Characteristic of his seminal work, these strong fundamentals would later serve him well when questioning far-flung experts and undertaking more sophisticated experiments. As soon as he began his field sampling on Cape Verde and in Brazil, Darwin began to observe, hypothesize and perform simple manipulations. His letters indicate he planned to collect fish from areas of southern South America that had not been well characterized. This is well illustrated by his collection of fish, which interested him far more than his later work would suggest.ĭarwin was aware that the best fish collections in the world, particularly those from the tropical Indo-Pacific region, were held by French ichthyologists (scientists who study fish). Darwin put his observation skills to wonderful use during the nearly 5-year voyage of the Beagle. Beagle when he accepted an invitation by Captain Robert Fitzroy in late 1831. He became the unofficial naturalist on the H.M.S. As an 18-year-old student in Edinburgh, Scotland, he penned an excellent account of the lumpfish, Cyclopterus lumpus.Īs a fresh graduate of Cambridge University, this hands-on experience was the ideal preparation for the fieldwork that awaited him. But before he was 'Darwin,' this son of a wealthy country doctor was a young man with a passion for field biology, both terrestrial and aquatic. The image conjured by the name Charles Darwin is usually that of an old man with a long beard who spent his life developing and refining his world-shaking theoretical insights on evolution. But the book based on that idea"On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life"became arguably the most significant scientific work in the last two centuries.ĭarwin as Ichthyologist: Lessons for Our FutureĮarly studies of fish exhibit hallmarks of future theory 24, 1859, his idea that 'natural selection' is the process that drives evolution shocked many of his peers. His studying of plants and animals and collecting fossils soon led him to an idea so subversive that he would hide it from view for more than two decades. Provided by National Science FoundationĪs a young man and against the initial objections of his father, Charles Robert Darwin finished his studies at the University of Cambridge in England and set off on a five-year trip around the world studying nature onboard the Royal Navy ship, the HMS Beagle. "Origin of Species" marked the transition of biology from a prescience to a science. When the "Origin of Species" was published in 1859, the ambitions and scopes of science were dramatically expanding. Evolution of Evolution: 150 Years of Darwin's "On the Origin of Species".
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