Don Ruspoli in Ruspoli’s Turaco Tauraco ruspolii … in Italian (1 Viewer)

Here´s antother Task for anyone knowing Italian ... and some German!?

As I understand it the Ruspoli’s Turaco Tauraco ruspolii SALVADORI 1896 commemorates the Italian Noble, Count and Prince Eugenio Ruspoli (1866–1893), Geographer, Naturalist and Explorer.

He discovered and collected the type-specimen in the vicinity of "Lago Rudolfo” ("Lake Rudolph", today Lake Turkana) in Kenya 1892, and was apparently killed, trampled to death, by an elephant , when hunting in Somalia in the year after – not even reaching the age of 28.

The type description of "his" specie was published (as "Turacus ruspolii") in; Salvadori, T. 1896. Ucceli raccolti da Don Eugenio dei Principi Ruspoli – durante l’ultimo suo vaggio nelle regioni dei Somali dei Galla. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova 36 (Serie 2, vol 16): 43-46. (Attached as jpg's)

From what I can tell, with only limited knowledge of Italian, I think (?) Salvadori's only motivation for this name was the following quote:

"Questa bellissima specie differisce in modo notevolissimo da tutte le altre finora conosciute. L’esemplare tipico è stato menzionato dal Matschie (JOURN. F. ORN. 1896, p.94) ; egli lo vide nel Museo Civico di Genova e l’ ha imperfettamente descritto, forse a memoria e senza averlo sott´occhi ; è probabile che esso sia stato raccolto durante l’ ultima parte del viaggio del Ruspoli, presso il Lago Bissan Abbaia."

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Anyone with better knowledge of Italian feel like translating it? If so, please as accurate as possible, as I would like to quote them myself in Swedish. And don´t hesitate to remark on any errors that I might have done trying to transcribe it.

And: Does the rest of those four pages tell us anything more of this "Don Eugenio dei Principi Ruspoli"?

In the quotation (above) Salvadori refers to a note in Journal für Ornithologie 1896, on page 94 (Attached as well, just to be on the safe side, but that page doesn´t add more about Ruspoli than that this/his bird was found in an yet unprocessed collection made by "… des Grafen Ruspoli …" (".. of Count Ruspoli …")

Entry from my MS;
"ruspolii Eugenio dei Principi Ruspoli (1866-1893) Italian explorer in Abyssinia 1891-1893 (killed by an elephant), and son of Emanuele dei Principi Ruspoli Príncipe di Poggio-Suasa (syn. Dinemellia dinemelli, Tauraco)".

Eugenio was not a prince, but of a princely line "dei Príncipi Ruspoli"; if he had not been killed he probably would have become Príncipe di Poggio-Suasa after his father.

Thanks for explaining …

Ok, James, I think I´ll reconsider my entry to something like:

... the Italian Noble, Count (Conte) Eugenio Ruspoli (1866–1893) whose full name was Eugenio dei Príncipi Ruspoli, of the di Poggio-Suasa dynasty … I only have to figure out a clever way to write his titles and name (not only regarding its sequence, but also in minor details like that Principi/Príncipi … with or without accent?)

… and so on … adding Kenya to his "Range" (as "Abyssinia" hardly includes "Lago Rudolfo") or just change it to "East Africa".

Although I´m still curious of any translation on that quote by our Italian readers, and if the agree with us on Count Ruspoli's name.

PS. "Dinemellia ruspolii" SALVADORI 1894 , later "Dinemellia dinemelli ruspolii" and then synonymous with D. d. dinemelli RÜPPELL 1845. See link: http://wa-sys.de/eep/ueber-den-starweber/systematische-stellung/index.html. That "ruspolii" was described on page 558 (Attached) in: Salvadori, T. 1894. Uccelli del Somali raccolti da D. Eugenio dei Principi Ruspoli. Memorie della Reale accademia delle scienze di Torino Serie 2, Tomo 44 (1): 547- 564. Link to full volume: http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/112924#page/609/mode/1up

I guess Salvadori wasn´t yet aware of Ruspoli's tragic end when he wrote that!?

I don't think I qualify as "Italian reader", but I'd read "that quote" as saying:

This most beautiful species differs significantly from all the others so far known. The type specimen has been mentioned by Matschie (Journ. f. Orn. 1896, p.94) ; he saw it in the Museo Civico of Genoa and has described it imperfectly, perhaps from memory and without having it under the eyes ; it is probable that it was collected during the last part of the voyage of Ruspoli, near the Lake Bissan Abbaia.

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Also, the first paragraph of the same paper says more or less:

Don Eugenio dei Principe Ruspoli, well-known as a geographer and a naturalist for his voyages and for the collections he brought back, started at the end of 1892 a second voyage in Africa, with the goal to explore the regions around Lake Rudolph. Of this and the previous voyage, a short description, with a sketch of the itinerary, is found in the commemoration of Ruspoli, made by Prof. Millosevitch, and published in the volume V of the Memorie della Societa Geografica Italiana, pp. 5-26. Unfortunately, due to an encounter with an elephant, on 4 Dec 1893, Ruspoli remained dead in the vicinity of Lake Bissan Abbaia, by him discoverd, to the NE of Lake Stefanie.

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Thus the text suggests he probably collected the bird in 1893, shortly before his dead. (Your last attachment also suggests that he may not have been used to note the locations where he collected specimens very precisely...) Lake Bissan Abbaia, currently Abaya Lake, is in Ethiopia.

Cheers, Laurent -

Coincidentally, featured on the ABA website yesterday...

• George Armistead, aba blog, 11 Dec 2013: THE TOP 10: Most Awesome Bird Names in the World.

Just to chime in and say that Laurent's translations are accurate

Thanks guys!

Your help will now make it possible for me to close my entry on this man – and "his" Turaco.

Don Ruspoli … over and out!

l_raty said:

Lake Bissan Abbaia, currently Abaya Lake, is in Ethiopia.

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Here Carlo von Erlanger wrote about his grave he visited near Burdji. I assue it is here and indeed close to Abaya Lake.