Wallace, Alfred Russel (1823-1913), was a British naturalist and explorer. He independently developed the same principle of natural selection as did British naturalist Charles R. Darwin. Natural selection is a process by which historical changes occur in species of plants and animals. The changes occur because of higher survival rates of individuals with hereditary traits that make them better suited to their environment. This process is the basis of evolution. Wallace also established the principles of animal geography—the study of the geographical distribution of animal species.
From 1848 to 1852, Wallace explored the Amazon Basin with British naturalist Henry Walter Bates. Wallace traveled to the East Indies in 1854 and remained there eight years collecting data. He found that the mammals of the Malay Archipelago are divided by an imaginary line into two groups of species. This line became known as Wallace’s Line. Species west of the line are more closely related to mammals of Asia, and those east of the line are closer relatives of mammals of Australia.
Wallace was born in Jan. 8, 1823, in Usk, Wales. He wrote The Malay Archipelago (1869) and Geographical Distribution of Animals (1876). He died on Nov. 7, 1913.
