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Robert Hooke: Blue Fly
I wonder whether what Robert Hooke (1635-1703) called a "blue fly" in his Micrographia, published in 1665, might be a Protophormia terraenovae, colloquially known as a blue-assed fly. Some interesting...
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John White: Loggerhead Sea Turtle
This image by John White (c. 1543-1593) shows the loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta. A few facts about John White1. In 1585, he sailed with English explorer Richard Grenville to North Carolina.2....
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Leonardo: Bear
This drawing of a walking bear by Leonardo da Vinci was done c. 1490. Yes, that appears to be a human figure under the bear.
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Orangutan
This image of an orangutan appeared in Le Règne Animal (The Animal Kingdom) by zoologist and naturalist Georges Cuvier (1768-1832). It was published in 1817. As nearly as I can tell, the artist was...
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Ferdinand Bauer: Sand Crab
This watercolor of a sand crab, Portunus pelagicus, is by Ferdinand Bauer (1760-1826).A few facts about Ferdinand BauerA few facts about sand crabs1. They're noctural, i.e. they're more active at...
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Spotted Possum
For his woodcut, Thomas Bewick (1753-1828) identified this creature as "Spotted Opossum of New South Wales". It seems possible that it is, in modern nomenclature, a Common Spotted Cuscus. The Cuscus is...
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Annulated Sea Snake
This hand-colored engraving was published in An account of Indian Serpents collected on the coast of Coromandel (1796) by the Scottish surgeon and herpetologist Patrick Russell (1726-1805). It shows...
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Squirrel
This image of Sciurus italicus, a type of bushy-tailed squirrel, is a lithograph by Pietro Quattrocchi. It appeared in Iconografia della fauna italica, a publication by Charles Lucien Bonaparte on the...
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Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake
William Bartram (April 20, 1739 – July 22, 1823) drew the Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake, Crotalus adamanteus. Images of this highly venomous snake appeared in early symbols of the American...
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Cashmere Goats
The Naturalist's Library, which was published from 1833 to 1843 by Sir William Jardine, included this illustration of Cashmere Goats, Capra hircus laniger. It was engraved by William Home Lizars after...
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Horse
This impressive drawing of a horse, which dates to about 1490, is by Leonardo da Vinci. A number of drawings by Leonardo feature horses, including studies done for a massive equestrian sculpture that...
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