The Fishy Smiths
Page 39
Images copyright © Mike Bruton unless otherwise specified alongside image
Eve Marshall
Coelacanth photographed by the late Peter Timm in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in Zululand in November 2000.
Laurent Ballesta
Portrait of a coelacanth taken by Laurent Ballesta in the isiMangaliso Wetland Park in Zululand.
Brooke Wing at Diocesan College (‘Bishops’) in Cape Town where the science classrooms in which JLB Smith studied from 1912 to 1914 are located.
The ‘Ou Pastorie’ in Somerset West where the Pienaar family lived during JLB Smith’s marriage to Henriette Pienaar.
View of Diocesan College in 2018, with Devil’s Peak in the background.
Groote Kerk in Somerset West where Henriette’s father was the Minister.
The Drostdy Tower at the entrance to Rhodes University.
JLB Smith’s fold-up canvas boat, which he used on the Knysna Lagoon, on display in the Knysna Angling Museum.
Entrance to the JLB Smith Collection Management Centre in the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity in Grahamstown.
‘JLB’s Rock’, his favourite fishing spot in the Narrows at Knysna, where he nearly drowned in 1955.
William Smith
William Smith in his broadcasting studio in the 1980s.
Model of the steam trawler Nerine with the side-trawl net that was used to catch the first coelacanth in December 1938, on display in the East London Museum.
East London Museum
Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer and Hendrik Goosen outside the East London Museum at a function in 1988 to mark the 50th anniversary of the capture of the first coelacanth.
Ecological diorama created by Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer in the East London Museum.
‘Latimer’s Landing’ (left) in the Buffalo Docks, East London, where the first coelacanth was landed.
Susan Jewett
Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer with her dog Cindy and Nancy Tietz in October 2003.
East London Museum
Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer with the miscellaneous items that she collected on her trip to the Comoros in June 1989.
Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer in her doctoral robes from Rhodes University on the front cover of the June 2004 edition of the journal of the Border Historical Society, The Coelacanth.
Four postage stamps commemorating the discovery of a living coelacanth, issued by the South African Post Office in 1989.
Auriol Batten
Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer with her unique dodo egg in 2004.
The Smiths’ house at 9 Gilbert Road, Grahamstown.
Margaret Smith’s home at 37 Oatlands Road in Grahamstown, where she lived with her sister Flora.
Hepburn & Jeanes
Margaret Smith and her sister, Flora Sholto-Douglas, in 1986.
Ishbel and Ian Sholto-Douglas at their home in Grahamstown in 2016.
Irene McCulloch
Dakota 6832 at Ysterplaat Air Force Base in the colours she wore during the epic flight in 1952.
Dakota 6832 in retirement at the Ysterplaat Air Force Base in Cape Town.
NRF/SAIAB
Commemorative cover issued in 1992 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the flight of the ‘Flying Fishcart’, Dakota 6832.
Double outrigger canoe (galawa) used by traditional fishermen in the Comoros, off the south coast of Grande Comore.
Display of some of JLB Smith’s personal possessions at SAIAB.
JLB Smith’s faithful Bergheil folding plate camera that he took on his East African expeditions.
JLB Smith’s two popular books on fishes, Our Fishes and High Tide – both published posthumously in 1968 in English and Afrikaans.
NRF/SAIAB
Rare colour painting of a fish by JLB Smith; the yellowhead butterflyfish, Chaetodon xanthocephalus.
Front covers of the 14 editions of Old Fourlegs, which was eventually published in five English editions and nine foreign language editions.
Drury mount of the first coelacanth on display in the East London Museum.
Hans Fricke
Jürgen Schauer and Mike Bruton extracting a tissue sample for DNA analysis from the first coelacanth in the East London Museum in 1987.
Karen Hissmann
Hans Fricke, Mike Bruton and Jürgen Schauer with the first coelacanth in the East London Museum in 1987.
Eugene Balon
Coelacanth specimen in the Muséum National d’Historie Naturelle de Paris in which the flesh has been cleared and the bony and cartilaginous skeleton stained to reveal its structure.
The spectacular front door of the Ichthyology Institute (now SAIAB), designed and carved by Maureen Quin in 1976.
NRF/SAIAB
The new Collection Room building of the SAIAB, built in 2003; Inset: Part of the enormous fish collection at SAIAB.
View of the JLB Smith Collection Management Centre at SAIAB.
Front entrance to the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) after it became a National Facility of the National Research Foundation in 2004.
The new Department of Ichthyology & Fisheries Science at Rhodes University, established in 1981.
Eugene Balon
Tesza Musto with Margaret Smith in February 1987.
NRF/SAIAB
A melancholy Margaret Smith after she received her honorary doctorate from Rhodes University in April 1986.
Eugene Balon
Christine Flegler-Balon and Carolynn Bruton chatting to Margaret Smith in February 1987.
Tesza Musto
Margaret Smith after receiving ‘The Order for Meritorious Service Class 1: Gold’ from the State President, PW Botha, in February 1986.
Soapstone carving of a coelacanth in Moroni, Grande Comore.
Hans Fricke
Professor Hans Fricke with a dried coelacanth on Moheli Island, Comoros.
Eugene Balon
Mike Bruton (left) and Robin Stobbs in discussion with a coelacanth fisherman on Grande Comore in 1987.
Margaret Smith House at Rhodes University.
The Sea Fishes of Southern Africa by JLB Smith (1949).
Fishes of the Southern Ocean, edited by Ofer Gon and Phil Heemstra (1990).
NRF/SAIAB
Lycodichthys antarcticus, illustrated by Dave Voorvelt for Fishes of the Southern Ocean (1990).
NRF/SAIAB
Englishman, Chrysoblephus anglicus, illustrated by Dave Voorvelt for Smiths’ Sea Fishes (1986).
Smith’s Sea Fishes by JLB Smith (1977).
NRF/SAIAB
Sea goldie, Anthias squamipinnis, illustrated by Margaret Smith for The Sea Fishes of Southern Africa (1949).
Smiths’ Sea Fishes, edited by Margaret Smith and Phil Heemstra (1986).
Examples of books on fishes published through the original Department of Ichthyology, JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology and South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity.
An Illustrated Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of the Zambezi River, Lake Kariba, Pungwe, Sabi, Lundi and Limpopo Rivers by Rex Jubb (1961).
Fisherman’s Favourites. Fish, Seafood and Seaweed Recipes by Carolynn Bruton and Liz Tarr (1992).
Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa by Rex Jubb (1967).
A Complete Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa by Paul Skelton (2001).
Pocket Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa by Mike Bruton, Peter Jackson and Paul Skelton (1982).
Fishes of the Okavango Delta and Chobe River, Botswana by Mike Bruton, Glenn Merron and Paul Skelton (2018).
Books on the coelacanth and related topics by Ichthyology staff and other authors.
Sea Safari with Professor Smith by Peter Barnett (1953).
The JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology – 50 Years, edited by Paul Skelton and Johann Lutjeharms (1997), with a drawing of a barb in pride of place.
Die Jagd nach dem Quastenflosser – Der Fisch, der Aus der Urzeit Kam by Hans Fricke (2007).
Old Man C
oelacanth by Shirley Bell (1969).
Coelacanth – Portrait of a Living Fossil by Peter Forey (1998).
When I was a Fish – Tales of an Ichthyologist by Mike Bruton (2015).
The Biology of Latimeria and Evolution of Coelacanths, edited by Jack Musick, Mike Bruton and Eugene Balon (1991).
A Fish Caught in Time – The Search for the Coelacanth by Samantha Weinberg (1999).
The Annotated Old Fourlegs –The Updated Story of the Coelacanth by Mike Bruton (2017).
Living Fossil – The Story of the Coelacanth by Keith Thomson (1991).
The Four-legged Fish by Mike Bruton (2000).
The Amazing Coelacanth by Mike Bruton (2018).
Acronyms
CSIR Council for Scientific & Industrial Research; established in 1945
DIFS Department of Ichthyology & Fisheries Science, Rhodes University; established 1981
FAO Food & Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations; founded in 1945
JLBSI JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology; established in 1968
ORI Oceanographic Research Institute; established in 1951 as a division of SAAMBR; now uShaka Marine World, established in 2004
RUC Rhodes University College (1904–1952), which became Rhodes University
S2A3 South African Association for the Advancement of Science; founded in 1902
SAAMBR South African Association for Marine Biological Research; established in 1951
SAIAB South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; established in 2001
References and further reading
Anon. 1953. Sea ’Scapes. Diocesan College Magazine March 1953: 56.
Anon. 1968–1987. Dictionary of South African Biography. Volumes 1–5. Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria.
Anon. 1988. Margaret Mary Smith: 26 September 1916–8 September 1987. South African Journal of Marine Science 6(1): 1–2.
Anon. 2013. Building on the South African Coelacanth Legacy. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Grahamstown. 45 pages.
Anthony, J. 1976. Opération Coelacanthe. Arthaud, Paris. 200 pages.
Anthony, J. 1980. Évocation des travaux français sur Latimeria notamment depuis 1972 (Review of French research on Latimeria particularly since 1972). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B 208: 349–367.
Anthony, J & Millot, J. 1972. Première capture d’une femelle de coelacanthe en état de maturité sexuelle. Academie des Sciences, Paris Séries D 274: 1925–1926.
Atz, JW. 1976. Latimeria babies are born, not hatched. Underwater Naturalist 9(4): 4–7.
Balon, EK. 1990a. The living coelacanth endangered: a personalized tale. Tropical Fish Hobbyist 38 (February): 117–129.
Balon, EK. 1990b. Tracking the coelacanth: a follow-up tale. Tropical Fish Hobbyist 38 (March): 122–131.
Balon, EK, Bruton, MN & Fricke, H. 1988. A fiftieth anniversary reflection on the living coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae: some new interpretations of its natural history and conservation status. Environmental Biology of Fishes 23: 241–280.
Barnard, KH. 1925. A monograph of the marine fishes of South Africa. Part I. Annals of the South African Museum 21(1): 1–418.
Barnard, KH. 1927. A monograph of the marine fishes of South Africa. Part II. Annals of the South African Museum 21(2): 419–1065.
Barnard, KH. 1943. Revision of the indigenous freshwater fishes of the SW Cape region. Annals of the South African Museum 36(2): 101–262.
Barnard, KH. 1948. Further notes on South African marine fishes. Annals of the South African Museum 36: 341–406.
Barnett, P. 1953. Sea Safari with Professor Smith. Business Services, Durban. 158 pages.
Batten, A. 2004. Some memories of Marge. The Coelacanth 42(1): 48–55.
Bell, S. 1969. Old Man Coelacanth. Voortrekkerpers, Johannesburg. 141 pages.
Bell, S. 1987. I remember the professors – a personal tribute to Professors JLB and Margaret Smith. Skiscene 11(5): 13–14.
Bemis, WE & Simon, AM. 1997. Coelacanth catches. Science 278: 370.
Benno, B, Verheij, E, Stapely, J, Rumisha, C, Ngatunga, B, Abdallah, A & Kalombo, H. 2006. Coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae (Smith, 1939) discoveries and conservation in Tanzania. South African Journal of Science 102: 486–490.
Bergh, W, Smith, W, Botha, W & Laing, M. 1992. The place of Natal Command in world science. South African Military History Journal 9(1): 1–13.
Bickell, D. 1986. What a wonderful book. Ichthos 12: 1.
Boy, G. 2001. Kenya’s first coelacanth. Swara 24: 24–26.
Brown, AC. 1982. Scientists remember. South African Journal of Science 78(2): 52.
Brown, AC. 1989. Professor John H.O. Day – obituary. Ichthos 24: 4.
Brown, AC (ed.). 1997. A History of Scientific Endeavour in South Africa. Royal Society of South Africa, Cape Town. 516 pages.
Brown, ME, Eve, DJ, Kaye, PT, Rivett, DEA & Watkins, GM. 2004. 100 years of chemistry at Rhodes University. South African Journal of Science 100(11+12): 530–538.
Bruton, CJ & Tarr, EM (eds). 1987. Ichthos Recipe Book. Ichthos, Grahamstown. 104 pages.
Bruton, CJ & Tarr, EM. 1992. Fisherman’s Favourites. Fish, Seafood and Seaweed Recipes. Southern Book Publishers, Halfway House. 210 pages.
Bruton, MN. 1982. The Life and Work of Margaret M. Smith. J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Grahamstown. 12 pages.
Bruton, MN. 1986a. A passion for fishes. South African Journal of Science 82: 622–623.
Bruton, MN. 1986b. Keppel Barnard. Ichthos 11: 2.
Bruton, MN. 1988. JLB Smith the sportsman. Ichthos 19: 3.
Bruton, MN. 1989a. Margaret Mary Smith (1916–1987). Cybium 13(1): 3.
Bruton, MN. 1989b. Fifty years of coelacanths. South African Journal of Science 85: 205.
Bruton, MN. 1989c. The living coelacanth fifty years later. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 47: 19–28.
Bruton, MN. 1990. Tribute to Captain Goosen. Ichthos 25: 6.
Bruton, MN. 1992. The mingled destinies of coelacanths and men. Ichthos 33: 4–5.
Bruton, MN. 1994. Lungfishes and Coelacanths. pp. 70–74. In: JR Paxton & WN Eschmeyer (eds) Encyclopaedia of Animals: Fishes. University of New South Wales Press, Sydney.
Bruton, MN. 1996. What the Ichthyology Institute means to me. Ichthos 49: 26–27.
Bruton, MN. 2015. When I was a Fish. Tales of an Ichthyologist. Jacana Media, Cape Town. 310 pages.
Bruton, MN. 2016. Traditional Fishing Methods of Africa. Cambridge University Press, Cape Town. 96 pages.
Bruton, MN. 2017. The Annotated Old Fourlegs. The Updated Story of the Coelacanth. Struik Nature, Cape Town. 336 pages.
Bruton, MN. 2018. The Amazing Coelacanth. Struik Nature, Cape Town. 96 pages.
Bruton, MN, Jackson, PBN & Skelton, PH. 1982. Pocket Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa. Centaur Publishers, Cape Town. 88 pages.
Bruton, MN & Coutouvidis, SE. 1991. An inventory of all known specimens of the coelacanth Latimeria chalumnae, with comments on trends in the catches. Environmental Biology of Fishes 32: 371–390.
Bruton, MN, Coutouvidis, SE & Pote, J. 1991. Bibliography of the living coelacanth Latimeria chalumnae, with comments on publication trends. Environmental Biology of Fishes 32: 403–433.
Bruton, MN & Stobbs, RE. 1991. The ecology and conservation of the coelacanth Latimeria chalumnae. Environmental Biology of Fishes 32: 313–339.
Bruton, MN, Cabral, AJP & Fricke, H. 1992. First capture of a coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae (Pisces, Latimeriidae) off Mozambique. South African Journal of Science 88: 225–227.
Buxton, CS, Bruton, MN, Hughes, GR & Stobbs, RE. 1988. Recommendations on the proclamation of marine conservation legislation and the establishment of marine reserves in the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros. Investigational Report of the JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology 28: 38 pages.