Dissura mortoni Ogilvie-Grant, 1902 (1 Viewer)

[Taphrospilus]

Dissura mortoni Ogilvie-Grant, 1902 OD here

The Eponym Dictionary of Birds claims:

Stork sp. Dissura mortoni Ogilvie-Grant, 1902 NCR [Alt. Storm's Stork; JS Ciconia stormi]
William Morton (DNF) was a British civil servant in Sarawak. In his etymology Ogilvie-Grant wrote: 'A Stork belonging to the genus Dissoura was recently shot by Mr William Morton on the Simunjan River, a tributary of the Sadong, in Southern Sarawak, and subsequently brought to me for identification. An examination of the series of Dissura episcopus in the British Museum confirmed the suspicion that this bird belonged to a perfectly distinct species, but disclosed the fact that a similar specimen to that shot by Mr Morton had been sent home by Sir Hugh Low in 1876. Probably from lack of material the differences between this bird and D. episcopus had not been recognised, and the specimen had been catalogued under the latter title'. Ogilvie-Grant was right in saying the stork was distinct from Ciconia episcopus (Woolly-necked Stork), but Blasius (q.v.) had already named the taxon (1896).

The Key to Scientific Names

William Morton (fl. 1902) British civil servant in Sarawak, collector (syn. Ciconia stormi).

Maybe we get his life dates here?

 

[PScofield]

I can't find William Morton - too common a name.

But a syntype is described here and it was collected by "P Graydon". I think its a matter of opinion but there is almost enough here to suggest the holotype is the one collected by William Morton and the one described in Harrison & Warren is a paratype.

 

[l_raty]

But a syntype is described here and it was collected by "P Graydon". I think its a matter of opinion but there is almost enough here to suggest the holotype is the one collected by William Morton and the one described in Harrison & Warren is a paratype.

Mmh. Three specimens were referred to the new species in the OD (i.e., no holotype fixed by monotypy), and the only thing that looked like a type designation there was:

The type of the male was recently procured at Lamag, Sandakan, in May, by Mr. Graydon ; the female by Sir Hugh Low, on the Mengalong River, Sarawak.

I would understand this as making Graydon's and Low's birds syntypes, which leaves Morton's bird entirely outside of the type series (see ICZN 72.4.6).

The treatment in the subsequent Ibis paper here (table headers) was similar, with Graydon's specimen being called the "type of male", Low's the "type of female", and Morton's just an "adult female".

How do we know that "Mr. William Morton" was a civil servant ?

 

[PScofield]

Here page 10.
Swiss-English. Not a civil servant.
William Charles James Morton (1866-1932), conservateur adjoint au Musée cantonal de zoologie, naturaliste et marchand d?objets ethnographiques. Dans le cadre de ses fonctions qu'il occupe au Musée, il effectue un premier voyage à Sumatra, puis à Bornéo en 1898-1899. Il effectue un deuxième voyage au Sri Lanka et à Sumatra en 1906-1907, accompagné par Paul Narbel (1876-1920), chef de clinique de l'hôpital cantonal, passionné de zoologie et de chasse. A son retour en Suisse, Morton organise à la Grenette, sur la place
de la Riponne, à Lausanne, des expositions de spécimens, d'objets collectés et de photographies, et donne des conférences. En 1931, il vend sa collection au Musée d'ethnographie de Neuchâtel ainsi que sa Villa Collonges
de Lausanne, alors qu'il est complètement démuni.
Parentés (familiales) : Fils de Charles John Morto
Extra information on this excellent website.

William Charles James Morton was born on July 30, 1866, in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland, to Helène Pauline Mina de Pelézieux dit Falconnet, age 20, and Charles John Morton, age 32.