frequent lack of mimicry in male butterflies were unexplained by selectionist theory.
2. The enigma of polymorphic mimicry. Some species of butterfly mimicked not merely one, but several models. In breeding experiments these polymorphs cleanly segregated according to Mendel’s law of segregation.
3. Evidence of birds as selective agents was slight and little was known of birds' discriminatory powers, and
4. The gradual accumulation of minute variations did not fit with the facts of heredity.

For Punnett, none of these observations were explained by gradual selectionism. Instead he thought mimicry had arisen from sudden mutational jumps (saltations). Once a mimic was formed by mutation, natural selection might play a conservative role.

However, one by one, each of these objections were shown to be without substance. Evidence from field observations and experiments showed that birds were often the agents of selection in insects.[3][4][5] Evidence that small-scale mutations were common arrived as soon as breeding experiments were designed to detect them: it was a consequence of experimental methods that early mutations were so noteworthy. Explanations for polymorphism were advanced by E.B. Ford and Dobzhansky and colleagues, who developed experimental methods for populations in the wild.[6][7] The question of polymorphism is discussed further in polymorphism (biology).

The gradual coming-together of field observations and experimental genetics is part of the evolutionary synthesis which took place in the middle of the twentieth century.[8] The small 1933 book on mimicry by Carpenter and E.B. Ford[3] was the first book on ecological genetics, a field which produced a series of classic studies uniting fieldwork with laboratory genetics.[6] The book is a minor masterpiece of evolutionary biology.

Legacy

Carpenter is commemorated in the scientific names of two species of African reptiles: Chilorhinophis carpenteri and Kinyongia carpenteri.[9]

Obituaries

  • Hobby, B.M. (1953). "Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter". British Medical Journal 1: 406.
  • Remington, Charles L. (1954). "Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter". Lepidopterist's News 8: 31–43.

References

  1. ^ Remington, Charles L. (1954). "Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter". Lepidopterist's News 8: 31-43.
  2. ^ Carpenter, G.D.H. (1925). A Naturalist in East Africa. p. 23.
  3. ^ a b Carpenter, G.D.H.; Ford, E.B. (1933). Mimicry. London: Methuen.
  4. ^ Brower, L.P. (1988). Mimicry and the Evolutionary Process. Chicago.
  5. ^ Endler, J.A. (1986). Natural Selection in the Wild. Princeton.
  6. ^ a b Ford, E.B. (1975). Ecological Genetics, Fourth edition. London: Chapman and Hall.
  7. ^ Dobzhansky, Theodosius (1970). Genetics of the Evolutionary Process. New York: Columbia University Press.
  8. ^ Huxley, J.S. (1942). Evolution: the Modern Synthesis. Allen and Unwin.
  9. ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Carpenter, G.D.H.", p. 48).

Publications

  • (1920) A Naturalist on Lake Victoria, with an Account of Sleeping Sickness and the Tse–tse Fly. London: Unwin.
  • (1921) "Experiments on the relative edibility of insects, with special reference to their coloration". Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society, London 54: 1–105.
  • with E.B. Ford (1933). Mimicry. London: Methuen.
  • (1933) "Gregarious roosting habits of aposematic butterflies". Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London 8: 110–111.
  • (1935) "The Rhopalocera of Abyssinia a faunistic study". Trans. R. Entomol. Soc. London 83 : 313–447.
  • (1936) "Charles Darwin and entomology". Transactions of the South–eastern Union of Scientific Societies. Papers Contributed to Congress 1936: 1–23.
  • (1938) "Audible emission of defensive froth by insects with an appendix on the anatomical structures concerned in a moth by H. Eltringham". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 108: 243–252.
  • (1939) "Birds as enemies of butterflies, with special reference to mimicry". Proceedings, VII Internationaler Kongress für Entomologie, Berlin 1938: 1061–1074.
  • (1941) "The relative frequency of beakmarks on butterflies of different edibility to birds". Proc. Zool. Soc. London (Series A) 3: 223–231.
  • (1947) "The writings of I. Portschinsky on warning colours and eyespots". Proc. Entomol. Soc. London. Series A. General Entomology 22: 103–113.
  • (1949) "Pseudacraea eurytus (L.) (Lep. Nymphalidae): a study of a polymorphic mimic in various degrees of speciation". Trans. R. Entomol. Soc. London 100: 71–133.
  • (1953) "The genus Euploea (Lep. Danaidae) in Microneia, Melanesia, Polynesia and Australia. A zoo–geographical study". Trans. Zool. Soc. London 28: 1–184, plates 1–9.

External links

  • Carpenter, G.D. Hale (1920). A Naturalist on Lake Victoria, with an Account of Sleeping Sickness and the Tse-tse Fly. London: T.F. Unwin Ltd. Biodiversity Archive

May 04, 2023
geoffrey, douglas, hale, carpenter, hale, carpenter, october, 1882, eton, berkshire, january, 1953, oxford, british, entomologist, medical, doctor, worked, first, london, school, hygiene, tropical, medicine, uganda, flies, sleeping, sickness, main, work, zoolo. G D Hale Carpenter MBE 26 October 1882 in Eton Berkshire 30 January 1953 in Oxford was a British entomologist and medical doctor He worked first at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and in Uganda on tse tse flies and sleeping sickness His main work in zoology was on mimicry in butterflies an interest he developed in Uganda and Tanganyika He succeeded E B Poulton as Hope Professor of Zoology at Oxford University from 1933 to 1948 1 G D Hale CarpenterBorn26 October 1882Eton College Berkshire EnglandDied30 January 1953 1953 01 31 aged 70 Oxford EnglandNationalityBritishScientific careerFieldsEntomologyInstitutionsJesus College OxfordInfluencesEdward Bagnall PoultonInfluencedE B Ford P M Sheppard Contents 1 Biography 2 Career 2 1 Mimicry 3 Legacy 4 Obituaries 5 References 6 Publications 7 External linksBiography EditDouglas was a son of Philip Herbert Carpenter DSc FRS a schoolmaster at Eton College a grandson of the naturalist and physiologist William Benjamin Carpenter and a great grandson of Lant Carpenter a Unitarian minister Carpenter attended St Catherine s College Oxford graduating in 1904 He studied medicine at St George s Hospital London graduating as a Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Surgery the standard combined medical degree at the University of London at that time in 1908 He then joined the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and became a Doctor of Medicine in 1913 with a dissertation on the tsetse fly Glossina palpalis and sleeping sickness In 1919 he married Amy Frances Thomas Peter from Cornwall The marriage had no issue Career EditIn 1910 he joined the Colonial Medical Service where he worked in Uganda on the north shore of Lake Victoria Upon the outbreak of World War I Carpenter was called to service in the British Army Medical Corps He was stationed with the troops at the border between Uganda and German East Africa In December 1914 he was appointed Medical Officer at the fort in Kakindu southern Uganda As it turned out he had plenty of spare time and spent it studying the local butterflies The hosts of butterflies at Kakindu passed beyond anything I had ever see some days are quite unforgettable 2 From May 1916 to January 1918 he worked in Tanganyika former German E Africa 200 miles south to south east of Lake Victoria Here he conducted experiments on palatability with young insectivorous monkeys He tested the edibility of cryptic and aposematic insects This was propitious because later back at Oxford both he and E B Poulton worked on the role of predators in shaping mimicry The standard theory was that cryptic forms were palatable and aposematic forms were distasteful implying that palatable mimics of distasteful forms could gain protection from predation The question at stake was whether the observations which dated from work by naturalists in the 19th century could be accounted for by natural selection Mimicry Edit Further information Mimicry In England the geneticist R C Punnett and in America the ornithologist W L McAtee doubted both that birds could distinguish distasteful forms and that their predation was heavy enough to bring about the colour forms found in butterflies Punnett s 1915 Mimicry in butterflies rejected selection as the main cause of mimicry He noted 1 The absence of transitional forms and the frequent lack of mimicry in male butterflies were unexplained by selectionist theory 2 The enigma of polymorphic mimicry Some species of butterfly mimicked not merely one but several models In breeding experiments these polymorphs cleanly segregated according to Mendel s law of segregation 3 Evidence of birds as selective agents was slight and little was known of birds discriminatory powers and 4 The gradual accumulation of minute variations did not fit with the facts of heredity For Punnett none of these observations were explained by gradual selectionism Instead he thought mimicry had arisen from sudden mutational jumps saltations Once a mimic was formed by mutation natural selection might play a conservative role However one by one each of these objections were shown to be without substance Evidence from field observations and experiments showed that birds were often the agents of selection in insects 3 4 5 Evidence that small scale mutations were common arrived as soon as breeding experiments were designed to detect them it was a consequence of experimental methods that early mutations were so noteworthy Explanations for polymorphism were advanced by E B Ford and Dobzhansky and colleagues who developed experimental methods for populations in the wild 6 7 The question of polymorphism is discussed further in polymorphism biology The gradual coming together of field observations and experimental genetics is part of the evolutionary synthesis which took place in the middle of the twentieth century 8 The small 1933 book on mimicry by Carpenter and E B Ford 3 was the first book on ecological genetics a field which produced a series of classic studies uniting fieldwork with laboratory genetics 6 The book is a minor masterpiece of evolutionary biology Legacy EditCarpenter is commemorated in the scientific names of two species of African reptiles Chilorhinophis carpenteri and Kinyongia carpenteri 9 Obituaries Edit Biography portalHobby B M 1953 Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter British Medical Journal 1 406 Remington Charles L 1954 Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter Lepidopterist s News 8 31 43 References Edit Remington Charles L 1954 Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter Lepidopterist s News 8 31 43 Carpenter G D H 1925 A Naturalist in East Africa p 23 a b Carpenter G D H Ford E B 1933 Mimicry London Methuen Brower L P 1988 Mimicry and the Evolutionary Process Chicago Endler J A 1986 Natural Selection in the Wild Princeton a b Ford E B 1975 Ecological Genetics Fourth edition London Chapman and Hall Dobzhansky Theodosius 1970 Genetics of the Evolutionary Process New York Columbia University Press Huxley J S 1942 Evolution the Modern Synthesis Allen and Unwin Beolens Bo Watkins Michael Grayson Michael 2011 The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles Baltimore Johns Hopkins University Press xiii 296 pp ISBN 978 1 4214 0135 5 Carpenter G D H p 48 Publications Edit 1920 A Naturalist on Lake Victoria with an Account of Sleeping Sickness and the Tse tse Fly London Unwin 1921 Experiments on the relative edibility of insects with special reference to their coloration Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society London 54 1 105 with E B Ford 1933 Mimicry London Methuen 1933 Gregarious roosting habits of aposematic butterflies Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London 8 110 111 1935 The Rhopalocera of Abyssinia a faunistic study Trans R Entomol Soc London 83 313 447 1936 Charles Darwin and entomology Transactions of the South eastern Union of Scientific Societies Papers Contributed to Congress 1936 1 23 1938 Audible emission of defensive froth by insects with an appendix on the anatomical structures concerned in a moth by H Eltringham Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 108 243 252 1939 Birds as enemies of butterflies with special reference to mimicry Proceedings VII Internationaler Kongress fur Entomologie Berlin 1938 1061 1074 1941 The relative frequency of beakmarks on butterflies of different edibility to birds Proc Zool Soc London Series A 3 223 231 1947 The writings of I Portschinsky on warning colours and eyespots Proc Entomol Soc London Series A General Entomology 22 103 113 1949 Pseudacraea eurytus L Lep Nymphalidae a study of a polymorphic mimic in various degrees of speciation Trans R Entomol Soc London 100 71 133 1953 The genus Euploea Lep Danaidae in Microneia Melanesia Polynesia and Australia A zoo geographical study Trans Zool Soc London 28 1 184 plates 1 9 External links EditCarpenter G D Hale 1920 A Naturalist on Lake Victoria with an Account of Sleeping Sickness and the Tse tse Fly London T F Unwin Ltd Biodiversity Archive Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Geoffrey Douglas Hale Carpenter amp oldid 1152610152, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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