The ZOOLOGIST

Zoology

• Zoology or animal biology, is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct

• Zoologist • a specialist in zoology.

Interest in Zoology at an early age

• As a small boy, Rizal loved animals including birds, fish, insects, and other specimens of animal life. Fowls, rabbits, dogs, horses, and cats constituted his favorites.

• In his childhood, he would return to the orchard after study, where the study of insects and birds held his interest.

His records at Ateneo 1872-1877

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Interest in Zoology in other Places

• He traveled to Frankfurt where he visited magnificent buildings like the Städel Institute, the Opera House, Zoological Garden, and various coffee shops where he enjoyed reading the newspaper.

Modern-DayZoologischer GartenIn Frankfurt, Germany

Museums he went to

• Colombo’s Museum Along with 4 spaniards, he saw stuffed

sharks, saw fishes sword fishes, giant turtles, skeletons, of two elephants, and two live Peacocks.

• British Musem in London• Vienna Museum in Austria with Professor

Nordmann

• One would see how inquisitive Jose Rizal was, his love for biology and taxonomy ever growing. Take note that he used English to communicate to the people he met in Singapore:

• Dated May 10, 1882: “I met there a Malay who could not understand me. I went out looking for mammals, for I believed there were some and I found only a kind of cage-storehouse where I saw in different compartments two superb peacocks, an eagle, two marabous, turkeys, and Guinea hens, blue birds similar to the hoopoe in plumage, wild pigeons, cockatoos, and other birds whose names I didn’t know. I met another Malay and as he could not understand me, I drew a cow and showed it to him and he replied: Tadar. Tired of looking for it, I approached an Englishman who was playing with his dog. I greeted him and asked him for the zoological garden. He replied that there was none. I went away then, looked for a coach, and went back."

• This is a sketch Rizal made to depict the stingray as he remembered it when he was visiting the Botanical Garden at Singapore in 1882.

Rizal, the Zoologist in Dapitan• He corresponded with his scientist friends,

exchanging ideas on the fauna of Dapitan. One of these friends was Dr. Adolph B. Meyer,

• For his part Meyer did not fail to acknowledge that Rizal’s help was indispensable to his work, asking him “not to stop gathering specimens [for] one always finds something valuable”. whom he met in Dresden in 1886.

Specimens in exchange of books

• He was a regular contributor of specimens of reptiles, mammals, birds, fish, insects, crustaceans and other invertebrates to The director of the Royal Zoological and Anthropological Museum in Dresden, Saxony, Doctor Karl von Heller, and Dr. Adolf B. Meyer, who was a great friend and admirer of Doctor Rizal.

Specimens in exchange of books

Rizal was paid for these specimens by scientific books and material. 109-110Aeschylus113-116Sophocles164-165Ossians gedichte50Furgenjew (Iwan) Vater and Sohn64Furgenjew Rauch1-3V Serie Bismarck als RednerFurgenjew (Iwan)NeolandRnazewsy (T.T.) Der Dichter and die Welt The complete works of Gogol (in German) Valadimer Korolenko Danilewsky

Dapitan, 8 June 1893

Dr. A. B. Meyer

Dear Doctor,

I have just received your letter dated 24 March and I agree heartily to your "Petition'' that I prepare for you scientific specimens. Only that as I am a deportee here, I am not free to go everywhere or use a rifle, etc. [01] In spite of this, I shall do everything possible to serve you. All the birds, reptiles, etc. that I can buy, I shall keep for you; I also know a little about their preservation. However, I should like to know if Dr. Schadenberg will accept any kind of animals, reptiles, and skulls, for you may already have the kind that are here. I would prefer that you send me a catalogue with prices so that I may not pay too much for them.

You have reminded me again of the beautiful days we spent together in Paris, those were other times. They were times in free Europe.

Respectfully,Rizal

I have just received your letter dated 24 March and I agree heartily to your "Petition'' that I prepare for you scientific specimens. Only that as I am a deportee here, I am not free to go everywhere or use a rifle, etc. In spite of this, I shall do everything possible to serve you. All the birds, reptiles, etc. that I can buy, I shall keep for you; I also know a little about their preservation. However, I should like to know if Dr. Schadenberg will accept any kind of animals, reptiles, and skulls, for you may already have the kind that are here. I would prefer that you send me a catalogue with prices so that I may not pay too much for them.

Rizal, Dapitan, 8 June 1893 || To Dr. Adolph B. Meyer

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• Rizal sent specimens of “45 reptiles, 9 mammals, 13 birds, 9 fishes, and 68 crustaceans”. These were apart from his 346-species shell collection.

Some of the specimens gathered by Dr. Jose Rizal and Dr. Francisco Paula de Sanchez, his teacher in literary, in the Jesuit Museum

Dapitan, 24 October 1893

Dr. A. B. Meyer

My dear Friend,

Through the kindness of Dr. Schadenberg I have the pleasure to send you a little collection of reptiles, crustaceans, coleopteran [an order in the beetle family - rly], etc. that you will find named on the labels of the jars. I had a larger collection, I had a tortoise, gledes (Weigh?), Weihen (Meyer) birds, etc. but for lack of suitable containers they were eaten by rats. The expense of this remittance is more or less twelve pesos on account of the difficulty here of obtaining alcohol and jars. I have to get the alcohol from the drugstore and it is still of poor quality. I have written to Dr. Schadenberg asking him for alcohol and jars for they certainly cost less at Manila and in that way the cost of remittance would be very cheap. I should like to know if you want the skeletons of the mammals mounted or joined.

I have also my own collection of seashells of more than 200 species, already classified and arranged. Do you want it? How much would they give me for it? They are all shells of the district of Dapitan. I have no rifles yet.

With many regards to friend Blum, command at any time your servant and friend who kisses your hand,

José Rizal

Through the kindness of Dr. Schadenberg I have the pleasure to send you a little collection of reptiles, crustaceans, coleopteran [an order in the beetle family - rly], etc. that you will find named on the labels of the jars. I had a larger collection, I had a tortoise, gledes (Weigh?), Weihen (Meyer) birds, etc. but for lack of suitable containers they were eaten by rats. The expense of this remittance is more or less twelve pesos on account of the difficulty here of obtaining alcohol and jars. I have to get the alcohol from the drugstore and it is still of poor quality. I have written to Dr. Schadenberg asking him for alcohol and jars for they certainly cost less at Manila and in that way the cost of remittance would be very cheap. I should like to know if you want the skeletons of the mammals mounted or joined.

I have also my own collection of seashells of more than 200 species, already classified and arranged. Do you want it? How much would they give me for it? They are all shells of the district of Dapitan.

Rizal, Dapitan, 24 October 1893 || To Dr. Adolph B. Meyer*pertains to Dr. Alex Schadenberg, German

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• He also sent shells to Dr. A. B. Meyer, Director of the Royal Saxony Ethnographical Institute, in exchange for much-needed books.

Rizal’s Collection of Shells displayed in the Jose Rizal Museum, Intramuros

A part of Jose Rizal’s shell collections while in exile in Dapitan.

Dapitan, 20 November 1893

Dr. A. B. Meyer

My very esteemed Doctor,

By the mail boat of last month I sent you a box of preserved animals through Dr. Schadenberg at Manila in accordance with your suggestion. The animals I sent you were the following: Three snakes, talig-bilao (Dupog), 1 sagita volans, 1 sea-horse, 2 scorpions, 2 ascarides, various coleoptera, 1 boa constrictor, 1 iho, 1 Iwo, 1 ataybia, (serpent), 1 kalasagan, 1 tipuso, 1 inagudlog, 1 kabankaban.

As their cost is very little and the remittance of small sums is difficult, I beg you not to bother about it and in exchange just send me the following works in the Spemann collection at 1 mark a bound volume:

109-110Aeschylus113-116Sophocles164-165Ossians gedichte50Furgenjew (Iwan) Vater and Sohn64Furgenjew Rauch1-3V Serie Bismarck als RednerFurgenjew (Iwan)NeolandRnazewsy (T.T.) Der Dichter and die Welt The complete works of Gogol (in German) Valadimer Korolenko Danilewsky

I would prefer that all the books be bound. If there should be any other work of some Russian writer that I do not know, I would appreciate it if you would send it to me.

Without anything more for the present, many regards and thanks in advance from your attentive servant who kisses your hand.

José Rizal

P.S.

Herr Karl Reubelen is at present here collecting orchids. We have talked about you.

By the mail boat of last month I sent you a box of preserved animals through Dr. Schadenberg at Manila in accordance with your suggestion. The animals I sent you were the following: Three snakes, talig-bilao (Dupog), 1 sagita volans, 1 sea-horse, 2 scorpions, 2 ascarides, various coleoptera, 1 boa constrictor, 1 iho, 1 Iwo, 1 ataybia, (serpent), 1 kalasagan, 1 tipuso, 1 inagudlog, 1 kabankaban.

Rizal, Dapitan, 20 November 1893 || To Dr. Adolph B. Meyer

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Rare specimens he sent

• A list of rare specimens he sent to Dr. Adolf B. Meyer of Dresden and Dr. Napoleon M. Kheil of Prague were:

1. A green snake (Deudrophilis) which lives on trees. Dr. Meyer considered it non-poisonous.

2. A fish known locally as Kumi (Echenesis). This fish clings to ships.

3. Triburon, a parasitic fish belonging to the seahorse species.

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Rare specimens he sent1. 1 Sagita Volons2. 1Hipocampus3. 2 Alacranes4. 2 Ascarides5. 1 Iho6. 1Staybia7. 1 Kalasagan8. 1 Tipuso9. 1 Magudlog10. 1 Hao11. 1KabanKaban12. 1 Boa Constrictora13. 3 Culebras(Talig-Bilao)(Dupog)14. Tortuga Karey15. Milanos16. Birds of Prey17. 3Pajaros (Sparrow)18. Jabali19. Mariposas

1. 8 Phos Senticosus L.2. 1 Triton (Persona) anus. L. 3. 4 Ranella Rana. L.4. 10 Nassa Arcularia L.5. 4 Nassa (Niotha) Genunulata.6. 4 Nassa (Niotha) Verrucosa 7. 25 Nassa (Arcularia) Thersites.8. 5 Nassa (Alectryon) Monile 9. 2 Nassa (zeuxis) Taenia.10. 6 Pyramidella Terebellum.11. 4 Cancellaria Asperella12. 2 Cancellaria Crenifera13. 4 Cancellaria Lamellosa14. 1 Natica ala-papilionis15. 1 Natica (neverita) 16. 5 Cerithium Vertagus. L.17. 1 Cerithium Obeliscus Brug.18. 2 Potamides Fluvialitis Pot.19. 1 Potamides Sulcatus Brug.20. 1 Cassis Areola L.21. 2 Cassis Pila. Reeve22. 5 Dolium Variegatum23. 2 Dentalium24. 1 Tapes Textris25. 1 Anaitis Calophylla.

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Rizal has shown interest in Ichthyology when he drew sketches of different species of fish along

with a baroto (sailboat).

Animals named in honor of Dr. Rizal

• During his Dapitan exile, Rizal collected specimens: sea shells, butterflies, flora, fauna, and other artifacts that he sent to scientists in Europe. Which explains why Rizal’s name appears in the classification for a winged lizard (dracorizali), a frog or toad (rachophorusrizali) and a bug or beetle (apogoniarizali).

Racophorus Rizali

• A rare frog which was sent to Frankfurt was christened Racophorus Rizali (Harlequin Tree Frog) by the famous German Amphibiologist Proffessor Oskar Boettger in honor of Rizal, which is a species of a toad once found in the forests of Mindanao.

Apogonia Rizali

• Another distinguished German zoologist, Dr. Carl. M. Heller, classified a small beetle belonging to the species coleoptera as Apogonia Rizali, a flying beetle less than an inch, in 1897.

Draco Rizali

• The third specie, bearing the name Draco Rizali (Philippine Gliding Lizard) named in 1893 by a biologist named Benno Wandolleck, a flying Dragon, again in honor of the late Dr. Jose Rizal. [Critically Endangered]

Spatholmes Rizali

• Some points to reference a fourth specie named after Dr. Jose Rizal, the Spatholmes Rizali which is a specie of Fungus Beetle.

• Dr. Meyer in return sent Rizal surgical instruments, and instrument for measuring the skull and books written by distinguished men like Gogol, Turgeniew, Danilewsky, Bismark, Sophokles and Aischylusete.

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Did you know?

• He played a key role in the identification of the Philippine snail that harbors the parasite that causes schistosomiasis, or snail fever, a deadly disease plaguing some areas in Eastern Visayas?

• The Philippine snail, which carries the parasite that causes schistosomiasis, is known as Oncomelania Hupensis Quadrasi. This was named after a certain Mr. Cuadrasi, a renowned naturalist based in Manila, to whom Rizal sent his specimen of insects and animals for identification.

Is really Rizal an established Zoologist?

• While collecting did not automatically categorize Rizal as a bona fide botanist or zoologist, his efforts to promote the study of Philippine plants and animals, though focused only on Dapitan, were acknowledged by European and Filipino scientists.

At Dapitan, Rizal showed the importance of valuing life in all its forms and our country’s natural riches. Neither injustice nor despair could stop him from living a full life that was offered alone to his country, simultaneously seeking nature’s beauty and his country’s freedom, through her “treasures yet undiscovered”.

• “ My country can offer him treasures yet undiscovered. There are many species still unknown in zoology and botany, judging by the discoveries that are being made.”

• “ My country can offer him treasures yet undiscovered. There are many species still unknown in zoology and botany, judging by the discoveries that are being made.”