Prideaux John Selby

The artist-naturalist Prideaux John Selby (1788—1867) was born in Northumberland, England to a prominent family. As a child, he exhibited a strong interest in ornithology, and by the time he was 12 or 13 years old, he had composed his first illustrated notes on common British birds. Prideaux John Selby became a member of the Wernerian Natural History Society in Edinburgh at an early age. His interests in natural history extended into forestry and entomology, but his devotion to the subject of ornithology was primary.