Ichthyology is the branch of
zoology devoted to the study of
fish. This includes skeletal fish (
Osteichthyes),
cartilaginous fish (
Chondrichthyes),
and jawless fish (
Agnatha).
An estimated 25,000 fish species exist, comprising a
majority of vertebrates. While a majority of species have
probably been discovered and described, approximately 250
new species are officially described by science each year.
The practice of ichthyology is associated with marine
biology, limnology, and oceanography.
History
Ichthyology originates to the
Upper Paleolithic Revolution to the present day. This
science was developed in several interconnecting epochs,
each with various significant advancements.
Pre-historical Era
(38,000 BC–1500 BC)
Fish compose approximately 8% of all
figurative depictions on
Mimbres
pottery.
The study of fish receives its origins from the human
desire to feed, clothe, and equip themselves with useful
implements. According to
Michael Barton, a prominent ichthyologist and professor at
Centre College, "The earliest ichthyologists were
hunters and gatherers who had learned how to obtain the most
useful fishes, where to obtain them in abundance, and at
what times they might be the most available." These insights
of early cultures were manifested in abstract and
identifiable artistic expressions.
Judeo-Christian Era
(1500 BC–40 AD)
Informal, scientific descriptions of fish are represented
within the
Judeo-Christian tradition. Moses, in the development of the
kashrut, forbade the consumption of fish without scales or
appendages. Theologians and ichthyologists speculate that
the apostle Peter and his contemporaries harvested the fish
that are today sold in modern industry along the Sea of
Galilee, presently known as Lake Kinneret. These fish
include cyprinids of the genus Barbus and Mirogrex, cichlids
of the genus Sarotherodon, and Mugil cephalus of the family
Mugilidae.
Mediterranean Era
(335 BC–80 AD)
Aristotle incorporated ichthyology into formal scientific
study. Between 335 BC–322 BC, he provided the earliest
taxonomic classification of fish, in which 117 species of
Mediterranean fish were accurately described. Furthermore,
Aristotle observed the anatomical and behavioral differences
between fish and marine mammals. Proceeding his death, some
of his pupils continued his ichthyological research.
Theophrastus, for example, composed a treatise on amphibious
fish. The Romans, although less devoted to the pursuit of
science, wrote extensively about fish. Pliny the Elder, a
notable Roman naturalist, compiled the ichthyological works
of indigenous Greeks, including verifiable and ambiguous
peculiarities such as the sawfish and mermaid respectively.
Pliny's documentation was the last significant contribution
to ichthyology until the European Renaissance.
European Renaissance Era
(13th–16th century)
The writings of three sixteenth century scholars,
Hippolyte Salviani, Pierre Belon, and Guillaume Rondelet,
signify the conception of modern ichthyology. The
investigations of these individuals were based upon actual
research in comparison to ancient recitations. This property
popularized and emphasized these discoveries. Despite their
prominence, Rondelet's De Piscibus Marinum is regarded as the most
influential, identifying 244 species of fish.
Exploration and Colonization Era
(16th–17th century)
The incremental alterations in navigation and
shipbuilding throughout the Renaissance marked the
commencement of a new epoch in ichthyology. The Renaissance
culminated with the era of exploration and colonization, and
upon the cosmopolitan interest in navigation came the
specialization in naturalism. Georg Marcgrave of Saxony
composed the Naturalis Brasilae in 1648. This document
contained a description of 100 species of fish indigenous to
the Brazilian coastline. In 1686, John Ray and Francis
Willughby collaboratively published Historia Piscium, a scientific manuscript containing
420 species of fish, 178 of these newly discovered. The fish
contained within this informative literature were arranged
in a provisional system of classification.
The classification used within the Historia Piscium
was invented by Carolus Linnaeus, the "father of modern
taxonomy". His taxonomic approach became the systematic
approach to the study of organisms, including fish. Linnaeus
was a professor at the University of Uppsala and an eminent
botanist; however, one of his colleagues, Peter Artedi,
earned the title "father of ichthyology" through his
indispensable advancements. Artedi contributed to Linnaeus's
refinement of the principles of taxonomy. Furthermore, he
recognized five additional orders of fish: Malacopterygii,
Acanthopterygii, Branchiostegi, Chondropterygii, and
Plagiuri. Artedi developed standard methods for making
counts and measurements of anatomical features that are
modernly exploited. Another associate of Linnaeus, Albertus
Seba, was a prosperous pharmacist from Amsterdam. Seba assembled a cabinet, or collection, of
fish. He invited Artedi to utilize this assortment of fish;
unfortunately, in 1735, Artedi fell into an Amsterdam canal
and drowned at the age of 30.
Linnaeus posthumously published Artedi's manuscripts as
Ichthyologia, sive Opera Omnia de Piscibus (1738).
His refinement of taxonomy was culminated subsequent to the
development of the binomial nomenclature which is in use by
contemporary ichthyologists. Furthermore, he revised the
orders introduced by Artedi, placing significance on pelvic
fins. Fish lacking this appendage were placed within the
order Apodes; fish containing abdominal, thoracic, or
jugular pelvic fins were termed Abdominales, Thoracici, and
Jugulares respectively. However, these alterations were not
grounded within the evolutionary theory. Therefore, it would
take over a century until Charles Darwin would provide the
intellectual foundation from which we would be permitted to
perceive that the degree of similarity in taxonomic features
was a consequence of phylogenetic relationship.
Modern Era
(17th century–Present)
Close to the dawn of the nineteenth century, Marcus
Elieser Bloch of Berlin and Georges Cuvier of Paris made an
attempt to consolidate the knowledge of ichthyology. Cuvier
summarized all of the available information in his
monumental Histoire Naturelle des Poissons. This manuscript
was published between 1828 and 1849 in a 22 volume series.
This documentation contained 4,514 species of fish, 2,311 of
these new to science. This piece of literature still
remained one of the most ambitious treatises of the modern
world. The scientific exploration of the Americas progressed
our knowledge of the remarkable diversity of fish. Charles
Alexandre Lesueur, a student of Cuvier, who made a cabinet
of fish dwelling within the Great Lakes and Saint Lawrence
River regions.
Adventurous individuals such as John James Audubon and
Constantine Rafinesque figure in the faunal documentation of
North America. These persons often traveled with one another
and composed Ichthyologia Ohiensis in 1820. In addition,
Louis Agassiz of Switzerland established his reputation
through the study of freshwater fish and organisms and the
pioneering of paleoichthyology. Agassiz eventually
immigrated to the United States and taught at Harvard
University in 1846.
Albert Günther published his Catalogue of the Fishes of the
British Museum between 1859 and 1870, describing over 6,800
species and mentioning another 1,700. Generally considered
one of the most influential ichthyologists, David Starr
Jordan wrote 650 articles and books on the subject as well
as serving as president of Indiana University and Stanford
University.
Modern Publications
Publication |
Frequency |
Date of Publication |
Affiliated Company |
Copeia |
Quarterly |
27 December 1913 |
American Society of Ichthyologists and
Herpetologists |
Journal of Applied Ichthyology |
Bi-monthly |
Unknown |
Blackwell Publishing |
Organizations
Organizations |
Organizations |
- American Elasmobranch Society
- American Fisheries Society
- American Society of Ichthyologists and
Herpetologists
- Association of Systematics Collections
- Canadian Association of Aqarium Clubs
- Native Fish Conservancy
- Neotropical Ichthyological Association
|
-
North American Native Fishes Association
- Society for Integrative and Comparative
Biology
- Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology
- Society for the Preservation of Natural
History Collections
- Southeastern Fishes Council
- Southwestern Association of Naturalists
-
The World Conservation Union
|
Notable ichthyologists
The names are followed by their fields of specialization
and major contributions:
- Alexander Emanuel Agassiz
Louis Agassiz
HM Emperor Akihito of Japan
Peter Artedi
William O. Ayres - California
Spencer Fullerton Baird
Tarleton Hoffman Bean
Lev Berg - Russia
Pieter von Bleeker - East Indies
Marcus Elieser Bloch
George Albert Boulenger
Edward Drinker Cope
Georges Cuvier
Francis Day - India
Bashford Dean
Carl H. Eigenmann
Rosa Smith Eigenmann
Samuel Garman
Charles Henry Gilbert
Theodore Nicholas Gill
Charles Frédéric Girard
George Brown Goode
Albert Günther
Carl L. Hubbs
David Starr Jordan
Seth Meek
George S. Myers
John Treadwell Nichols - China, founder of Copeia
John Richardson Norman
C. Tate Regan
J.L.B. Smith
Donn E. Rosen
Edwin C. Starks
Franz Steindachner
Achille Valenciennes
Francis Willughby
See also
References
-
Carl E. Bond, Biology of Fishes (Saunders, 1996) ISBN
0-03-070342-5
- Joseph S. Nelson, Fishes of the World (Wiley,
2006)
ISBN 0-471-25031-7
- Michael Barton, Bond's Biology of Fishes Third
Edition (Julet, 2007)
ISBN 0-120-79875-1
External links