Robert Francis Ross McNabb (11 December 1934 – 14 December 1972) was a New Zealand

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 ...

. He was born in Kawakawa, and attended local schools in his youth, including Whangarei Boys' High School and

Southland Boys' High School Southland Boys' High School (SBHS) is an all-boys school in Invercargill, New Zealand, and has been the only one in the city since Marist Brothers was merged with St Catherines to form Verdon College in 1982. History SBHS was founded in 1881 and ...

. He received a

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degree from the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

in 1956, and two years later an

MSc MSC may refer to: Computers * Message Sequence Chart * Microelectronics Support Centre of UK Rutherford Appleton Laboratory * MIDI Show Control * MSC Malaysia (formerly known as Multimedia Super Corridor) * USB mass storage device class (USB MSC ...

for his work on

mycorrhiza A mycorrhiza (from Greek μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. mycorrhizae, mycorrhiza or mycorrhizas) is a symbiotic association between a fungus and a plant. The term mycorrhiza refers to the role of the fungus in the plant ...

e morphology in native New Zealand plants. In 1961, having been awarded a National

Research Fellowship A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a pr ...

the year before, McNabb left New Zealand for the UK to study with

Cecil Terence Ingold Cecil Terence Ingold CMG (5 July 1905 – 31 May 2010) was "one of the most influential mycologists of the twentieth century". He was president of the British Mycological Society where he organised the first international congress of mycologis ...

Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a public university, public research university, located in Bloomsbury, London, England, and a constituent college, member institution of the federal Universit ...

. McNabb earned a

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

in 1963; his thesis was titled "Taxonomic studies in the Dacrymycetaceae". He was jointly awarded the Hamilton Memorial Prize in 1966 from

The Royal Society of New Zealand ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, the same year he was appointed to the editorial board of the ''

New Zealand Journal of Botany New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

''. Most of McNabb's later publications, largely published in this journal, were about fungal

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

. Fungus species named in honor of McNabb include ''Paxillus mcnabbii'' (now '' Austropaxillus mcnabbii''), and '' Entoloma mcnabbianum''.

Selected publications

*McNabb, R.F.R. (1962). "Additions to the rust fungi of New Zealand. III". ''Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand Bot.'' 1 (8): 109–116. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1962). "The graminicolous rust fungi of New Zealand". ''Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand Bot.'' 1 (19): 235–257. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1962). "The genus ''Exobasidium'' in New Zealand". ''Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand Bot.'' 1 (20): 259–268. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1964). "New Zealand Tremellales. 1". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 2 (4): 403–414. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1964). "Taxonomic studies in the Dacrymycetaceae. I. ''Cerinomyces''". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 2 (4): 415–424. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965). "Taxonomic studies in the Dacrymycetaceae. II. ''Calocera'' (Fries) Fries". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 3 (1): 31–58. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965). "Taxonomic studies in the Dacrymycetaceae. III. ''Dacryopinax'' Martin". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 3 (1): 59–72. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965). "Taxonomic studies in the Dacrymycetaceae. IV. ''Guepiniopsis'' Patouillard" ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 3 (2): 159–167. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965). "Taxonomic studies on the Dacrymycetaceae. V. ''Heterotextus'' Lloyd". New Zealand Journal of Botany 3 (3): 215–222. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965). "Taxonomic studies on the Dacrymycetaceae. VI. ''Femsjonia'' Fries". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 3 (3): 223–228. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1965)
"Some auriculariaceous fungi from the British Isles".
''Transactions of the British Mycological Society'' 48 (2): 187–192. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1968). "The boletaceae of New Zealand". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 6 (2): 137–176. *McNabb, R.F.R. (1973). "Taxonomic studies in the Dracymycetaceae. VIII. ''Dacrymyces'' Nees ex Fries". ''New Zealand Journal of Botany'' 11 (3): 461–524.

References

1934 births 1972 deaths New Zealand mycologists University of Otago alumni Alumni of Birkbeck, University of London 20th-century New Zealand botanists People educated at Whangarei Boys' High School People from Kawakawa, New Zealand University of Canterbury faculty {{mycologist-stub