Dedication to Prof. Erik Daemon de Souza Pinto – 1958★-2017†

I start this dedication by reproducing part of a text posted on Facebook by one of Prof. Erik Daemon de Souza Pinto´s students on the occasion of his death, which occurred on September 7, 2017: "[...] for some students he was only Professor Erik Daemon – the one who taught about ticks - for me, he was so much more than an advisor, he was a father, a friend, the friend who wiped your tears and who had a solution for everything, the person who spread joy wherever he went, always conveying his contagious love of life. The teacher who gave candies during classes and taught by making jokes. Do you want better? We never forgot the things he taught us! How much we miss you! Anyway, we will take your name with us wherever we go, and it will be forever".

Those words faithfully reflect the recognition of his undergraduate and graduate students for his admirable commitment during his many years of academic teaching. His widely known ability to communicate, his good humor, kindness and education, as well as the deep knowledge of the subjects he taught, combined to make him a very dear person among students, professors and the staff at the two higher educational institutions where he held the positions of professor and researcher.

I met Prof. Erik Daemon, as he was known in the academic environment, as a graduate student in Veterinary Parasitology (CPGPV) at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ) in the 1980s. Throughout those long years of conviviality, we built a solid friendship and a strong academic-scientific partnership. The position occupied by Prof. Erik Daemon, as Substitute Coordinator of the Graduate Course in Veterinary Parasitology (CPGPV) at UFRRJ, during my term as Coordinator of that Course, greatly consolidated our friendship and partnership. I remember the numerous times we met, always accompanied by beers, to deliberate administrative and academic-scientific issues.

Prof. Erik Daemon earned a degree in Veterinary Medicine at the Fluminense Federal University (UFF) in 1981, a master of science in 1985 and a doctorate in 1989 both in Veterinary Parasitology at the CPGPV of UFRRJ. Subsequently, after being approved by an examining committee open to an academic audience, according to the current legislation in Brazil, he was appointed to the position of assistant professor in the Department of Animal Parasitology (DPA), at UFRRJ in 1987.

Based upon his solid and brilliant academic career, he was promoted to Full Professor at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) in 2016, once again with the approval of an examining committee open to an academic audience, according to the current legislation in Brazil. Throughout those 30 years, he served as professor and as a prolific researcher with robust dedication to his work at the DPA of UFRRJ and then at the Department of Zoology (DZ) of the (UFJF), until the time of his death.

It is worth mentioning that his interest in the basic biology of parasites, an important issue for the advancement of science, was highlighted in his work, especially in the research on tick biology that he developed as a Professor/Researcher at UFRRJ. During his time at UFJF, he expanded his research areas to include the study of host-parasite relationships, the control of ticks with plant-based substances, and more recently, on the diversity of ectoparasites of wild birds.

During his professorship career, he taught courses about arthropod parasites to undergraduate and graduate students at both institutions and supervised several undergraduate, master and doctorate students. He also published numerous scientific articles in national and international journals, among which I have highlight two papers, the first was produced while he was a professor at UFFRJ and the second, during his time at UFJF; they are of special significance since they represent the first and last articles of our academic-scientific partnership: Glória et al. (1993), Zeringóta et al. (2017).

References

• Glória MA, Daemon E, Faccini JLH, Grisi L. Influência de diferentes temperaturas sobre a biologia da fase não parasitária de Boophilus microplus (Can., 1887) (Acari:Ixodidae). Rev Bras Parasitol Vet 1993; 2(2): 85-89.
• Zeringóta V, Maturano R, Luz HR, Oliveira SST, Daemon E, Faccini JLH, et al. Molecular detection of Rickettsia rhipicephali and other spotted fever group Rickettsia species in Amblyomma ticks infesting wild birds in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2017; 8(1): 81-89.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  19 Feb 2018
• Date of issue
  Jan-Mar 2018