Biographical dictionary

Born in London and educated at St. Lawrence College, Ramsgate and University College, Cardiff. Served in the Royal Artillery. Between 1961-64 he did postgraduate research and acted as a Demonstrator in Zoology, University College, Cardiff. From 1964 he has worked in the Zoology Department of the NMW, firstly as Assistant Keeper (until 1982) and later as head of the sub-department of entomology.

The first beetle he ever collected was Stenelmis canaliculata Gyll. at Windermere in 1960 which proved to be new to the British list (EMM, 96, 1960, 141-44) 'Unfortunately' he said ' it has not proved possible to keep adding to the British fauna at the same rate since then!'

His work in the museum involved 'the organisation, revision, curation and investigation into the historical significance of the British Coleoptera collections'.  In 1975 he published with G.C.Boon 'C.O.Waterhouse's List of Insects from Silchester', J. Archaeological Science, 2, 1975, 129-36,

FRES 1965. (Information provided by AFA before 2000)

There are 26 pages of correspondence with Colin Johnson in MUNHM (Box 13) dated 1979-1982, 1984-90. (MD 1/22)

Discovered Coccinella andersoni named after him by Thomas Wollaston (Information from Mike Morris) (MD 8/17)

Best known as a Hampshire Lepidopterist but amongst his extensive list of publications are several papers on other groups including beetles, for example ‘Winter quarters of Coccinellidae’, Sci.Gossip, 11, 1875, 166 and ‘The scales of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera’, Young Naturalist, 1, 1879-80, 27-29. Anderson lived in Chichester for much of his life. (MD 7.01)

Collected 35 beetles in Northen China acquired by the NHM in 1908. (MD 8/17)

7 beetles amongst various insects collected by Anderson in Africa, Australia and Colombia were part of the Imperial Bureau of Entomology gift to the NHM in April 1921. (MD 8/17)

Presented 39 beetles from Argentina to the NHM, 1930/31 and the Museum received a further 100 in 1933 from her estate. (MD 8/17)

6 beetles among various insects collected by Anderson in Africa, Florida and England were part of the IBE gift to the NHM in February 1921. (MD 8/17)

Educated at Annadale Grammar School and Queen's University, Belfast. His primary degree is in Pure Chemistry (2.1 Hons). Wrote his postgraduate thesis on 'Nitrogen metabolism of hormone-stimulated, folate-deficient, chick oviduct' before working for the N. Ireland Department of Agriculture, as an agricultural chemist. In retirement (2007) he has taken up work full-time on the systematics and biogeography of not just Coleoptera but non-marine Mollusca, Isopoda, Chilopoda, Diplopoda and Ascomycotina (Fungi). He works part-time as a consultant on environmental matters with the N. Ireland Environment Agency, National Parks and Wildlife Agency, Republic of Ireland and numerous ngos and commercial firms.

Since retiring he has become FRES (2008) and has co-authored the RES Handbook (12: Parts 7, 8) on Staphylinidae Oxyporinae to Staphylininae (2011) with Derek Lott, and Slugs of Britain & Ireland. Identi­fication, Understanding and Control (2014), with Ben Rowson and others.

He has also published widely on British and Irish Carabidae including: 'Hidden species within the genus Ocys Stephens: the widespread species O. harpaloides (Audinet-Serville) and O. tachysoides (Antoine) (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Bembidiini)' with D.R.Maddison. Dt. Ent. Ztschr, 2016, 63(2), 287–301,; 'Temporal and spatial variation in carabid assemblages from the United Kingdom Environmental Change Network' with W.A.Scott. Biological Conservation, 2003, 110, 197-210;  'Proteinus crenulatus Pandellé (Staphylinidae) new to Ireland with a comment on separation from other Proteinus'. Col., 2014, 23(3): 149; 'Bisnius subuliformis (Gravenhorst) and Quedius nigrocaeruleus Fauvel (Staphylinidae) new to Ireland, from bird boxes', with Bryan, M.D. Col., 2013, 22(3): 116; and The beetles of decaying wood in Ireland. A provisional annotated checklist of saproxylic Coleoptera. with K.N.A. Alexander, Irish Wildlife Manuals, No. 65. 2012,, National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Dublin, Ireland). To date he has added 87 species of Coleoptera to the Irish list and published 265 articles and papers on a variety of subjects, 147 of these on Coleoptera.

Anderson's own collection includes about 7,000 specimens of Irish Coleoptera in all groups, and about 500 specimens from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Israel, Kenya and Alaska. It includes types of Poophylax villosa Anderson & Fuller (2005) from the Falkland Isles. Specimens collected by him may also be found in the collections of the Ulster Museum and the NHM.

Present address is 1 Belvoirview Park, Belfast BT8 7BL, N. Ireland. (RA 8/17)

There are 22 pages of correspondence with Colin Johnson in MUNHM (Box 14) dated 1986-1997. (MD 1/22)

Member of the African Entomological Research Committe in 1912 when he presented 211 Coleoptera to the NHM. More than 1,000 beetles (some paratypes) he had collected in company with other entomologists in various countries including Jamaica, Africa, Punjab, Sumatra and Fiji were part of the Imperial Bureau of Entomology gifts to the same Museum at various dates between 1920 and 1927. (MD 8/17)

Nephew of H.E. Andrewes (see below). His main interests were Lepidoptera and Aculeate Hymenoptera but he also collected beetles. Horn,W. and Kahle,I. (1935-37) notice that part of a collection of Coleoptera he made in India passed to the NHM via H.E.Andrewes and that single specimens were sold by Janson and Sons. Amongst a collection of British Hymenoptera in the Dorset County Museum at Dorchester acquired from Andrewes are two boxes of British Beetles. There is another collection formed by Andrewes in the University of Hull, Department of Zoology (information from Roger Key). The beetle Neocollyris andrewesi Horn is named after him. There is a short obituary in Proc.R.ent.Soc.,(C) 13, 1949, 66 (information from G.M.Spooner). (MD 7/01)