The medal awarded by the Royal Society for achievements in biology is the Darwin Medal.
Created in memory of Charles Darwin, the medal recognises distinguished work in evolution, biological diversity, developmental biology, population biology and organismal biology. It was first awarded in 1890 to Alfred Russel Wallace, who independently developed the theory of evolution by natural selection.
The award is sometimes confused with the Royal Medal, which recognises outstanding scientific contributions across a much wider range of fields, or the Copley Medal, the Royal Society's oldest scientific prize. The Lamarck Medal is not the Royal Society's equivalent biology award.
The Darwin Medal was traditionally awarded biennially, but the Royal Society changed it to an annual award in 2019. It is made of silver gilt and is accompanied by a monetary prize.