Gradstein, S.R. 2021. On Schuster’s contribution to hepaticology

Arctoa (2021) 30: 119–125

doi: 10.15298/arctoa.30.13

Rudolf M. Schuster was one of the leading hepaticologists of the 20th century. His classification of the liverworts has been the standard one for many years and his liverwort manual of eastern North America, in 6 volumes, is the largest and most beautifully illustrated liverwort Flora that has ever been published. He was a great explorer and made immense contributions to our knowledge of the liverwort flora of the Southern Hemisphere, which he considered the cradle of the liverworts. Original phylogenetic thought and new biogeographical interpretations pervade his work. The treatment of the world’s liverworts for Engler & Prantl’s “Die natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien” and the book series “Austral Hepaticae” unfortunately remained unfinished.