René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur was a French scientist who made outstanding contributions to several branches of science, including a well-regarded and influential study of insects that proved valuable to early twentieth century geneticists during the development of chromosome theory. éaumur is perhaps best recognized for his work which established how the process of digestion works in animals. Réaumur as born in 1683 in La Rochelle, France. Although there is little record of his early years or his education, it is known that at the age of 20 he moved to Paris. In 1708, he became a member of the French Academy of Sciences.

Réaumur applied his diverse expertise to a variety of fields. He compiled his knowledge of insects in a six volume series of memoirs known collectively as Mé moires pour servir à l'histoire des insectes which translates as Memoirs...