LUMINOUS IMAGES. Faune du Golfe du Lion. Coralliaires Zoanthaires sclerodermes, Archives de Zoologie Experimentale et Generale

Paris, 1897. First edition.

1897 FINE COLOR LITHOGRAPHIC PLATES OF MEDITERRANEAN SEA ANEMONES FROM CORAL REEFS.

15x23 cm hardcover, journal monograph in 3/4 calf binding, spine with raised bands, gilt title, marbled boards and endpapers, ink inscription by previous owner noting that the first memoire of this series was devoted to Flabellum anthophyllum, 249 pp, 11 fine lithographic plates (10 colored). 0.5 cm notch to bottom of front joint, and similar 0.5 cm notch to corner of 5 leaves of text pages--rodent? (not affecting text). Otherwise, very good in custom archival mylar cover. The author of this report is cIted by Stiassny in Opulent Oceans 2014: "The career of Felix Joseph Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers (1821 – 1901) spanned a time of much discovery in the rapidly advancing field of marine biology. His influence was profound, not only for numerous scientific contributions, but also for the nfluential role he played as a revered teacher and as the driving force behind the establishment of two of his nation's most important marine biology laboratories. Lacaze-Duthiers studied and practiced medicine in Paris, but soon came under the thrall of zoology. After a trip exploring marine life in the Mediterranean Balearic Islands, he returned to Paris to work as assistant to the eminent biologist Henri Milne-Edwards (1800-1885), who was chair of entomology at the Paris Natural History Museum. By 1854 Lacaze-Duthiers was appointed professor of zoology at the University of Lille and produced a series of well-received studies of marine invertebrates. A consummate anatomist known for his meticulous dissecting skills, he rather famously refused to employ modern anatomical techniques—such as the newly developed method of serial sectioning specimens for microscopic analysis. He nonetheless was a forceful advocate for a modern experimental approach to zoology. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Lacaze-Duthiers appreciated the importance of studying live animals, and regularly left Paris for the Mediterranean coast and islands. In 1858, while on Minorca, he noticed a fisherman marking his clothes with the "purple of the ancients." Upon further investigation, he observed that the glandular secretions of certain marine snails, when exposed to sunlight, became a deep purple. One year later, he published Memoire sur la pourpre, establishing that the purple dye so prized by the ancient Romans was derived from the glands of these Mediterranean snails. By this time, the French occupation of Algeria had been ongoing for thirty years, and Lacaze-Duthiers was invited to study the corals of the colony, particularly the highly valued red coral [Corallium rubrum) with a view toward establishing a well regulated French trade in this precious commodity. The task had first been offered to Jean Louis de Quatrefages (1810-1892) of the Paris Natural History Museum, but Quatrefages had demurred, suggesting that Lacaze-Duthiers would make an ideal substitute. And so on October 1, 1860, Lacaze-Duthiers set sail for Algeria, where he was to stay for a year observing, collecting, and carefully rearing corals." Created on October 11, 2011 , the Gulf of Lion Marine Natural Park covers an area of ​​4,010 km² , between the commune of Leucate to the north and the commune of Cerbère to the south, on the border with Spain. Offshore it reaches 35 nautical miles, or about 60 km, where depths reach 1,200 m. The Park is home to the Cerbère-Banyuls Marine Nature Reserve , a 65-hectare marine protected area managed by the Pyrénées-Orientales Department. The Park borders more than 100 km of coastline, 12 communes of Aude and the Pyrénées-Orientales.