Career

Collecting localities

Collections

Literature

 

Purseglove, John William

 

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 5: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement I)

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 8: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement II)

 

Born: 1912, Derbyshire, England.

 

career:

Was educated at Manchester University (B.Sc., honours in Botany, 1934), at Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge University (1934-1935), and the Imp. College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad (1935-36). Agricultural Officer in Uganda, 1936-52; seconded from the Colonial Agricultural Service as Lecturer in Tropical Agriculture, Cambridge University, 1952-54; in 1954 appointed Director, Botanic Gardens, Singapore. He resigned in 1957, and was appointed Professor of Botany at the Imp. College of Trinidad. About 1967 appointed Advisor on Tropical Crops for the Ministry of Overseas Development, working at East Malling Research Station, Maidstone, Kent, England.

He travelled extensively in Africa south of the Sahara.

Durio purseglovei Kosterm. was named after him.

 

Collecting localities:

Malay Peninsula. From 1954 onwards. A little in Singapore, Port Dickson, etc.-1955. Fraser’s Hill (Apr. 15-25, P4092-4338). NW. Borneo, Sarawak: Kuching (Sept. 12), Ham Kitang (13), peat swamp forest at Setapok (14), Karenga sand, Mile 6 Penrissen Road (14), Semnagoh Forest Reserve (14), Bau (15), Sebanding Swamp Forest, Lundu (18), Gunung Gading, Lundu 100-1000 ft (19), Lundu (20), Sematan (21), Kp. Pueh (21), G. Pueh (22), Kp. Pueh (25), Sematan (27), Kuching (29).-1956. NW. Borneo, Sarawak (May 15-June 13)1: in Bako National Park, Sungei Tau, Sungei Miyang Bukit Mersing and Tatau. Malay Peninsula: Mersing, G. Pulai in Johore; Fraser’s Hill.-1957. Sarawak: Bako National Park (Feb. 2-18) with Moh. Shah bin Haji Moh. Nur.

 

collections:

Herb. Sing. [SING]; dupl. at Kew [K], Leiden [L], Sarawak Mus. Herb. [SAR] (Borneo specim.), and the Arn. Arb. [A]. In Sarawak (1955) assisted by Moh. Shah bin Haji Moh. Nur (see there) and from time to time by members of the Museum and Forest Department Staff, Sarawak, collecting nos P4351-P4856, numbered in his own series; in 1956 nos P4877-5490 (Sarawak), etc.

P nos to be cited under his full name.

Malaysian collections begin at P4001 (series begun in Uganda). Uganda collections in Kawanda Herb. and E. Afr. Herb., Nairobi. 

Dupl. of Gesneriaceae to Herb. Edinb. [E], of Ficus spp. to Mr Corner (Cambridge [CGE]), and Sterculia spp. to Mr Kostermans (Bogor [BO]).

 

literature:

(1) See concise botanical report in Ann. Rep. Bot. Gard. Dept. for 1956, 1957, p. 3-4.