Franz Petrak (9 October 1886, Mährisch-Weißkirchen – 9 October 1973,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

) was an Austrian-Czech

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungus, fungi, including their genetics, genetic and biochemistry, biochemical properties, their Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and ethnomycology, their use to humans, including as a so ...

. From 1906 to 1910, he studied

botany 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 w ...

at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...

, where he was a student of

Richard Wettstein __NOTOC__ Richard Wettstein (30 June 1863 in Vienna – 10 August 1931 in Trins) was an Austrian botanist. His taxonomic system, the Wettstein system, was one of the earliest based on phyletic principles. Wettstein studied in Vienna, where he was ...

. In 1913 he obtained his doctorate of sciences, and until 1916, worked as a high school teacher in Vienna. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was stationed in Galicia and

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

, where he collected specimens in his spare time. From 1918 to 1938, he worked as a private scientist in his home town, and from 1938 to 1951, was associated with the

Naturhistorisches Museum The Natural History Museum Vienna (german: Naturhistorisches Museum Wien) is a large natural history museum located in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the most important natural history museums worldwide. The NHM Vienna is one of the largest museum ...

in Vienna. He was the author of nearly 500 published works, primarily in the field of mycology. Much of his mycological work was published in the journal ''Annales mycologici'' and its successor ''

Sydowia ''Sydowia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Dothioraceae described by Giacomo Bresadola in 1895. The name honours German mycologist, Paul Sydow. Species As accepted by Species Fungorum; * '' Sydowia agharkarii'' * '' Sydowia ceanothi'' ...

''. Reportedly, his private

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

contained 100,000 specimens. As a

taxonomist In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given ...

, he described numerous species within the genus ''

Cirsium ''Cirsium'' is a genus of perennial and biennial flowering plants in the Asteraceae, one of several genera known commonly as thistles. They are more precisely known as plume thistles. These differ from other thistle genera ('' Carduus'', ''Silyb ...

'' (family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

). The mycological genera of; '' Petrakia'' (family Pseudodidymellaceae), ''

Petrakiella ''Petrakiella'' is a genus of fungi in the family Phyllachoraceae; according to the 2007 Outline of Ascomycota, the placement in this family is uncertain. This is a monotypic genus, containing the single species ''Petrakiella insignis''. The gen ...

'' (

Phyllachoraceae Phyllachoraceae is a family of sac fungi. Genera As accepted by 2020 Outline (with amount of species per genus); *'' Ascovaginospora'' (1) *'' Brobdingnagia'' (4) *'' Camarotella'' (8) *'' Coccodiella'' (27) *'' Cyclodomus'' (5) *'' Des ...

), '' Franzpetrakia'' (

Ustilaginaceae The Ustilaginaceae are a family of smut fungi in the order Ustilaginomycetes. Collectively, the family contains 17 genera and 607 species. Biotechnological relevance Ustilaginaceae naturally produce a wide range of value-added chemicals (e.g. s ...

), ''

Petrakiopeltis ''Petrakiopeltis'' is a genus of fungi in the Microthyriaceae family; according to the 2007 Outline of Ascomycota, the placement in this family is uncertain. This is a monotypic genus, containing the single species ''Petrakiopeltis byrsonimae''. ...

'' (

Microthyriaceae The Microthyriaceae are a family of fungi with an uncertain taxonomic placement in the class Dothideomycetes Dothideomycetes is the largest and most diverse class of ascomycete fungi. It comprises 11 orders 90 families, 1300 genera and over 1 ...

), '' Petrakiopsis'' (

Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...

) and ''

Petrakina ''Petrakina'' is a genus of fungi in the Asterinaceae family. The relationship of this taxon to other taxa within the class is unknown (''incertae sedis''), and it has not yet been placed with certainty into any order. The genus name of ''Petr ...

'' (family

Asterinaceae The Asterinaceae are a family of fungi in the monotypic class Asterinales. Genera This is a list of the genera in the Asterinaceae, based on a 2021 review and summary of fungal classification by Wijayawardene and colleagues. Following the genus ...

) have all been named in his honor, the latter genus being circumscribed by

Raffaele Ciferri Raffaele Ciferri (30 May 1897, Fermo – 12 February 1964, Pavia) was an Italian botanist, agriculturalist and mycologist. He studied agricultural sciences at the University of Bologna. From 1925 to 1932, he was based in the Dominican Republic ...

in 1932. Franz Petrak died 9 October 1973 in Vienna.

Selected works

* ''Die nordamerikanischen Arten der Gattung Cirsium'', 1917. * ''Die Gattungen der Pyrenomyzeten, Sphaeropsideen und Melanconiee'', 1926. * ''Die phaeosporen Shaeropsideen und die Gattung Macrophoma'', 1926. * "Index of fungi. Petrak's lists, 1920-1939". Cumulative index by the

Commonwealth Mycological Institute A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from t ...

(Great Britain), 1956. * "Index of fungi : list of new species and varieties of fungi, new combinations and new names published 1920-1939", 1957. * "Index of fungi: a supplement to Petrak's lists, 1920-1939". By the Commonwealth Mycological Institute (Great Britain), 1969.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petrak, Franz 1886 births 1973 deaths Austrian mycologists Austro-Hungarian educators Czech mycologists People from Hranice (Přerov District) Phytopathologists University of Vienna alumni Austrian people of Moravian-German descent

Selected works

See also

References