William Henry Dallinger (1842–1909)

Clergyman and biologist. Became a Wesleyan minister in 1861; served in Liverpool, 1868–80. Made microscopical researches into minute septic organisms, especially flagellate protozoa, 1870–80. With John James Drysdale, showed that flagellates could acclimatise to ordinarily lethal temperatures, and that their spores were also resistant to very high temperatures. Conducted a study (1880–6) to test whether adaptive changes could be rapidly induced in organisms with short life-cycles, in order to show evolutionary change. Governor and principal of Wesley College, Sheffield, 1880–8. President of the Royal Microscopical Society, 1884–7; of the Quekett Club, 1890–2. FRS 1880.