Croft, James Reginald (Jim)   (1951 -   )

Born on 28 May 1951 in Victoria, Australia;

He spent his infancy in Melbourne, followed by childhood in Papua New Guinea (Port Moresby), South Australia (Adelaide), Fiji (Suva), New Caledonia (Noumea).

He spent his later secondary school years at boarding school in Sydney, New South Wales.

He graduated in botany and zoologogy at the University of Sydney specialising in biological systematics and ecology.

Immediately after graduating he was offered his first full-time job in 1973 as a botanist with the Papua New Guinea Department of Forests at the PNG National Herbarium and Botanic Gardens in Lae.

As a two year contract was renewed, and renewed, and renewed, PNG achieved self government and independence, and he moved through the ranks to become Director of the botanic gardens and herbarium, specialising in ferns, and spending 15 years "doing botanical field work and botanical exploration in one of the most biological exciting places on earth".

During this time he married and had two sons.

In 1988 he was offered a position as Curator of the Herbarium at the Australian National Botanic Gardens and the family moved to Canberra.

He soon became Director of the Botany Section of the Australian National Botanic Gardens, (then part of 'Environment Australia') and then Deputy Director of the Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research.

He was responsible for botanic information at the Australian National Botanic Gardens and program leader for Botanical Information and Network Services at the Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research and the Australian National Herbarium.

In the early 1990s, with collaborator Greg Whitbread, they launched Australia's second WWW site (ANU was first by a few minutes) and pioneered many aspects of making herbarium data accessible via the internet.

Jim retired on 7 July 2015.

He is Author of the fern family Cystodiaceae J.R.Croft

Source: Extracted from: personal web site (2001)
Portrait Photo: 2001, M.Fagg.

Collecting localities for 'Croft, J.R.' from AVH (2024)

Data from 11,064 specimens

Collecting Dates

The following are major botanical survey expeditions during most of which 200 or more collections of higher plants were made:

- 2000: January: Norfolk Island: Survey of pteridophytes throughout the island.
- 1989: Macquarie Island: Part of 1989/90 ANARE summer research program. Collecting herbarium specimens and live material for propagation in Australian and overseas botanic gardens
- 1988: Tasmania, South and South West. General collection, emphasis on rare and endangered plants. WWF sponsored, in collaboration with Tasmanian National Parks.
- 1986: August: Mt Bosavi (Southern Highlands province). General botanical collecting. Training PNG botanists in expedition management and logistics.
- 1984: October: Lelet Plateau and Lihir Island (New Ireland Province). Expedition leader, general botanical survey and botanical inspection of proposed mine site.
- 1983: October: Escorting visiting botanists to Wau-Bulolo area.
- 1982: August-September: Vamino and Bewani Mountains (West Sepik province). Expedition leader, general botanical collecting.
- 1981: March: Admiralty Islands (Manus Province). Expedition leader, general botanical collecting.
- 1979: November-December: Nomad, Strickland and Fly rivers (Western Province). Botanical support for "Operation Drake". General botanical collecting and training of participants.
- 1979: March: Misima, Sudest and Rossel Islands (Milne Bay Province). Expedition leader, general botanical survey.
- 1979: January: Mt Giluwe. General botanical collecting with visiting botanists.
- 1977: November-December: Fergusson Island, Normanby Island, Goodenough Island (Milne Bay Province). Expedition leader, general botanical survey.
- 1977: May: Wau-Bulolo, central highlands. General collecting.
- 1977: February: Bongu/Madang and Wau/Bulolo. Lead a party of visiting Russian botanists, general collecting.
- 1976: November-December: Fergusson Island and Normanby Island (Milne Bay Province). Expedition leader, general botanical collecting.
- 1976: August: Huon Peninsula (Morobe Province). Botanical survey for environmental impact study of proposed Lae-Finschhafen road.
- 1976: July-August: Natter Bay (Morobe Province). Collecting tree species from logging areas.
- 1976: May: Usino (Madang Province). General collections and palm seed.
- 1975: September-October: Guiding and assisting KEW expedition to Hans Meyer Range (southern New Ireland Province). General botanical collecting.
- 1975: August-September: Guiding and assisting KEW expedition to Mt Piora (Eastern Highlands Province), with Martin Sands (Kew Leader). General botanical collecting.
- 1975: March-April-May-June: Leader, joint Lae/Leiden/ANU expedition to the Star Mountains (West Sepik Province), with Jeff Veldkamp and Andries Touw (L) and Geoff Hope (ANU). General botanical collections and palynological sampling.
- 1974: November: Mt Giluwe. Survey Nothofagus plot.
- 1974: September-October: New Ireland, New Hanover. (New Ireland Province). Forest helicopter survey, general botanical collecting. Leader of botanical section.
- 1974: June-July-August: Leader, joint LAE/CANB/ANU expedition to Mt Albert-Edward, Mt Victoria and Lake Myola (Central Province), with Lynn Craven (CSIRO) and Geoff Hope (ANU). General botanical collecting.
- 1974: March-April: Baimuru-Kerema (Gulf Province). Helicopter timber survey, general botanical collecting. Leader of botanical section.
- 1973: December to 1974: January-February: Mt Giluwe (Southern Highlands Province). Studies in suspected Phytophora die-back in Nothofagus, general botanical collecting. Supervision and training of Forestry College Students.
- 1973: September-October: Efogi-Lake Myola (Central province). General botanicalcollecting.
- 1973: May-June: East and West New Britain. Helicopter timber survey, general botanical collecting.