François Mocquard

Who is François Mocquard?

François Mocquard was a French herpetologist born in Leffond, Haute-Saône.

In 1860 he was named préparateur du physique after receiving his bachelor of sciences degree at the Faculty of Besançon. In the succeeding years he earned degrees in physical sciences, mathematical sciences and medicine. Despite being middle-aged, he made a career change, and began studying natural sciences in the laboratory of Alphonse Milne-Edwards at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle in Paris. In 1884 he earned his doctorate of sciences with a thesis on the structure of the stomach in crustaceans, afterwards working as an assistant in the ichthyology and herpetology department at the museum.

During his career he described numerous herpetological taxa, most notably species from Madagascar, Tonkin, Borneo, Mexico and Central America. In addition, he has a several species named after him, such as: Xenotyphlops mocquardi, Mantidactylus mocquardi and Mertensophryne mocquardi.