TAYLOR, Walter Kingsley 1939-

PERSONAL:

Male. Born November 12, 1939, in Calhoun, KY; son of Ree Miller and Opal (Rightmyer) Taylor; married Karin Lea Satter (a homemaker), July 11, 1968; children: Anna Ree. Ethnicity: "American." Education: Murray State College, B.S., 1962; Louisiana Polytechnic Institute, M.S., 1964; Arizona State University, Ph.D., 1967. Politics: Democrat. Religion: Baptist. Hobbies and other interests: Genealogy, gardening, piano, photography.

ADDRESSES:

Home—2415 Baxter Ct., Winter Park, FL 32792. Office—Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816; fax: 408-823-5769. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

University of Central Florida, Orlando, professor of biology and associate department chair, 1969—. Military service: U.S. Army, 1967-69; became captain.

MEMBER:

American Ornithologists' Union, Wilson Ornithological Society, Nature Conservancy, Sierra Club, Northeast Bird Banding Association, Florida Ornithological Society (charter member; chair of archive committee, 1993—), Florida Native Plant Society, Sigma Xi.

AWARDS, HONORS:

First place literary award, Florida Space Coast Writers Conference, 1987; Green Palmetto Award for Education, Florida Native Plant Society, 2000.

WRITINGS:

The Guide to Florida Wildflowers, Taylor Publishing (Dallas, TX), 1992.

Florida Wildflowers in Their Natural Communities, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 1998.

(With Eliane M. Norman) André Michaux in Florida: An Eighteenth-Century Botanical Journey, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 2002.

(With Robert L. Wallace) Invertebrate Zoology: A Laboratory Manual, Prentice-Hall (Tappan, NJ), 6th edition, 2002.

Florida Scientist, associate editor, 1976-77, editor, 1978-84; editor, Florida Field Naturalist, 1994-96.

WORK IN PROGRESS:

An essay on André Michaux in Florida, for a symposium; research on the grasses of Florida, Michaux, and the Taylor genealogy.

SIDELIGHTS:

Walter Kingsley Taylor told CA: "The primary motivation for my work is that I enjoy writing. I wrote the two wildflower books simply to help people learn the flora of Florida (and beyond her borders), to appreciate our rich heritage, and to help preserve it. Florida is one of the most rapidly growing states, and much of her wild lands face the bulldozer. André Michaux was a major figure in the early development of America's flora. He accomplished great things during his eleven-year stay in America. Unfortunately, Michaux is an unfamiliar person to many, including historians and naturalists. His accomplishments were tremendous but are not appreciated. The lack of material on his visit to East Spanish Florida in 1788 inspired me to write [about him]. Hopefully our book will bring better recognition to the man.

"As a biologist, natural historian, and conservationist, I love my subjects. At the same time I have spent my last thirty-four years educating college students. These people, as well as others, need to know about Florida's flora and fauna and how to help protect it."