August W. Eichler

August Wilhelm Eichler
A. W. Eichler
Born	22 April 1839(1839-04-22) Neukirchen,Hesse
Died	2 March 1887(1887-03-03)(aged 47) Berlin
Nationality	German
Scientific career
Fields	Botany,Plant taxonomy
Author abbrev. (botany)	Eichler

August Wilhelm Eichler,also known under hisLatinized name,Augustus Guilielmus Eichler(22 April 1839 – 2 March 1887), was a Germanbotanistwho developed a new system ofclassification of plantsto reflect the concept ofevolution. His author abbreviation in botany isEichler.

Biography

Born inNeukirchen,Hesse,Eichler studied at theUniversity of Marburg,Germany, and in 1871 became Professor ofBotanyatTechnische Hochschule(Technical University) ofGrazand director of the botanical garden in that city.^[1]In 1872 he received an appointment at theUniversity of Kiel,where he remained until 1878 when he became director of theherbariumat theUniversity of Berlin.He died inBerlinon March 2, 1887, ofleukaemia.

Eichler made important contributions to the study of the comparative structure offlowers(mainly onfloral symmetryin his workBlütendiagramme). He wrote extensively on theConiferae,Cycadaceaeand other plant groups of Brazil.^[2]

Eichler System

TheEichler Systemdivided theplant kingdominto non-floral plants (Cryptogamae) and floral plants (Phanerogamae). It was the first to accept the concept ofevolutionand therefore also the first to be consideredphylogenetic.^[3]Moreover, Eichler was the first taxonomist to separate the Phanerogamae intoAngiospermsandGymnospermsand the former intoMonocotyledonaeandDicotyledonae.^[4]

The Eichler system was the foundation forAdolf Engler's Systemand was widely accepted in Europe and other parts of the world.

Works

• Eichler, August W. (1875).Blüthendiagramme: construirt und erläutert. 2 vols[Floral diagrams]. Leipzig: W. Engelmann.Retrieved17 May2015.
  • Volume I: 1875
  • Volume II: 1878
• Syllabus der Vorlesungen über PhanerogamenkundeLipsius und Tischer, Kiel 1876.
  • Subsequent editions published asSyllabus der Vorlesungen über specielle und medicinisch-pharmaceutische Botanik,2nd ed. 1880, 3rd ed. 1883, 4th ed. 1886, 5th 1890
    • Eichler, August W. (1880) [1876].Syllabus der Vorlesungen über specielle und medicinisch-pharmaceutische Botanik(2nd ed.). Berlin: Borntraeger.
    • Eichler, August W. (1883) [1876].Syllabus der Vorlesungen über specielle und medicinisch-pharmaceutische Botanik(3rd ed.). Berlin: Borntraeger.
    • Eichler, August W. (1886) [1876].Syllabus der Vorlesungen über specielle und medicinisch-pharmaceutische Botanik(4th ed.). Berlin: Borntraeger.
    • Eichler, August W. (1890) [1876].Syllabus der Vorlesungen über specielle und medicinisch-pharmaceutische Botanik(5th ed.). Berlin: Borntraeger.
• Flora Brasiliensis(Flora ofBrazil) editor after death ofCarl Friedrich Philipp von Martiusin 1868 until 1887, succeeded byIgnatz Urban(Available online atBotanicus.org Website)
• Beiträge zur Morphologie und Systematik der Marantaceen(1884)
• Zur Entwickelungsgeschichte der Palmenblätter(1885)
• Caroli Frid. Phil. Martii Flora Brasiliensis, sive
• Flora Brasiliensis, enumeratio plantarum in Brasilia hactenus detectarum:quas suis aliorumque botanicorum studiis descriptas et methodo naturali digestas partim icone illustratas /ediderunt Carolus Fridericus Philippus de Martius et Augustus Guilielmus Eichler; iisque defunctis successor Ignatius Urban; with Martius, Karl Friedrich Philipp von, 1794-1868, Endlicher, István László, 1804-1849, Fenzl, Eduard, 1808-1879, Mary, Benj, Oldenburg, R.Urban and Ignaz, 1848-

See also

• List of plants of Caatinga vegetation of Brazil
• List of plants of Cerrado vegetation of Brazil

Notes

1. ^Aaron Goldberg (1986). "Classification, Evolution and Phylogeny of the Families of Dicotyledons".Smithsonian Contributions to Botany.58:1–314.
2. ^G. H. M. Lawrence (1951).Taxonomy of vascular plants.
3. ^Author Details: Eichler, August Wilhelm (1839-1887).International Plant Names Index.
4. ^Rines, George Edwin, ed. (1920)."Eichler, August Wilhelm".Encyclopedia Americana.

Bibliography

• August Wilhelm Eichler.Encyclopædia Britannica
• August Wilhelm Eichler. Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Vol. 23, No. 2 (May, 1887 - May, 1888), pp. 355-356Obituary
• History of Taxonomy: 1875-1926
• Annals of Botany 1887Biography and list of publications
• Stuessy, Tod F. (2009).Plant taxonomy: the systematic evaluation of comparative data(2nd ed.). New York: Columbia University Press.ISBN9780231518642.Retrieved5 May2015.

External links

• Flora Brasiliensis On-Line.In Portuguese and English (launch date 22 March 2006).
• View digitized titles by August Wilhelm Eichler inBotanicus.org