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Welcome to Wikispecies The free species directory that anyone can edit. It covers Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, Bacteria, Archaea, Protista and all other forms of life. So far we have 480,917 articles Wikispecies is free, because life is in the public domain! You can also check us out on Twitter: @Wikispecies

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Sitta europaea caesia	Boletus calopus	♂Aphyocharax anisitsi	♀Brachypelma smithi	Hippopotamus amphibius	Euphorbia leuconeura

Explore Wikispecies HELP Section – Detailed information on creating pages. Taxonomy – Information on the Linnaean classification of species. Village Pump – Discuss the project. Done and To Do – See references to very detailed areas and defined future targets Wikispecies FAQ – Check replies to common concerns. Image Guidelines – Our recommendation on where to upload illustrations Wikispecies PR – Help us by spreading the word of Wikispecies Collaboration with ZooKeys A collaboration between Wikispecies and ZooKeys has been announced. PhytoKeys also joined the collaboration in November 2010. Images of species from ZooKeys and PhytoKeys will be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons and used in Wikispecies. Distinguished author Charles Lucien Bonaparte May 24, 1803 – July 29, 1857. Author abbreviation: Bonaparte Charles Lucien ("Carlo Luciano") Bonaparte was French zoologist specialized in ornithology and ichthyology. He also studied amphibians and reptiles and is the author of Ursini's viper, Vipera ursinii. Bonaparte was the son of Lucien Bonaparte and Alexandrine de Bleschamp, and a nephew of Emperor Napoleon. Born in Paris, he was raised in Italy. After getting married to Zénaïde Bonaparte, he and his wife left for Philadelphia in the United States to live with Joseph Bonaparte, father of Zénaïde. Before leaving Italy, Charles had already discovered a warbler new to science, the moustached warbler (Acrocephalus melanopogon), and on the voyage he collected specimens of a new storm-petrel, Oceanites oceanicus. On arrival in the United States he presented a paper on this new bird, which was later named Wilson's storm petrel (after Alexander Wilson). At the end of 1826, Bonaparte and his family returned to Europe. He visited Germany, where he met Philipp Jakob Cretzschmar, and England, where he met John Edward Gray at the British Museum, and renewed his acquaintance with John James Audubon. In 1828, the family settled in Rome. In Italy, he was the originator of several scientific congresses, and lectured and wrote extensively on American and European ornithology and other branches of natural history. Between 1832 and 1841, Bonaparte published his work on the animals of Italy, Iconografia della Fauna Italica. He had also published Specchio Comparativo delle Ornithologie di Roma e di Filadelfia (Pisa, 1827), presenting a comparison between birds of the latitude of Philadelphia and Italian species. He created the genus Zenaida, after his wife, for the mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) and its relatives. He was elected a member of the American Antiquarian Society in 1845. In 1850, Bonaparte and his family of wife and twelve children moved to France, and he made Paris his home for the rest of his life. In 1854, he became director of the Jardin des Plantes. In 1855, he was made a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. He published the first volume of his Conspectus Generum Avium before his death, the second volume being edited by Hermann Schlegel. Lucien Charles Bonaparte died in Paris at the age of 54. See also: List of 53 taxa authored by Charles Lucien Bonaparte ⁂ Distinguished authors of previous months

Species of the month Marbled polecat Vormela peregusna Some facts about this mammal: Body length: 27–38 cm. Tail length: 12–22 cm. Weight: 260–520 grams. Habitat: Dry open spaces; sometimes found in bushes and forest edges of semi-arid areas. Distribution: From southeast Europe to Russia and China. Diet: Chiefly feeds on rodents, occasionally on small birds, lizards, fish, frogs, snails, and insects. Surviving number: Unknown. Conservation status: Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1) First described: By the German naturalist and explorer Johann Anton Güldenstädt in 1770, originally named as Mustela peregusna. Vormela peregusna wears a very special perfume: when it is threatened, it throws its head back, displays its coloring and emits a noxious defensive odor. If all this doesn't have the desired effect, it just drops down and plays dead. This elusive hunter employs offensive strategies as well, such as approaching and attacking from the side. By using such techniques, it can overcome pray larger than itself during its forays at dusk, dawn, and throughout the night. The marbled polecat has nevertheless more trouble than it can handle in one realm: its steppe habitat is shrinking in Europe and Asia making this species status vulnerable. See also: Species of previous months

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