Merlin Owen Pasco

Merlin Owen Pasco (1892 – 6 August 1918) was a New Zealand entomologist. Pasco discovered several species of moth previously unknown to science and collected numerous specimens.

Early life and collecting

Pasco was born in Kumara and moved to Queenstown as a child. An amateur entomologist, Pasco created a significant collection of New Zealand lepidoptera in the early 1900s. Pasco was one of the most productive collectors of type specimens of beetle species described by Thomas Broun. Broun acknowledged the research assistance Pasco gave him and named the beetle species Pterostichus pascoi in Pasco's honour. However this species name was subsequently synonymised by Everard Baldwin Britton and this beetle is now known as Megadromus sandageri. Pasco was the first entomologist to collect on Tooth Peaks, Wakatipu in Otago. Tatosoma fasciata Philpott 1914 Declana sinuosa Philpott 1915

WW1 service and death At the commencement of World War One, Pasco volunteered to serve in the New Zealand Armed Forces but was turned down. He then travelled to Australia and joined the Australian 2nd Division. He served with the Division in Egypt, Gallipoli, and then in France. He was 25 years old when he died.

Eponyms

Several species were named in honour of Pasco in recognition of his collecting efforts. These species include Scoparia pascoella and Meterana pascoei.