Gregor Mendel, Pioneering Geneticist, Born (1822)

Gregor Mendel, the father of modern genetics, was born on July 20, 1822 (died 1884).  Mendel grew on a family farm in what is now The Czech Republic.  His home was then part of Austria, so he is generally described as an “Austrian monk.”  His farm background made him familiar with plants and the way they changed over time—the basis for his experiments in heredity that have made his name an easy to answer trivia question.

Gregor Mendel

            Mendel was an excellent pupil in early schooling and, therefore, was encouraged to continue on in school.  As well as studying science, he pursued the ministry, becoming a Catholic monk in his mid-20s.  He settled into a life of study and research at the St. Thomas Monastery in Brno (now also in The Czech Republic).

            At Brno, he began experimenting with the way traits were passed down from one generation to the next.  He used pea plants as his subject, because peas were grown in the monastery’s garden and because they had several traits that were easy to observe, like color of the peas, and grew to maturity rapidly, allowing his experiments to proceed rapidly.

            He grew tens of thousands of pea plants between 1856 and 1863.  From what he observed in generation after generation of traits, he deduced that plants had both dominant and recessive traits (green peas were dominant, yellow peas recessive) and that those traits were randomly passed on to the next generation.  Today we know the mechanism—genes—that Mendel could only hypothesize.

            In 1865, the Natural Science Society of Brno published papers by Mendel that described his data and ideas.  While I’d like to write that Mendel and his results “went viral,” the opposite happened.  He was ignored.  The data and ideas were too complicated, and leading scientists doubted that what he observed was universal.

Gregor Mendel’s peas (drawing by Thomas Hunt Morgan

            Mendel had other things to worry about.  He was appointed Abbot of the monastery just a few years later, a job that absorbed all his time.  His eyesight began to fail, preventing further scientific work.  He died in 1894, at age 61.

            Despite his work being ignored, Mendel was correct.  At the start of the 20th Century, three other botanists duplicated his work and published the results again, eventually giving Mendel credit for the original discovery. 

            The understanding of how variations in nature are passed from generation to generation is crucial to the understanding of biodiversity and, hence, to conservation.   For example, we now know that a large pool of genetic diversity is essential for a species to remain adaptable to changing environmental conditions, whether caused naturally or by humans.  Scientists working to reproduce endangered species in captivity must track genetic diversity so that the adaptability of new individuals and populations isn’t compromised.

            As conservationists work to maintain endangered species or to re-introduce populations into the wild, the concepts of Mendelian genetics are always part of the strategies.  And for this reason, Gregor Mendel is as important to our history as are Charles Darwin, E. O. Wilson and Rachel Carson.

References:

Biography.com.  Gregor Mendel—Botanists, Scientist (1822-1884).  Available at:  https://www.biography.com/people/gregor-mendel-39282.  Accessed July 20, 2017.

Miko, I.  2008.  Gregor Mendel and the principles of inheritance.  Nature Education 1(1):134.  Available at:  https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/gregor-mendel-and-the-principles-of-inheritance-593.  Accessed July 20, 2017.

National Institutes of Health, Office of History.  Gregor Mendel:  The Father of Modern Genetics.  Available at:  https://history.nih.gov/exhibits/nirenberg/hs1_mendel.htm.  Accessed July 20, 2017.

This Month in Conservation

June 1
US Announced Withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement (2017)
June 2
Rodne Galicha, Philippine Environmentalist, Born (1979)
June 2
Edwin Way Teale, Nature Writer, Born (1899)
June 3
The World’s First Wilderness Area Established (1924)
June 4
Gaylord Nelson, Politician and Conservationist, Born (1916)
June 5
World Environment Day
June 6
Novarupta Volcano Erupted in Alaska (1912)
June 7
Thomas Malthus Published His Famous Essay (1798)
June 8
Bryce Canyon National Park Created (1923)
June 9
Coral Triangle Day
June 10
E. O. Wilson, Father of Biodiversity, Born (1929)
June 11
Jacques Cousteau, Ocean Explorer, Born (1910)
June 12
Frank Chapman, Creator of the Christmas Bird Count, Born (1864)
June 13
Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, Born (1944)
June 14
Bramble Cay Melomys Went Extinct (2016)
June 15
Global Wind Day
June 16
Gray Whale Delisted (1994)
June 17
World Day to Combat Desertification
June 18
Alexander Wetmore, Ornithologist and Smithsonian Leader, Born (1866)
June 19
Feast of the Forest, Palawan, Philippines
June 20
Great Barrier Reef Protected (1975)
June 21
World Hydrography Day
June 22
Cuyahoga River Burst into Flames (1969)
June 23
Antarctic Treaty Implemented (1961)
June 23
June 24
David McTaggart, Greenpeace Leader, Born (1932)
June 25
David Douglas, Pioneering Botanist, Born (1799)
June 26
United Nations Chartered (1945)
June 27
Tajik National Park Added to World Heritage List (2013)
June 28
Mark Shand, Asian Elephant Conservationist, Born (1951)
June 29
Mesa Verde National Park Created (1906)
June 30
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Created (1940)
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