University of Melbourne Herbarium explained

The University of Melbourne Herbarium
Location:	Parkville
State:	Victoria
Country:	Australia
Coor:	-37.7972°N 144.96°W
Address:	Room 119, BioSciences 3 (Old Natural Philosophy Building) The University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne Herbarium is a teaching and research herbarium within the School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne in Parkville, Victoria, Australia. Its Index Herbariorum code is MELU.^[1]

The University of Melbourne Herbarium is the largest university herbarium collection in Australia, with approximately 150,000 specimens, including 3,500 fungal specimens,^[2] and over 150 type specimens.^[3]

History of the Herbarium

Under the auspices of Professor Frederick McCoy, the first herbarium kept on the university's grounds was the National Herbarium of Victoria, from 1856 until a dedicated herbarium building was constructed in 1860 close to the present-day location of the herbarium and the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria.^[4]

Although it is generally acknowledged that there was a small preserved plant collection already on campus, the University's herbarium was officially established in 1926.^{[2] [5]} Reverend Montague Rupp offered the non-orchid portion of his personal herbarium, of approximately 5,000 specimens, to his alma mater Trinity College.^[6] The specimens were ultimately sent to the botany department, and wooden cupboards were custom-built to house the new, and significant collection.^[7] In 1974, the herbarium was listed in the Index Herbariorum, and in 2014 it became a data provider with the Atlas of Living Australia.^[7]

Significant collections

Significant collections held by MELU include:

• The Ex Burnley Horticultural College Herbarium, with 7,000 specimens that were originally used for teaching and research at Horticultural College. Donated to MELU in 2007.^[8]
• Tilden's South Pacific Plants Collection,^[9] collected by Josephine E. Tilden (1869–1957) and her students.
• The Wilsons Promontory Virtual Herbarium.^[10]
• An algae collection established by Sophie Charlotte Ducker (1909–2004), including specimens collected in Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands.^[11]
• Watercolors of Victorian Fungi by Malcolm Howie (1900–1936).^[12]
• Collections from Mount Buffalo National Park, made by Percy St John (1872–1944). They were relocated to MELU from Parks Victoria in 2006.^[13] Further collections to sample the present-day biodiversity of Mount Buffalo have also been made, and the 226 species of plants that now comprise the Mt Buffalo Miegunyah Collection.^[14]
• Slides, illustrations and specimens of microfungi from Haring Johannes Swart (1922–1993).
• The Victorian School of Forestry Herbarium, of approximately 5,500 specimens, that were collected between 1877 and 1992 by staff and students at the school. It relocated to MELU in August 2019.^[15]

External links

• The University of Melbourne Herbarium, university website.
• The University of Melbourne Herbarium Facebook group.
• The University of Melbourne Herbarium Collections in the Atlas of Living Australia.
• Creswick Campus Historical Collection: VSF Herbarium.

Notes and References

1. http://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/ih/herbarium-details/?irn=126728 NYBG Steere Herbarium: Herbarium list: MELU.
2. https://biosciences.unimelb.edu.au/engage/the-university-of-melbourne-herbarium The University of Melbourne Herbarium.
3. Gillbank . Linden . 2007 . The University of Melbourne Herbarium, from McCoy to MELU: A broken paper-trail . University of Melbourne Collections . 1 . 20–28 . 14 January 2022.
4. News: Griffin . Cheryl . May 28, 2021 . Jungle atmosphere in the heart of Melbourne . CBD News . 14 January 2022.
5. https://researchdata.edu.au/rupp-collection/186456?source=undefined Rupp Collection: The University of Melbourne.
6. https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/rupp-herman-montague-rucker-8298 Rupp, Herman Montague Rucker (1872–1956) by L. A. Gilbert.
7. https://www.ala.org.au/blogs-news/ala-welcomes-new-data-provider-the-university-of-melbourne-herbarium-melu/ ALA welcomes new data provider: the University of Melbourne Herbarium (MELU).
8. https://online.herbarium.unimelb.edu.au/collection/ex-burnley-horticultural-college-herbarium Ex Burnley Horticultural College Herbarium.
9. https://online.herbarium.unimelb.edu.au/collection/tilden-collection Tilden's South Pacific Plants Collection.
10. https://wpvherbarium.biosciences.unimelb.edu.au/ Welcome to the Wilsons Promontory Virtual Herbarium.
11. Vaughn . Alison . Brown . Gill . 2014 . The University of Melbourne Herbarium: now accessible on-line via Australia's Virtual Herbarium . Australasian Systematic Botany Society Newsletter . 160 . 10–11 . 14 January 2022.
12. https://biosciences.unimelb.edu.au/engage/the-university-of-melbourne-herbarium/significant-collections/malcolm-howie-watercolours Watercolors of Victorian Fungi by Malcolm Howie.
13. https://online.herbarium.unimelb.edu.au/collection/grimwade-collection Grimwade Collection.
14. https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/the-stories-of-australia-s-botanical-biodiversity The Stories of Australia's Botanical Biodiversity.
15. https://museumsandcollections.unimelb.edu.au/news/items/vsf-herbarium-transferred-to-university-of-melbourne-herbarium VSF Herbarium transferred to University of Melbourne Herbarium.