Billie June McCaskill
Billie June McCaskill | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 2, 1930 Altadena, California, United States |
| Died | May 9, 2001 (aged 70) California, United States |
| Resting place | San Gabriel Cemetery, California, United States.[1] |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Botany. |
Billie June McCaskill,[2] better known as June McCaskill (June 2, 1930 – May 9, 2001), was an American herbarium curator at the University of California, Davis and expert in weed identification.[3][4]
Life
[edit]McCaskill was born in Altadena, in California.[3] She grew up in Pasadena where her parents, Vern and Billie operated a nursery called McCaskill Gardens.[5]
She attended Mills College in 1949, and graduated with a degree in botany in 1951.[3][5] She started her career at University of California, Davis in 1953, becoming the first curator of the Botany Department's Herbarium, a position that she held until her retirement.[6] McCaskill specialised in the identification of weeds, and was particularly focused on agricultural weeds that were toxic to livestock.[5] Her botanical skills were also used to investigate multiple homicides.[6][5][7] She retired in 1991.
Published major work
[edit]- Bill B. Fischer, Arthur H. Lange, June McCaskill, Beecher Crampton, and Betsey Tabraham, Growers Weed Identification Handbook (University of California), multiple editions.
- John M. Tucker, and June McCaskill. "Heteranthera Limosa in California." Madroño, vol. 19, no. 2, 1967, pp. 64–64.
Legacy
[edit]The June McCaskill Plant Identification Laboratory of the University of California, Davis's Center for Plant Diversity herbaria opened in 2005.[8] It was named in her honour.[6][9]
The following cultivar was named in her honour by her father:
Botanical collections
[edit]Her collections of Californian weeds are held in various North American herbaria, including the University of California, Davis Herbarium, and the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada National Collection of Vascular Plants.[2] In Australasia, her specimens are held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum Herbarium, the Allan Herbarium, and the National Herbarium of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ Pasadena-Star News (2011–2020). "Bettylee M. Sample: Obituary". Pasadena-Star News. Pasadena-Star News. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
- ^ a b Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries. "McCaskill, Billie June". Index of Botanists. Harvard University. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
- ^ a b c d Tucker, J.M. (2004). "June McCaskill (1930–2001)" (PDF). Fremontia. 32 (2): 19–23.
- ^ IET WebDev (2001). "June Mccaskill, UC Davis Weed Identity Expert, Dies". University of California, Davis. University of California, Davis. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
- ^ a b c d Lage, Ann (1989). June McCaskill: Herbarium scientist, University of California, Davis. Davis, California: Regional Oral History Office. p. 85.
- ^ a b c The Center for Plant Diversity (2011–2020). "Collections History". University of California, Davis. University of California, Davis. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
- ^ Lapin, Lisa (2003). "The Value of Flattened Flora". UC Davis Magazine Online. 20 (4).
- ^ Dean, E. (2005). "Center for Plant Diversity Opens its Doors". Lasthenia. 25: 1.
- ^ Dean, Ellen A. (2004). "On the Threshold of a Room of Her Own" (PDF). Fremontia. 32 (2): 22.
- ^ King, Bradford (2004). "Remembering Our Past: Vernon McCaskill 'High Wide'n Handsome' as a camellia hybridizer". The Camellia Journal. 69 (3): 12–14.
- ^ "The Australasian Virtual Herbarium". The Australasian Virtual Herbarium. Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria (CHAH). 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2021.