author
Henry Walter Bates
1825–1892
Best known for an 11-year journey through the Amazon, this English naturalist helped transform how scientists understood mimicry in animals. His writing blends sharp observation, adventure, and a real sense of wonder about the natural world.
1 Audiobook
The Naturalist on the River Amazons
by Henry Walter Bates
About the author
Born in Leicester in 1825, Henry Walter Bates was an English naturalist, explorer, and entomologist whose work became closely linked with the early development of evolutionary science. He traveled to the Amazon in 1848 with Alfred Russel Wallace and stayed for more than a decade, collecting extensively and studying the region's wildlife.
Bates is especially remembered for giving the first scientific explanation of what is now called Batesian mimicry: the idea that a harmless species can gain protection by resembling a harmful one. That insight offered strong support for natural selection and helped secure his place in the history of biology.
He also wrote The Naturalist on the River Amazons, a book admired for combining field science with vivid travel writing. Even now, he stands out as a writer who could make close observation feel exciting and alive.