Diana Margaret Napper

Diana Margaret Napper, who published as D. M. Napper, (23 August 1930, Woking – 31 March 1972, London) was an English botanist, specializing in the systematic botany of East Africa, particularly grasses. She worked at the Coffee Research Station in Ruiru and then transferred to the East African Herbarium in Nairobi. After returning to England, she was for a short time on the staff of the Kew Herbarium.

Life Diana Margaret Napper was born on 23 August 1930, in Woking in Surrey. After returning to England, she was for a short time on the staff of the Kew Herbarium. She studied the families Acanthaceae, Cyperaceae, and Gramineae of East Africa.

Napper died at the age of 41 on 31 March 1972 in London. From May 1971 she had undergone a series of colon operations, and despite attempting to convalesce on the Isle of Wight, did not recover from the second series of operations the following year.

Works (with K. W. Harker) An illustrated guide to the grasses of Uganda, 1960 Grasses of Tanganyika: with keys for identification, 1965