Edmund André Charles Louis Eloi Schelpe aka Ted Schelpe (27 July 1924

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

- 12 October 1985

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

) was a South African botanist,

phytogeographer Phytogeography (from Greek φυτόν, ''phytón'' = "plant" and γεωγραφία, ''geographía'' = "geography" meaning also distribution) or botanical geography is the branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution o ...

and taxonomist, specialising in

pteridophytes A pteridophyte is a vascular plant (with xylem and phloem) that disperses spores. Because pteridophytes produce neither flowers nor seeds, they are sometimes referred to as " cryptogams", meaning that their means of reproduction is hidden. ...

bryophytes The Bryophyta s.l. are a proposed taxonomic division containing three groups of non-vascular land plants (embryophytes): the liverworts, hornworts and mosses. Bryophyta s.s. consists of the mosses only. They are characteristically limited i ...

and

orchids 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. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

. He was the son of Edmond Schelpe, lecturer and organist at

Natal University The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu-N ...

, and Martha Clementina Beurms. He was married to fellow botanist Anna Sybella Louisa Gray (1917-2001), the marriage producing 3 children. Schelpe attended Natal University in

Pietermaritzburg Pietermaritzburg (; Zulu: umGungundlovu) is the capital and second-largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838 and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its Zulu name umGungundlovu ...

between 1941 and 1946, graduating with an

M.Sc. A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree, after which he enrolled at

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Doroth ...

, from 1947 to 1950 and was awarded a D.Phil. He was Curator of the

Fielding Herbarium Fielding may refer to: * Fielding (cricket), the action of fielders collecting the ball in cricket at various cricket positions * Fielding (baseball), the action of fielders collecting the ball at any of the nine baseball positions * Fielding ...

at Oxford during 1951-52. He held various posts at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

: Lecturer in Botany, 1953-1954; Senior Lecturer and Curator of the Bolus Herbarium, 1954-1958; Associate Professor and Curator of the Bolus Herbarium, 1968-1973, the title Curator being changed to Director from 1970; Professor (ad hominem) and Director of the Bolus Herbarium, 1973-1985. He was an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa, the

Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

, and the University of Cape Town. From 1964 he served on the Committee on Pteridophyta of the International Association of Plant Taxonomists. He contributed greatly to the systematics of Pteridophyta in southern Africa. Shortly before his death he completed proof-reading the Pteridophyta volume for the

Flora of Southern Africa Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Sometimes ...

. He also published accounts of the Pteridophyta for the

Flora Zambesiaca ''Flora Zambesiaca'' is an ongoing botanical project aimed at achieving a full account of the flowering plants and ferns of the Zambezi River basin covering Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and the Caprivi Strip, and is published by ...

, the Flora de Mocambique and the Conspectus Florae Angolensis. In all he produced some 100 scientific papers and books, covering topics in pteridophytes, orchids, bryophytes, plant ecology and phytogeography. In addition to his botanical skills he was also regarded as something of a yodelling expert. Ted Schelpe died after suffering a heart attack at his Cape Town home on Saturday 12 October 1985.

Publications

*An Introduction to the South African Orchids (London Macdonald, 1966) *Namaqualand Wild Flower Guide - with Annelise le Roux (Botanical Society of SA, 1988)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schelpe, Ted 20th-century South African botanists South African taxonomists