Jack Rodney Laundon

Jack Rodney Laundon (28 July 1934 – 31 December 2016) was a British lichenologist and became president of the British Lichen Society.

Education and personal life Jack Rodney Laundon was born 28 July 1934 in Kettering, Northamptonshire. He was educated at Park Road School, Kettering Central School and Kettering Grammar School, and then worked at the British Museum (Natural History) from 1952–1990, mainly in the lichen section. Laundon was known for his research on the lichen flora of London, methodically relating species distributions to both current and historical levels of air pollution. His work in lichen nomenclature was so influential that colleagues coined the term "Jacked" to describe any well-known species that underwent a name change due to his research. (1986, 2001) illustrated with his own photographs. In 1956 he published a survey of the lichens of Northamptonshire, and was the first to apply the Scandinavian method of lichen communities to the UK. His records from gravestones demonstrated that lichen communities were retained on old memorials but did not colonise new ones. He continued to record and publish about lichen distributions until 2012, showing that lichens returned once sulphur dioxide levels fell. but he continued to be very active with lichens and Northamptonshire local history, including authoring several publications, until mid-December 2016, shortly before his death.

The lichen Lepraria jackii was named in his honour in 1992, and the lichen products jackinic acid and norjackinic acid were described in 1995 and named after him. Camposporium laundonii, and Puccinia laundonii''.

Laundon has been credited for introducing the term in a 1995 publication, in an attempt to clarify what he thought were inadequate terms available to describe the range of fungal-algal interactions in the lichen symbiosis.

Trees were planted in his memory by the Kettering and District Natural History Society at Twywell Hills and Dales in November 2019

At the Natural History Museum

At the British Museum (Natural History), Laundon was known as an approachable and helpful presence in the lichen section. Alongside Peter James, he created what many regarded as the spiritual home of British lichenology, where both professional and amateur lichenologists could receive assistance with specimen identification. Visitors to the museum would be welcomed and provided with desk space to consult collections or have their specimens examined. Laundon's friendly demeanour and willingness to help contributed significantly to the museum's reputation as a central hub for lichenological studies in Britain. He regularly participated in British Lichen Society field meetings, sometimes bringing his family.