Georges Cuvier was a renowned 19th-century French naturalist and zoologist, also known as the “father of paleontology.” He is remembered for his ground-breaking work on the theories of extinction. He opposed evolution and believed that animals either existed or perished. He established that mammoths were extinct and also unearthed fossils of pterodactyls. He believed that different layers of earth held fossils of animals from different eras, and the deeper the layer, the older the fossils. He also stated that major catastrophes had caused the animals of various eras to go extinct. One of his most popular works was the 1817-published ‘The Animal Kingdom.’ Patronized by Napoleon, he became a key figure in French scientific education. He breathed his last at 62 in Paris, and his name remains carved on the walls of the ‘Eiffel Tower.’
