Ursula Katherine Duncan
Ursula Katherine Duncan | |
---|---|
Died | 27 January 1985 |
Scientific career | |
Fields | botany |
Ursula Katherine Duncan (17 September 1910 – 27 January 1985) was a botanist with a special interest in mosses and lichens, and a lifelong love and knowledge of flowers. She was entirely self-educated in botany, and corresponded with numerous professional and amateur colleagues, who contributed to her scientific development. She published on
Early life and family
She was born on 17 September 1910 in
During the Second World War Duncan worked in Inverness for the Censorship Department, until her family changed suddenly in August 1943. Less than a week after her sister married and moved away, her father died. She took on overall managerial responsibility for the extensive family landholding she inherited, which included 600 acres of farmland. This generated an income which allowed her to pursue her interests.[2]
Botany
Mosses
In 1931 she joined the
Her correspondence with other
Her obituarist in the Journal of Bryology, Dr. E.V. Watson, thought the following were her most important writings on the subject.[3]
- 1956 A bryophyte flora of Wigtownshire. Trans. Br. bryol. Soc. 3, 50-63.
- 1960 A survey of the bryophytes and lichens of 'The Burn', Kincardine, Trans. Proc. bot. Soc. Edinb. 39, 62-84.
- 1962 Illustrated Key to Sphagnum mosses. Trans. Proc. bot. Soc. Edinb. 39, 290-301.
- 1962 The bryophytes and lichens of the Loch Tay area. Rep. Scott. Fld. Stud. Ass. 1962, 20-31.
- 1966 The bryophytes of the Kindrogan area. Rep. Scott. Fld. Stud. Ass., 1966, 10-16.
- 1966 The bryophyte flora of Angus. Trans. Br. bryol. Soc. 5, 1-82.
Lichens
Duncan took up lichenology after being introduced to the subject by Walter Watson and R.H. Burn. Lichenology was not thriving in the UK of the 1940s and '50s. She played an important role in reawakening interest in lichens, through her courses at the Kindrogan field centre, her contributions at British Lichen Society field meetings and books about lichen identification.[1] She was a founder member of the British Lichen Society and contributed many of the Scottish records in W. Watson's Census Catalogue of British Lichens (1953).[1] She wrote the following books:
- 1959 A Guide to the Study of Lichens, Arbroath: T. Buncle & Co.
- 1963 Lichen Illustrations. Supplement, etc., Arbroath: T. Buncle & Co.
- 1970 Introduction to British lichens, with P. W. James, Arbroath: T. Buncle & Co.
Flowers and other vascular plants
Some friends claimed Duncan loved flowers above all other plants,[3] and she enjoyed gardening at Parkhill.[1] She had a special interest in the floras of her home county of Angus and also of East Ross-shire and Mull. Her work in Mull helped initiate a British Museum project on the flora of Mull.[1]
- 1980 Flora of East Ross-Shire, [Edinburgh] : Botanical Society of Edinburgh
Legacy
When she did field work with others, she encouraged beginners and shared her knowledge and enthusiasm with them as she did with experienced naturalists too. Her obituaries describe her walking vigorously over hilly ground in wild countryside seeking out interesting specimens: "tireless tramping".[1] Outdoor work, teaching and writing were among Duncan's great strengths. She refused opportunities to join formal committees, and when she was given her doctorate she never used the title Dr.[2] She was a Fellow of the Linnaean Society (FLS) as well as being honoured with their H. H. Bloomer award in 1973.
The British Lichen Society introduced the Ursula Duncan Award in her memory in 2002. It is given to those who have made outstanding service to the society.[5]
Shortly before her death at Arbroath on 27 January 1985 her sizeable collection of vascular plants with taxonomic significance was given to the
collection including important lichen records and other material.Parents
Her mother was born Beatrice Dorothy Percy Weston. Her father had a successful naval career as a senior officer. In the year Ursula Duncan was born he started a War Office job in London,[7] from which he retired in 1919. For much of his daughter's life he was a locally prominent landowner with a specialist interest in breeding Suffolk sheep.[8] Frances Louise was Mrs. Frances Gunner at the time of her sister's death.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Obituary by Peter Wilfred James in the Lichenologist October 1986, 18:4, pp383-385
- ^ a b eds. Elizabeth L. Ewan, Sue Innes, Sian Reynolds, Rose Pipes, The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women, Edinburgh University Press, 8 Mar 2006, p107
- ^ a b c d e Obituary by Eric Vernon Watson, Journal of Bryology, 1985, 13:4, pp 595-597
- ^ BBS field meeting notes, 21 August 1996
- ^ "BLS Officers". British Lichen Society. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ See 'McManus Botany spreadsheet'
- ^ John Alexander Duncan, naval officer
- ^ The Flock Book of Suffolk Sheep, Volume 63, page X
Additional sources
Note
She wrote as Ursula K. Duncan. Sometimes her name is given as Ursula Katharine Duncan.