Wallace was a naturalist and biologist and his fame rests upon his formulation, along with Charles Darwin, of the theory of natural selection as an important factor in evolution. He made may expeditions to the Amazon and the Malay Archipelago, collecting butterflies and beetles, birds and plants.

In 1902 Wallace moved to 'Old Orchard', a house off what is now Wallace Road, where he spent the rest of his life. His grave in Broadstone Cemetry is marked by a petrified tree trunk from Kimmeridge.

Wallace's Line (shown on the map in the background)

Wallace noticed a marked difference in the fauna between Bali and Lombok and described it as 'The exact boundary between two of the primary soological regions, the Oriental and the Australian'. A century later the theory of continental drift was developed and the significance of Wallace's Line became clear.