John Charles Melliss

John Charles Melliss (23 January 1835 – 23 August 1910) was a British engineer and amateur naturalist.

Details
He was born on the island of St Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. His father, Lieutenant G.W. Melliss, was an officer of the St Helena Artillery. After training as an engineer, and serving as an officer in the Royal Engineers, he was appointed as government surveyor in St Helena from 1860 to 1871. In 1871, because of government cutbacks, he was made redundant and returned to London, where he subsequently formed the firm of J.C. Melliss and Co.

In 1875, he published the book for which he is best known: St. Helena: A Physical, Historical and Topographical Description of the Island, Including the Geology, Fauna, Flora and Meteorology. It was illustrated by his wife, Alice Elizabeth Louisa, née Stace, who was credited on the title page as "Mrs. J. C. Melliss", and on plates as "A. Melliss".

To commemorate the book's centenary in 1975, the St. Helena Post Office published a set of four stamps, using illustrations from the book.

Recognition
Joseph Dalton Hooker named the monotypic plant genus Mellissia in his honour. It was subsequently subsumed into the genus Withania.

The Silver Eel (Ariosoma mellissii), also known as the Melliss's Conger was named for him by Albert Gunther.

Family
The Melliss's son, H.J. Melliss, joined his father's company (later named Melliss and Partners following a partnership with H.R. Smart). He worked for the company until 1955.