Frasera ackermanae, a flowering plant in the Gentianaceae family named after geologist Diane Ackerman

Species of the genus Frasera (sometimes considered part of the genus Swertia) are flowering plants in the Gentianaceae family. Clayton Newberry and Sherel Goodrich have described a new species, Frasera ackermanae, sp. nov., collected in Uintah County, Utah [1]. They report a narrow endemism for F. ackermanae and compared this species with the similar Frasera pahutensis plant.

Newberry and Goodrich named the new species in honor of geologist Diane Ackerman, who first spotted the plant and brought it to their attention. Diane Ackerman is a plant enthusiast. She has worked for the National Park Service at Fossil Butte National Monument near Kemmerer, Wyoming. She now lives in Utah.

Keywords: botany, perennial herb, scientific name, order Gentianales, asterids, clay hillsides

Reference
[1] C, Newberry and S. Goodrich: A new species of Frasera (Gentianaceae) From Uinta Basin, Utah. Western North American Naturalist October 2010, 70 (3), pp. 415-417.
DOI: 10.3398/064.070.0315.