Fritz Müller

Johann Friedrich Theodor Müller ( born March 31, 1822 in Windischholzhausen, † May 21 1897 in Blumenau, Brazil), also known as Fritz Müller, was a German biologist who emigrated to Brazil, where he worked as a farmer, teacher and naturalist and essential Contributions to the natural history of the rainforest provided. He was one of the first followers of Darwinism.

The " Müllerian mimicry " is named after him: Different types, often toxic or inedible insects have a similar appearance ( warning costume ). The predators learn more quickly to avoid animals with this look.

Life

Johann Friedrich Theodor Müller was on 31 March 1821 in Windischholzhausen, today a district of Erfurt, the son of the pastor Johannes Friedrich Müller and the daughter of Johann Bartholomäus Trommsdorff, Caroline Trommsdorff born. After attending grammar school from 1835 to 1840 in Erfurt, the beginning of a pharmacist lesson he broke off shortly afterwards, he studied in Berlin mathematics and science and put 1845 senior teacher exam from. Reasons of conscience he gave his teacher employment as a civil servant to a Christian state, since he was convinced that the laws of nature and did not match "Christian belief in miracles " and he rejected any hypocrisy. After Müller took up the study of medicine. As an atheist, he refused to take the oath with the religious formula " so help me God " store and had to finish his studies without a degree. From the output of the March Revolution of 1848, he was disappointed. Due to poor job prospects in Germany, he emigrated in 1852 newly married to his wife ( with whom he had already lived together for a while, and the prospects as emigrants seemed to him as Married cheaper, so that he could be trusted against his conviction - probably one of the few compromises in his life ), his first daughter ( five daughters should ) and his brother in August after the newly founded by Hermann Blumenau Blumenau colony in southeastern Brazil follow. In 1852 he took a job as a science teacher in Desterro (today Florianópolis ) on the Atlantic coast. After the takeover of the school by the Jesuits, he lost his job in 1864.

He returned from Desterro back to Blumenau and in 1865 was hired as a " naturalist of the province of Santa Catarina ". Misfortunes forced him to make a fresh start: his favorite daughter, Rosa took in Berlin life, by flooding his house was flooded and he lost his means. Help that was offered to him by Darwin, so that he could procure books and microscope again, he refused out of modesty. From 1874 to 1891 he worked as a traveling naturalist for the Brazilian National Museum. When he was to move to Rio de Janeiro in 1891, he refused and was then discontinued. On 21 May 1897 he died impoverished in Blumenau, Brazil.

Work

"More pleasure as a whole zoological museum provides detailed investigation of a single animal. "

Müller was an excellent observer (Charles Darwin described him as the prince of the observers ') and had the artistic talent to bring his observations to paper.

His research interests were crabs, jellyfish, Platt and annelids, flower pollination, Lantana camara, orchids, stingless bees, termites and bromeliads. He discovered the symbiosis between Cecropia trees ( trees ants ) and ants: the animals defend the plant against enemies and Aufsitzer or climbing plants. The plant provides them for a habitation and special chuck body, named after Fritz Müller " Mullerian bodies ". He was able to prove that the stomachs of leaf-cutter ants do not contain plant material and the animals feed only on the of them " cultured " fungi that unlock the non-recoverable for ants plant substances. This had previously been indeed already suggested by Thomas Belt little; the exact proof goes back to Mueller.

In 1864 he wrote his only book " For Darwin ". In it, he provided many data and justified by observations of crabs that Charles Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection was correct. His observations of crabs inspired Ernst Haeckel to the biogenetic fundamental law. Darwin's " The Origin of Species " (Eng. " On the Origin of Species" ) was published five years earlier. Müller established itself as one of the first German scientists to the ideas of Charles Darwin apart, which he understood as one of the few immediately in the final analysis. As a result, he became an ardent supporter and defender of Darwin's theory of evolution. In the final remark (see 91) to his book writes Müller: " One thing, I hope to be I succeeded - to convince unprejudiced readers that really Darwin's theory, as for so many others without unexplained facts, as well as for the evolutionary history of crustaceans provides the key to the understanding. "

Many observations he shared with Darwin, who then forwarded it to either a publication or lectured in his own work under the naming of Müller's name. Thus, many examples of heterostyly ( flowers of the same species with different pen - and stamen lengths) back to him. This phenomenon Darwin devoted an entire book ( " The different forms of flowers on plants of the same species"; 1877).

Although he lived "at the end of the world," he corresponded with, among others, Charles Darwin, Hermann Müller ( his brother, the biologist in Lippstadt was ), Alexander Agassiz, Ernst Krause (aka Carus stars) and Ernst Haeckel. Besides German, he spoke Swedish, English, Portuguese and French and could read ten more languages.

In all, he published about 250 papers in German, English and Portuguese. Many of his observations are found in his extensive correspondence, which was published by his nephew Alfred Möller excerpts. Unfortunately, few of his letters in the original have been preserved.

In 1868 he was awarded by the University of Bonn on the same day as Charles Darwin of "Doctor Honoris Causa ". 1874 awarded him the University of Tübingen this item. Dr. Mueller was corresponding member of the " Sociedad Zoologica Argentina" and the " Sociedad Nacional de Ciência de Buenos Aires ". In 1884 he was made an honorary member of the " Entomological Society " in London.

Works

• Twelve hand-written poems in 1859; posthumously translated into Portuguese and published in bilingual História Natural de Sonhos / Natural History of Dreams ( Poemas de Fritz Müller) of LC Puff and D. Radünz, Blumenau -SC, Brazil; 2004; ISBN 85-87648 -56- X
• For Darwin 1864; translated into English in 1869 under the title " Facts and Arguments for Darwin "
• Remarkable values ​​cases of acquired similarity in butterflies Separately impression of "Cosmos " Vintage V., 1881