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Survey Voyage on HMS Beagle
Darwin set out to survey South America. He unearthed massive fossils. His assumption of the skulls, femurs, and armor plates was that they belonged to various ancient creatures. On the return journey, Darwin traveled to the Galapagos Islands. He merely tagged species of birds and added pages to his notes of the journey. On the final stage of the journey, Darwin completed his diary, finalized his various notes, and completed the catalogs of over 5,000 skins, bones, and carcasses. -
Charles Darwin the Geologist
Darwin, though known for his discovery of natural selection, originally began working in the field of geology. During his five-year-long voyage on the HMS Beagle, Darwin researched volcanic activities and lava in South America. Darwin published two highly regarded books on volcanology which cover descriptions of various volcanic islands in the Pacific as well as details about the coral-riffs from distribution to formation. -
The Theory of Natural Selection
Darwin was by trade a geologist. He began to research natural selection as his hobby. His voyage on the HMS Beagle led to this research. He experimented with seeds and eggs to see if they were able to survive across an ocean in a different environment. Without the knowledge of genes, Darwin was able to determine that species have heritable traits that are passed on and naturally selected. -
On the Origin of Species
Darwin published all his research and findings in the famous book entitled “On the Origin of Species.” The first edition of the book was wildly popular with all of the preprinted copies being presold or purchased on the day it was released. The book is a long argument with the details of his years of research and experiments.