John Dennis Carthy

John Dennis Carthy (7 April 1923 – 13 March 1972) was a British zoologist and ethologist whose primary study subjects were the sensory systems and behaviour of invertebrates.^[1] He published 11 books and numerous scientific articles.

Life and career

John D Carthy went to Bedford School, and received his undergraduate training at Christ’s College at the University of Cambridge.^[1][2] During WW2 he served in the Operational Research Section of the RAF Bomber Command,^[3][4] after which he returned to Cambridge, and completed first his undergraduate studies and subsequently obtained a PhD at Cambridge in 1950.^[1] He joined the faculty of the Zoology Department at Queen Mary College, London in 1950, where he remained until his death in 1972.^[1]

In 1967 he became the first Scientific Director of the Field Studies Council,^[1] where he led the establishment of the Oil Pollution Research Unit at Orielton Field Studies Centre, Pembrokeshire and the setting up of the Epping Forest Conservation Centre.^[1][4][5][6] He was a fellow of the Institute of Biology and a Secretary of the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB) and the Society for Experimental Biology and a council member of the Royal Entomological Society (vice presidency in 1962).^[1]

John Carthy was a prominent science communicator, with many appearances on popular radio and television programmes,^[1][4] e.g. the BBC’s "Meet the Professor", "Tonight", "Nature Parliament" and "Young Scientists of the Year".^[7][8][9]

Books

• John D Carthy “Animal Navigation: how Animals Find their Way about” Allen & Unwin, London, 1956
• John D Carthy “An Introduction to the Behaviour of Invertebrates” Allen & Unwin, London, 1958
• John D Carthy “The World of Feeling” Phoenix House, London, 1960
• John D Carthy & Charles Lionel Duddington (eds) “Viewpoints in Biology” Butterworths, London 1962
• John D Carthy & Francis John Govier Ebling (eds) “The Natural History of Aggression” Academic Press, London, New York, 1964
• John D Carthy “The Behaviour of Arthropods” W. H. Freeman, San Francisco, 1965
• John D Carthy & Aaron E Klein “Animals and their ways; the science of animal behavior” Natural History Press, Garden City, 1965
• John D Carthy “The Study of Behaviour” St Martins Press, New York, 1966
• John D Carthy & G.E. Newell “Invertebrate Receptors” Academic Press, New York, 1968
• John D Carthy & Don R Arthur “The Biological Effects of Oil Pollution on Littoral Communities: Proceedings of a Symposium Held at the Orielton Field Centre, Pembroke, Wales, on 17th, 18th and 19th February 1968”, Field Studies Council, London, 1968.
• John D Carthy & Colin Threadgall “Animal Camouflage” McGraw Hill, New York, 1972.

Articles

• Odour trails of Acanthomyops fuliginosus. Nature, 166, 1950, p. 154;
• The orientation of two allied species of British ant. I. Visual direction finding in Acanthomyops niger. Behaviour, 3, 1951, pp. 275–303;
• Odour trail laying and following in Acanthomyops fuliginosus. Behaviour, 3, 1951, pp. 304–318;
• Do animals see polarized light? New Scientist, 10, 1961, pp. 660–662;
• Color vision in invertebrates. In: Symp. of the Inst. of Biology, No. 12 “Colour and Life”, London 1964

References