 A few months later, he was offered the position of naturalist on board HMS "Herald", on a journey retracing the voyage of , and Charles Darwin became a frequent correspondent with requests for further observations.While disembarking from a boat on the coast of South America, however, Edmondston was killed by an accidentally discharged gun, cutting short a career of great promise.After his death, Charles Darwin was in regular correspondence with his father on Unst and was particularly interested in Edmonston's ongoing ornithological observations.