Charles Melbourne Ward

Charles Melbourne Ward (6 October 1903 – 6 October 1966) was a stage performer, naturalist, historian and marine collector. Although he began as an acrobat and comedian he is best known for his work as a naturalist which included him catching 25,000 crabs from locations all around the world. He didn't use his first name and was generally known as Mel Ward and published under the name Melbourne Ward.

Early life Ward was born 6 October 1903 in Melbourne to stage actor Hugh Ward and concert singer Grace Ward. He had married Halley on 27 October 1931, and they got a home together in Double Bay. His wife joined him collecting specimens including tours that lasted several months. His collection of several species of fish from the Great Barrier Reef in 1927 was given to the Australian Museum.

He was a fellow of the Zoological Society of London, elected in 1929, a fellow of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales in 1936 and made a life-member in 1947. He was photographed diving in one of the earliest underwater images of the reef. He also assisted with another pearl diving film that was scrapped before being finished. The Crab in Medicine, Magic and Myth. (1937) - The Australian Museum Magazine. Primitive Man and His Larder. (1942) - The Australian Museum Magazine. Folklore of the Coconut. (1952) - The Australian Museum Magazine. Notes on Marine Ecology of Lindeman Island, Queensland, with Special Reference to the Brachyuran Crabs. - The Australian Zoologist.

Historian interests He also had an interest in the history and culture of Aboriginal Australians collecting both Aboriginal artefacts and books, as well as books about the subject.