Indian Natural History - Colonial India

Colonial India

...;and, secondly, that as Great Britain possesses such vast territories in Asia, colonies in Africa and the West Indies, and is now cultivating extensive connections with both North and South America, (not to mention the entire possession of that extensive and interesting country New Holland), a fine opportunity is afforded for forming Collections of rare and beautiful Insects, as well as enriching those already made ; and especially as these objects of Natural History are admitted into this country free of all duty. Many persons, therefore, who have been hitherto deterred from consigning to their friends valuable Collections of Insects, may now gratify them at a trifling cost; and we would anxiously impress upon our readers who may visit or reside in foreign countries, the great importance of attending to this subject, as we are persuaded that some of the choicest Collections in England have received their most rare and novel specimens from such well-timed and pleasing donations. —Preface in Samouelle's 1826 guide to collection

The East India Company was quick to note the interest in natural curiosities and set up the first museum. The collections grew rapidly. For instance the Thomas Horsfield noted in 1851 the growing contributions to the museum by year:

• 1801. John Corse Scott, Esq. Skulls of the Indian Elephant.
• 1802. Eudelin de Jonville. Zoological specimens from Ceylon, chiefly Insects and Shells ; with drawings and descriptions, in three volumes folio.
• 1804. William Roxburgh, M.D., F.R.S. Skull of Babirusa alfurus. Claud Russell, Esq. Indian Serpents.
• 1808. Francis Buchanan-Hamilton, M.D. Drawings of Mammalia, Birds, and Tortoises. John Fleming, Esq. Drawings of Birds and Tortoises.
• 1810. Captain J. Stevens. Head of Babirusa alfurus.
• 1811. John Griffith, Esq. Specimen of Furcella gigantea (Coast of Sumatra).
• 1812. Richard Parry, Esq. Drawings of Mammalia and Birds from Sumatra. The King of Tanjore's Drawings of Mammalia and Birds from Southern India presented by John Torin, Esq.
• 1813. Hon. Thomas S. Raffles, Lieut. -Gov. of Java. Specimens of Mammalia, Birds, and Insects from Java. Horsfield's Collection. Benjamin Heyne, M.D. Drawings of Indian Birds.
• 1817. Hon. T. S. Raffles. Mammalia and Birds from Java. Horsfield's Collection. Francis (Buchanan) Hamilton, M.D. Drawings of Mammalia and Birds.
• 1819. Francis (Buchanan) Hamilton, M.D. Drawings of Mammalia, Birds, and Reptiles. Thomas Horsfield, M.D. Collections of Mammalia, Birds, Reptiles, Fishes, and Insects from Java.
• 1820. Sir Thomas S. Raffles, Lieut.-Gov. of Fort Marlborough. Collections of Mammalia, Birds, and Reptiles from Sumatra.
• 1821. Sir Thomas S. Raffles, Drawings of Mammalia and Birds from Sumatra.
• 1823. George Finlayson, Esq., Surgeon and Naturalist to the Mission of John Crawfurd, Esq., to Siam and Hue, the Capital of Cochinchina. A Collection of Mammalia, Birds, Fishes, Reptiles, and Osteological Specimens, made during the Mission.
• 1824. John Pattison, Esq. Several Mammalia. Lieut.-Gen. Thomas Hardwicke. A Collection of Mammalia, Birds, and miscellaneous Zoological Specimens.
• 1827. William Moorcroft, Esq. Several Insects. Capt. J. D. Herbert. Specimens of Himalayan Birds, collected during his Geological Survey of the Himalayan Mountains.
• 1829. Madras Government. Collections made by the Company's Naturalist at Fort St. George, consisting of specimens of Mammalia, Birds, and Insects.
• 1881. A. T. Christie, M.D. Skull of the Bibos cavifrons, from the forests of Canara. Colonel W. H. Sykes The Collections of Natural History made during the Statistical Survey of the Dukhun, consisting of specimens and descriptions of Mammalia, Birds, Fishes, Reptiles, and Insects.
• 1832. John George Children, Esq. Specimens of Insects. Nathaniel Wallich, Esq. Skins of Mammalia and Birds from Nepal.
• 1833. John Reeves, Esq. A specimen of Ornithorhynchus paradoxus ; a collection of Skins of Birds from China ; two specimens of Edible Birds'-nests from China. Madras Government. The Zoological Collections made by the late A. T. Christie, M.D., consisting of specimens in all classes of Zoology.
• 1837. John McClelland, Esq., Member of the Deputation to Assam for the purpose of investigating the culture of the Tea Plant : Specimens of Mammalia, Birds, and other subjects of Natural History, with drawings and descriptions.
• 1838. Mrs. Impey. Indian Reptiles in spirit.
• 1840. John William Heifer, M.D. A collection of Mammalia and Birds from the coast of Tenasserim. Major R. Boileau Pemberton. Specimens of Mammalia, Birds, and Insects, collected during his Mission to Bootan, in 1837–38.
• 1841. J. T. Pearson, Esq. A Collection of Insects from Darjeeling. C. W. Smith, Esq. A Collection of Insects from Chittagong. The Asiatic Society of Bengal. A Collection of Mammalia, Birds, and Insects. John McClelland, Esq. Specimens of Mammalia, Birds, and Insects,

The Indian Civil Services brought many British naturalists to India. Some collected species on behalf of British and other European naturalists and museums, while others carried out their studies entirely on their own. Historians have linked the birth of museums to colonialism. These massive collections and their documentation led to the production of numerous works including The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma series.

The earliest effort to document the fauna of India was perhaps that of Thomas Hardwicke (1755–1835), a military officer in India who hired local artists to produce a huge collection of illustrations of Indian animals. This was subsequently studied by John Edward Gray (1800–1875) and led to the publication of Illustrations of Indian zoology: chiefly selected from the collection of Major-General Hardwicke and consisted of 202 colour plates.

A large and growing number of naturalists with an interest in sharing observations led to the founding of the Bombay Natural History Society in 1883.

During this era many Indian princes also took to large scale hunting and together with British hunters, many species of wildlife were hunted to near extinction while some species such as the Cheetah became extinct.