Maria Sibylla Merian
Maria Sibylla Merian (2 April 164713 January 1717) was a German-born naturalist and scientific illustrator, a descendant of the Frankfurt branch of the Swiss Merian family. Merian was one of the first naturalists to observe insects directly.
Maria Sibylla Merian
In 1699 Merian travelled to Dutch Surinam to study and record the tropical insects. In 1705 she published "Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium". Few colour images of the "New World" were printed before 1700 and thus Merian's "Metamorphosis" has been credited with influencing a range of naturalist illustrators. Because of her careful observations and documentation of the metamorphosis of the butterfly, she is considered by David Attenborough to be among the most significant contributors to the field of entomology. She was a leading entomologist of her time and she discovered many new facts about insect life through her studies.