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William Yarrell

January 01, 1970

William Yarrell (3 June 1784 – 1 September 1856) was an English zoologist, prolific writer, bookseller and naturalist admired by his contemporaries for his precise scientific work.[1]

William Yarrell
William Yarrell by Maull & Polyblank, (albumen print arched top, 1855)
Born(1784-06-03)3 June 1784
Westminster, London, England
Died1 September 1856(1856-09-01) (aged 72)
Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England
Known forA History of British Birds, 1843
Scientific career
FieldsZoology, ornithology

Yarrell is best known as the author of A History of British Fishes (2 vols., 1836) and A History of British Birds featuring 564 original engravings (in 3 vols., first ed. 1843, second ed. 1845, third ed. 1856).[2] The latter went into several editions and was the standard reference work for a generation of British ornithologists. He described Bewick's swan in 1830, distinguishing it from the larger whooper swan.

Early life edit

Yarrell was born in Duke Street, St James's in London, to Francis Yarrell and his wife Sarah (née Blane). His father and uncle ran a newspaper agency and bookshop.[1] He studied at Dr Nicholson's school in Ealing.[1] His father died in 1794 and the Yarrells moved the short distance to Great Ryder Street, where William lived the rest of his life.[3] In 1802 he became a clerk with the Herries, Farquhar and Co. bank. In 1803 he and his cousin, Edward Jones, joined his father's business.[4] He sometimes left the business in Jones's care, going into the countryside to fish and shoot.[1] He acquired the reputation of being the best shot and the best angler in London, soon becoming an expert naturalist. He sent many bird specimens to Thomas Bewick, who engraved them as woodcuts for his own book of British birds.[1]

Career edit

 
Egyptian vulture in Yarrell's A History of British Birds (1843)

He joined the Royal Institution in 1817.[4] His first publication, at the age of 40, was "On the Occurrence of some Rare British Birds" (1825).[4] This was published in the 2nd volume of the 'Zoological Journal' and he later became one of that journal's editors. He was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society in 1825. He wrote in 1827 on the structure of the tracheae of birds and on plumage changes in pheasants. He corresponded and shared specimens with other naturalists including Thomas Bewick (from 1825),[4] Sir William Jardine, Prideaux John Selby and Nicholas Aylward Vigors,[1] as well as with the Cornish naturalist Jonathan Couch, who provided him with many specimens, especially of fish.[5]

Yarrell was one of the original members of the Zoological Society of London. In 1833, he was a founder of what became the Royal Entomological Society of London. He was acknowledged by John James Audubon both as a "valued friend" and for the information and "precious specimens of birds and eggs, collected in the desolate regions of the extreme north."[6] He served for many years as treasurer both of the Entomological Society and of the Linnean Society.[4]

Works edit

Further information: A History of British Birds (1843)

Yarrell's major works were A History of British Fishes (1836)[7] and A History of British Birds (1843), the latter having the same title as the popular book by Thomas Bewick, published from 1797 to 1804, but with a different set of engravings.[8]

British Birds was first published "in thirty-seven parts of three sheets each, at intervals of two months; the first Part was issued in July 1837 and the last in May 1843."[9] The sheets were then collected into two volumes, with the addition of "many occurrences of rare birds and of some that were even new to Britain". The additional birds were listed and briefly described in the Preface and "the new subjects have been engraved on single leaves, so paged, that the bookbinder may insert these separate leaves among the birds of the genus to which each respectively belongs."[9]

British Birds was illustrated with drawings by Alexander Fussell. Yarrell thanks him for "nearly five hundred of the drawings on wood here employed". The pen for the remaining drawings (the title-page asserts there are 520 in the book) is not stated. Yarrell also thanks John Thompson (1785–1866) and his sons for the "very long series of engravings" of the drawings, as well as his printers, Messrs. Bentley, Wilson and Fley.[9][10][11][12]

At the time of its release, Yarrell's Birds was considered the best work on the subject both scientifically and artistically, as noted by Prof. Alfred Newton in his "Prospectus" to the 1871 edition,[2] from which Yarrell's introduction was removed along with the names of contributing artists under Thompson's direction.[10] Both Yarrell's books were so popular that their publisher John van Voorst stated that sales exceeded £4,000.[4] Thomas R. Forbes, in his biographical paper on Yarrell, writes that "All [editions of Birds] are outstanding because of the author's clear, narrative style, accuracy, careful scholarship and unassuming charm."[3]

Yarrell's last paper, "On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in Modifying External Character" (1856), described an experiment that disproved the belief that when a stag lacks a healthy testicle, it will fail to grow an antler on that side of the body.[3]

Legacy edit

Yarrell died during a trip to Great Yarmouth and a memorial was erected in St James's Church, Piccadilly. He was buried in the churchyard of St Mary's in Bayford, Hertfordshire, with his chosen epitaph "He was the survivor of twelve brothers and sisters, who, with their father and mother, are all placed close to this spot" together with William Wordsworth's lines "first and last, The earliest summon'd and the longest spared — Are here deposited."[4]

Yarrell has a number of species named after him, including the birds yellow-faced siskin (Carduelis yarrellii) and Chilean woodstar (Eulidia yarrellii) and the fish Yarrell's blenny (Chirolophis ascanii). The British subspecies of the white wagtail, the pied wagtail (Motacilla alba yarrellii), was also named for him.

 
A memorial to William Yarrell in St James's Church, Piccadilly

Publications edit

  • Observations on the Tracheae of Birds, with Descriptions and Representations of several not hitherto figured. — Linn. Trans. 1827, 15. 378.
  • Description of a species of Tringa, killed in Cambridgeshire, new to England and Europe. — Linn. Trans. 16. 109.
  • On the Organs of Voice in Birds. — Linn. Trans. 16. 305.
  • On a new species of Wild Swan, taken in England, and hitherto confounded with the Hooper. — Linn. Trans. 16. 445.
  • Description of the Organs of Voice in a new species of Wild Swan (Cygnus buccinator, Richards.). — Linn. Trans. 17.
  • Descriptions of Three British Species of Freshwater Fishes, belonging to the genus Leuciscus of Klein. — Linn. Trans. 17. 5.
  • On the Habits and Structure of the Great Bustard (Otis tarda of Linnaeus). — Linn. Trans. 21. 155.
  • Notice of an Interwoven Mass of Filaments of Conferva fluviatilis of extraordinary size. — Proc. Linn. Soc. 1. 65.
  • On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in modifying External Character. — Journ. Linn. Soc. 1857, 1. 76–82.
  • On the Growth of the Salmon in Freshwater, with six coloured illustrations of the fish of the natural size. Oblong Folio. van Voorst, London, 1839.

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Yarrell, William" . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
  2. ^ a b William Yarrell. History of British Birds (PDF). Vol. I. Original publisher: John van Voorst (digitized by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2011). Retrieved 19 January 2013. Vol. II.
  3. ^ a b c Forbes, Thomas R. (December 1962). "William Yarrell, British Naturalist". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. 106 (6): 505–515. JSTOR 985256.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Anon. (1858) [Obituary] Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society 2:33–36 scanned
  5. ^ Bettany, G. T. (1887). "Couch, Jonathan (1789–1870), naturalist, by G. T. Bettany". Dictionary of National Biography Vol. XXII. Smith, Elder & Co.
  6. ^ Audubon, John James (1835). Ornithological Biography, Or an Account of the Habits of the Birds of the United States of America, Volume 3. Edinburgh: Adam & Charles Black. pp. vii.
  7. ^ "Review of A History of British Fishes by William Yarrell". The Quarterly Review. 58: 334–370. April 1837.
  8. ^ "A history of British birds (1885)". Attribution. Ebook and Texts Archive. 1885. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  9. ^ a b c Yarrell, William (1843). A History of British Birds: Preface. London: John Van Voorst. pp. v–xii.
  10. ^ a b "The Literary Gazette and Journal of the Belles Lettres, Arts, Sciences, &c". Original from Princeton University. Digitized 2 February 2010. W.A. Scripps. 1837. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  11. ^ "Colour Prejudice and William Yarrell". News from the Independent Booksellers' Network. Isabelline Books. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  12. ^ Williams, R. B. (April 2011). "The artists and wood-engravers for Thomas Bell's History of British quadrupeds". Archives of Natural History. 38: 170–172. doi:10.3366/anh.2011.0015.

External links edit

  • Princeton University: William Yarrell Collection
Professional and academic associations
Preceded by Secretary of the Zoological Society of London
1836–1838 		Succeeded by

January 01, 1970
william, yarrell, june, 1784, september, 1856, english, zoologist, prolific, writer, bookseller, naturalist, admired, contemporaries, precise, scientific, work, maull, polyblank, albumen, print, arched, 1855, born, 1784, june, 1784westminster, london, englandd. William Yarrell 3 June 1784 1 September 1856 was an English zoologist prolific writer bookseller and naturalist admired by his contemporaries for his precise scientific work 1 William YarrellWilliam Yarrell by Maull amp Polyblank albumen print arched top 1855 Born 1784 06 03 3 June 1784Westminster London EnglandDied1 September 1856 1856 09 01 aged 72 Great Yarmouth Norfolk EnglandKnown forA History of British Birds 1843Scientific careerFieldsZoology ornithology Yarrell is best known as the author of A History of British Fishes 2 vols 1836 and A History of British Birds featuring 564 original engravings in 3 vols first ed 1843 second ed 1845 third ed 1856 2 The latter went into several editions and was the standard reference work for a generation of British ornithologists He described Bewick s swan in 1830 distinguishing it from the larger whooper swan Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Works 4 Legacy 5 Publications 6 References 7 External linksEarly life editYarrell was born in Duke Street St James s in London to Francis Yarrell and his wife Sarah nee Blane His father and uncle ran a newspaper agency and bookshop 1 He studied at Dr Nicholson s school in Ealing 1 His father died in 1794 and the Yarrells moved the short distance to Great Ryder Street where William lived the rest of his life 3 In 1802 he became a clerk with the Herries Farquhar and Co bank In 1803 he and his cousin Edward Jones joined his father s business 4 He sometimes left the business in Jones s care going into the countryside to fish and shoot 1 He acquired the reputation of being the best shot and the best angler in London soon becoming an expert naturalist He sent many bird specimens to Thomas Bewick who engraved them as woodcuts for his own book of British birds 1 Career edit nbsp Egyptian vulture in Yarrell s A History of British Birds 1843 He joined the Royal Institution in 1817 4 His first publication at the age of 40 was On the Occurrence of some Rare British Birds 1825 4 This was published in the 2nd volume of the Zoological Journal and he later became one of that journal s editors He was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society in 1825 He wrote in 1827 on the structure of the tracheae of birds and on plumage changes in pheasants He corresponded and shared specimens with other naturalists including Thomas Bewick from 1825 4 Sir William Jardine Prideaux John Selby and Nicholas Aylward Vigors 1 as well as with the Cornish naturalist Jonathan Couch who provided him with many specimens especially of fish 5 Yarrell was one of the original members of the Zoological Society of London In 1833 he was a founder of what became the Royal Entomological Society of London He was acknowledged by John James Audubon both as a valued friend and for the information and precious specimens of birds and eggs collected in the desolate regions of the extreme north 6 He served for many years as treasurer both of the Entomological Society and of the Linnean Society 4 Works editFurther information A History of British Birds 1843 Yarrell s major works were A History of British Fishes 1836 7 and A History of British Birds 1843 the latter having the same title as the popular book by Thomas Bewick published from 1797 to 1804 but with a different set of engravings 8 British Birds was first published in thirty seven parts of three sheets each at intervals of two months the first Part was issued in July 1837 and the last in May 1843 9 The sheets were then collected into two volumes with the addition of many occurrences of rare birds and of some that were even new to Britain The additional birds were listed and briefly described in the Preface and the new subjects have been engraved on single leaves so paged that the bookbinder may insert these separate leaves among the birds of the genus to which each respectively belongs 9 British Birds was illustrated with drawings by Alexander Fussell Yarrell thanks him for nearly five hundred of the drawings on wood here employed The pen for the remaining drawings the title page asserts there are 520 in the book is not stated Yarrell also thanks John Thompson 1785 1866 and his sons for the very long series of engravings of the drawings as well as his printers Messrs Bentley Wilson and Fley 9 10 11 12 At the time of its release Yarrell s Birds was considered the best work on the subject both scientifically and artistically as noted by Prof Alfred Newton in his Prospectus to the 1871 edition 2 from which Yarrell s introduction was removed along with the names of contributing artists under Thompson s direction 10 Both Yarrell s books were so popular that their publisher John van Voorst stated that sales exceeded 4 000 4 Thomas R Forbes in his biographical paper on Yarrell writes that All editions of Birds are outstanding because of the author s clear narrative style accuracy careful scholarship and unassuming charm 3 Yarrell s last paper On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in Modifying External Character 1856 described an experiment that disproved the belief that when a stag lacks a healthy testicle it will fail to grow an antler on that side of the body 3 Legacy editYarrell died during a trip to Great Yarmouth and a memorial was erected in St James s Church Piccadilly He was buried in the churchyard of St Mary s in Bayford Hertfordshire with his chosen epitaph He was the survivor of twelve brothers and sisters who with their father and mother are all placed close to this spot together with William Wordsworth s lines first and last The earliest summon d and the longest spared Are here deposited 4 Yarrell has a number of species named after him including the birds yellow faced siskin Carduelis yarrellii and Chilean woodstar Eulidia yarrellii and the fish Yarrell s blenny Chirolophis ascanii The British subspecies of the white wagtail the pied wagtail Motacilla alba yarrellii was also named for him nbsp A memorial to William Yarrell in St James s Church PiccadillyPublications editObservations on the Tracheae of Birds with Descriptions and Representations of several not hitherto figured Linn Trans 1827 15 378 Description of a species of Tringa killed in Cambridgeshire new to England and Europe Linn Trans 16 109 On the Organs of Voice in Birds Linn Trans 16 305 On a new species of Wild Swan taken in England and hitherto confounded with the Hooper Linn Trans 16 445 Description of the Organs of Voice in a new species of Wild Swan Cygnus buccinator Richards Linn Trans 17 Descriptions of Three British Species of Freshwater Fishes belonging to the genus Leuciscus of Klein Linn Trans 17 5 On the Habits and Structure of the Great Bustard Otis tarda of Linnaeus Linn Trans 21 155 Notice of an Interwoven Mass of Filaments of Conferva fluviatilis of extraordinary size Proc Linn Soc 1 65 On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in modifying External Character Journ Linn Soc 1857 1 76 82 On the Growth of the Salmon in Freshwater with six coloured illustrations of the fish of the natural size Oblong Folio van Voorst London 1839 References edit a b c d e f Yarrell William Dictionary of National Biography London Smith Elder amp Co 1885 1900 a b William Yarrell History of British Birds PDF Vol I Original publisher John van Voorst digitized by University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in 2011 Retrieved 19 January 2013 Vol II a b c Forbes Thomas R December 1962 William Yarrell British Naturalist Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 106 6 505 515 JSTOR 985256 a b c d e f g Anon 1858 Obituary Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society 2 33 36 scanned Bettany G T 1887 Couch Jonathan 1789 1870 naturalist by G T Bettany Dictionary of National Biography Vol XXII Smith Elder amp Co Audubon John James 1835 Ornithological Biography Or an Account of the Habits of the Birds of the United States of America Volume 3 Edinburgh Adam amp Charles Black pp vii Review of A History of British Fishes by William Yarrell The Quarterly Review 58 334 370 April 1837 A history of British birds 1885 Attribution Ebook and Texts Archive 1885 Retrieved 19 January 2013 a b c Yarrell William 1843 A History of British Birds Preface London John Van Voorst pp v xii a b The Literary Gazette and Journal of the Belles Lettres Arts Sciences amp c Original from Princeton University Digitized 2 February 2010 W A Scripps 1837 Retrieved 21 January 2013 Colour Prejudice and William Yarrell News from the Independent Booksellers Network Isabelline Books Retrieved 21 January 2013 Williams R B April 2011 The artists and wood engravers for Thomas Bell s History of British quadrupeds Archives of Natural History 38 170 172 doi 10 3366 anh 2011 0015 External links editPrinceton University William Yarrell Collection Professional and academic associations Preceded byEdward Turner Bennett Secretary of the Zoological Society of London1836 1838 Succeeded byWilliam Ogilby Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William Yarrell amp oldid 1185495351, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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