Erik Albert Mennega (6 January 1923 – 27 January 1998) was a Dutch

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

plant taxonomist Plant taxonomy is the science that finds, identifies, describes, classifies, and names plants. It is one of the main branches of taxonomy (the science that finds, describes, classifies, and names living things). Plant taxonomy is closely allied ...

, and author.

Biography

Mennega studied biology at

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...

, receiving his degree in 1947. He was then hired as a taxonomist at the

Utrecht University Botanic Gardens The Utrecht University Botanic Gardens have consisted of two locations since 1987: the main Botanical Garden Fort Hoofddijk in Uithof, Utrecht, and the Von Gimborn Arboretum in nearby Doorn. Both locations are open to the public. History The h ...

. He spent much of his time identifying botanical collections at the original garden in

Baarn Baarn () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, near Hilversum in the province of Utrecht. The municipality of Baarn The municipality of Baarn consists of the following towns: Baarn, Eembrugge, Lage Vuursche. The town of Baarn Ba ...

, as well as identifying at documenting species at the

Von Gimborn Arboretum Von Gimborn Arboretum is a large living collection of woody plants in the Netherlands.The arboretum is situated in Doorn, province of Utrecht, about 25 km to the east from the city of Utrecht, and together with its nursery currently occupie ...

. He remained at the gardens until his retirement in 1984.Zijlstra, G. (1998). Erik A. Mennega (1923-1998). Taxon, 47(4), 974-975. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1224228 In 1988,

Frans Stafleu Frans Antonie Stafleu (8 September 1921 – 16 December 1997) was a Dutch systematic botanist, former Chair of the Institute of Systematic Botany at the University of Utrecht, and author of ''Taxonomic Literature: A Selective Guide to Botanical ...

and

Richard Sumner Cowan Richard Sumner Cowan (January 23, 1921 – November 17, 1997) was an American botanist. Early life Richard Sumner Cowan was born on January 23, 1921, in Crawfordsville, Indiana. His family moved to Florida and he was educated in the Tampa, Flor ...

published the second edition of ''Taxonomic Literature: A Selective Guide to Botanical Publications and Collections, with Dates, Commentaries, and Types''. After Cowan left the project, Stafleu began collaborating with Mennega on a supplement series. The two wrote and published six volumes between 1992 and 2000, the last two posthumously.Dorr, Laurence J., Nicolson, Dan H (2008). TL-2 Speaks Volumes. Plant Press, 11(4). Retrieved from https://nmnh.typepad.com/the_plant_press/2008/10/plant-press-2008-vol-11-issue-4.html Mennega took over the majority of writing and compiling after 1995 due to the decline of Stafleu's health. Mennega himself died of a heart attack on 27 January 1998. Botanist

Alberta Mennega Alberta Maria Wilhelmina "Bep" Mennega (July 29, 1914 – December 20, 2009) was a Dutch botanist renowned for her studies into the anatomy of wood and plant systematics. Biography Mennega studied biology at the Utrecht University, earning her ...

was Mennega's aunt.Stafleu, F. A., Cowan, R. S., & Mennega, E. A. (1979)
Taxonomic literature: A selective guide to botanical publications and collections with dates, commentaries and types.
Utrecht: Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema.

Selected publications

*Stafleu, F. A., Cowan, R. S., & Mennega, E. A. (1979). ''Taxonomic literature: A selective guide to botanical publications and collections with dates, commentaries and types''. Utrecht: Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema. *Mennega, E. A. (1985). ''Bibliography of the Annonaceae''. Utrecht, Netherlands: Institute of Systematic Botany. *Mennega, E. A., Rooij, W. C. M. T., Jansen-Jacobs, M. J., & Fanshawe, D. B. (1988). Check-list of woody plants of Guyana. Ede, the Netherlands: Tropenbos Foundation.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mennega, Erik 1923 births 1998 deaths 20th-century Dutch botanists