Everyone has heard of Charles Darwin. A naturalist whose theory of evolution changed our view of the world. He is a giant of history who receives well-deserved recognition.
However, many people do not know that a Welshman named Alfred Russell Wallace had a revolutionary idea of evolution by natural selection, completely independent of Darwin.
Alfred Russell Wallace, born in Llanbadoch in 1823, had an extraordinary talent. His life is pretty crazy when you put it all together.
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After leaving school, he worked in his brother’s surveying firm until he was hired as a teacher in Leicester in 1844, according to the Natural History Museum. That year he became friends with local resident and enthusiastic naturalist Henry Walter Bates.
Bates introduced Wallace to the methods and charms of beetle collecting. Four years later, the couple left for the Amazon, inspired by the stories of the New World discoveries. When the couple arrived at the mouth of the Amazon, in Brazil, in 1848, the objective was to investigate the origin of the species.
Of course, these trips don’t come cheap, and they financed the operation by collecting samples and selling them. The couple decided that in order to cover more territory, they should split up to cover more territory. Wallace followed the river north, collecting in areas previously unexplored by European naturalists, gathering thousands of animal specimens, mostly birds, beetles and butterflies.
Old Wallace doesn’t do things by halves. Collected for over four years. However, on the way home, the ship caught fire in the Atlantic and sank along with virtually all of her samples and field notes. Fortunately, the crew and passengers were saved by a passing ship.
Most people would be impressed by this, but Wallace was undaunted and almost immediately began planning his next expedition. A year later, he again left the shores of Great Britain and sailed to the Far East.
Wallace began his journey in the Malay Archipelago (now Malaysia and Indonesia) in 1854. In eight years, he collected an impressive 125,660 specimens, including over 5,000 species that were new to Western science. While there, he noticed a surprising pattern in the distribution of animals around the archipelago. He proposed an imaginary line that divided the region into two parts. Later known as the Wallace Line, this line marked the boundary between the animal life of Australia and Asia.
After returning home, he published a travel book “The Malay Archipelago” and his stories about the beautiful virgin islands opened up a whole new world for readers. Highlights include his colorful descriptions of birds of paradise and orangutans, as well as encounters with local residents.
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During his trip in 1858, while feverish and confined to his cabin on Ternate Island (now Indonesia), Wallace noticed. He understood how species evolved: they changed because the fittest individuals survived and reproduced, passing their advantages on to their offspring.
Wallace immediately wrote to someone he knew was interested in the subject, Charles Darwin. Darwin worked on the same theory for 20 years but never published it. He sought advice from his friends, who decided that their ideas would be presented at a meeting of the Linnean Society. The following year, Darwin’s masterpiece “The Origin of Species” was released.
Darwin has since eclipsed Wallace and his name alone is generally associated with the theory of evolution by natural selection. Wallace did not express outrage at this; in fact, he was Darwin’s greatest admirer. His role in this cause and Darwin’s support granted him access to the highest levels of the scientific establishment.
(Image: John Palmer)
He died in 1913 and is buried in Broadstone, Dorset. His impressive tomb contains a 7-foot tall fossil tree trunk from Portland set in a Purbeck limestone block. The tree dates back 150 million years, to the end of the Jurassic period. There’s something quite fitting about the tomb of a man who helped all of humanity understand its small place in the planet’s long history.
Alfred Russell Wallace was a legendary figure and many more people, especially in Wales, should know his name.
Source: Wales Online
John Cameron is a journalist at The Nation View specializing in world news and current events, particularly in international politics and diplomacy. With expertise in international relations, he covers a range of topics including conflicts, politics and economic trends.
