Editing Charles Waterton (section)

==South America==
In 1804 he travelled to [[British Guiana]] to take charge of his uncle's [[slave plantation]]s near [[Georgetown, Guyana|Georgetown]].<ref name="mus" /> In 1812 he started to explore the hinterland of the colony, making four journeys between then and 1824, and reaching [[United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves|Brazil]] walking barefoot in the rainy season. He described his discoveries in his book ''Waterton's Wanderings in South America'',<ref>{{cite book | url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31811/31811-h/31811-h.htm | title=Wanderings in South America |first=Waterton |last=Charles |year=1891 |orig-year=1825 |publisher=Cassell & Company. Limited |via=Project Gutenberg}}</ref> which inspired British schoolboys such as [[Charles Darwin]] and [[Alfred Russel Wallace]]. His explorations laid to rest the persistent myth of Raleigh's [[Lake Parime]] by suggesting that the seasonal flooding of the [[Rupununi savannah]] had been misidentified as a lake.

Waterton was a skilled taxidermist and preserved many of the animals he encountered on his expeditions.  He employed a unique method of taxidermy, soaking the specimens in what he called "sublimate of mercury". Unlike many preserved ("stuffed") animals, his specimens are hollow and lifelike. He also displayed his anarchic sense of humour in some of his taxidermy: one tableau he created (now lost) consisted of reptiles dressed as famous English Protestants and entitled "The English Reformation Zoologically Demonstrated". Another specimen was the bottom of a howler monkey which he turned into an almost human face and simply labelled "The Nondescript". This specimen is still on display at the [[Wakefield Museum]], along with other items from Waterton's collection.<ref name="culture24">{{cite web |url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/yh000122 |title=Wakefield Museum |access-date=24 March 2011 |publisher=[[Culture 24]], UK |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019034100/http://www.culture24.org.uk/yh000122 |archive-date=19 October 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

While he was in British Guiana Waterton taught his skills to one of his uncle's slaves, [[John Edmonstone]]. Edmonstone, by then freed and practising [[taxidermy]] in Edinburgh, in turn taught the teenage Darwin.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}<ref>{{cite web|last=McNish |first=James|title=John Edmondstone: the man who taught Darwin taxidermy|website=Natural History Museum|location=[[South Kensington]], UK|url=https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/john-edmonstone-the-man-who-taught-darwin-taxidermy.html}}</ref>

Waterton is credited with bringing the anaesthetic agent ''wourali'' ([[curare]]) to Europe.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5b8pAAAAQBAJ | title=Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice|first=Mark |last=Plotkin |date=1993 |publisher=Penguin| isbn=9781101644690}}</ref>