Eugenio Ruspoli
Eugenio Ruspoli (6 January 1866 – 4 December 1893) was an Italian explorer and naturalist from the noble Ruspoli family. He was born in Țigănești, Galați County, in the United Principalities (now Romania), and died near Burgi, Somalia, at the age of 27.
His parents were Emanuele Ruspoli, 1st Prince of Poggio Suasa, and Cocuța Conachi. He wrote Nel Paese della Mirra (In the Land of Myrrh), published in 1892.
Inspired by the Polish Count Frackenstein, his expeditions were funded by his father. His first trip to Africa began in 1891, focusing on Ethiopia and Somalia. Starting from Berbera, he moved south through the Ogaden and the Shebelle River, collecting animals, plants, minerals and notes about the people he met. He brought back 183 birds, including four new species.
His second expedition lasted from 1892 to 1893. He passed Bardera on 3 April 1892 to help confirm Italy’s protectorate over the region, then followed the Jubba River down to Dolo and into the interior. He discovered Lake Chamo, which he named Lake Umberto after King Umberto I of Italy, and he reached Lugh from the north. During these journeys, Ruspoli and his local guides massacred natives and robbed villages.
Ruspoli died in a hunting accident near Burgi, Somalia, on 4 December 1893, unmarried and without heirs. He was buried among Amhara chiefs. The lake he had discovered was later renamed Ruspoli by Bottego.
He is remembered in science and travel: in 1896 ornithologist Tommaso Salvadori named Ruspoli’s turaco after him, based on birds he collected in 1892–1893. With Domenico Riva he discovered the orchid Aerangis somalensis. Streets in Genoa and Padua are named after him. Several animals and plants bear his name, including Hemidactylus ruspolii (gecko), Prosymna ruspolii (snake), Chameleo dilepis ruspolii (lizard), the plant genus Ruspolia, and species such as Indigofera ruspoli and Lopriorea ruspolii.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 13:58 (CET).