Education
He studied and described many new beetles from Siberia, Alaska, the United States of America, Europe, and Asia.
He studied and described many new beetles from Siberia, Alaska, the United States of America, Europe, and Asia.
Motschulsky was an Imperial Army colonel who undertook extended trips abroad. While he tended to ignore previous work and his own work on classification was of poor quality, Motschulsky made a massive contribution to entomology, exploring hitherto unworked regions, often in very difficult terrain. He described many new genera and species, a high proportion of which remain valid.
Motschulsky’s travels included:
1836 - France, Switzerland and the Alps, northern Italy and Austria
1839-1840 - Russian Caucasus, Astrakhan, Kazan and Siberia
1847 - Khirgizia
1850-1851 - Germany, Austria, Egypt, India, France, England, Belgium and Dalmatia
1853 - United States of America, Panama, returning to Saint St. Petersburg via Hamburg, Kiel and Copenhagen
1853 - Germany, Switzerland and Austria
Motschulsky"s vast collection is divided between Moscow State University, the Zoological Museum of Saint St. Petersburg, the Humboldt Museum and the German Entomological Institute.