John Edward Gray

John Edward Gray


John Edward Gray, (February 12, 1800 - March 7, 1875) was a British zoologist. He was the elder brother of the zoologist George Robert Gray and the son of the pharmacologist and botanist Samuel Frederick Gray (1766-1828). The author’s standard abbreviation, J.E. Gray, is used to designate this person as the author when quoting a botanical name. The same is used for the zoological name. Gray was the keeper of zoology at the British Museum in London from 1840 until Christmas 1874, before the natural history funds were divided into the Museum of Natural History. He published several catalogs of museum collections, which included in-depth discussions of animal groups and descriptions of new species. He improved zoological collections to make them one of the best in the world.