Giovanni Canestrini

Giovanni Canestrini (December 26, 1835 - February 14, 1900) was an Italian naturalist and biologist who was a native of Revò.

He initially studied in Gorizia and Merano, then furthered his education in natural sciences at the University of Vienna. From 1862 to 1869 he was a lecturer at the University of Modena, and in 1869 became a professor of zoology and comparative anatomy at the University of Padua. In 1862 he founded the "Società dei Naturalisti Modenesi" (Modena Society of Naturalists), and in 1871 the "Società Vento-Trentina di Scienze Naturali" (Trento-Venetian Society of Natural Sciences).

Canestrini made contributions in several biological disciplines, and performed important research in the field of acarology. He was a major advocate of Darwinism, and was responsible for translating Darwin's works into Italian. Through these translations, Canestrini was a prime factor concerning the popularity of Darwinism in 19th century Italy. During his career was the author of almost 200 scientific publications, and is credited with establishment of the bacteriology laboratory at Padua.

References

* "This article is based on a translation of an article from the Italian and French Wikipedia."