Howard Alvin Crum

Howard Alvin Crum (July 14, 1922 – April 30, 2002) was an American botanist dedicated to the study of mosses, and was a renowned expert on the North American bryoflora.

Early life Crum was born in Mishawaka, Indiana, and after he graduated high school, attended Western Michigan Teachers College (now Western Michigan University). Initially a German major, World War II interrupted his education. He joined the United States Army Air Force in 1942 and served in the Intelligence Division. He was stationed in North Africa and the Middle East working as a cryptographer.

After the war, Crum returned to Western Michigan and changed his major from German to botany. He received his B.S. in 1947. The fall after receiving his undergraduate degree, he began his graduate work at the University of Michigan. He completed his Ph.D. in 1951 under direction of Harley H. Bartlett. Upon finishing his degree, he went to Stanford University for a 2-year postdoc, working with William C. Steere to study moss specimens from Canada, Alaska, and Puerto Rico. Crum began to teach summer bryology classes at the University of Michigan Biological Station. Realizing that no adequate textbook was available, Crum wrote his own, entitled Mosses of the Great Lakes Forest.

Crum soon turned his attention to the genus Sphagnum. He went on to publish over 100 taxa new to science. Around this time, he and Aaron John Sharp produced the Moss Flora of Mexico. Crum gained much knowledge into the Mexican moss flora through his doctoral dissertation, which he used to help create this modern moss treatment for a tropical region, the first of its kind. In the meantime, he continued to publish his Sphagnum research.

He soon gained interest in the liverworts and hornworts, and continued his studies until his death from stomach cancer at age 79.

Legacy Crum is the namesake of three genera: Bryocrumia, Crumia, and Crumuscus; and eight species: Bellia crumii, Encalypta brevicollis subsp. crumiana, Fissidens crumii, Macromitrium crumianum, Ochrobryum crumii, Racomitrium crumianum, Schlotheimia crumii, and Sphagnum crumii.

Selected publications