Engkik Soepadmo (3 March 1937
[ – 6 March 2021]Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
. His research focused on the tropical rainforest in Southeast Asia, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia. He authored numerous publications on the flora of Malesia
Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and the boundaries of the Indomalayan and Australasian realms, and also a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical Kingdom. It has been given different definitions. Th ...
, and contributed to forest conservation and the establishment of protected areas in Malaysia.[The Late Dr Engkik Soepadmo]
The Merdeka Award. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
Early life and education
Soepadmo was born and raised in Kartosuro
Kartosuro (also spelled Kartasura) is an Indonesian subdistrict ''(Kecamatan)'' in the Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java. Kartosuro is a Surakarta's satellite city, and a junction of Surabaya-Solo-Yogyakarta and Solo-Semarang highway. It can be re ...
, Surakarta, Central Java, Indonesia. His early education was at the Secondary School in Solo. He graduated from high school in 1955, and attended the College of Biology in Bogor, graduating in 1959 with a bachelor's degree in Taxonomic Botany. He served for a time as a junior botanist at the Herbarium Bogoriense before attending the University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...
, where he obtained a PhD in July 1966. For the following two years he had a research fellowship from the University of Leiden
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city of Le ...
in the Netherlands.[
]
Academic and research career
Dr Soepadmo was appointed as a lecturer in Tropical Botany at the University of Malaya
The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...
in 1968. He became an associate professor at the Department of Botany in 1975, and soon after was appointed as the Professor of Ecology at the university. He was also associated with the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM).[
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Publications
He authored monographs for the ''Flora Malesiana
''Flora Malesiana'' is a multi-volume flora describing the vascular plants of Malesia (the biogeographical region consisting of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, and Papua New Guinea), published by the National Herbari ...
'' on the Fagaceae (oak and chestnut family, Ser. 1, volume 7, 2 (1972)) and Ulmaceae
The Ulmaceae () are a family of flowering plants that includes the elms (genus ''Ulmus''), and the zelkovas (genus ''Zelkova''). Members of the family are widely distributed throughout the north temperate zone, and have a scattered distribution ...
(elm family, volume 8, 2 (1977)). He edited and authored the seven volumes of the ''Tree Flora of Sabah and Sarawak'' (1995–2011). He edited and helped complile ''The Encyclopedia of Malaysia: Plants'', published in 1998. He also authored over 100 published papers.[
Dr. Soepadmo named over 70 species of plants, including species of '' Lithocarpus'', '']Quercus
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ...
'', ''Castanopsis
''Castanopsis'', commonly called chinquapin or chinkapin, is a genus of evergreen trees belonging to the beech family, Fagaceae. The genus contains about 140 species, which are today restricted to tropical and subtropical eastern Asia. A total o ...
'', and ''Celtis
''Celtis'' is a genus of about 60–70 species of deciduous trees, commonly known as hackberries or nettle trees, widespread in warm temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The genus is part of the extended hemp family (Cannabaceae).
...
''.
Dr. Soepadmo conducted research, authored papers, and led research expeditions which helped establish or create conservation strategies for various protected areas in Malaysia, including Endau-Rompin National Park
Endau-Rompin National Park ( Malay: ''Taman Negara Endau-Rompin'') is a protected tropical rainforest in the southernmost prolongation of the Tenasserim Hills, Malaysia. It is south of the state of Pahang and northeast of Johor covering an area of ...
, Royal Belum State Park
Belum-Temengor is the largest continuous forest complex in Peninsular Malaysia. Specifically, it is located in the Malaysian state of Perak (Hulu Perak) and crosses into Southern Thailand. Belum-Temenggor is divided into two sections. Belum is lo ...
, Bukit Tawai Protection Forest Reserve, Lanjak-Entimau/Betung Kerihun Transboundary Conservation Area, and Pulong Tau National Park
The Pulong Tau National Park ( ms, Taman Negara Pulong Tau) is a national park in Kelabit Highlands in Limbang Division and Miri Division of Sarawak, Malaysia.
Etymology
In Lun Bawang and Kelabit dialects, ''Pulong Tau'' means "our forests", w ...
.[
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Recognition
In 2012 he was given the Merdeka Award. The Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) awarded Dr Soepadmo Honorary Life Membership in recognition of his "significant and meaningful contribution to the Malaysian Nature Society and their study of Malaysia’s natural heritage".[ In 2015 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 ...
awarded Dr. Soepadmo a Linnean Medal in recognition of his service to science.
Plants named in recognition of Dr. Soepadmo include:[
*'' Actinodaphne soepadmoi'' (Lauraceae)
*'' Aglaia soepadmoi'' (Meliaceae)
*'' Cinnamomum soepadmoi'' (Lauraceae)
*'' Ficus soepadmoi'' (Moraceae)
*'' Syzygium soepadmoi'' (Myrtaceae)
*'' Vatica soepadmoi'' (Dipterocarpaceae)
*'' Madhuca engkikiana'' (Sapotaceae)
*†'' Soepadmoa'' , a ~90–94 million year old extinct fossil genus of Fagaceae.][Gandolfo, M. A., Nixon, K. C., Crepet, W. L., and Grimaldi, D. A.. 2018. A late Cretaceous fagalean inflorescence preserved in amber from New Jersey. American Journal of Botany 105( 8): 1424– 1435.]
References
{{Authority control
Soepadmo, Engkik
Soepadmo, Engkik
Soepadmo, Engkik
Soepadmo, Engkik