Gilbert White

Gilbert White (July 18, 1720 – June 26, 1793) was a pioneer in the fields of nature study and ornithology.

Biography

White was born in Selborne in Hampshire. He was educated by a private tutor in Basingstoke before going to Oriel College, Oxford. White took orders as deacon in 1747 and became vicar of Moreton Pinkney in Northamptonshire. He later became curate of Farringdon in Hampshire, the parish adjacent to Selborne, and returned to his family home. In 1784, he became curate of Selborne, remaining there until his death. Having studied at Oriel at the behest of his uncle, it was not possible for him to gain permanent residence in Selborne.

White is considered England's first ecologist. In 1770 he said about the earthworm:

"Although the worms are in appearance a small and despicable link of the chain of nature, if they disappeared, they would provoke a regrettable abyss [...] the worms promote the vegetation, which could barely survive without them..."

White is known for his The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne (1789). This work is a compilation of letters to Thomas Pennant, the most important zoologist of the time, and also to Daines Barrington, a Welsh lawyer and member of the Royal Society. These letters contain White's discoveries about the birds and animals around Selborne. White believed in classifying birds by observation rather than by collecting specimens. The study of twin species has provided important advances in evolutionary biology, particularly in understanding the process of speciation. It is interesting to note that the first pair of twin species was reported in 1768 by Gilbert White (1720-1793) in the bird genus Phylloscopus.

In addition to his publications on Natural History he was also known as a poet.

Did you mean: Su casa en Selborne, The Wakes, ahora alberga el Museo Gilbert White así como el Oates Memorial Museum, en honor de Frank y Lawrence Oates.

Richard Mabey wrote a biography of White which was published by Ebury Press in 1986 and won the Whitbread Biography of the Year award.

• The abbreviation "G.White" is used to indicate Gilbert White as authority in the scientific description and classification of vegetables.