Ethelwynn Trewavas

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Dr. Ethelwynn Trewavas (November 5, 1900-August 16, 1993) was a respected ichthyologist from the British Museum of Natural History. She was known principally for her work on the families Cichlidae and Sciaenidae. She worked with Charles Tate Regan another famous ichthyologist and taxonomist who named many cichlid species.

Trewavas served as the senior scientist in the Fish Section of the British Museum of Natural History for almost 50 years, and was known internationally as an authority on several diverse groups of fishes.

She is most widely known for her work describing African Rift lake cichlids, but she published extensively on other groups as well. She used both laboratory study and extended field trips to research her current areas of study, and often relied on interviews with local people to understand the behaviors, forms and food potential of fishes.

One example of the influence of Regan and Trewavas is that of the eleven currently named genus categories of Lake Malawi mbuna, two are attributed to Regan and five to Trewavas [1]. Of the 41 genera of Haplochromis in the lake, five were described by Regan and 27 by Trewavas, either individually or in partnership with David Eccles [2].

Late in her life she mentored prominent researcher Ad Konings, who has continued many of her areas of study. When her eyesight failed she insisted that he accept her stereo microscope as a gift so he could continue her work with African cichlids.

[edit] Honors

A species of Petrochromis, P. trewavasae, a cichlid from Lake Tanganyika, is named in her honour.
A species of Labeotropheus, L. trewavasae and a species of Copadichromis, C. trewavasae, both cichlids from Lake Malawi, are named in her honour.

[edit] Publications (Partial List)

E. Trewavas (1983) Tilapiine fishes of the genera Sarotherodon, Oreochromis and Danakilia. Published by the British Museum (Natural History), London. 583 pages. ISBN 0-565-00878-1.