Career

Collecting localities

Collections

Literature

Biographical data

 

Wawra von Fernsee, Heinrich Ritter

 

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 1: Cyclopaedia of collectors)

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 5: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement I)

 

Born: 1831, Brünn, Austria. Died: 1887, Baden near Vienna, Austria.

 

career:

Studied medicine at Vienna (1849-55) and qualified in botany too. From 1856-78 surgeon in the Austrian Navy, travelling round the world, partly in attendance upon two German princes, making large collections of plants.1

Suttonia wawrae Mez and several other plants (cf. Autobiogr. l.c. below, p. 43) were named after him.

 

Collecting localities:

Voyage in the ‘Elisabeth’, 1859-60,2 with Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian to Brazil. During this expedition Malaysia was not visited.-Exploring expedition to Eastern Asia in ‘Sr. M. Fregatte Donau’, 1868-71,3 cf. also sub E. Weiss. Sailing via Gibraltar, Madeira, Teneriffe, Cape of Good Hope (making trips inland); touching at W. Java: Anger ( = Anjer) (Apr. 6-10,1869), proceeding to Singapore (staying Apr. 14-22), from where the forest of the opposite south point of the Malay Peninsula (Johore) was visited too; Siam, Saigon, China (June 2-Sept. 12), Japan, Hawaii, S. America; back at Pola (March 1, 1871).-Voyage with the Princes Ph. and A. von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, 1872-73 (not made in a special ship).4 Travelling (July 30, 1872) to Liverpool; visiting New York, San Francisco, Honolulu, New Zealand, Australia (making some trips with F. von Mueller); Ceylon (Nov. 28-Dec. 5); touching at Singapore (Dec.); Saigon, China, Japan, Hongkong, Macao; Singapore (Febr. 1873); making a short trip to the Malay Peninsula: Johore; to W. Java: Batavia (11), Buitenzorg (Botanic Gardens), via Megamendoeng to Bandung (Febr. 13), G. Tangkuban Prahu, Lembang, back at Buitenzorg (18-19), Batavia (20); Singapore; trip to P. Penang (end of Febr.); Ceylon, Bombay (March 12), Brit. India, Suez, Alexandria; back at Vienna (Apr. 20).

He made several smaller voyages during which Malaysia was not visited.

 

collections:

Herb. Vienna [W]: of the voyage in the ‘Donau’ 4879 nos, ‘Itin. princip. Coburgi’ 2421 nos.5 In 1869 at Anjer (W. Java) 60 nos of plants were collected, in Singapore and Johore 81. Dupl. in: Herb. Berlin [B]; 776 in Herb. Decand. (Geneva [G]); Herb. Bot. Gard. St Petersburg (= Leningrad [LE]): 17 from Java, 19 from Singapore. 100 Wood samples, also from Java, in Franzens Museum at Brünn.

 

literature:

(1) Enumeration of voyages, publications, etc., in Martius, Flora Brasiliensis, vol. 1, pars 1, p. 134-136.

(2) H. Wawra von Fernsee: ‘Botanische Ergebnisse der Reise Sr Majestat des Kaisers von Mexico Maximilian I nach Brasilien’ (Wien 1866). cf. als Flora N.R. 24, 1866, p. 497-506.

(3) H. Wawra von Fernsee: ‘Skizzen von der Erdumsegelung Sr. M. Fregatte Donau’ (Oesterr. Bot. Zeitschr. 21, 1871, p. 358-365; l.c. 22, 1872, p. 24-32 (dealing with Java and Singapore), 60-69, 90-97, 127-133, 157-161, 198-201, 222-227, 229-265, 297-302, 332-335, 362-368, 397-405; l.c. 23, 1873, p. 23-29, 60-64, 94-99).

(4) cf. ‘Reise Ihrer Hoheiten der Prinzen Philipp und August von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha um die Welt (1872-1873)’ (in H. Wawra von Fernsee, Itinera principum S. Coburgi etc. 1, 1883, p. ii-x).

(5) Chr. Luerssen: ‘Verzeichnis der Gefäss-kryptogamen welche Dr H. Wawra auf seiner Erdumsegelung mit der Fregatte “Donau” 1868-1871, and der Reise mit den Prinzen Philipp und August von S. Coburg 1872 and 1873 sammelte’ (Flora N.R. 34, 1876, p. 225-231, 285-287, 289-302).

oburg: ‘Neue Pflanzenarten, gesammelt auf den Reisen der Prinzen von Sachsen-Coburg’ (Oesterr. Bot. Zeitschr. 31, 1881, p. 69-71, 280-282; l.c. 32, 1882, p. 37-39).

von Sachsen-Coburg: ‘Itinera principum S. Coburgi. Die botanische Ausbeute von den Reisen ihrer Hoheiten der Prinzen von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha (Wien 1883-88, 2 vols, 39 + 18 pl., mostly coloured; vol. 2 published posthumously by Dr G. von Beck, using the manuscripts of Wawra).

 

biographical data:

Autobiography in Notiz. bl. Hist. Stat. Sect. d.k.k. Mähr.-Schles. Ges. z. Beförd. d. Ackerbaues, d. Natur- and Landeskunde 1878, no 10, 43 pp., and in MORREN, Broméliacées brésiliennes, 1881; Flora 70 (N.R. 45), 1887, p. 387-396, w. bibliogr.; Ann. Bot. 1, 1887/ 88, p. 412-413, w. bibliogr.; Wittrock, Icon. Bot. Berg. 1903, p. 86, and l.c. 2, 1905, p. 71.