Hans Wiehler
Encyclopedia
Hans Joachim Wiehler was a German botanist who specialized in the plant family Gesneriaceae
. In 1954 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana and a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Goshen Biblical Seminary in 1956. He married in 1958 and remained in the United States for the rest of his life. He obtained a Master's degree in Botany from Cornell University
and in 1979 a PhD in Botany from the University of Miami
. Wiehler was on the staff of the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
from 1973 until 1982, when he left Selby to found the Gesneriad Research Foundation in Sarasota, Florida.
Wiehler tended to be a taxonomic "splitter
" but many of his generic rearrangements have found acceptance: the segregation of Gasteranthus
from Besleria
, of Alsobia
, Chrysothemis
, Nautilocalyx
, and Paradrymonia
from Episcia
, and of Moussonia from Kohleria
, have all withstood the tests of recent molecular phylogenies. However, most gesneriad specialists have not accepted his segregation of Bucinellina, Dalbergaria, Pentadenia, and Trichantha from Columnea
, and his new genus Parakohleria has been synonymized under Pearcea
. His rare instances of taxonomic "lumping" have not been as widely accepted; Gloxinia
sensu Wiehler is a polyphyletic assemblage, recently dismembered, and no other botanists have accepted his synonymy of Rhytidophyllum
and Pheidonocarpa under Gesneria
.
He has named the nothogenus ×Koellikohleria Wiehler (family Gesneriaceae) in Baileya, 16: 30 (1968).
Gesneriaceae
Gesneriaceae is a family of flowering plants consisting of ca. 150 genera and ca. 3,200 species in the Old World and New World tropics and subtropics, with a very small number extending to temperate areas. Many species have colorful and showy flowers and are cultivated as ornamental plants.Most...
. In 1954 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana and a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Goshen Biblical Seminary in 1956. He married in 1958 and remained in the United States for the rest of his life. He obtained a Master's degree in Botany from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
and in 1979 a PhD in Botany from the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
. Wiehler was on the staff of the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens are extensive botanical gardens dedicated to research and collections of epiphytes, especially orchids and bromeliads, and their canopy ecosystems...
from 1973 until 1982, when he left Selby to found the Gesneriad Research Foundation in Sarasota, Florida.
Wiehler tended to be a taxonomic "splitter
Lumpers and splitters
Lumping and splitting refers to a well-known problem in any discipline which has to place individual examples into rigorously defined categories. The lumper/splitter problem occurs when there is the need to create classifications and assign examples to them, for example schools of literature,...
" but many of his generic rearrangements have found acceptance: the segregation of Gasteranthus
Gasteranthus
Gasteranthus is a genus of 35 species of herbs and soft-stemmed subshrubs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The species occur in Central America and South America, from southernmost Mexico to Bolivia. Numerous species are threatened with extinction, mainly due to deforestation...
from Besleria
Besleria
Besleria is a genus of ca. 200 species of large herbs and soft-stemmed subshrubs or shrubs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. They occur in Central America, South America, and the West Indies....
, of Alsobia
Alsobia
Alsobia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae, native to Mexico, Guatemala and Costa Rica.The two species are succulent, stoloniferous herbs and were previously included in the genus Episcia. Recent molecular studies have supported the separation of Alsobia from...
, Chrysothemis
Chrysothemis
Chrysothemis or Khrysothemis , is a name ascribed to several characters in Greek mythology.Most prominently among these, Chrysothemis was a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra...
, Nautilocalyx
Nautilocalyx
Nautilocalyx is a genus of plant in family Gesneriaceae. It contains the following species :* Nautilocalyx biserrulatus* Nautilocalyx bracteatus* Nautilocalyx bullatus Sprague...
, and Paradrymonia
Paradrymonia
Paradrymonia is a genus of plant in family Gesneriaceae. It contains the following species :* Paradrymonia aurea, Wiehler* Paradrymonia binata, Wiehler* Paradrymonia fuquaiana, Wiehler* Paradrymonia hypocyrta, Wiehler...
from Episcia
Episcia
Episcia is a genus of about 8 species belonging to the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The species are found in the tropical regions of Central America and South America...
, and of Moussonia from Kohleria
Kohleria
Kohleria is a New World genus of the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The plants are generally tropical herbs or subshrubs with velvety stems and foliage and brightly colored flowers with spots or markings in contrasting colors. They are rhizomatous and commonly include a period of dormancy in...
, have all withstood the tests of recent molecular phylogenies. However, most gesneriad specialists have not accepted his segregation of Bucinellina, Dalbergaria, Pentadenia, and Trichantha from Columnea
Columnea
Columnea is a genus of ca. 200 species of epiphytic herbs and shrubs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae, native to tropical America and the Caribbean. The tubular or oddly shaped flowers are usually large and brightly colored – usually red, yellow, or orange – sometimes...
, and his new genus Parakohleria has been synonymized under Pearcea
Pearcea
Pearcea is a South American genus of 17 species of tropical herbs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. It is classified in tribe Gloxinieae and is closely related to the genus Kohleria, in which some of its species were previously included...
. His rare instances of taxonomic "lumping" have not been as widely accepted; Gloxinia
Gloxinia (genus)
Gloxinia is a genus of three species of tropical rhizomatous herbs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The species are primarily found in the Andes of South America but Gloxinia perennis is also found in Central America and the West Indies, where it has probably escaped from...
sensu Wiehler is a polyphyletic assemblage, recently dismembered, and no other botanists have accepted his synonymy of Rhytidophyllum
Rhytidophyllum
Rhytidophyllum is a genus of plant in family Gesneriaceae, native to the Caribbean islands and northern South America.-Species:* Rhytidophyllum acunae* Rhytidophyllum asperum* Rhytidophyllum auriculatum* Rhytidophyllum berteroanum...
and Pheidonocarpa under Gesneria
Gesneria
Gesneria is a genus of approximately 50 species in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. Except for two or three odd South American species, all are native to islands of the Caribbean. The genus is classified in the tribe Gesnerieae along with the genera Bellonia, Pheidonocarpa, and...
.
He has named the nothogenus ×Koellikohleria Wiehler (family Gesneriaceae) in Baileya, 16: 30 (1968).