Institute of History of Natural Science and Technology, Russian Academy of Science, Universitetskaya nab. 5/2, St.-Petersburg 199034, Russia. e-mail: kolchin@history.spb.org

Abstract

"Founder principle" of E.Mayr was applied for the description of formation of academic biology in Russia. Foreign scientists who were the members of St.-Petersburg Academy of Science (I.Weitbrecht, J.G.Duvernoi, J.Amman, J.G.Gmelin, G.W.Steller, P.S.Pallas, K.F.Wolf, S.G.Gmelin, J.G.Koelreuter, K.L.Hablitz, J.G.Georgi, etc.) are considered as such "founders". They brought up a brilliant cohort of Russian scientists (S.P.Krasheninnikov, A.P.Protasov, I.I.Lepekhin, V.F.Zuev, N.Ya.Ozeretskovsky, A.F.Sevastyanov) who developed Russian terminology of natural science. Some of these scientists glorified themselves as naturalists, contributed a lot to the investigation of Russian flora and fauna. Others organized pharmaceutical and botanical gardens, created zoological collections, herbariums and catalogues, published materials of expeditions, laying the basement of future genetics, carpology, embryology. Joint labour of these devotees of science predetermined further great development of natural biology.