William Leadbetter Calderwood

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(1865–1950) was a Scottish marine biologist. He served as Director of the Marine Biological Association Laboratory in

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

. He was the author of several authoritative works on marine biology. He was a specialist on the life and biology of the salmon. He was also a talented artist.

Life

He was born in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

the son of Rev

Henry Calderwood Rev Henry Calderwood FRSE LLD (10 May 1830, Peebles – 19 November 1897, Edinburgh) was a Scottish minister and philosopher. Life He was born in Peebles on 10 May 1830, the son of William Calderwood, a corn merchant, and his wife Elizabeth ...

and Anne Hulton Leadbetter. His early childhood was spent in the family home at 197

St. Vincent Street St. Vincent Street, is one of the major streets in the city centre of Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in the early 1800s as part of the residential New Town of Blythswood developed by William Harley of Blythswood Square. St. Vincent Street was ...

in Central Glasgow. He attended

Merchiston Castle School Merchiston Castle School is an independent boarding school for boys in the suburb of Colinton in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has around 470 pupils and is open to boys between the ages of 7 and 18 as either boarding or day pupils; it was modelled a ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. His first role was as a Demonstrator in the Zoology Department at

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1582 ...

. He was Director of the Marine Biological Association Laboratory from 1889-1893. From 1898 to 1830 he was Chief Inspector of Salmon Fisheries of Scotland. He was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

in 1893. His proposers were Sir William Turner,

James Geikie James Murdoch Geikie PRSE FRS LLD (23 August 1839 – 1 March 1915) was a Scottish geologist. He was professor of geology at Edinburgh University from 1882 to 1914. Life Education He was born in Edinburgh, the son of James Stuart Geikie a ...

Alexander Crum Brown Alexander Crum Brown FRSE FRS (26 March 1838 – 28 October 1922) was a Scottish organic chemist. Alexander Crum Brown Road in Edinburgh's King's Buildings complex is named after him. Early life and education Crum Brown was born at 4 Bellev ...

and William Rutherford. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he was in charge of Press Censorship in Scotland. In 1943 he was appointed by the Scottish Hydro-Electric Board as their principal advisor on fishery issues. He died at Carr Bridge in

Inverness-shire Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populatio ...

on 2 May 1950.

Publications

*''Mussel Culture and Bait Supply'' (1895) *''Cunning in Animals'' in ''Natural Science:December 1896'' *''Life of

'' (1900) - the biography of his father *''The Life of the Salmon'' (1907) *''Salmon Rivers and Lochs in Scotland'' (1921) *''Salmon Hatchings and Salmon Migrations'' (1931) *''The Status and Distribution of Wild Geese and Wild Duck in Scotland'' (1939)

References

1865 births 1950 deaths People educated at Merchiston Castle School Scientists from Glasgow Scottish zoologists Academics of the University of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 20th-century Scottish people {{UK-zoologist-stub