Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) und ihre Bedeutung für die herpetologische Erforschung Surinams.

How extraordinary the development of Maria Sibylla Merian from an artist to a naturalist was in historically turbulent times, should illustrate the subsequent account of her life and her scientific achievments. Carl von Linné titled her in 1758 as a prominent figure in the field of metamorphosis research. merian's observations in Surinam, published ih her major work 'Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium' of 1705 and 1719, brought the earliest descriptions of snakes, lizards, caimans, frogs and toads from South America into the limelight. In recognition of M.S. Merian's achievments in Surinam, scientists such as Shaw (1802) and Duméril & Bibron (1839) chose the taxonomic matronym meriana and merianae in the formal description of new species.