William John Ansorge facts for kids

William John Ansorge (born April 6, 1850 – died October 31, 1913) was a doctor who worked in Angola and Uganda. He is famous for exploring the animals of Africa. Many animal species are named after him because of the specimens he collected and sent to England.

Early Life and Education

William John Ansorge was born in Chapra, Bengal, which is now part of India. His family came from a place called Silesia. His father, Paul Gotthold Ansorge, was a reverend who worked in India and later in Mauritius.

William went to school at the Royal College in Mauritius. After that, he studied at Pembroke College, Cambridge in England. He also worked for a short time at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London.

A Career in Africa

Ansorge became a professor at the Royal College in Mauritius from 1872 to 1886. Later, he worked as a medical officer in Uganda from 1895 to 1898. He also served as a District Medical Officer in Uganda and in Southern Nigeria.

He traveled a lot across Africa, exploring places like northern Angola and Portuguese Guinea. He wrote a book about his adventures called Under the African Sun in 1899.

Discovering New Species

William Ansorge was a very important collector of animal specimens. He sent many of these back to England, especially to Walter Rothschild's famous bird collection at Tring.

At first, Ansorge didn't know much about zoology, the study of animals. But he learned a lot from Ernst Hartert, a bird expert. Hartert helped him become a better collector. Ansorge's work helped scientists learn about many new species.

He passed away in Luanda, Angola, when he was 63 years old.

Animals Named After Ansorge

Many different animals have been named in honor of William Ansorge. This is because he collected the first specimens of these animals. Most of these names were given by scientists in museums, mainly in Britain.

Mammals

• The mongoose called Ansorge's cusimanse (Crossarchus ansorgei)

Birds

• Ansorge's greenbul (Andropadus ansorgei)
• Platysteira (concreta) ansorgei
• Xenocopsychus ansorgei
• Nesocharis ansorgei

Fish

• The Guinean bichir Polypterus ansorgii
• The Rainbow Ctenopoma Microctenopoma ansorgii
• The African whiptailed catfish Phractura ansorgii
• The cichlid Thysochromis ansorgii
• The African freshwater pipefish Enneacampus ansorgii
• The Tetra Nannopetersius ansorgii
• Alestes ansorgii
• Citharidium ansorgii
• Nannocharax ansorgii
• Labeo ansorgii
• Labeobarbus ansorgii
• Enteromius ansorgii
• Raiamas ansorgii
• The eel Mastacembelus ansorgii
• The African Fish Neolebias ansorgii
• The killfish Epiplatys ansorgii

Reptiles

• Afrogecko ansorgii
• Hemidactylus ansorgii
• Psammophis ansorgii