Jacques von Bedriaga

Jacques Vladimir von Bedriaga (last name sometimes spelled Bedryagha) (1854 - 1906) was a Russian herpetologist who was a native of Kriniz, a village near Voronezh.

In scientific papers Bedriaga would sometimes alter his name to agree with the language of the country in which he was publishing. As a result, the following variations are encountered: Jacob Vladimirovich Bedriaga, Johann von Bedriaga, and Jean de Bedriaga.

He studied sciences at Moscow University under the direction of Anatoli Bogdanov (1834-1896), and afterwards moved to Germany, where he studied at the University of Jena with Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919) and Carl Gegenbaur (1826-1903). In 1875 he obtained his doctorate with a thesis on the urogenital organs of reptiles.

After graduation, Bedriaga continued his research on reptiles with Gegenbaur, and made frequent scientific trips to regions around the Mediterranean. In 1880 he published an important work on Greek herpetology called Die Amphibien und Reptilien Griechenlands. Also, he made occasional visits back to Russia, where he studied collections reported from expeditions to Central Asia, including those of Nikolai Przewalski (1839-1888). In 1881 he moved to Nice for reasons of health, and later lived in Florence, where he died in 1906.

Bedriaga has a handful of herpetological species named after him, including Bedriaga's Rock Lizard, Bedriaga's Fringe-fingered Lizard, Bedriaga's Skink, and Rana bedriagae (Levant Water Frog).

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