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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 484,331 articles Wikispecies is free, because life is in the public domain! You can also check us out on Twitter: @Wikispecies

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Haloquadratum walsbyi	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 Sociable lapwing Vanellus gregarius Some facts about this bird: Head and body length: 27–30 cm. Wingspan: 70–76 cm. Weigth: 150–260 grams. Habitat: Breeds in steppes. Prefers sandy short grass plains and meadows during non-breeding season. Distribution: Breeds in northern and central Kazakhstan and south-central Russia. Diet: Chiefly feeds on insects. Surviving number: Estimated at 11,000. Conservation status: Critically Endangered (IUCN 3.1) First described: By the German zoologist and botanist Peter Simon Pallas in 1771 as Charadrius gregarius. Vanellus gregarius is a well-traveled tourist. This bird's flight routes take it from the breeding grounds in the steppes of Kazakhstan and Russia to locations throughout the Middle East. It has even been found as far south as Sudan and as far east as India. The species is monogamous. A single clutch of usually four eggs per season are laid in an unlined depression on the ground. The eggs are then incubated for about 25 days. Illegal hunting and habitat loss made the sociable lapwing population decline by 70% in the 20th century. See also: Species of previous months

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