Alfred Russel Wallace was prominent in which field of science?

Alfred Russell Wallace (1823-1913) was a British naturalist who travelled the world studying various life forms and he came to the conclusion that there was a natural distribution of species. Whilst working in the Far East, he realised that there was a distinct boundary between the Australasian flora and fauna and the Asiastic forms. This dividing line was named the Wallace Line in his honour.

Through his meticulous studies, he was convinced that an evolutionary process existed. He sent the results to Charles Darwin who was working on a similar idea. Armed with this information obtained from Wallace, Darwin released his book ‘The Origin of the Species.’

Russell did not receive the kudos he deserved for his fieldwork. A flying frog and a Bird of Paradise (the Wallace Standardwing) were named in his honour.