Michele Lessona (20 September 1823, Venaria Reale, Piedmont – 20 July 1894, Turin) was an Italian zoologist.

His accomplishments include translating certain works of Darwin, for example, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex.

[1] From 1850 he studied natural sciences at Turin, and in the meantime found employment as a secondary school teacher.

In 1862, with Filippo de Filippi, he took part in a scientific and diplomatic mission to Persia, and after his return to Italy, he was named chair of zoology at the University of Bologna in 1863.

[1] In 1867 he became chair of zoology and comparative anatomy at the University of Turin.