Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer

Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer (11 November 1809 in Nerdin - 31 May 1889 in Stolp) was a German ornithologist. He made early studies of the birds of Pomerania.

Eugen Ferdinand von Homeyer at first dedicated himself to agriculture on the family farm, where he began to make scientific observations and establish a collection. In 1840 he married and acquired in 1852 the property Warbelow where he built a landscape park. He sold this after the death of its wife in 1873 and then lived in Stolp, where he dedicated himself to the natural sciences and ornithology. He corresponded with many European ornithologists, and through further collecting and purchase built up an important collection of European bird species. He undertook several expeditions with Alfred Brehm to the Lower Danube. This was made possible through his acquaintance with the Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria.

Homeyer was a founding member of the German Ornithological Society and from 1876 to 1883 their president. On his death his collection of 20,000 bird specimens was given to the Braunschweig Natural History Museum. Eugen von Homeyer wrote over 150 articles on birds and was the first describer of the semi-collared flycatcher and the Cyprus wheatear. His nephew Alexander von Homeyer was also an ornithologist.

Works

• Systematische Übersicht der Vögel Pommerns. Anklam 1837.
• Deutschlands Säugetiere und Vögel, ihr Nutzen und ihr Schaden. Frankfurt a. M. 1877.
• Die Spechte und ihr Wert in forstlicher Beziehung. 1879.
• Reise nach Helgoland, den Nordseeinseln Sylt, Jyst etc. 1880.
• Ornithologische Briefe. Berlin 1881.
• Die Wanderungen der Vögel. Leipzig 1881.
• Verzeichnis der Vögel Deutschlands. Wien 1885

References

• Richard Heß: Homeyer, Eugen Ferdinand von. In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Bd. 50, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1905, S. 461.
• Ludwig Gebhardt: Homeyer, Eugen Ferdinand von. In: Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). Band 9, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1972, S. 589.