Person
Roberts, Lewis John (1950 - )
OAM
- Born
- 23 December 1950
Cairns, Queensland, Australia - Occupation
- Botanical artist and Naturalist
Summary
Lewis Roberts is a naturalist with an encyclopaedic knowledge of the biota of northern Queensland. He is highly regarded for his powers of observation and description, and regularly assists Australian and international biologists when they visit north Queensland. Roberts is particularly interested in orchids, teaching himself to draw those he found as an aid to identification. His artwork has been exhibited. Roberts's collections of orchids, together with field notes, have been lodged with the Australian National Herbarium, Canberra, while his substantial collections of other species are in the Queensland Museum. A number of species have been named in his honour, including the orchid Cooktownia robertsii and other plants, insects and reptiles. He is an Honorary Associate of the Queensland Museum.
Details
Chronology
- 2005
- Award - Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to natural history and the documentation of biodiversity in north Queensland
- 2016
- Award - Queensland Natural History Award, Queensland Naturalists' Club
Related entries
Published resources
Journal Articles
- Covacevich, J. A., '"He learned to look on nature": Lewis John Roberts, OAM, bushman and born naturalist', Queensland Naturalist, 52 (4/6) (2014), 61-74. Details
Resources
- 'Roberts, Lewis John (19501223-)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1772578. Details
Helen Cohn
Last modified: 13 January 2022