Jean Leopold Nicolas Frederic, Baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 - 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist, sometimes referred to as the 'father of paleontology'. Cuvier was a major figure in natural sciences research in the early 19th century and was instrumental in establishing the fields of comparative anatomy and paleontology through his work in comparing living animals with fossils.