Benjamin Bynoe (1803–1865) was surgeon on the voyages of HMS ''Beagle'' who made collections of plants and animals at the western and northern coasts of Australia. Born in Barbados in 1803, Benjamin Bynoe was accepted by the Royal College of Surgeons and Royal Navy in 1825. Bynoe sailed with Charles Darwin on the

second voyage of the Beagle The second voyage of HMS ''Beagle'', from 27 December 1831 to 2 October 1836, was the second survey expedition of HMS ''Beagle'', under captain Robert FitzRoy who had taken over command of the ship on its first voyage after the previous capta ...

, nursing the young scientist back to health while ill in Chile. The surgeon accompanied Darwin during expeditions, and what would be the critical research at the

Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands (Spanish: , , ) are an archipelago of volcanic islands. They are distributed on each side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean, surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere, and are part of the Republic of Ecuador ...

, making field notes that were later consulted in Darwin's research for ''

On the Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life''),The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by Me ...

''. The collections of specimens made on these voyages were often unknown in Europe, becoming the basis of new scientific descriptions. Bynoe's name is commemorated in some of the

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

s and

epithets An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...

of several species, such as Bynoe's gecko ('' Heteronotia binoei)''. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Bynoe", p. 45). The Bynoe River and

Bynoe Bay Bynoe is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Benjamin Bynoe (1804–1865), naval surgeon on HMS ''Beagle'' with Charles Darwin *Hilda Bynoe (1921–2013), Governor of Grenada *Peter Bynoe (born 1951), American lawyer and businessm ...

(

Bynoe Harbour Bynoe is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Benjamin Bynoe (1804–1865), naval surgeon on HMS ''Beagle'' with Charles Darwin *Hilda Bynoe (1921–2013), Governor of Grenada *Peter Bynoe (born 1951), American lawyer and business ...

) were also named for this individual. The original volumes of ''Lives of Fellows'' at the

Royal College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations a ...

gives a brief entry, "Entered the Royal Navy and retired with the rank of Staff Surgeon. He died at Old Kent Road, SE, on Nov 15th, 1865.". A more extensive biographical article was composed in 1949 using as its source a register that had avoided routine destruction of 'valueless' public records.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bynoe, Benjamin 1803 births 1865 deaths Natural history collectors Naval surgeons Explorers of Australia Explorers of South America