The Zoologist

The Zoologist was a monthly natural history magazine established in 1843 by Edward Newman and published in London. Newman acted as editor-in-chief until his death in 1876, when he was succeeded by James Edmund Harting (1876–1896) and William Lucas Distant (1897–1916).

Originating from an enlargement of The Entomologist, The Zoologist contained long articles, short notes, comments on current events, and book reviews covering the entire Animal Kingdom throughout the world, until The Entomologist was separated again in 1864. Initially, half of the space was devoted to birds, rising to two-thirds later.

In 1916 The Zoologist was amalgamated with British Birds (founded 1908).

cover of first volume

Editors

The first editor of The Zoologist was Edward Newman. He died in 1876. Volume 11 of the second series, the thirty-fourth volume of the journal, was the last volume with which he was connected.

The third series, starting in 1877 and ending in 1896, was edited by James Edmund Harting.

William Lucas Distant was the editor of the fourth series, from 1878 to 1914 (vol. 18).

The last two volumes of the fourth series, and of the journal, were edited by Frank Finn.

Four series

The Zoologist appeared in four series:

• First series: 1843–1865 ( vol. 1 – 23)
• Second series: 1866–1876 (vol. 1 – 10)
• Third series: 1877–1896 (vol. 1 – 20)
• Fourth series: 1897–1916 (vol. 1 – 20)

First series, 1843–1865

The first series of The Zoologist was edited by Edward Newman and published by John Van Voorst in London. From the beginning Newman received contributions from many naturalists. In the first year for instance John Christopher Atkinson, Henry Doubleday, John Henry Gurney Sr., Frederick Bond, and William Yarrell wrote articles. Newman also contributed articles himself.

In general, the first volumes were published in monthly issues of 32 pages, and also as an annual. The pages were numbered continuously, so for instance the first issue of the fourth volume (January, 1846) was numbered pp. 1201–1232 and the twelfth issue of the twenty-third volume (December, 1865) was numbered 9825–9848.

Second series, 1866–1876

The second series, containing eleven volumes, was also edited by Newman. Starting in January, 1866, the page numbering started anew on page 1 and ended with page 5180 in December, 1876.

Third series, 1877–1896

Editor: James Edmund Harting.

Fourth series, 1897 - 1916

Editor: William Lucas Distant.

In 1899 Edmund Selous wrote his first articles, in The Zoologist, about his observations near a nest of Nightjars (Caprimulgus europaeus). A year later he published his study on "the Great Plover", the Eurasian stone-curlew, Burhinus oedicnemus.

In 1899 Henry Eliot Howard published his first articles in the magazine, about birds in North Worcestershire and in the North-West of Ireland.

In 1900 the naturalist Arthur Henry Patterson published the first part of his study on the birds of Great Yarmouth and surroundings.

Articles

Among the numerous articles that appeared in The Zoologist over the years were:

• Davenport, Henry Saunderson (1899). Original sketches of British birds . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 691 (January), pp. 1–17, issue 695 (May), pp. 198–212 and issue 701 (November, 1899), pp. 506–510 – via Wikisource.
• Salter, John Henry (1899). Ornithological Notes from Northern Norway . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 692 (February), pp. 54–71 – via Wikisource.
• Aplin, Oliver Vernon (1899). Notes on the Birds of Belgium . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 694 (April), pp. 149–163 – via Wikisource.
• Selous, Edmund (1899). An Observational Diary of the Habits of Nightjars (Caprimulgus europæus), Mostly of a Sitting Pair. Notes Taken at Time and on Spot . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 699 (September, 1899), pp. 388-402 and issue 701 (November, 1899), pp. 486-505 – via Wikisource.
• —— (1900). An Observational Diary of the Habits of the Great Plover (Œdicnemus crepitans) during September and October . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 4 – via Wikisource. (Published in three parts)
• Howard, Henry Eliot (1899a). Notes on Some Birds from North Worcestershire . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 696 (June, 1899), p.259–261 – via Wikisource.
• —— (1899b). Ornithological Notes from the North-West of Ireland . The Zoologist, 4th series, vol. 3, issue 701 (November, 1899), p. 481–485 – via Wikisource.
• Patterson, Arthur (1900–1901). "The Birds of Great Yarmouth and the Neighbourhood" . The Zoologist. The Zoologist – via Wikisource. (Published in five parts in volume 4 and 5)

See also

• List of zoology journals

Sources

• Bourne, dr. W.R.P. (1995-01-01). "In memory of 'the Zoologist' 1843-1916" (PDF). British Birds. 88: 1–4.

External links

• Works related to The Zoologist at Wikisource
• Digitised copies of all volumes online at the Biodiversity Heritage Library.