David Mabberley

Professor David Mabberley AM, is an British-born botanist, educator, and writer, his extensive scientific interests include the taxonomy of tropical plants, with a particular focus on trees belonging to the families Labiatae, Meliaceae, and Rutaceae.

Notably, David is renowned for his authoritative reference text, ‘The Plant-Book: A Portable Dictionary of the Vascular Plants’, which has garnered widespread acclaim. The third edition was published in 2008 as ‘Mabberley's Plant-book’, for which he was awarded the Engler Medal in Silver in 2009. As of June 2017, ‘Mabberley's Plant-book’ was in its fourth edition.

Raised in Gloucestershire, England, David pursued his education at St Catherine's College, Oxford, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1970, followed by a Master of Arts in 1974. Subsequently, he undertook doctoral studies at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, ultimately obtaining his PhD in 1973 and D.Phil. from Oxford in 1975. Throughout his academic journey, David has held various prestigious positions, including a tutorial fellowship at Wadham College, Oxford, where he established the renowned ‘Mablab’.

David’s illustrious career has spanned continents, with notable tenures at institutions such as the University of Leiden (where he is now Emeritus Professor), the University of Washington, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, the University of Paris (France), the University of Peradeniya (Sri Lanka), the University of Kuwait, Western Sydney University, and Macquarie University.

As an accomplished botanist and educator, he has made significant contributions to horticultural science and plant taxonomy, receiving numerous accolades for his outstanding achievements. Notably, in 2016, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his exceptional service to the field.

In late 1996, David relocated to Australia, where he established a successful consultancy business. His notable engagements included serving as the CEO of Greening Australia (NSW), contributing to environmental conservation efforts. In 2011, David assumed the role of executive director of the New South Wales Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust. In this capacity, he was responsible for the management of the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, the Australian Botanic Garden at Mount Annan, and the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden Mount Tomah. He left the post in 2013, leaving behind a legacy of excellence and dedication to botanical research and conservation.

A prolific researcher and world traveller, David has conducted extensive fieldwork across many countries, making significant botanical discoveries and collecting specimens that have contributed to our understanding of plant biodiversity. During research for his PhD dissertation, he embarked on wide-ranging expeditions throughout eastern Africa and Madagascar from 1970 to 1972. His explorations led him to the Ukaguru Mountains in Tanzania, where he made pioneering collections, including at least 14 species of plants (and one new snail species) that were previously unknown to science and restricted to that range. Among these discoveries were a species of coffee, a giant lobelia (Lobelia sancta), and a hairy balsam (Impatiens ukagurensis), along with Keetia davidii and Senecio mabberleyi, both named in his honour.