Yu-Hsi Moltze Wang (1910 - 1968)

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When studying the millipede fauna of Taiwan, and compiling its checklist (Korsós, Z. 2004: Checklist and bibliography of millipedes of Taiwan. - Collection and Research, Taichung, 17: 11-32), a name of a Chinese zoologist, Y.-H. M. Wang was regularly encountered, both in the authorship of several species, and in faunistic records. In this short paper, we try to recall the memory of this almost forgotten scientist, who widely contributed to the knowledge of Oriental Myriapoda, and apparently had a very difficult life in the middle of the 20th century.
Yu-Hsi Moltze Wang was born on mainland China, in Zhejiang, on the 17th of July 1910, just one year before the Chinese revolution. It is not clear when he moved (escaped with his family?) to the island of Taiwan (which was under Japanese occupation between 1895-1945), but having settled down there in the anticommunist political system separated from China, he graduated at the University in Taipei (see photo), then achieved his PhD degree in the US (University of Utah, 1951) under the supervision of R. Chamberlin. They maintained a good friendship until the end of their life.
Wang got a position at the National Taiwan University, Taipei, where he gradually built up a collection of invertebrates. Altogether he wrote 31 scientific papers in English, the majority of them on Myriapoda (as the famous "Serica" series, from "1a" to "1v", almost exclusively in the Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum), but also 2 on reptiles, including a 86 pages monograph on the Reptiles of Taiwan, and 4 additional ones on arachnids, crabs and on a freshwater medusa.
Wang participated at the 10th International Congress of Entomology, in 1956, in Montreal, Canada, at the 11th in Vienna, Austria (1958), at the 12th in London (1963), and he is also listed as member of the congress (though not participated) at the 13th in Moscow, 1968. At that time, he was already based in Singapore where he moved in 1964, and lived until his death on 18th of January, 1968.
Unfortunately, due to the reorganization of the Taiwanese universities in the '80-ies and '90-ies, no information could be traced about the collection of Dr. Wang, which seems most probably lost during the several movements of the different departments. A minor fragment of Wang's invertebrate collection is still housed at the Singapore National Museum (thanks for the kind information provided by Rudolf Meier, National University of Singapore, Peter Ng Kee Lin, The Raffles Museum, Singapore, and Yang Chang Man, National Museum, Singapore), but this material is in poor condition, and contains only specimens from Malaysia, the Philippines and Sumatra (none from Taiwan).


Publications by Yu-Hsi Moltze Wang (myriapodological ones are in bold)

Wang, Y-H. M. (1951): The Myriopoda of the Philippine Islands. - Serica Volume I, Dissertation PhD, University of Utah, 80 pp.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1953): Herpetological notes from Kweichow province, China. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 6(3-4): 280-286.
Chamberlin, R. V. & Wang, Y. M. (1953): Records of millipeds (Diplopoda) from Japan and other oriental areas, with descriptions of new genera and species. - American Museum Novitates      No. 1621: 1-13.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1955a): Serica 1a: Records of myriapods on Formosa with description of new species. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 8(1): 13-16.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1955b): Serica 1b: A preliminary report on Myriapoda and Arachnida of Lan Yu Islets (Botel Tobago), China. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 8(3): 195-201.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1955c): Serica 1c: Supplement to the Myriapoda of the Philippine Islands II. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 8(3): 193-194.
Wang, Ch.-Sh. & Wang, Y-H. M. (1956a): Serica 1d: The Reptile of Taiwan. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 9(1): 1-86.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1956b): Serica 1e: Records of myriapods on Formosa with description of new species (2). - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 9(2): 155-159.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1957a): Serica 1f: Records of myriapods on Taiwan Islands (3) - Pescadore Islets, Kao-Yung, Pingtung, Changhua and Taipei. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum,      10(1): 23-29.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1957b): Serica 1g: Records of myriapods on Taiwan Islands (4) Six new polydesmids. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 10(3-4): 103-111.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1957c): Serica 1h: Records of Myriapoda on Taiwan Islands (5) with description of three new species. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 10(3-4): 113-116.
Wang, Y.-H. M. (1958a): Records of Formosan Myriapods. - Proceedings of the 10th International Congress of Entomology, Montréal 1956, Vol. 1, pp. 881-882.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1958b): Serica 1i: On Diplopoda from Taiwan with a new strongylosomids. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 11(3-4): 340-344.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1959a): Serica 1j: On Chilopoda from Taiwan with a new lithobiid. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 12(3-4): 195-199.
Shieh, J. Ch.-Ch. & Wang, Y-H. M. (1959b): On a fresh-water medusa from Taiwan. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 12(3-4): 201-204.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1960): On millipedes and centipedes from Taiwan, China. - Verh. XI. Int. Kongr. Entomol. Wien, pp. 288-291.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1961a): Serica 1k: Millipedes of Taiwan - a new species of family Spirobolidae. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 14(1-2): 141-142.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1961b): Serica 1l: The Diplopoda of the Philippine Islands. A revision of the Myriapoda of the Philippine Islands. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 14(1-2):      89-140.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1961c): Serica 1n: Black Widow and her Poison. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 14(3-4): 251-256.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1962a): Serica 1m: The Chilopoda of the Philippine Islands. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 15(1-2): 79-106.
Wu, Y. C., Ling, C. M., Shieh, J. & Wang, Y. H. M. (1962b): Preliminary studies on the crabs found in the Tansui and the Keelung rivers and the adjacent areas. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan      Museum, 15(3-4): 193-210.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1963a): Wallacea and insular fauna of millipeds. - Proceedings of the XVIth International Congress of Zoology, Washington 1963, Vol. 1, p. 211.
Wang, Y.-H. M. (1963b): The millipedes and centipedes of Taiwan, China. - Proceedings of the XVIth International Congress of Zoology, Washington 1963, Vol. 1, p. 285.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1963c): Serica 1q: Millipedes and centipedes of Quemoy, Fukien Province and Taiwan Island, Botel Tobago (Lan Yu), Taiwan Province and of Singapore. - Quarterly      Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 16(1-2): 89-96.
Wang, Y-H. M. (1964): Serica 1op: Wallacea and insular fauna of millipedes. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 17(1-2): 67-76.
Wang, Y.-H. M. & Wang, T. N. K. (1965): Distribution of orders Polydesmida and Spirobolida in some Oriental islands. - Proceedings of the XIIth International Congress of Entomology,      London 1964, pp. 444-445.
Wang, Y.-H. M. & Tang, M.-Ch. (1965): Serica 1r: The millipedes of Malay Archipelago and South Sea Islands: Singapore, Sarawak and Sumatra. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan      Museum, 18(3-4): 399-441.
Wang, Y.-H. M. & Tang, M.-Ch. (1965): Serica 1s: The centipedes of Malay Archipelago and South Sea Islands: Singapore, Sarawak and Sumatra. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 18(3-4): 443-452.
Wang, Y.-H. M. (1967a): Serica 1t: Supplement to the millipedes and the centipedes of Malay Archipelago and South Sea Islands, Singapore, Sarawak and Sumatra. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan      Museum, 20(3-4): 383-390.
Wang, Y.-H. M. (1967b): Serica 1u: Records on millipedes and centipedes from Brunei and from the Philippines. - Quarterly Journal      of the Taiwan Museum, 20(3-4): 391-392.
Wang, Y.-H. M. (1967c): Serica 1v: Millipedes and centipedes from Bukit Timah, Singapore and from Cameron Highlands, Malaysia. - Quarterly Journal of the Taiwan Museum, 20(3-4):      393-398.

Zoltán Korsós¹ & Sheng-Shan Lu^2
1Department of Zoology, Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, Hungary
²Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Copyright © Centre International de Myriapodologie, Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Görlitz