B. K. Tikader
Encyclopedia
Benoy Krishna Tikader was an India
n arachnologist and zoologist and a leading expert on Indian spider
s in his time. He was a member of the Zoological Survey of India
and the author of the most comprehensive work on Indian spiders to date, Handbook of Indian Spiders first published in 1987. The book describes 40 families and 1066 species
of India, many of which were discovered by Tikader himself. The handbook is a guide to all arachnids including scorpion
s, and not just spiders. He was also a popular scientific
author in his native language of Bengali
, and was the author of Banglar Makorsha (literally: "Bengal's spiders") for the layman.
, Tikader was especially interested in the spiders of eastern India and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Many of his nomenclatures thus bear names of places in eastern India as part of their specific scientific name - like andamanensis (from the Andaman Islands), bengalensis (from the region of Bengal
, and dhakuriensis (from the neighbourhood of Dhakuria
, in Kolkata
, often based on the region of discovery or distribution.
Quite a few species are named in his honour, including six from one family. While being a testament to the quality and importance of his work, having multiple species named after one is not usual for scientists working in such areas of "dense phylogenies".
Fish:
Spiders:
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n arachnologist and zoologist and a leading expert on Indian spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s in his time. He was a member of the Zoological Survey of India
Zoological Survey of India
The Zoological Survey of India is a premier Indian organisation in zoological research and studies. It was established on 1 July 1916 to promote the survey, exploration and research of the fauna in the region...
and the author of the most comprehensive work on Indian spiders to date, Handbook of Indian Spiders first published in 1987. The book describes 40 families and 1066 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of India, many of which were discovered by Tikader himself. The handbook is a guide to all arachnids including scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
s, and not just spiders. He was also a popular scientific
Popular science
Popular science, sometimes called literature of science, is interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is broad-ranging, often written by scientists as well as journalists, and is presented in many...
author in his native language of Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
, and was the author of Banglar Makorsha (literally: "Bengal's spiders") for the layman.
Focus on eastern India
Working in the Zoological Survey of India based in KolkataKolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, Tikader was especially interested in the spiders of eastern India and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Many of his nomenclatures thus bear names of places in eastern India as part of their specific scientific name - like andamanensis (from the Andaman Islands), bengalensis (from the region of Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
, and dhakuriensis (from the neighbourhood of Dhakuria
Dhakuria
Dhakuria is a locality in the city of Kolkata. It is located in the southern part of the city and is surrounded by Ballygunge and Kasba in the north, Haltu in the east, Jadavpur/Garia in the south and the Lake Gardens and Jodhpur Park areas in the west....
, in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, often based on the region of discovery or distribution.
Honours
He held PhD and DSc degrees from Calcutta University.Quite a few species are named in his honour, including six from one family. While being a testament to the quality and importance of his work, having multiple species named after one is not usual for scientists working in such areas of "dense phylogenies".
Fish:
- NemacheilusNemacheilusNemacheilus is a genus of ray-finned fish in the Balitoridae family.- Species :This genus contains the following species:* Nemacheilus anguilla Annandale, 1919* Nemacheilus arenicolus Kottelat, 1998...
tikaderi (originally AborichthysAborichthysAborichthys is a genus of loaches found in streams of India with one species also found in Myanmar. There are currently 4 species recognized.-Species:* Aborichthys elongatus Hora, 1921* Aborichthys garoensis Hora, 1925...
tikaderi ) of the family Balitoridae (Barman, 1985)
Spiders:
- Nodocion tikaderi of the family Gnaphosidae (Gajbe, 1992)
- Eilica tikaderi of the family Gnaphosidae (Platnick, 1976)
- DrassodesDrassodesDrassodes is a spider genus in the family Gnaphosidae. They can reach a length of about 20mm; the brownish spiders live under rocks or bark in mostly dry habitats.-References: : , version 8.0. American Museum of Natural History....
tikaderi (Gajbe, 1987) - Poecilochroa tikaderi of the family Gnaphosidae (Patel, 1989)
- Petrotricha tikaderi of the family Gnaphosidae (Gajbe, 1983)
- Scopoides tikaderi of the family Gnaphosidae (Gajbe, 1987)
- MimetusMimetusMimetus is a genus of pirate spiders in the family Mimetidae. They are found worldwide.-Description:Members of this genus resemble the comb-footed spiders, Theridiidae, due to their globular abdomen. The upper side of this bears curved bristle-like hairs...
tikaderi of the family Mimetidae (Gajbe, 1992) - Marpissa tikaderi (Biswas, 1984)
- ChorizopesChorizopesChorizopes is a genus of araneid spiders, with more than twenty described species. Most are found in India and China, with several others found in locations ranging from Madagascar to Japan.These spiders are found in leaf litter...
tikaderi of the family Araneidae (Sadana & Kaur, 1974) - Olios tikaderi of the family Sparassidae (Kundu, Biswas & Raychaudhuri, 1999)
- ClubionaClubionaClubiona is a large spider genus that occurs almost worldwide, although in South America, it is only found in Chile. They are commonly called leafcurling sac spiders.-External links:* * * *...
tikaderi of the family Clubionidae (Majumder & Tikader, 1991) - PardosaPardosaPardosa is a large genus of wolf spiders, with more than 500 described species that are found in all regions of the world.-References: : , version 8.5. American Museum of Natural History....
tikaderi of the family Lycosidae (Arora & Monga, 1994) - Oxyopes tikaderi of the family Oxyopidae (Biswas & Majumder, 1995)
- TheridionTheridionThe spider genus Theridion, after which the family Theridiidae is named, consists of almost 600 described species that occur all around the world....
tikaderi (Patel, 1973) - PistiusPistiusPistius is a genus of crab spiders with nine described species. Most occur in Asia, only P. truncatus has a palaearctic distribution.-Species:* Pistius barchensis Basu, 1965 * Pistius bhadurii Basu, 1965...
tikaderi (Kumari & Mittal, 1999) - XysticusXysticusXysticus is a genus of ground crab spiders described by C. L. Koch in 1835, belonging to the order Araneae, family Thomisidae. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek root xyst, meaning "scraped, scraper".-Distribution:...
tikaderi (Bhandari & Gajbe, 2001) - Storena tikaderi of the family Zodariidae (Patel & Reddy, 1989)
Important Publications
- Tikader B K (1982), Fauna of India: Arachnid Vol 2: Spiders, Zoological Survey of India
- Tikader B K (1983), Threatened Animals of India, Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta
- Tikader B K and Bastwade D (1983), Fauna of India: Arachnid Vol 3: Scorpions, Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, India.
- Tikader B K (1987) Handbook of Indian Spiders, Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, India.