William Joseph Rainbow (1856–1919) was an entomologist and arachnologist whose work includes the first catalogue of Australian spiders. [1] [2]
William Joseph Rainbow (1856–1919) was an entomologist and arachnologist whose work includes the first catalogue of Australian spiders. [1] [2]
Rainbow was born in 1856 in Yorkshire, England. His father was a Warrant Officer in the Royal Marines, so his education was in a number of port towns and in Edinburgh. He emigrated to New Zealand in 1873, where he wrote for John Ballance's Wanganui Herald. Rainbow's early interest in natural history was assisted by Ballance, who prompted him to build a career in the field. [3]
In 1883 he moved to Sydney, Australia and married Arriette Dainty. He continued to contribute to newspapers and journals, including The Sydney Morning Herald , Daily Telegraph, and Evening News, then worked for the Government Printing Office until 1895; in this year he took up a position at the Australian Museum as an entomologist. [4]
Rainbow was a founder of the Naturalists' Society of New South Wales, serving as its president. [5] He was a member of the Linnean Society of New South Wales and Council of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. He was made a fellow of the Entomological Society of London and Linnean Society of London, and a member of the Société Entomologique de France. [3]
He died in Sydney on 21 November 1919, [4] having suffered several years of tragic losses. His second son, Sergeant Oscar A. Rainbow, was killed in World War I, an event that seems to precipitated the death of Arriette in 1917. His eldest son was William A. Rainbow, a librarian at the Australian Museum. Rainbow's death was a few days before his youngest, Eric, also a Sergeant, returned from active service. [3]
 | Scholia has a profile for William Joseph Rainbow (Q3568753). |
During the period from 1893 until his death, he described around 200 species of spiders, and wrote 71 papers, around 50 of these on the subject of arachnology. His catalogue of Australian orb-weaver spiders, A Census of Australian Araneidae, listing 1102 species, was produced in 1911; it is noted as a significant advancement in the much ignored spiders of Australia. [2] His works included papers on the spiders found in all the Australian states and the Pacific region. He also wrote two guide books, A guide to the study of Australian butterflies (T.C. Lothian, Melbourne, 1907) and Mosquitoes; their Habits and Distribution. [4]
He left an incomplete manuscript, "Spiders from Molangul, S.E. Queensland" that was accompanied by his sketches. [3]
His collection of specimens is maintained by the Australian Museum; [6] this includes a collection of Australian Acari, mites and ticks, whose study was begun by Rainbow. [7] [8]
The species Trittame rainbowi commemorates this author's contribution to the field of Australian arachnids. [9] The author citation Rainbow refers to this entomologist and arachnologist when citing a biological classification.
Octavius Pickard-Cambridge FRS was an English clergyman and zoologist.
Austracantha is a genus of spider with a single species, Austracantha minax, commonly known as the jewel spider or the Christmas spider. It is a member of the family Araneidae and is endemic to Australia. They are relatively small spiders, reaching a maximum total body length of only around 12 mm (0.47 in) for females, and 5 mm (0.20 in) for males. Their abdomen has six distinctive projections ("spines") that makes them easy to identify. They are predominantly a shiny black, with variable white, yellow, and orange patterns. Melanistic forms also occur during autumn. They are facultatively gregarious, and can be found in large aggregations of overlapping orb webs. They feed on small flying insects that get entangled in their webs. They are harmless to humans, though the webs can be a nuisance for bushwalkers. They are most abundant during the summer months.
Hadronyche formidabilis, the northern tree-dwelling funnel-web spider, is a medically significant mygalomorph spider found in Queensland and New South Wales. It is also known as the Northern Rivers funnel-web spider or northern funnel-web spider.
The Sydney funnel-web spider is a species of venomous mygalomorph spider native to eastern Australia, usually found within a 100 km (62 mi) radius of Sydney. It is a member of a group of spiders known as Australian funnel-web spiders. Its bite is capable of causing serious illness or death in humans if left untreated.
Walter Wilson Froggatt was an Australian economic entomologist.
Raymond Robert Forster was a New Zealand arachnologist and museum director.
Australia has a number of highly venomous spiders, including the Sydney funnel-web spider, its relatives in the family Hexathelidae, and the redback spider, whose bites can be extremely painful and have historically been linked with deaths in medical records. Most Australian spiders do not have venom that is considered to be dangerously toxic. No deaths caused by spider bites in Australia have been substantiated by a coronial inquest since 1979. There are sensationalised news reports regarding Australian spiders that fail to cite evidence. A Field Guide to Spiders of Australia published by CSIRO Publishing in 2017 featuring around 836 species illustrated with photographs of live animals, around 381 genera and 78 families, introduced significant updates to taxonomy from Ramirez, Wheeler and Dmitrov
Cataxia is a genus of Australian armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by William Joseph Rainbow in 1914.
Euoplos is a genus of Australian armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by William Joseph Rainbow in 1914.
David B. Hirst is an arachnologist previously based at the South Australian Museum in Adelaide. He left the Museum on 22 February 2011. He has described more than 40 species and genera in the huntsman spider family, Sparassidae, and was regularly called on by New Zealand authorities to identify huntsman spiders that entered their country.
Pekka T. Lehtinen is a Finnish arachnologist and taxonomist. He is known for his works in systematics and for the many expeditions in which he has participated.
Anthony Musgrave was an Australian entomologist. Born in Queensland, Australia, he is known for penning Bibliography of Australian Entomology (1932). He was the great-nephew of Anthony Musgrave who was Secretary of State for the Colonies.
Missulena bradleyi, also known as the eastern mouse spider, is a species of spider belonging to the family Actinopodidae. The spider is endemic to the eastern coast of Australia.
Hadronyche versuta, the Blue Mountains funnel-web spider, is a venomous mygalomorph spider found in central New South Wales.
Missulena insignis, commonly known as the lesser red-headed mouse spider, is a species of spider belonging to the family Actinopodidae native to Australia. The species name is derived from the Latin insignis "mark".
Arthur Stanley Hirst also known as Stanley Hirst, was an English arachnologist and myriapodologist on the staff of the British Museum, and was an authority on Arachnida, especially Acari Myriapoda.
Gaius villosus is a species of spider in the family Idiopidae found in Western Australia in a variety of different habitats.
Gaius is a genus of large mygalomorph spiders in the family Idiopidae. Erected in 1914 by William Joseph Rainbow, for much of its history the genus contained only one species, Gaius villosus. More species were added in 2018. All are endemic to Western Australia.
Henry Houghton Burton Bradley was an Australian arachnologist. He published papers on many types of spiders, in particular describing specimens found on the Chevert Expedition of 1875. Bradley corresponded with spider specialists in Europe and sent them collections.
Eliza Fanny Staveley (1831-1903), published as E.F. Staveley, was a British entomologist, arachnologist, and author. Her work British Insects (1871) was favourably reviewed by Alfred Russel Wallace in Nature.
Data related to William Joseph Rainbow at Wikispecies| General | |
|---|---|
| National libraries | |
| Other | |
