William Louis Culberson

William Louis Culberson
William Louis Culberson
Born	April 5, 1929; Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
Died	February 8, 2003 (aged 73); Durham, North Carolina, United States
Alma mater	University of Cincinnati, University of Paris, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Spouse	Chicita F. Forman (m. 1953)
Awards	Acharius Medal (1992)
	Scientific career
Fields	Lichenology
Institutions	Duke University
Doctoral advisor	John Walter Thomson

William Louis "Bill" Culberson (April 5, 1929 in Indianapolis, Indiana – February 8, 2003 in Durham, North Carolina) was an American lichenologist.

Professional history

Culberson earned his bachelor's degree at the University of Cincinnati, where he was influenced by E. Lucy Braun;^[1] he subsequently attended the University of Paris and the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

In 1955, Culberson joined the botany department at Duke University; he subsequently managed Duke's acquisition of the lichen-centric herbaria of Julien Harmand and Johan Havaas. He served as the Hugo L. Blomquist Professor.^[2] In 2010, the lichen collection was officially named the William Louis & Chicita F. Culberson Lichen Herbarium & Library.

He served as president of the Botanical Society of America and the American Bryological and Lichenological Society^[3] and as director of the Sarah P. Duke Gardens.^[4] He was the first editor-in-chief of the journal Systematic Botany.^[5] In 1992, he became one of the first modern recipients of the Acharius Medal.^[6]

In 2000, botanist Theodore Esslinger circumscribed Culbersonia, which is a fungal genus in the family Caliciaceae and named in Bill Culberson and Chicita F. Culberson's honour, his "longtime friends and mentors".^[7]^[8]

Personal life

In 1953,^[9] Dr. Culberson married fellow lichenologist Chicita F. Forman.

The standard author abbreviation W.L.Culb. is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.^[10]

References

^ WILLIAM LOUIS CULBERSON (1929-2003) in BOTANICAL ELECTRONIC NEWS (archived at the University of Oklahoma); by Lewis E. Anderson; published February 26, 2003
^ Yoon, Carol Kaesuk (June 13, 1995). "Pariahs of the Fungal World, Lichens Finally Get Some Respect". The New York Times.
^ Elix, John A.; Nash III, Thomas H. (2003). "A tribute to William Louis Culberson". The Lichenologist. 35 (2): 93–95. doi:10.1016/S0024-2829(03)00025-2. S2CID 86322587.
^ Obituary: Dr. William Louis Culberson (1929 - 2003); by Isao Yoshimura; in the Newsletter of the Japanese Society for Lichenology, no. 21 (page 72 - English version); retrieved October 22, 2013
^ PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN: A Publication of the Botanical Society of America, December 1975 Vol. 21 No. 4; archived at Botany.org
^ Acharius Medallists at Lichenology.org; retrieved October 22, 2013
^ Esslinger, Theodore L. (2000). "Culbersonia americana, a rare new lichen (Ascomycota) from Western America". The Bryologist. 103 (4): 771–773. doi:10.1639/0007-2745(2000)103[0771:CAARNL]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 86045065.
^ Burkhardt, Lotte (2022). Eine Enzyklopädie zu eponymischen Pflanzennamen [Encyclopedia of eponymic plant names] (pdf) (in German). Berlin: Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin. doi:10.3372/epolist2022. ISBN 978-3-946292-41-8. S2CID 246307410. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
^ Acharius Medallists: William Louis Culberson at Lichenology.org; retrieved October 22, 2013
^ International Plant Names Index. W.L.Culb.