Jacquelin Du Val, Pierre Nicolas Camille

Camille du Val was born at Prades, southwestern France, on July 28, 1828. A sickly child from the age of five, he had no distractions from study and work, and was a brilliant scholar. He travelled to Paris in 1849 to study medicine, and there met some young entomologists, including Laboulbène who helped him join the Société Entomologique de France. This changed his career plans. His first entomological publication was in 1850. His first major entomological paper, a masterly work, was on European species of the genus Bembidion (Carabidae) in 1852. This resulted in Guérin Méneville charging him with writing the section on Coleoptera for Sagra's "Histoire physique, politique et naturelle de l' Ile de Cuba. Animaux articulés, insectes, coléoptères," pp 1-136