William Clift (1775-1849)

English naturalist. Described South American fossil vertebrates brought back by Darwin from the voyage of the Beagle. Of humble origin, Clift worked as a draftsman for John Hunter and later (1834) was a key witness in the Home affair. In 1835 Clift's daughter Amelia married his assistant Richard Owen, who succeed him as curator of the Hunterian Museum in 1842.