Newton, Alfred, 1829-1907

Ornithologist.

Zoologist and educator.

Alfred Newton, a British ornithologist, was one of the founders of the British Ornithologists' Union and held the Chair of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy at Cambridge for forty-one years, from its establishment in 1866 until his death.

In his early years, Newton went on several scientific and collecting journeys, traveling to Lapland, Iceland, Spitzbergen Island, the West Indies, United States and Canada. At Cambridge, Newton was a prolific author and editor, contributing frequent articles to the Ibis, the journal of the B.O.U. Among Newton's many other publications were the first two volumes of the 4th ed. (1871-1873) of William Yarrell's History of British birds; Ornithological nomenclature, an addendum to the Ibis for Jan. 1883; A dictionary of birds (1893-1896); and Oothecae Wolleyana (begun in 1864 but not completed until 1907), an illustrated catalog of a collection of birds' eggs formed by John Wolley. In addition, Newton was chosen to write the articles on birds for the 9th ed. (1878) of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Philip H. Manson-Bahr was a physician specializing in tropical medicine. During his studies at Cambridge, he associated with Newton and developed an interest in field ornithology.

John Van Voorst, 1804-98, a London-based publisher from 1833 to 1886, published many works on natural history.