Which scientist proposed natural selection independently of Charles Darwin?

Alfred Russel Wallace independently proposed natural selection alongside Charles Darwin. In 1858, while conducting fieldwork in the Malay Archipelago, Wallace sent Darwin an essay outlining how environmental pressures could favor useful variations and gradually change populations.

Darwin had been developing a similar theory for roughly two decades, but had not yet published it. Wallace’s essay prompted Darwin, with the help of Charles Lyell and Joseph Hooker, to present their work jointly to the Linnean Society of London on 1 July 1858. Darwin then published On the Origin of Species in 1859.

Wallace was not merely Darwin’s assistant or a minor influence. He became recognized as a co-discoverer of evolution by natural selection, although his views sometimes differed from Darwin’s, especially concerning human evolution and the role of purpose in nature. Wallace also made major contributions to biogeography, including identifying the faunal boundary now called the Wallace Line.