Peter Taylor (botanist)

Peter Taylor
Born1926
Died2011 (aged 84–85)
NationalityBritish
Scientific career
FieldsBotany
Author abbrev. (botany)P.Taylor

Peter Geoffrey Taylor (1926–2011) was a British botanist who worked at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew throughout his career in botany.[1] Taylor was born in 1926 and joined the staff of the herbarium at Kew in 1948. He published his first new species, Utricularia pentadactyla, in 1954. In 1973, Taylor was appointed curator of the orchid division of the herbarium and, according to Kew, "under his direction, orchid taxonomy was revitalised and its horticultural contacts strengthened."[2][3]

One of Taylor's main botanical focuses was the genus Utricularia. He authored many species in the genus and provided the most comprehensive monograph on the genus in 1986 and revised in 1989 as The genus Utricularia - a taxonomic monograph.[3] The bladderworts Utricularia petertaylorii[4] and Utricularia tayloriana are named in his honour, as are Acacia taylorii, Chaetopoa taylorii, Genlisea taylorii, Indigofera taylorii, Karina tayloriana, Platystele taylorii, Phyllanthus taylorianus, and Spermacoce taylorii.[5][6] Genlisea subgen. Tayloria (and by extension Genlisea sect. Tayloria) are also named after him.[5]

The standard author abbreviation P.Taylor is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.[7]
  1. ^ Peter Geoffrey Taylor (1926-2011) Archived 2012-04-23 at the Wayback Machine. The Bedfordshire Natural History Society.
  2. ^ Orchid Taxonomy at Kew. Accessed online: 10 February 2008.
  3. ^ a b Taylor, Peter. (1989). The genus Utricularia - a taxonomic monograph. Kew Bulletin Additional Series XIV: London.
  4. ^ Lowrie, Allen. (2002). "Utricularia petertaylorii (Lentibulariaceae), a new species from the south-west of Western Australia" (PDF). Nuytsia 14(3): 405–410.
  5. ^ a b Schlauer, J. 2012. Peter Taylor's nomenclatural legacy (Phanerogams). Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 41(2): 56–66.
  6. ^ Cribb, P. (2012). Obituaries – Peter Taylor (1926–2011). Archived 2012-10-28 at the Wayback Machine BSBI Year Book 2012.
  7. ^ International Plant Names Index.  P.Taylor.