Jochen Martens

Jochen Martens (born 1941 in Jena)[1] is a German zoologist, whose areas of expertise are primarily in ornithology and arachnology.

He taught at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz from 1976 to 2012 and is considered a pioneer in the use of bioacoustics for studying the evolution of songbirds and one of the most recognized researchers in the field of Opiliones (harvestmen).

[3] From 1962 to 1967, he studied biology and chemistry at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, earning his doctorate in 1968 under Rudolf Braun on an arachnological topic.

His research projects include the formation of local dialects in the songs of songbirds as an evolutionary factor, the investigation of species diversity and speciation in the Himalayas and other high mountain ranges of Asia and Europe, and the systematics and phylogeny of arachnids.

[4] To date, Martens has described 298 new species, numerous new genera, and three new families of harvestmen (Nipponopsalididae, 1976, Fissiphalliidae, 1988, and Suthepiidae, 2020).

He undertook 40 research trips within Europe and 40 more to Asia and New Zealand, spending a total of 2631 days and 9% of his life on expeditions.

[1] Manfred Grasshoff, former de facto curator of the arachnological collection at the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt am Main, referred to Jochen Martens as the "last great research traveler of our time.

[9] Jochen Martens is credited with ending the "dark age of harvestman research and initiating the era of 'opilionological enlightenment'".

[5] Since 1973, Jochen Martens has been an honorary associate at the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum in Frankfurt/M in arachnology.

[14] Since the early 1990s, Jochen Martens has been a member of the Berlin Circle of Editors and Contributors of the Atlas of Palearctic Birds.

[3][16] In 2006, Hainan Normal University in Haikou, China, awarded Jochen Martens the title of Visiting Professor.