Harold Ernest Robinson (May 22, 1932 – December 17, 2020) was an American

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

and

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

Career

Robinson's specialty was the sunflower family (

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

) and the

bryophyte Bryophytes () are a group of embryophyte, land plants (embryophytes), sometimes treated as a taxonomic Division (taxonomy), division referred to as Bryophyta ''Sensu#Common qualifiers, sensu lato'', that contains three groups of non-vascular pla ...

s. He has named or described over 2,800 new species and subtribes, more than one tenth of the number of species in the Asteraceae. This figure is also about one quarter of the number of flowering plants described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

. Robinson wrote over 650 publications, mainly on the Asteraceae,

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

es (Bryophyta),

Marchantiophyta Liverworts are a group of non-vascular plant, non-vascular embryophyte, land plants forming the division Marchantiophyta (). They may also be referred to as hepatics. Like mosses and hornworts, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in wh ...

, and the long-legged fly family

Dolichopodidae Dolichopodidae, the long-legged flies, are a large, cosmopolitan family of true flies with more than 8,000 described species in about 250 genera. The genus '' Dolichopus'' is the most speciose, with some 600 species. Dolichopodidae generally a ...

(describing over 200 new species and 6 new genera, such as '' Harmstonia'' and '' Nanomyina'') and many other subjects. He received a B.S. from

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

in 1955, an M.S. from the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

in 1957, a Ph.D. from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

in 1960. From 1960 to 1962 as assistant professor at

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1854, it is one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the American Civil War that still ope ...

(

Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city had a population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in South Carolina, 11th ...

), he became Associate Curator of

lower plants Non-vascular plants are plants without a vascular system consisting of xylem and phloem. Instead, they may possess simpler tissues that have specialized functions for the internal transport of water. Non-vascular plants include two distantly rela ...

at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

, Washington (1960–1962). Later he was appointed Associate Curator (1964–1971) and finally Curator of Botany from 1971.

Research

Robinson, together with collaborators, investigated the taxonomy of several bryophytes,

green alga The green algae (: green alga) are a group of chlorophyll-containing autotrophic eukaryotes consisting of the phylum Prasinodermophyta and its unnamed sister group that contains the Chlorophyta and Charophyta/ Streptophyta. The land plants ( ...

e (co-naming a new genus ''

Struveopsis ''Struveopsis'' is a genus of green algae in the family Boodleaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Willem ten Rhijne (Wilhelmus ten Rhyne) and Harold Ernest Robinson in Phytologia vol.17 (7) on pages 467-468 in 1968. The genus name of ''Str ...

''), and

vine A vine is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas, or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselves, for instance, when used in wicker work.Jackson; Benjamin; Da ...

s of family

Hippocrateaceae Hippocrateaceae Juss. previously consisted of about 150 tropical and subtropical species of shrubs and lianes, and is now included in the family Celastraceae The Celastraceae (staff-vine or bittersweet) are a family of 98 genera and 1,350 speci ...

(now a synonym of the staff vine family

Celastraceae The Celastraceae (staff-vine or bittersweet) are a family of 98 genera and 1,350 species of herbs, vines, shrubs and small trees, belonging to the order Celastrales. The great majority of the genera are tropical, with only ''Celastrus'' (the staf ...

). He made a study of the

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or Taxon, taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, M ...

of the genus '' Houstonia'' of the madder family. Robinson's major interest went to the sunflower family (

). In the

neotropic The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In biogeogra ...

al tribe

Eupatorieae Eupatorieae is a Tribe (biology), tribe of over 2000D.J.N.Hind & H.E.Robinson. 2007. Tribe Eupatorieae In: ''The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants'' vol.VIII. (Joachim W.Kadereit & Charles Jeffrey, volume editors. Klaus Kubitzky, general edi ...

, Robinson (with co-worker King) has named at least one species in 27 of the genera. He later worked on the reorganization of the tribes

Senecioneae Senecioneae is the largest tribe of the Asteraceae, or the sunflower family, comprising over 150 genera and over 3,500 species. Almost one-third of the species in this tribe are placed in the genus ''Senecio''. Its members exhibit probably the w ...

Heliantheae The Heliantheae (sometimes called the sunflower tribe) are the third-largest Tribe (biology), tribe in the sunflower family (Asteraceae). With some 190 genera and nearly 2500 recognized species, only the tribes Senecioneae and Astereae are large ...

Liabeae Liabeae is a Tribe (biology), tribe in the plant family Asteraceae. It is endemic to the Neotropical realm, Neotropics, where it is most diverse in the northern and central Andes.Dillon, M. O., et alChapter 27: Liabeae.In: Funk, V. A., et al. (ed ...

, and

Vernonieae Vernonieae is a tribe of about 1300 species of plants in the aster family. They are mostly found in the tropics and warmer temperate areas, both in the Americas and the Old World. They are mostly herbaceous plants or shrubs, although there is a ...

. Robinson has made a detailed study of the many secondary

metabolite In biochemistry, a metabolite is an intermediate or end product of metabolism. The term is usually used for small molecules. Metabolites have various functions, including fuel, structure, signaling, stimulatory and inhibitory effects on enzymes, c ...

chemicals found in the Eupatorieae tribe, such as

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

s, (poly)

acetylene Acetylene (Chemical nomenclature, systematic name: ethyne) is a chemical compound with the formula and structure . It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is u ...

s, and

terpenoid The terpenoids, also known as isoprenoids, are a class of naturally occurring organic compound, organic chemicals derived from the 5-carbon compound isoprene and its derivatives called terpenes, diterpenes, etc. While sometimes used interchangeabl ...

s (see ''

Ichthyothere ''Ichthyothere'' is a genus of flowering plants, found in parts of South America (the Amazon) and Central America. The name ''ichthyothere'' literally translates as ''fish poison''. These plants' active constituent is a chemical called ichthyoth ...

''), together with and

Ferdinand Bohlmann Ferdinand Bohlmann ( 27 August 1921 - 23 September 1991) was a German chemist, known for his studies of plant natural products chemistry, especially terpenoids and polyynes. Life Bohlmann studied chemistry in Göttingen from 1939 to 1944 . H ...

. This resulted in a large number of publications mostly in the journal ''

Phytochemistry Phytochemistry is the study of phytochemicals, which are chemicals derived from plants. Phytochemists strive to describe the structures of the large number of secondary metabolites found in plants, the functions of these compounds in human and ...

'' in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1970 Robinson and King stressed the need for diagnostic character analysis in his classic article entitled ''The New Synantherology''. In 1974 Robinson named a new subtribe Luziolinae of oryzoid (= rice-like)

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

Poaceae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...

, but this was not supported by molecular study. Robinson also named the small genus '' Synanthes'' of

epiphytic An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

s from Paraguay, as well as named 32 new species from the bromeliad family. These were mostly in the genera '' Navia'' and '' Lindmania'', ''

Connellia ''Connellia'' is a genus of plants in the family (biology), family Bromeliaceae. The genus name is for Frederick Vavasour McConnell, English ornithologist and biologist (1868-1914). There are 6 known species, all native to the Guyana Highlands of ...

'', and ''

Cottendorfia ''Cottendorfia'' is a genus of plants in the family Bromeliaceae. The genus name is for Johann Georg Freiherr Cotta von Cottendorf, German patron of the sciences (1796-1863). There is only one known species, ''Cottendorfia florida'', endemic to ...

'', such as '' Navia albiflora'' and '' Navia aliciae''. In 1999 he merged '' Pepinia'' into ''

Pitcairnia ''Pitcairnia'' is a genus of plants in the family Bromeliaceae, subfamily Pitcairnioideae. It was named for William Pitcairn, Scottish physician and gardener (1711–1791). The genus ''Pitcairnia'' ranks as the second most prolific of the brome ...

'' at generic level. He made several illustrations for the ''Catalog of Botanical Illustrations'', Smithsonian Institution, such as for ''

Brewcaria duidensis ''Brewcaria duidensis'' is a species of plants in the genus '' Brewcaria''. This species is endemic to Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting o ...

''. In 1986 Robinson gave a critical but constructive opinion on

cladistics Cladistics ( ; from Ancient Greek 'branch') is an approach to Taxonomy (biology), biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesiz ...

in the article. "A Key to the Common Errors of Cladistics".

Awards and legacy

In 2010, Robinson received the

Asa Gray Award Asa Gray (November 18, 1810 – January 30, 1888) is considered the most important American botanist of the 19th century. His '' Darwiniana'' (1876) was considered an important explanation of how religion and science were not necessarily mutua ...

, the highest honour of the

American Society of Plant Taxonomists The American Society of Plant Taxonomists (ASPT) is a botany, 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 contribut ...

. In 1996, the plant genus '' Robinsonecio'' (in the family

) from Mexico and Guatemala, and then '' Haroldia'', which is a genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s belonging to the family Asteraceae, was published in 2009, were both named in his honour.

Selected works

* Rhyne, C. and H. Robinson. 1968. ''Struveopsis'', a new genus of green algae. Phytologia 17:467-472 * Robinson, H. 1969, A Monograph of Foliar Anatomy of the Genera ''Connellia'', ''Cottendorfia'' and ''Navia'' (Bromeliaceae). Washington.. * King, R. M., & H. Robinson. 1970. The new synantherology. Taxon 19:6-11. * King, R. M., and H. Robinson. 1970 : ''Eupatorium'', a composite genus of Arcto-Tertiary distribution. Taxon 19: 769–774. * King, R. M., and H. Robinson 1970 : Studies in the Eupatorieae (Compositae). XXV. A new genus ''Eupatoriadelphus''. Phytologia 19: 431–432. * King, R. M., & H. Robinson. 1970. New combinations in ''Ageratina''. Phytologia 19:208-229. * Reed, C. F. and H. Robinson. 1971. Bryophytes of Monteverde, Costa Rica. Phytologia 21: 6-21. * Terrell E. E., H. Robinson, 1974 Luziolinae, a new subtribe of oryzoid grasses. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 101: 235-235 SI* King, R. M. & H. Robinson. 1975.- Studies in the Eupatorieae (Asteraceae), CXXXIX. A new genus, ''Aristeguietia''. - Phytologia 30: 217–220. * Robinson H., 1978 Studies in the Heliantheae (Asteraceae). XII. Re-establishment of the genus ''Smallanthus''. Phytologia 39: 47-47 * Robinson H.,: 1978 - . Compositae-Liabeae. 1978. 63 pp. Flora of Ecuador volume 8 * Robinson H., 1980 Studies in the Heliantheae (Asteraceae). XXVI. New species of ''Ichthyothere''. Phytologia 47: 128-128 * Robinson H., 1981 A revision of the tribal and subtribal limits of the Heliantheae (Asteraceae). Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 51: 1-1 * Robinson H., A. M. Powell, R. M. King, J. F. Weedin, 1981 Chromosome numbers in Compositae. XII. Heliantheae. Smithsonian Contribributions to Botany 52: 1-1 * Bohlmann, F., Zdero, C., Grenz, M., Dhar, A.K., Robinson, H., King, R.M.. "Naturally occurring terpene derivatives .307. 5 diterpene and other constituents from 9 ''Baccharis'' species." - Phytochemistry 20 281 - 286, 1981. * Robinson H., 1983 Studies in the Heliantheae (Asteraceae). XXX. A new species of ''Ichthyothere'' from Cayenne. Phytologia 53: 388-388 * * Terrell, E.E., W.H. Lewis, H. Robinson, and J.W. Nowicke. 1986. Phylogenetic implications of diverse seed types, chromosome numbers, and pollen morphology in ''Houstonia'' (Rubiaceae) Am. J. Bot. 73:103-115. * King, R.M. & Robinson, H. 1987. The genera of the Eupatorieae (Asteraceae). Monographs in systematic botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 22: 1–581. * Robinson, H. 1993. A review of the genus ''Critoniopsis'' in Central and South America (Vernonieae: Asteraceae) Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 106: 606–627. * Robinson, H. 1993. Three new genera of Vernonieae from South America, ''Dasyandantha'', ''Dasyanthina'', and ''Quechualia''. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 106(4): 775–785. * Robinson, H., & J. Cuatrecasas. 1993. New species of ''Pentacalia'' (Senecioneae: Asteraceae) from Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. Novon 3(3): 284–301. * Robinson, H. 1994. ''Cololobus'', ''Pseudopiptocarpha'', and ''Trepadonia'', three new genera from South America (Vernonieae: Asteraceae). Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 107(3): 557–568. * Robinson, H. 1994. New combination in American Vernonieae (Asteraceae). Phytologia 76: 27–29. * Robinson, H. 1995. New combinations and new species in American Vernonieae (Asteraceae). Phytologia 78(5): 384–399. * Robinson, H. 1995. Two new species of ''Ichthyothere'' (Heliantheae: Asteraceae) from Ecuador and Peru. Sida 16(4): 731–736. *Robinson, H. & V. Funk. 1995. Compositae of Ecuador I: Key to frequently collected genera. In: R. Valencia & H. Balslev (eds.) Estudios sobre diversidad y ecología de plantas, p. 65-75. PUCE, Quito. * Robinson, H. 1997. New species of ''Aphanactis'' in Ecuador and Bolivia and new combinations in ''Selloa'' (Heliantheae: Asteraceae). Brittonia 49(1): 71–78. * Robinson, H. 1997. New species of ''Aphanactis'', ''Calea'', ''Clibadium'' and ''Tridax'' (Heliantheae, Asteraceae) from Ecuador and Peru. Phytologia 82(1): 58–62. * Robinson, H. 1997. New species of ''Archibaccharis'' and ''Baccharis'' from Bolivia and Peru (Asteraceae: Astereae). Biollania, Edición Esp. No. 6: 501–508. * Robinson, H. 1997. New species of ''Ayapanopsis'' and ''Hebeclinum'' from South America (Asteraceae: Eupatorieae). Biollania, Edición Esp. No. 6: 509–514. * Robinson, H. 1999 New species and new combinations of Neotropical Eupatorieae (Asteraceae). Phytologia 84: 347–353. * Robinson, H. 1999. Generic and subtribal classification of American Vernonieae. Smithson. Contributions Bot. 89: 1–116.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Harold E. 1932 births 2020 deaths Duke University alumni American phycologists 21st-century American botanists Botanists with author abbreviations American bryologists American entomologists Scientists from Syracuse, New York Ohio University alumni University of Tennessee alumni Wofford College faculty