|
|
|
Roger Riordan became interested in native plants when he was a small boy living in the Dandenongs, and in 1944 he met former
Assistant Government Botanist, Dr J. H. Willis, at the National Herbarium of Victoria (which is part of
the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne). He and Jim remained friends until Jim died in 1995. In 1996, at Roger's suggestion, and
in consultation with the Willis family, the Herbarium established the Jim Willis Fellowship. The Fellowship
was funded partly by Cybec, and partly by public appeal.
The Jim Willis Fellowship has been very successful, and in 2003 the Foundation agreed to fund a PhD Scholarship at the
Herbarium. This enables one student at a time to study for a PhD, based on research into Systematic Botany carried out at the
Herbarium.
This scholarship was renamed the Jim Ross Scholarship in 2006.
|
The late Sally Riordan, Roger Riordan, Fleur Anderson (1999) and the late Mavis Willis, widow of Dr Jim Willis
|
|
  
|
|
| |
1997 |
Christina Flann Christina has completed her PhD on Systematics of Euchiton (Asteraceae) at the School of Botany, the University of Melbourne, and is now living in the Netherlands. Christina is currently working as an Editor on the Global Compositae Checklist, reconciling nomenclature from around the world for this family of approximately 25 000 species.
|
| |
1998
|
Marcus Payne
|
| |
1999
|
Fleur Anderson Fleur was the Collections Coordinator at the National Herbarium of Victoria, but is currently looking
after her family.
|
| |
2000
|
Katy Somerville: Katie is now Manager, Collections at the National Herbarium of Victoria.
|
| |
2001
|
Deanne Thompson Deanne is now a Research Assistant in the Centre for Neuroscience at the University of Melbourne. |
| |
|
Jenny Tonkin Jenny is currently writing up her PhD thesis Systematic studies of the Russulales at the Institute of Food and Land Resources, the University of Melbourne.
|
|
 Christina Flann 1997
(Photo 2006)
|
|
|
|
|
| |
2002 |
Ryan Garrick Ryan has completed a PhD on Comparative phylogeography of log-dwelling invertebrates (Collembola & Symphyla) at the Genetics Department, La Trobe University.
In 2007 he commenced a two-year postdoctoral study in Virginia investigating the co-evolution and interaction of a species of Euphorbiaceae and a bark beetle parasite in the Sonoran desert in Arizona. |
| |
|
Lindy Orthia Lindy is studying for a PhD on Radiation of the Australian arid zone flora: a test case using the saltbush family (Chenopodiaceae) at the School of Botany and Zoology, Australian National University, Canberra.
|
| |
2003
|
Zoe Smith Zoe is studying for a PhD on The use of mycorrhizal fungi and genetic analysis in the reintroduction of the rare terrestial orchid Diuris fragrantissima (Sunshine Diuris) at the Institute of Food and Land Resources, the University of Melbourne.
|
|
Mavis Willis, Jenny Tonkin & Deanne Thompson
(2001)
|
|
|
|
|
| |
2004 |
Kristin Sicha Kristin recently completed a contract as a research assistant working on An interactive key to genera of fungi at the National Herbarium of Victoria.
|
| |
2005
|
Claire Rawlinson Claire has started an Honours Degree at Victoria University of technology, St Albans, studying the ecology of a butterfly from the Grampians.
|
| |
|
Nina Sawtell Nina is currently completing an undergraduate degree at the University of Melbourne, majoring in Botany and Geography.
The paper describing the work she undertook during the Willis Fellowship was accepted for publication in the Australian Journal of botany in 2007. |
|
Kristin Sicha (JHW), Gareth Holmes (JR) & Pat Riordan
(2004)
|
|
|
|
|
| |
2006 |
Fiona Bowie
|
| |
|
Helen Jolley
During her fellowship, Helen Jolly worked on the differences between the mosses Breutelia pendula and B. elongata, under the supervision of Dr Neils Klazenga. A paper describing her work was published in Australian Systematic Botany on February 26, 2007. |
| |
2007
|
Lily van Eeden Lily is studying the distribution of Australian fungi, using information from the Herbarium collections.
|
|
Helen Jolley & Fiona Bowie
J H Willis 2006 |
Lily van Eeden
J H Willis 2007
|
|
|
|
|
| |
2008 |
Charlotte Hurry is trying to determine the number of species of spinifex grass in Victoria
Triodia is the iconic spinifex grass of the Australian arid zone. This project will use both gene sequences and morphological characters in an attempt to differentiate between the two Victorian species - T. scariosa and T. bunicola.
Backgrounds and interests:
My travels around South East Asia gave me a new appreciation for the natural world. When I moved from England to Australia five years ago, I decided to study biology with the main focus on conservation. Currently a third year at Monash University, I will start an honours in June 2008, which will focus on the movement of the common reed (Phragmites australis) in the increasingly saline Gippsland Lakes region. My hope is that this honours year will lead onto a PhD.
|
| |
|
Lauran Pearce writes " I have almost completed my undergraduate Science degree, deciding to major in Plant Sciences after developing a fascination for plants and how they interact with their environment.
I am looking forward to beginning an honours year researching the relationship between resource conservation and resource acquisition in plants. During the Willis fellowship and under the supervision of Dr. Tom May, I have been studying species delimitation of the Banksiamyces, an Australian fungi which grows only on Banksia cones, using both morphological and molecular characters."
|
|
Lauran Pearce & Charlotte Hurry
J H Willis 2008 |
|
|
|
|
|
Jim Ross PhD Scholarship
This scholarship was introduced as a Cybec scholarship in 2004. In 2006 it was renamed the Jim Ross Scholarship in honour of former Chief Botanist Jim Ross, who retired at the end of 2005.
|
|
2004- |
Gareth Holmes Gareth is studying the taxonomy of the Victorian holly-leafed Grevilleas.
|
| |
|
|
For more Information about the Gardens |
|
