Includes bibliographical references (p. 387-418) and index.

Preliminary Material -- 1 The Life and Domestic Context of Francis Willughby / Dorothy Johnston -- 2 The Education of Francis Willughby / Richard Serjeantson -- 3 The Chymistry of Francis Willughby (1635–72): The Trinity College, Cambridge Community / Anna Marie Roos -- 4 Willughby’s Mathematics / Benjamin Wardhaugh -- 5 Science on the Move: Francis Willughby’s Expeditions / Mark Greengrass , Daisy Hildyard , Christopher D. Preston and Paul J. Smith -- 6 The Willughby Library in the Time of Francis the Naturalist / William Poole -- 7 Francis Willughby and John Ray on Words and Things / David Cram -- 8 Willughby’s Ornithology / Tim R. Birkhead , Paul J. Smith , Meghan Doherty and Isabelle Charmantier -- 9 Historia Piscium (1686) and Its Sources / Sachiko Kusukawa -- 10 Willughby on Insects / Brian W. Ogilvie -- 11 The Legacies of Francis Willughby / Isabelle Charmantier , Dorothy Johnston and Paul J. Smith -- Bibliography / Tim Birkhead -- Index / Tim Birkhead.

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Francis Willughby together with John Ray revolutionized the study of natural history. They were motivated by the new philosophy of the mid 1600s and transformed natural history in to a rigorous area of study. Because Ray lived longer and more of his writings have survived, his reputation subsequently eclipsed that of Willughby. Now, with access to previously unexplored archives and new discoveries we are able to provide a comprehensive evaluation of Francis Willughby’s life and works. What emerges is a polymath, a true virtuoso, who made original and imaginative contributions to mathematics, chemistry, linguistics as well as natural history. We use Willughby’s short life as a lens through which to view the entire process of seventeenth-century scientific endeavor. Contributors are Tim Birkhead, Isabelle Charmantier, David Cram, Meghan Doherty, Mark Greengrass, Daisy Hildyard, Dorothy Johnston, Sachiko Kusukawa, Brian Ogilvie, William Poole, Chris Preston, Anna Marie Roos, Richard Serjeantson, Paul J. Smith and Benjamin Wardhaugh.