Trento
Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th centu ...
, 22 August 1920 – Monzuno, 30 March 1982) was an Italian
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 ...
. He introduced the study of
phytosociology
Phytosociology, also known as phytocoenology or simply plant sociology, is the study of groups of species of plant that are usually found together. Phytosociology aims to empirically describe the vegetative environment of a given territory. A speci ...
to Italy.
Biography
Tomaselli was born in
Trento
Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th centu ...
on 22 August 1920. In 1943 he graduated from the
University of Pavia
The University of Pavia ( it, Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; la, Alma Ticinensis Universitas) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it one ...
in
Natural Sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
and began his university career as an assistant to the chair of
Geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
; in 1947 he was appointed assistant of the chair of Botany held 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 1946 he specialized in plant
cytology
Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living an ...
at
Sorbonne University
Sorbonne University (french: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: 'the Sorbonne') is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sorbon ...
and in 1948 he began working at the , under the direction of
Josias Braun-Blanquet
Josias Braun-Blanquet (3 August 1884 – 20 September 1980) was an influential phytosociologist and botanist. Braun-Blanquet was born in Chur, Switzerland and died in Montpellier, France. Biography
Work
In Josias Braun-Blanquet's dissertation, s ...
, dedicating himself to the study of phytosociology.
After winning a scholarship at the
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...
, where in 1952 he worked with the geographer
A. W. Kuchler August William Kuchler (born ''August Wilhelm Küchler''; 1907–1999) was a German-born American geographer and naturalist who is noted for developing a plant association system in widespread use in the United States. Some of this database has bec ...
, he returned to
Pavia
Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...
and began to study the
phytogeography
Phytogeography (from Greek φυτόν, ''phytón'' = "plant" and γεωγραφία, ''geographía'' = "geography" meaning also distribution) or botanical geography is the branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution ...
of
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
vegetation. From 1959 to 1964 he was
prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
of the
Botanical Garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
of the
University of Catania
The University of Catania ( it, Università degli Studi di Catania) is a university located in Catania, Sicily. Founded in 1434, it is the oldest university in Sicily, the 13th oldest in Italy, and the 29th oldest university in the world. With a ...
; from 1964 to 1982 he was director of the Institute and the Botanical Garden of Pavia.
Ruggero Tomaselli is credited with having introduced the studies of
phytosociology
Phytosociology, also known as phytocoenology or simply plant sociology, is the study of groups of species of plant that are usually found together. Phytosociology aims to empirically describe the vegetative environment of a given territory. A speci ...
in Italy with his work ''Introduction to the Study of Phytosociology'', published in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
in 1956. His research has influenced for years the activity of the Institute of Botany of the University of Pavia in the geobotanical and cartographic field: in Pavia he published the first map of the potential natural vegetation of Italy which, together with other notable studies in the phytosociological field, among which he won the presidency of the "Group of experts for the cartography of European vegetation of the Council of Europe". His research in the ecological and vegetational field was utilised in the creation of the bioclimatic map of Italy.
In 1988, the Institute of Botany of the University of Pavia formally purchased his substantial book and cartographic collection (223 containers containing miscellaneous publications, 420 volumes and about 280 phytogeographic papers with frequent original notes by the author) of various topics (phytogeography, cartography, ecology, plant physiology, etc.).
Tomaselli also did some taxonomical work in the area of
lichenology
Lichenology is the branch of mycology that studies the lichens, symbiotic organisms made up of an intimate symbiotic association of a microscopic alga (or a cyanobacterium) with a filamentous fungus.
Study of lichens draws knowledge from several ...
. Italian lichenologist Pier Luigi Nimis described him as a "versatile botanist", but without having left any significant contributions to the field. Together with Raffaele Ciferri, Tomaselli published 215 alternative names for the fungal component (the
mycobiont
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.nomenclatural rules.
Tomaselli died prematurely on 30 March 1982 in a road accident while returning from a work trip together with his colleagues Sebastiano Filipello and Mario Sacchi. As part of the XVII International Ethnobotany Symposium in
Antigua
Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
, Tomaselli was posthumously awarded the Scientific Award for 2019.
Bromeliaceae
The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot
Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, (Lilianae ''sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are grass and grass-like flowering plants (angiosperms), the seeds of which typically contain o ...
), and ''
Dioon tomasellii
''Dioon tomasellii'' is a species of cycad in the family Zamiaceae. It is endemic to Mexico, where it occurs in the states of Durango, Guerrero, Jalisco, Michoacán, and Nayarit
Nayarit (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nayari ...
'' (
Zamiaceae
The Zamiaceae are a family of cycads that are superficially palm or fern-like. They are divided into two subfamilies with eight genera and about 150 species in the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Australia and North and South America. ...
).
Selected works
*Ciferri, R.; Tomaselli, R. (1952). Saggio di una sistematica micolichenologica. Atti Ist. Bot. Pavia serie 5, 10: 25–84
*Ciferri, R.; Tomaselli, R. (1953). Tentative mycolichenes classification. Atti dell'Istituto Botanico della Università e Laboratorio Crittogamico di Pavia, serie 5, 10 (1): 25–84
*
*Ciferri, R.; Tomaselli, R. (1955). Sulla Nomenclatura del fungo simbionte dei licheni. Nuovo Giornale Botanico Italiano, N.S. 62 (3–4): 501–504
*Tomaselli, R.; Ciferri, R. (1954). Scissioni di generi di licheni sulla base delle caratteristiche del fungo. Atti Ist. Bot. Univ. Pavia, serie 5, 12 (1): 30–69
*Ciferri, R.; Tomaselli, R. (1957). Prospetto di una sistematica micolichenologica. Atti Ist. Bot. Univ. Pavia, serie 5, 14 (1-3): 247–262
*Tomaselli, R. (1950). Appunti sulla Sistematica e distribuzione geografica dei basidiolicheni. Archivio Botanico per la Sistematica, Fitogeografia e Genetica 26: 100–116
*
*Tomaselli, R. (1957). Modalitá di crescita di vari ceppi Italiani di Xanthoriomyces (fungo lichenizzante). Atti Dell Istituto Botanico dell'Università di Pavia, serie 5, 12 (3–4): 320–359
*Tomaselli, R. (1962). Considerazioni sulla posizione sistemica degli ascomiceti simbionti nei licheni. Atti. Accad. Gioenia, serie 6, 14: 168–199
*Tomaselli, R. (1964). Raffaele Ciferri (1897–1964). Atti Ist. Bot. Univ. Lab. Crittogam. Pavia, serie 5, Supl. 21: 55 pp.