OPEN ACCESSInternational Journal of Aquatic ScienceISSN: 2008-8019Vol. 7, No. 1, 3-5, 2016
Updating historical record on brine shrimp Artemia (Crustacea: Anostraca) fromUrmia Lake (Iran) in the first half of the 10th century AD
Alireza Asem*1 and Amin Eimanifar§2
1) Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Ocean University of China, 5 Yushan Road, Qingdao 266003, China2) Honey Bee Research and Extension Laboratory (HBREL), Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, SteinmetzHall, Natural Area Dr., P.O. Box 110620, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
* Editor in Chief of IJAS, § Managing Editor of IJAS
Over the several years, the first scientific report ofbrine shrimp Artemia has been referred to 1755 bySchlösser as an "unknown insect" from Limington,England (Kuenen & Baas-Becking, 1938); but this waseventually updated to the late tenth century AD in 982,with reference to unknown Iranian geographer whohas documented Artemia as a "worm" from UrmiaLake (Iran) in Hudud Al-Alam (The Regions of TheWorld, (حدود العالم (Asem, 2008).
Recently, we have received unique codex ofEstakhri (d. 951/957 AD, 10th C.), Al-Masalik wa Al-
Mamalik (Roads and Kingdoms, مسالك و الممالكال ), inPersian language which is kept in the British Library(IO Islamic 1026). Estakhri has reported "aquatic dog"from Urmia Lake in his book. Explanation of UrmiaLake in this manuscript has surely evidenced that hispurpose was brine shrimp Artemia because of there isno other aquatic animal existing in this lake (see Asemet al., 2014). Figure 1 shows the folio 51v of Al-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik which describes Urmia Lakeand accordingly pointing out Artemia inhabiting in thislake.
Persian text:]بھ آذربایجان[بادربایکان ]:[ذکر دریاھای این دیار...
]،[خوانند]ارومیھ[رمیھ ادریایی ھست کھ آنرا دریای آبی شوردارد و ھیچ جانوری نباشد و گویند کھ سگ آبی
گرد بر گرد این دریا ھمھ عمارت و نواحی [.]باشداست و از این دریا تا مراغھ سھ فرسنگ باشد و تا
دو فرسنگ و درازای این دریا پنج ]ارومیھ[ارمی روز است بر خشک و در آب چون باد راست بود بیک
شب بیرون شوند...
English translation:…the mention of seas in this region[:] There is a seain the Adarbaikan [Azerbaijan] called Ormiyeh Sea[Urmia Lake][,] has salt water and no animal but it issaid there is a aquatic dog[.] buildings and areas[cities] are located around this sea and it is threeParasang [an ancient unit of length] from this sea toMaragheh and two Parasang to Ormi [Urmia] and thelength of the sea is five days on overland and on thewater, if wind was suitable, it will take a night…
Abu Ishaq Ibrahim Ibn Muhammad Farisi (b. ? d.951/957 AD, 10th C.) aka Estakhri (استخری/اصطخری)form the ancient city of Estakhr (Fars Province, Iran),was a Persian geographer in the tenth century (Reza,2000). He has written two books, first Suwar Al-Aqaaleem (Figures of the Climes, (صور االقالیم and Al-
Masalik wa Al-Mamalik. The original manuscripts ofEstakhri did not survive, however a few oldmanuscript copies have been saved (Alai, 2014).Moeller (1839) and De Goeje (1870) republished thecopies of Suwar Al-Aqaaleem and Al-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik, respectively in Arabic language. The content
Asem and Eimanifar (2016) Updating historical record on brine shrimp Artemia…
Int. J. Aqu. Sci; 7 (1): 3-5, 2016 4
Fig. 1: f51v of al-Masalik wa'l-Mamlik (© British Library, IOIslamic 1026; 13 May 2014).
Fig. 2: foil of Asar Al-Beldan wa Akhbar Al-Ebad (Publicdomain, by Naser Makarem-Shirazi, 9408120030).
of those two books are quite similar, but Al-Masalik waAl-Mamalik is more comprehensive than the other(Reza, 2000). There are several translated versions ofAl-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik in Persian language;although it seems the original text of this manuscripthas been written in Persian (Krachkovskii, 1987).
Estakhri has reported the "aquatic dog" fromUrmia Lake in both his books (see Moeller, 1839 andIO Islamic 1026, The British Library). By the way,Zakariya-Qazwini (1275 ,زکریا قزوینی AD), otherIranian geographer, has recommended "aquatic dog"from Urmia Lake in Asar Al-Beldan wa Akhbar Al-Ebad (Monuments of the Lands and Histories of thePeoples, (آثار البالد و اخبار العباد (Fig. 2). Also he hasclearly pointed there is no other plant and animal inthis lake.
Even if, the compile-year of Suwar Al-Aqaaleem isunclear but the second work, Al-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik has been written in tenth century ADbetween 930−933 (Al-e-Dawoud, 1995). So Estakhrihas reported the brine shrimp Artemia from Urmia
Lake at least a half-century earlier than anonymousauthor of Hudud Al-Alam (982 AD, 10th C).
Consequently, the first scientific record of Artemiashould be updated to Estakhri as "aquatic dog" at firstin Suwar Al-Aqaaleem and later in Al-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik in the first half of the 10th century.
AcknowledgmentOur special thanks goes back to The British Library touse the image of Al-Masalik wa Al-Mamalik (IOIslamic 1026 f51v) in this article.
References Alai C. (2014) Personal communication; author of General
Maps of Persia and Special Maps of Persia. Al-e-Dawoud S.A. (1995) Masalik wa Mamalik. Nashr-e
Danesh, 89: 41. Asem A. (2008) Historical record on brine shrimp Artemia
more than one thousand years ago from Urmia Lake, Iran.J. Biol . Res-Thessalon, 9: 113-114.
Asem A., Eimanifar A., Djamal M., De los Rios P. and WinkM. (2014) Biodiversity of the Hypersaline Urmia Lake
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National Park (NW Iran). Diversity, 6: 102-132. De Goeje M.J. (1870) Bibliotheca geographorum
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