During his studies of the life cycle of aphids, Charles Bonnet discovered parthenogenesis, that is, reproduction without fertilization.

Bonnet, the only son in a wealthy family, was a lawyer by profession, but he devoted most of his life to the study of natural history and philosophical writing. Entomology, the study of insects, became one of his favorite pursuits. After reading Réné Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur's (1683-1757) History of Insects, Bonnet began corresponding with the famous French scientist in 1738. Two years later, Bonnet had extended some of Réaumur's experiments on aphids and was able to prove that female aphids were able to reproduce without fertilization by the male. Females that hatched during the summer gave birth to live offspring without fertilization. In the autumn the new generation of males and females mated and the females laid eggs, but by carefully isolating and...