Grady Webster
Encyclopedia
Grady Linder Webster was a plant systematist and taxonomist. He was the recipient of a number of awards and appointed to fellowships of botanical institutions in the United States of America. Webster's research included study of the diverse family Euphorbiaceae
(spurges), on which he produced a large number of papers, and he lectured on plant systematics, biogeography, and the ecology of pollination. Webster's career as a plant systematist was distinguished by the field research he undertook in remote tropical areas.
on 14 April 1927, his parents were Irena Lois Heard and Grady Webster, a newspaper publisher. His family moved to Austin, Texas
during his childhood, and established a home amongst woodland. He worked within his father's business, which began an interest in world affairs, and gained an interest in plants during high school.
Webster served as an ensign in the navy whilst he was enrolled at Stanford University
, and completed a bachelors degree in botany at the University of Texas in 1949. He received a PhD
while attending the University of Michigan
and undertook a post doctoral fellowship at Harvard that was provided by the National Science Foundation
. At Harvard he worked with I. W. Bailey and was married to Barbara Anne Donahue, a Ph.D. studying plant morphology, in 1956.
An interest in the diverse Euphorbiaceae plant family inspired his field research, travelling to remote tropical and subtropical regions in Africa, south and Central America, the Caribbean, Australasia, and Europe. He contributed over 34000 specimens to herbaria around the world. He led an expedition to study the flora of a region known as the Maquipucuna Reserve in the Andes, publishing surveys and a book on the remarkable species diversity of its cloud forest
s.
Webster was appointed at the University of California, Davis
, as a professor in the department of botany and the director of the arboretum
.
The Grady L. Webster Award of the American Society of Plant Taxonomists
(ASPT) and Botanical Society of America
, named for their former president, is given annually and alternately to publications in either plant systematics or structural biology. During his lifetime he was awarded the Asa Gray and Merit awards of these societies. He received fellowships from Guggenheim
, Smithsonian, and the National Science Foundation
.
The standard abbreviation G.L.Webster is used for Webster when citing a botanical name.
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae, the Spurge family are a large family of flowering plants with 300 genera and around 7,500 species. Most are herbs, but some, especially in the tropics, are also shrubs or trees. Some are succulent and resemble cacti....
(spurges), on which he produced a large number of papers, and he lectured on plant systematics, biogeography, and the ecology of pollination. Webster's career as a plant systematist was distinguished by the field research he undertook in remote tropical areas.
Biography
Born in Ada, OklahomaAda, Oklahoma
Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,008 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the city population was estimated at 17,019....
on 14 April 1927, his parents were Irena Lois Heard and Grady Webster, a newspaper publisher. His family moved to Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
during his childhood, and established a home amongst woodland. He worked within his father's business, which began an interest in world affairs, and gained an interest in plants during high school.
Webster served as an ensign in the navy whilst he was enrolled at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, and completed a bachelors degree in botany at the University of Texas in 1949. He received a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
while attending the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
and undertook a post doctoral fellowship at Harvard that was provided by the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
. At Harvard he worked with I. W. Bailey and was married to Barbara Anne Donahue, a Ph.D. studying plant morphology, in 1956.
An interest in the diverse Euphorbiaceae plant family inspired his field research, travelling to remote tropical and subtropical regions in Africa, south and Central America, the Caribbean, Australasia, and Europe. He contributed over 34000 specimens to herbaria around the world. He led an expedition to study the flora of a region known as the Maquipucuna Reserve in the Andes, publishing surveys and a book on the remarkable species diversity of its cloud forest
Cloud forest
A cloud forest, also called a fog forest, is a generally tropical or subtropical evergreen montane moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud cover, usually at the canopy level. Cloud forests often exhibit an abundance of mosses covering the ground and...
s.
Webster was appointed at the University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
, as a professor in the department of botany and the director of the arboretum
Arboretum
An arboretum in a narrow sense is a collection of trees only. Related collections include a fruticetum , and a viticetum, a collection of vines. More commonly, today, an arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study...
.
The Grady L. Webster Award of the American Society of Plant Taxonomists
American Society of Plant Taxonomists
The American Society of Plant Taxonomists is a botanical organization formed in 1935 to "foster, encourage, and promote education and research in the field of plant taxonomy, to include those areas and fields of study that contribute to and bear upon taxonomy and herbaria", according to its bylaws...
(ASPT) and Botanical Society of America
Botanical Society of America
The Botanical Society of America represents professional and amateur botanists, researchers, educators and students in over 80 countries of the world...
, named for their former president, is given annually and alternately to publications in either plant systematics or structural biology. During his lifetime he was awarded the Asa Gray and Merit awards of these societies. He received fellowships from Guggenheim
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
, Smithsonian, and the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
.
The standard abbreviation G.L.Webster is used for Webster when citing a botanical name.