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Edward Blyth 1810-1873

Edward Blyth 1810-1873. Early Life. Born in London in 1810 Father died shortly after, leaving Edward to take care of family Never attended a formal university Studied chemistry under Mr. Keating Pharmacist, author, and editor Never made substantial amount of money

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Edward Blyth 1810-1873

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  1. Edward Blyth1810-1873

  2. Early Life • Born in London in 1810 • Father died shortly after, leaving Edward to take care of family • Never attended a formal university • Studied chemistry under Mr. Keating • Pharmacist, author, and editor • Never made substantial amount of money • 1841- Curator at Asiatic Society of Bengal • Father of Indian ornithology

  3. Ornithology • Study of birds • Concentrated research in India while working for the museum • Proceedings of the Zoological Society (1837-1840) • Species of birds in India and Europe • Field Naturalist (1840) • Genus Ovis (sheep species) • Catalogue of the Birds of the Asiatic Society (1849)

  4. Blyth vs. Darwin • Lived during same time period, though Blyth did not necessarily believe in evolution • Darwin stole ideas from Blyth? • 1835 and 1837- Blyth expands on ideas presented by Charles Lyell concerning natural and sexual selection in The Magazine of Natural History • While on the Beagle, Darwin had access to The Magazine of Natural History • 1837- Darwin began first notebook concerning species • Blyth’s last notebook mysteriously belongs to Darwin without being published

  5. Blyth vs. Darwin(cont’d) • Darwin stole ideas from Blyth? (cont’d) • Similar word choice between Blyth’s papers and Darwin’s Origin of Species • “inosculate” • Blyth’s views of natural selection • Did not believe in the idea of a common ancestor • Man is a creation of God and different from all other animals

  6. Magazine of Natural History (1835) • Four varieties of animals: • Simple variations • Acquired variations • Breeds • True variety • Racial color is a fixed trait • Changes in traits are made by “Providence” • Left his ideas open for interpretation

  7. Later Years • Returned back to London to recover from illness • Fell into debt • Attempted to help write a book, Birds of India, but suffered from a mental breakdown • Led to becoming an alcoholic • Convicted of assault • Died from heart disease in 1873 • Never truly recognized for the inspiration he gave Darwin • Still seen as huge contributor to ornithology

  8. Major Works • Magazine of Natural History (1835 and 1837) • Proceedings of the Zoological Society (1837-1840) • Field Naturalist (1840) • Animal Kingdom (edited section on Mammalia, Birds and Reptiles in 1840) • Catalogue of the Birds of the Asiatic Society (1849) • Catalogue of the Mammals and Birds of Burma (1875)

  9. Summary • Father of Indian ornithology • Spent years studying birds in India as the curator of the Asiatic Society of Bengal • Wrote about ideas that were possibly stolen by Darwin • Theorized about variations of animals • Inspiration for “survival of the fittest” theory • Sadly forgotten and never truly advanced himself during his lifetime

  10. References http://www.thedarwinpapers.com/oldsite/Number2/Darwin2Html.htm http://www.wku.edu/~smithch/biogeog/BLYT1835.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Blyth Eiseley, Loren. Darwin and the Mysterious Mr. X. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1979.

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