Martin Roy Cheek (born 1960) is a
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 ...
and
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 ...
at the
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 ...
.
[Cheek, Martin R.]
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Cheek attended the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...
, graduating with a
B.Sc.
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
in 1981 and a
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 ...
in 1983. He earned his
DPhil
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
in 1989.
Research
With
Matthew Jebb
Matthew Hilary Peter Jebb (born 1958) is an Irish botanist and taxonomist specialising in the ant plant genera ''Squamellaria'', '' Myrmecodia'', '' Hydnophytum'', ''Myrmephytum'' and '' Anthorrhiza'', as well as the carnivorous plant genus '' ...
, Cheek revised the
pitcher plant
Pitcher plants are several different carnivorous plants which have modified leaves known as pitfall traps—a prey-trapping mechanism featuring a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. The traps of what are considered to be "true" pitcher p ...
genus ''
Nepenthes
''Nepenthes'' () is a genus of carnivorous plants, also known as tropical pitcher plants, or monkey cups, in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae. The genus includes about 170 species, and numerous natural and many cultivated hybrids. They are mos ...
'' in two major monographs:
a skeletal revision in 1997[Jebb, M.H.P. & M.R. Cheek 1997. A skeletal revision of ''Nepenthes'' (Nepenthaceae). ''Blumea'' 42(1): 1–106.] and
a more in-depth treatment of the
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. The ...
n species for ''
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 ...
'' in 2001.
[Cheek, M.R. & M.H.P. Jebb 2001. Nepenthaceae. ''Flora Malesiana'' 15: 1–157.]
In these and other works, Cheek has described a number of species new to science, often in collaboration with Jebb. These include: ''
N. abalata'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. Identification and typification of ''Nepenthes blancoi'', with ''N. abalata'' sp. nov. from the western Visayas, Philippines. ''Nordic Journal of Botany'' 31(2): 151–156. ] ''
N. abgracilis'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. The ''Nepenthes micramphora'' (Nepenthaceae) group, with two new species from Mindanao, Philippines. ''Phytotaxa'' 151(1): 25–34. ] ''
N. alzapan'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. ''Nepenthes alzapan'' (Nepenthaceae), a new species from Luzon, Philippines. ''Phytotaxa'' 100(1): 57–60. ] ''
N. argentii'',
''
N. aristolochioides'',
''
N. cid'',
''
N. danseri'',
''
N. diatas'',
''
N. extincta'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. Recircumscription of the ''Nepenthes alata'' group (Caryophyllales: Nepenthaceae), in the Philippines, with four new species. ''European Journal of Taxonomy'' 69: 1–23. ] ''
N. hurrelliana'',
[Cheek, M., M. Jebb, C.C. Lee, A. Lamb & A. Phillipps. 2003. ''Nepenthes hurrelliana'' (Nepenthaceae), a new species of pitcher plant from Borneo. ''Sabah Parks Nature Journal'' 6: 117–124.] ''
N. kitanglad'',
''
N. kurata'',
''
N. lamii'',
''
N. leyte'',
''
N. mira'', ''
N. murudensis'',
''
N. negros'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. Typification and redelimitation of ''Nepenthes alata'' with notes on the ''N. alata'' group, and ''N. negros'' sp. nov. from the Philippines. ''Nordic Journal of Botany'' 31(5): 616–622. ] ''
N. ramos'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. ''Nepenthes ramos'' (Nepenthaceae), a new species from Mindanao, Philippines. ''Willdenowia'' 43(1): 107–111. ] ''
N. robcantleyi'',
[Cheek, M. 2011. ''Nepenthes robcantleyi'' sp. nov. (Nepenthaceae) from Mindanao, Philippines. ''Nordic Journal of Botany'' 29(6): 677–681. ] ''
N. samar'',
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. ''Nepenthes samar'' (Nepenthaceae), a new species from Samar, Philippines. ''Blumea'' 58(1): 82–84. ] ''
N. thai'', and ''
N. ultra''.
[Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. ''Nepenthes ultra'' (Nepenthaceae), a new species from Luzon, Philippines. ''Blumea'', published online on October 24, 2013. ] Cheek and Jebb also raised ''
N. macrophylla'' to species rank.
Cheek and his research are featured in the documentary ''The Mists of Mwanenguba''.
References
External links
The Mists of Mwanenguba
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheek, Martin
British taxonomists
English botanists
1960 births
Living people
Botanists active in Kew Gardens