Alfred de SAINT-SIMON (1823-1895), botanist... - Lot 37 - Conan Belleville Hôtel d'Ainay

Lot 37
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Alfred de SAINT-SIMON (1823-1895), botanist... - Lot 37 - Conan Belleville Hôtel d'Ainay
Alfred de SAINT-SIMON (1823-1895), botanist and malacologist from Toulouse. Alfred MOQUIN-TANDON (1804-1863), botanist. 9 L.A.S. from Alfred de Saint-Simon, of which 3 are co-written with Moquin-Tandon, addressed to Charles Des Moulins. 32 pp. in-8. Toulouse, 1844-1852. An address on the back. Very beautiful correspondence, very long and dense, all scientific, devoted to his works of malacology and conchyliology. He comments on his work on the plants of the Pic du Midi and remembers an epic race that he made there in execrable weather conditions. He evokes the discovery of a new fossil species. "I recently received a letter and a box containing some molluscs from Mr. de Charpentier; he tells me in his very affectionate and kind letter that he believes that the Pupa considered by us as the Pupa magacheclos differs in such a way as to be considered as another species; He claims that the Pupa megacheclos of Italy has a sharper neck, a wider and deeper umbilicus, a thicker and more reflexed perestone (which is why it is called megacheclos), and stronger teeth; the opening also seems to me to be more oblique from front to back in one of these Pupas than in the other. I am sending you some individuals of these two species so that you can decide the question ". He also discusses conchyliological and malacological considerations. He sent him a collection of planorbes, partly collected in the Pyrenees. "I have seen with great interest your observations on the Pupa megacheclos bone. I think with you that the differences pointed out by Mr. de Chapentier are not sufficient to separate the Pyrenean individuals from those of Italy to make two species; relying on the opinion of Mr. Moquin-Tandon, I go further and am of the opinion to join them to Pupa avena Draparnaud. The angle of the base of the opening varies according to the individuals, especially in those which were sent to me as coming from Italy. In the majority this part of the opening is more or less rounded; I made the same observation on individuals that I found in Foix in the month of last October ". From his observations on different Pyrenean sites, he concludes that "the Pupa avena increases in size as it advances in the Pyrenees. There is nothing surprising, the Helix Lomatia becomes enormous at a height of 2000 meters in the Alps, I have seen the Helix necroralis much larger at the top of the mountain of Bocanéra which dominates the valley of Luchon than near this small city []. I will also make a small observation about the Neritina Boetica Lamarck. I noticed a very great analogy between this Neritina and N. Thermalis Boubée, but it would be better to join the latter to Ner. Fluvutilis. There is in the definition that I read in the second edition of Lamarck's invertebrates a character which distances N. Thermalis from N. Boetica, it is the advancement of the spire on the last turn [] ". He spoke at length about his work on the monography of planorbes, studying also fossil species, some found in New Jersey
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