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1957
The Lepidopterists' News
55
OBITUARIES
FELIX BRYK (1882-1957)
Felix Bryk died a few days before his 75th birthday and was buried just on this day, 13 January 1957. I lost in him a faithful friend whom it was always a pleasure to meet, due to his great intelligence and general culture. I won't however, describe this personal relationship, nor his importance as a Linne investigator, as publicist in the domain of other scientific subjects, nor about his activities of a general entomological nature. As his pupil and co-operator, I feel especially prompted to underline Bryk's importance as a parnassiologist. It is the parnassiology—the total domain of the Parnas-siidae—in which he was enthusiastically interested. In this field Bryk did fundamental work by which he has been given an eternal monument. It would take too much space to enumerate all his publications. I therefore restrict myself to mentioning the principal ones:
Lepidopterum Catalogus: Baroniidce, T einopalpidce, Parnassiidce, Papilionidce.
Parnassins apollo L. und sein Formenkreis.
Das Tierreich: Baroniidce, Teinopalpidce, Parnassiidce pars I; Parnassiidce pars II (subjam. Parnassiince).
Parnassiana, the periodical under his own management.
Though the views expressed by Bryk in these works may change on the strength of results of new studies, the investigator in this field will always have to base himself on these documents. The decease of Felix Bryk means a great loss to entomological science.
C. Eisner, The Hague, Kwekerijweg 5, NETHERLANDS
ALEKSANDR MIKHAILOVICH DJAKONOV (1888-1956)
On the 1st of April, 1956, died in Leningrad Aleksandr Mikf-iailovich Djakonov (D'akonov), an eminent Russian naturalist. He was born on the 4th of January, 1886, the oldest son of Mikhail Aleksandrovich Djakonov, Professor of the History of the Russian Law, and of Nadezhda Aleksandrovna Poretskaja, a scholar of Russian literature. The deceased had many talents. Lie was an excellent drafstman; in his youth he drew so well that he was advised to become a professional engraver. He developed more than one speciality: he was interested in Odonata, but more so in Lepidoptera, chiefly Geometridae and Microlepidoptera. Besides he was an eminent specialist of the Echinodermata of the U.S.S.R. Furthermore he worked on general biology, zoogeography, and geography.
The earliest record of his enthusiasm for entomology I learned from his mother. She recalled an excursion of the very young entomologist, and his first encounter of a Papilio machaon. So great was his childish enthusiasm that he did not trust his own hands that shook, but asked his mother to catch the butterfly.
Official records of his scientfic activity begin with the year 1906 — an expedition to the White Sea, together with K. Saint-Isere. In 1910 followed a stay at the Murmansk Biological Station, and in 1913 a European trip: to Copenhagen, where he attended classes of Monterson, to Strassburg (Doderlein), to Stockholm (Till), to Berlin and Stuttgart.
The following is an impressive list of collecting trips and expeditions of the later years, which are evidence of his never-ceasing activity: 1907 Switzerland, 1908 Saxony, 1909 Ural, 1911 Crimea, 1913 France, 1915 Barents Sea, 1920-1921, 1923 Olonetsk Expedition, 1926-1927 Ussuri Region, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1930, 1931, 1935, 1937-1939 Crimea