# Léon Vaillant

Léon Louis Vaillant (; 11 November 1834 – 24 November 1914) was a French zoologist. He is most famous for his work in the areas of herpetology, malacology, and ichthyology.
In 1854 he graduated from the College d'Arras, followed by studies in medicine and zoology in Paris. In 1861, he received his medical doctorate, then continued his zoological studies with Henri Milne-Edwards (1800–1885), earning his degree in natural sciences in 1865. In 1875, he became a professor at the Museum of Natural History in Paris.
He held a special interest involving the systematics and anatomy of turtles and crocodiles, but also made significant contributions in his investigations of reptilian physiology and behavior. Of his 200-plus scientific writings, 90 of them are based on herpetological subjects.
He participated in French naval expeditions on the Travailleur in 1880, 1881 and 1882 and on the Talisman in 1883.

## Eponyms

The following are several species of marine organisms named after Léon Vaillant:
* The ribbon worm, Amphiporus vaillanti Joubin, 1902
* The squat lobster, Munidopsis vaillantii A. Milne-Edwards, 1881
* Solamen vaillanti Issel, 1869
* Solariella vaillanti Dautzenberg & H. Fischer, 1896
* Turbonilla vaillanti Dautzenberg & Fischer, 1896.
The following are four species of reptiles named after Vaillant:
* Chioninia vaillantii (Boulenger, 1887)
* Micrelaps vaillanti (Mocquard, 1888)
* Liophidium vaillanti (Mocquard, 1901).
* Dopasia ludovici (Mocquard, 1905)
The following fish are named after Vaillant:
* The dragon fish, Bathophilus vaillanti Zugmayer, 1911
* The shortspine African angler, Lophius vaillanti Regan, 1903
* The pike cichlid Crenicichla vaillanti Pellegrin, 1904
* Paraliparis vaillanti Chernova, 2004 is a species of snailfish found in the Northwestern Atlantic Ocean primarily in the Laurentia Channel, between Newfoundland and Cape Breton.
* The Samurai gourami, Sphaerichthys vaillanti Pellegrin, 1930
The following fish are possibly named after Vaillant:
* Pseudogobio vaillanti (Sauvage, 1878)
* Hypostomus vaillanti is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Preto River basin in the São Francisco River drainage.

## Written works

* Études sur les poissons, Mission scientifique au Mexique et dans l'Amérique centrale - Study of fishes. (with Marie Firmin Bocourt 1819-1904).
* Essai sur le système pileux dans l'espèce humaine, 1861, medical dissertation.
* Observations sur la constitution géologique de quelques terrains aux environs de Suez, 1865 - Observations on the geological constitution of terrain and environs of Suez.
* Recherches sur la famille des Tridacnides, 1865 - Research of the family Tridacninae.
* Note sur quelques objets océaniens empruntés au test de différents mollusques, 1868, Bulletin de la société géologique de France. - Note on a few items from the Pacific borrowed in order to test different mollusks.
* Quelques mots sur Denys de Montfort à propos d'une brochure parue en 1815, sd Rapport sur les poissons, crustacés et mollusques, 1880, Exposition universelle de 1878, à Paris - Some comments by Pierre Denys de Montfort (1815), Report on fishes, crustaceans and mollusks.
* Mémoire sur la disposition des vertèbrés cervicales chez les chéloniens 1880 - Memoir on the disposition of cervical vertebrae of chelonians.
* Expéditions scientifiques du travailleur et du Talisman pendant les annees 1880, 1881, 1882, 1883. Poissons, 1888 - Scientific expeditions of the Travailleur and the Talisman during the years 1880 to 1883.
* Histoire naturelle des annelés marins et d'eau douce, 1889-1890, Collection des Suites à Buffon - Natural history of marine and freshwater annelids; (with Jean Louis Armand de Quatrefages de Bréau 1810-1892).
* Les tortues éteintes de l'île Rodriguez d'après les pièces conservées dans les galeries du Muséum, 1893 - Turles off of Rodrigues, in reference to conserved pieces in the museum galleries.
* Histoire naturelle des reptiles. Première partie: Crocodiles et tortues, 1910 - Natural history of reptiles. first part: crocodiles and turtles.

## Taxon described by him

* See Category:Taxa named by Léon Vaillant