FABRE, JEAN-HENRY. – Entomologist, born at St-Léon (Aveyron) on 22 December 1823, died at Sérignan (Vaucluse) on 1 October 1915. After a period of teaching in Carpentras, Ajaccio, and Avignon, he retired in 1878 to Sérignan to devote himself entirely to botany and, above all, to entomology, directing his research toward the instincts and behavior of insects; thus succeeding in correcting various errors accepted even by entomologists and presenting certain particular discoveries, for example, concerning the paralysis, by sphecids, of the nervous centers of their prey, in order to keep it immobile but alive as nourishment for the larvae;
concerning the sex of the eggs of solitary apoids, and the hypermetamorphosis of meloid beetles. Toward the end of his life, F.’s merits were publicly recognized, including by the government; of those jubilee celebrations, his reply to the question whether he believed in God has remained famous: « If I believe in Him? I see Him. Without Him I understand nothing. And not only have I retained this conviction, but I have strengthened it ». In the scientific field he was a convinced anti-evolutionist and finalist.
The fruit of his studies is contained in the Souvenirs entomologiques (10 vols., Paris 1879-1907; definitive ed., ibid. 1919-25; Italian trans., Milan 1922-27), which earned him the title of « poet of insects » for the enchantment of his style, combined with a high degree of scientific integrity and patient, meticulous observation. He also wrote many other works of popular science which, animated by a lively and witty style, helped make the marvels of creation known and appreciated by an extraordinary number of readers; it is worth mentioning: Les ravageurs, récits de l'oncle Paul sur les animaux nuisibles à l'agriculture (Paris 1870); Les auxiliaires, récits... sur les animaux utiles à l'agriculture (ibid. 1873); Les serviteurs, récits... sur les animaux domestiques (ibid. 1875).