Westwood, John Obadiah (1805-1893)

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
John Obadiah Westwood was an English entomologist and archaeologist with amazing artistic talents. His art is both beautiful and realistic.

Born in Sheffield, England, in 1805, Westwood originally trained to be a lawyer but instead pursued his avocations of entomology and archaeology. He is regarded as one of the foremost entomologists of his era.

He served as a curator and professor at Oxford University and served as an entomological referee for the Gardner's Chronicle.

Westwood also was a Fellow of the Linnean Society and president of the Entomological Society of London.

In 1837 Westwood described affinis, apparently unaware the species had previously been named Catocala antinympha by Jacob Hübner.

"Many of his works, such as the 1848 volume The Cabinet of Oriental Entomology, are incredibly detailed and feature richly painted scenes of insect and plant life."

Westwood's is also noted for his recycling propensities. Regarded as an eccentric, he frequently recorded and drew on the back side of whatever paper scraps were available.

TAXONOMIC PUBLICATIONS

 * Westwood, J. O. 1835. [Untitled. Introduced by: "Specimens were exhibited, partly from the collection of the Rev. F. W. Hope, and partly from that of Mr. Westwood, of various Hymenopterous insects, which Mr. Westwood regarded as new to science."]. Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 3: 68-72


 * Westwood, J. O. 1839a. An introduction to the modern classification of insects; founded on the natural habits and corresponding organisation of the different families. Volume 2. Part XI. London: Longman, Orme, Brown, Green and Longmans, pp. 193-224.


 * Westwood, J. O. 1840b. Observations on the genus Typhlopone, with descriptions of several exotic species of ants. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 6: 81-89


 * Westwood, J. O. 1842. Monograph of the hymenopterous group, Dorylides. Pp. 73-80 in: Westwood, J. O. Arcana entomologica; or illustrations of new, rare, and interesting insects. Volume 1, No. 5. London: W. Smith, pp. 65-80, pl. 17-20.


 * Westwood, J. O. 1845. Description of a new species of the Hymenopterous genus Aenictus, belonging to the Dorylidae. J. Proc. Entomol. Soc. Lond. 1840- 1846: 85


 * Westwood, J. O. 1847a. Descriptions of a new Dorylideous insect from South Africa, belonging to the genus Aenictus.


 * Westwood, J. O. 1847b. Description of the "Driver" ants, described in the preceding article. Trans. Entomol. Soc. Lond. 5: 16-18


 * Westwood, J. O. 1854. Contributions to fossil entomology. Q. J. Geol. Soc. Lond. 10: 378-396

REFERENCE

 * Konishi, M. 1991. Insectarium 28: 85, portrait.