Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (September 7, 1707 – April 1, 1788) is a French naturalist, mathematician, cosmologist, and encyclopédiste.

His works influence the next two generations of naturalists, including Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Georges Cuvier.

Buffon publishes thirty-six quarto volumes of his Histoire Naturelle during his lifetime; with additional volumes based on his notes and further research being published in the two decades following his death.

Buffon holds the position of intendant (director) at the Jardin du Roi, now called the Jardin des Plantes.