In Memoriam Jan-Frits Veldkamp (31 March 1941 – 12 November 2017)
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Blumea 63, 2018: 1–10 ISSN (Online) 2212-1676 www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nhn/blumea OBITUARY https://doi.org/10.3767/blumea.2018.63.01.01 In memoriam Jan-Frits Veldkamp (31 March 1941 – 12 November 2017) P. Baas1, P.H. Hovenkamp1 Published on 28 February 2018 © Helen Jones Photography. Jan-Frits Veldkamp passed away on 12 November 2017 in National Herbarium of the Netherlands, and Botany section hospital, in the course of a chemotherapy treatment compro- of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center. Initially he was to study mised by an infection. Up to his last weeks, even in hospital, seed structure of coastal plants, but soon Van Steenis rather he was actively working to solve taxonomic and nomenclatural bruskly gave him the task to contribute to the Flora Malesiana problems. (FM) effort as a grass taxonomist. In 1973 he defended his PhD Jan Frederik (Jan-Frits, but mostly JF or JeF for friends) thesis on A revision of Digitaria Haller (Gramineae) in Malesia. Veldkamp was born in Amsterdam but spent part of his ele- This was preceded by the treatment of Oxalidaceae for FM in mentary school years in Indonesia. Following his high school 1972. By his own count, JeF would publish c. 370 papers (and (Gymnasium-β) in the Netherlands he studied biology and counting), of which c. 220 are taxonomic and systematic contri- chemistry for a year at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota butions, major and minor, mostly on grasses, but a fair number on a Fulbright grant. From 1961–1967 he studied biology at also on representatives of 27 other flowering plant families, Leiden University, where he was destined to embark on a career most notably Melastomataceae, Asteraceae, Zingiberaceae, as a Drosophila geneticist, when in 1965 he was ‘snatched’ Oxalidaceae and Rafflesiaceae. In addition, he submitted 14 by Professor C.G.G.J. van Steenis from the Genetics Lab to nomenclatural proposals and wrote at least 80 reviews, mostly become a demonstrator at the Rijksherbarium. For his MSc for Flora Malesiana Bulletin. He was the author of 431 names, projects he studied adaptations to sea dispersal in diaspores mostly new combinations resulting from his great interest and of coastal plants, taxonomy of Sarcotheca and Dapania (Ox- expertise on nomenclatural matters, but also including over 115 alidaceae), the effects of temperature on certain attributes of new taxa (genera, species, subspecies and varieties), testifying Drosophila melanogaster, and chemotaxonomy of Callitriche to his talents as a keen observer and taxonomist. He maintained (Plantaginaceae). In 1967 he joined the Rijksherbarium staff an annotated bibliography of his own publications, meticulously as a scientific officer, never to leave that institution throughout cross-referenced to his files, including not only major but also its metamorphoses as Rijksherbarium /Hortus Botanicus, very minor, sometimes highly personal contributions. As this gives an excellent insight in the scrupulous way he worked 1 Naturalis Biodiversity Center, section Botany, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands; and kept track of everything, we include this bibliography with corresponding author e-mail: [email protected] only very light editing. © 2018 Naturalis Biodiversity Center You are free to share - to copy, distribute and transmit the work, under the following conditions: Attribution: You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). Non-commercial: You may not use this work for commercial purposes. No derivative works: You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work. For any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of this work, which can be found at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/legalcode. Any of the above conditions can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder. Nothing in this license impairs or restricts the author’s moral rights. 2 Blumea – Volume 63 / 1, 2018 Throughout his career JeF was an inspiring teacher who taught contribution on the grasses for the Flora of Singapore. During the course of plant taxonomy for almost 40 years, and also took his travels, he was a prolific and consummate letter-writer, and a leading part in the international taxonomy courses under the kept a circle of friends and colleagues informed and amused auspices of UNICEF and MAB in Bogor in the 1980s. In the with accounts of his exploits on an almost daily basis. process he enthused numerous biology students to pursue As a person JeF was a very kind and helpful colleague, although taxonomic projects during their MSc programme or to aspire he sometimes tried to mask that behind a grumpy façade, not to a career in plant taxonomy. He also (co-)supervised numer- unlike that of his great example Professor Van Steenis. Like ous PhD students. He flavoured his lectures with numerous Van Steenis, he loved to tell botanical stories in monologue form anecdotes, of which he had a great number in stock as a keen during tea and coffee breaks, but his sense of humour prevented biohistorian. And many of his students and colleagues will re- him from taking himself too seriously. He was a driving force member the meticulous care with which he tracked and checked behind the addiction of some card players on the Leiden staff references. “Never believe something just because it is written to combine lunch with a good game of bridge (including Van somewhere, not even if you wrote it yourself” was his motto. Steenis, who was his bridge partner until his death in 1986). His knowledge of the botanical literature and biography was JeF is survived by three daughters and three granddaughters. phenomenal and he knew his way in our library and archives We will miss his friendship and expertise. The FM community better than anyone else. loses another prominent member. JeF was a prominent personality in our institute and in the inter- A full bibliography and eponymy is appended. national FM family. As a good classical taxonomist, in excellent command of botanical Latin and botanical nomenclature he generously helped many colleagues at home and abroad to Eponymy solve nomenclatural puzzles or to obtain literature important for Genus their studies. His dedication to the cause of FM was most visible during the years that he was the Editor of the Flora Malesiana Veldkampia Ibaragi & Shiro Kobay., J. Jap. Bot. 83 (2008) 108, Bulletin, between 1984 and 2008. He solved a chronic problem t. 1–6. Gramineae of shortage of news copy from the international FM Network in the Malesian region by filling literally hundreds of pages himself Species with very comprehensive bibliographical updates, book reviews, Artabotrys veldkampii I.M.Turner, Folia Malaysiana 10 (2009) obituaries, points of view, and even short taxonomic papers. The 73, illus. Annonaceae service he thereby provided to isolated colleagues all over the Biophytum veldkampii A.E.S.Khan, E.S.S.Kumar, S.Binu & world, in the times before large-scale internet availability and Pushp., Rheedea 8 (1998) 79, t. 1. Oxalidaceae social media, cannot be overestimated. He was really angry Bulbophyllum veldkampii J.J.Verm. & P.O’Byrne, Bulbophyllum and frustrated about the decision of the FM Board in 2007 to Sulawesi (2011) 51, t. *.Orchidaceae abandon the hard-copy publication of the Bulletin, with as a foreseeable consequence its total demise. But, stubbornly, he Digitaria veldkampiana B.K.Simon, Austrobaileya 8 (2010) continued to compile the bibliographies, to the last weeks of 198. Gramineae his life attending monthly to the newly received journals in our Dimeria veldkampii Kiran Raj & Sivad., Novon 18 (2008) 183. library, and venting his frustration about the increasing numbers Gramineae of e-subscriptions, which he could not leaf through. Glyphochloa veldkampii M.A.Fonseca & Janarth., Rheedea 13 Unfortunately his magnum opus, a family treatment of the (2004 ‘2003’) 35–38, illus. Gramineae grasses for FM, was never finished. This had much to do with Isachne veldkampii K.G.Bhat & Nagendran, Curr. Sci. 52 (1983) the fact that he was easily distracted by the numerous requests 111, t. 1–4. Gramineae for help to solve nomenclatural and other taxonomic puzzles. Ischaemum veldkampii Lasut, Reinwardtia 12 (2006) 257, t. 1. JeF was a keen field botanist. In Malesia he took part in ex- Gramineae peditions to the mountain ranges of Papua New Guinea (Mt Mnesithea veldkampii Potdar, S.P.Gaikwad, Salunkhe & Suckling 1972; Star Mts 1975; Mt Kegum-Mt Burgers 1977; S.R.Yadav, Kew Bull. 59 (2005 ‘2004’) 629, illus. Gramineae Mt Kerawa 1981 and Mt Fala-Mt Yule-Mt Otto 1989) and East Papuacalia veldkampii D.J.N.Hind, Kew Bull. 57 (2002) 693, Kalimantan (Gunung Raya 1982/83), but he collected in many illus. Compositae other localities in Malesia or on other continents during short trips or holidays. He contributed altogether about 4 500 acces- Rubus agricastrorum A.Beek, Gorteria 38 (2016) 225. sions to the L herbarium. He loved the Malesian region, its flora Rosaceae and its people, and he went there many times. Only last year Sonerila veldkampiana Ratheesh, Mini & Sivad., Phytotaxa 110 (2017) he visited the Singapore Herbarium twice to complete his (2013) 55–60. Melastomataceae P. Baas & P.H. Hovenkamp: In memoriam Jan-Frits Veldkamp 3 BIBLIOGRAPHY A more or less scientific bibliography of and by J.F. Veldkamp [ The bibliography below was compiled and kept up to date by contract with a publisher. After the handing over of his transla- JeF Veldkamp himself. He also wrote the explanatory introduc- tion to us, which had to be rewritten completely for reasons of tion, dated 3 July 2010. style and structure, only the chapter on eponymy remained his We have edited the bibliography only very lightly, where neces- sole contribution.