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
taxonomist
In biology, taxonomy () is the science, scientific study of naming, defining (Circumscription (taxonomy), circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxon, taxa (si ...
specialising in the
ant plant
Myrmecophytes (; literally "ant-plant") are plants that live in a mutualistic association with a colony of ants. There are over 100 different genera of myrmecophytes. These plants possess structural adaptations in the form of domatia where ants ...
genera
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...
''
Squamellaria
''Squamellaria'' is a genus of myrmecophytic flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It includes eight species native to the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji.
It is one of five ant-plant genera in the family Rubiaceae, the others being '' ...
'', ''
Myrmecodia
''Myrmecodia'' is a genus of Epiphyte, epiphytic plants, present in Indochina, Malesia, Papuasia, and Queensland, Australia. It is one of five ant-plant genera in the family Rubiaceae, the others being ''Anthorrhiza'', ''Hydnophytum'', ''Myrme ...
'', ''
Hydnophytum
''Hydnophytum'' is a genus of epiphytic myrmecophytes (ant plants) native to Southeast Asia, the Pacific region and also extending into Queensland in northern Australia. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek ''hydnon'' "tuber", and ''phyton' ...
'', ''
Myrmephytum
''Myrmephytum'' is a genus of myrmecophytic flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It is distributed from central Malesia to New Guinea.
It is one of five ant-plant genera in the family Rubiaceae, the others being '' Anthorrhiza'', '' Hydno ...
'' and ''
Anthorrhiza
''Anthorrhiza'' is a genus of myrmecophytic flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises ...
'', as well as the
carnivorous plant
Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, typically insects and other arthropods, and occasionally small mammals and birds. They have adapted to grow in waterlo ...
genus ''
Nepenthes
''Nepenthes'' ( ) is a genus of carnivorous plants, also known as tropical pitcher plants, or monkey cups, in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae. The genus includes about 170 species, and numerous natural and many cultivated hybrids. They are m ...
''.
Jebb has described several new ''Nepenthes'' species, all with
Martin Cheek Martin Roy Cheek (born 1960) is a botanist and taxonomist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.N. argentii'', '' N. aristolochioides'', '' N. danseri'', '' N. diatas'', '' N. lamii'', '' N. mira'', and '' N. murudensis''. Jebb and Cheek also raised '' N. macrophylla'' to species rank. Jebb and Cheek revised the genus in two major monographs: " A skeletal revision of ''Nepenthes'' (Nepenthaceae)" (1997)Jebb, M.H.P. & M.R. Cheek 1997. A skeletal revision of ''Nepenthes'' (Nepenthaceae). ''Blumea'' 42(1): 1–106. and " Nepenthaceae" (2001).Cheek, M.R. & M.H.P. Jebb 2001. Nepenthaceae. ''Flora Malesiana'' 15: 1–157. Jebb also authored the 1991 monograph " An account of ''Nepenthes'' in New Guinea".Jebb, M.H.P. 1991. An account of ''Nepenthes'' in New Guinea. ''Science in New Guinea'' 17(1): 7–54.
Jebb undertook his primary degree and D.Phil. at Oxford University. His Ph.D. looked at the taxonomy and tuber morphology of the rubiaceous ant-plants. Following a 5-year appointment as Director of the Christensen Research Institute at Madang, Papua New Guinea, Matthew took up a 2-year post-doc position at Trinity College Dublin. This work worked involved preparation of a revision of the Araliaceae for the Flora of Thailand project. Matthew has revised the family Nepenthaceae for Flora Malesiana.
Jebb is currently the Director of the National Botanic Gardens based in Glasnevin.
Jebb is the son of the architect and Liberal Party politician Philip Jebb, and great-grandson of the writer
Hilaire Belloc
Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc ( ; ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a French-English writer, politician, and historian. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. His Catholic fait ...