Johann Maria Hildebrandt
Johann Maria Hildebrandt was a German explorer, collector, and scientist.Biography
Hildebrandt was born in Düsseldorf, Germany, to a family of painters. Originally a machine maker, he lost an eye after an accident and became a gardener, eventually starting work in 1869 for the Berlin Botanical Garden. Between 1872 and 1881, Hildebrandt made a number of expeditions to the Horn of Africa and the African Great Lakes, collecting a large number of botanical and zoological specimens. His expeditions were for the most part modest affairs, but he discovered a number of new species. He also lectured widely and wrote about many aspects of the places he visited.
Hildebrandt died of a fever and stomach bleeding whilst on an expedition to Madagascar and was buried in the Norwegian Cemetery in Ambatovinaky. He gave his name to a number of species, including Hildebrandt's starling, the cycad Encephalartos hildebrandtii and Hildebrandt's spurfowl, all of which he discovered in Kenya in the African Great Lakes region. Hildebrandt is commemorated in the scientific names of three species of reptiles: Hemirhagerrhis hildebrandtii, Paracontias hildebrandti, and Trachylepis hildebrandtii.
