Introduction

The Encyclopedia of Australian Science and The Study of Australian Eucalypts

The Encyclopedia of Australian Science is a publicly available online register of the people, organisations and industries involved in Australia's scientific, technological, engineering and medical heritage. It includes references to associated publications, archival, heritage and specimen collections, and digital resources. The linked entries in the Encyclopedia form a network of relationships providing a context for understanding the background and events of the history of Australian science. The network also provides a multi-faceted and often surprising means of discovery for new researchers.

The eucalypts

The history and study of the eucalypts opens a world of scientific endeavour and intrigue that dates from the earliest European explorers. The term 'eucalypts' was associated originally with a large group of trees that shared common visible characteristics. Since that time scientific study has involved discovery, identification, classification and reclassification. At various times there were differing opinions among groups of scientists as to the most appropriate classifications. Ladiges et al.(2003) [1] defined the eucalypts as a group with seven genera.[2]

The three larger groups are:

• Eucalyptus L'Her.[3] (660 species in Australia and some in Indonesia, the Phillipines, Timor and New Guinea),
• Corymbia Hill & Johnson (around 90 species from northern Australia to New Guinea), and
• Angophora Cav.[4] (nine species in eastern Australia)

The four smaller ones, of which three are montypic genera, are:

• Arillastrum Pancher & Baill.[5] (one type in New Caledonia)
• Allosyncarpia S.T.Blake (one type from northern Australia)
• Stockwellia D.J.Carr, S.G.M.Carr & B.Hyland (montype from Atherton Tablelands, north Queensland) and
• Eucalyptosis C.T.White (two species from New Guinea and the Moluccan Archipelago).

The web exhibition

The Study of Australian Eucalypts web exhibition draws on existing entries from the Encyclopedia of Australian Science that were identified as being related to the history and newer developments in the botanical sciences related to Australian eucalypts. A further aim of the project was to identify gaps, update existing entries and add new entries.

Project stages

The Bjarne K Dahl Trust provided funds for this two-stage project.
In the first stage, earlier entries connected with eucalypts in the Encyclopedia of Australian Science were identified, and other resources consulted to add to a comprehensive collection of people, organisations, publications and collections related to eucalypts.
In the second stage, eucalypt specialists were consulted and additional entries for people, organisations, publications and collections were added and existing entries updated to remedy some key gaps.

Whilst recognising that further work could be undertaken to add to this knowledge base, it is hoped that the The Study of Australian Eucalypts provide a valuable resource to the research community and people passionate about the Australian eucalypts.

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[1] Ladiges, P.Y., Udovicic, F. and Nelson, G.(2003) Australian biogeographical connections and the phylogeny of large genera in the plant family Myrtaceae.Journal of Biogeography 30(7): 989-998)
[2] A genus (plural: genera) is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. A genus of the eucalypt group is, for example, Eucalyptus. For more information on scientific plant names, see http://www.anbg.gov.au/chah/avh/help/names/
[3] L'Her. = L'Heritier de Brutelle, C.L.
[4] Cav. = Cavanilles, A.J.
[5] Baill. = Baillon, H.E.