Arthur Willey facts for kids
Arthur Willey (born October 9, 1867, in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England – died December 26, 1942) was a very important zoologist. A zoologist is a scientist who studies animals. Arthur Willey was known for his research on how different sea creatures develop. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society, which means he was part of a very old and respected group of top scientists.
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Early Life and Education
Arthur Willey grew up in England. He went to Kingswood School in Bath, Somerset. After that, in 1887, he started studying at University College London. He worked very hard and earned his science degree (B.Sc.) in 1890.
Early Research and Discoveries
During his summer breaks in 1889 and 1890, Arthur Willey traveled to Messina, a city in Italy. There, he studied a small sea creature called Amphioxus. This research was very important and led to his first published science papers.
In 1891, he spent several months in Freiburg, Germany, learning from another famous scientist, August Weismann. After that, he spent a year at marine research stations in Plymouth, England, and Naples, Italy. At these stations, he focused on studying how Ascidians, which are also known as sea squirts, grow and develop.
Career Highlights
After his time at the marine station in Naples, Arthur Willey became a fellow at University College London. From 1892 to 1894, he taught biology at Columbia University in the United States.
From 1894 to 1899, he received a special scholarship called the Balfour Studentship from Cambridge University. This allowed him to travel to the East Indies. There, he studied the early development of the chambered nautilus, a fascinating sea creature with a spiral shell.
Later, from 1899 to 1901, he taught biology at Guy's Hospital. In 1902, he was chosen to be a Fellow of the Royal Society, a great honor for a scientist.
From 1902 to 1909, Arthur Willey became the director of the National Museum of Colombo in Sri Lanka (which was then called Ceylon). He also edited a science magazine called Spolia Zeylanica. In 1907, he worked as a marine biologist for the government of Ceylon.
In 1910, he moved to Canada and became a professor at McGill University in Montreal. He taught there until 1932, when he retired as a professor emeritus. In 1902, he married Emily Constance Bowd. After he retired, they lived in a small house not far from Montreal.
Animals Named After Arthur Willey
Sometimes, scientists name new species after the people who helped discover or study them. This is called an eponym. Two animals were named in honor of Arthur Willey:
- Balanoglossus jamaicensis (Willey, 1899) – This is a type of acorn worm found in Jamaica.
- Ramphotyphlops willeyi (Boulenger, 1900) – This is a type of blind snake.
