William Hay Caldwell (1859 – 28 August 1941) was a Scottish
zoologist
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and d ...
.
Attending
Cambridge University
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...
, he was the first recipient of a
studentship founded in honour of his supervisor
Francis Maitland Balfour
Francis (Frank) Maitland Balfour, known as F. M. Balfour, (10 November 1851 – 19 July 1882) was a British biologist. He lost his life while attempting the ascent of Mont Blanc. He was regarded by his colleagues as one of the greatest biologist ...
, who died in a climbing accident in 1882.
Two years after graduating from Cambridge in 1880, Caldwell was appointed Demonstrator in
Comparative Anatomy, working for Professor
Alfred Newton
Alfred Newton FRS HFRSE (11 June 18297 June 1907) was an English zoologist and ornithologist. Newton was Professor of Comparative Anatomy at Cambridge University from 1866 to 1907. Among his numerous publications were a four-volume ''Dictionar ...
. In 1884, Caldwell used his studentship, which consisted of "£200 studentship, a £500 grant, the prestige and backing of the Royal Society, and letters of introduction from Newton to travel to Australia" to investigate whether the
platypus
The platypus (''Ornithorhynchus anatinus''), sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic, egg-laying mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The platypus is the sole living representative or mono ...
laid eggs. With the assistance of the local
Aboriginals, Caldwell set up camp on the banks of the
Burnett River
The Burnett River is a river located in the Wide Bay–Burnett and Central Queensland regions of Queensland, Australia.
Course and features
The Burnett River rises in the Burnett Range, part of the Great Dividing Range, close to Mount Gaeta a ...
in northern
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, hunting for
lungfish
Lungfish are freshwater vertebrates belonging to the order Dipnoi. Lungfish are best known for retaining ancestral characteristics within the Osteichthyes, including the ability to breathe air, and ancestral structures within Sarcopterygii, i ...
,
echidna
Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the family Tachyglossidae . The four extant species of echidnas and the platypus are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the ...
, and platypus eggs.
After extensive searching assisted by a team of 150
Aboriginals, he discovered a few eggs. Mindful of the high cost per word, Caldwell tersely and now famously wired the British Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Montreal: "Monotremes oviparous, ovum meroblastic". That is, monotremes lay eggs, and the eggs are similar to those of reptiles in that only part of the egg divides as it develops.
Caldwell stayed away from the beginning stages of
Darwinism and wanted to study evolutionary patterns himself. He believed that patterns of individual development could assist in developing and understanding the process of
evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
. Platypus and echidna specimens collected by him were stored, but not catalogued, in the
Cambridge University Museum of Zoology
The University Museum of Zoology is a museum of the University of Cambridge and part of the research community of the Department of Zoology. The public is welcome and admission is free (2018). The Museum of Zoology is in the David Attenborough ...
until they were rediscovered in 2022.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caldwell, William Hay
1859 births
1941 deaths
Scottish zoologists
19th-century British zoologists
19th-century Scottish scientists
20th-century British zoologists
20th-century Scottish scientists