Thomas Bridges (botanist)

Thomas Bridges (1807-1865) was an English botanist and plant collector who primarily worked in California, South America (specifically Chile), and Mexico. He is noted for his extensive collections of plant specimens, which contributed significantly to the understanding of the flora of these regions during the 19th century.

Bridges was born in England and initially worked as a gardener. He developed an interest in botany and became a skilled plant collector. He arrived in California around 1840, where he began collecting plant specimens for various botanical institutions and individuals, including William Jackson Hooker at Kew Gardens.

His collections from California included many new species and provided valuable information about the distribution and ecology of the region's plants. He collected extensively in the areas around Monterey and San Francisco.

Later, Bridges expanded his collecting activities to Chile and Mexico. He amassed a large collection of Chilean plants between 1843 and 1847, again sending specimens to Kew and other herbaria. His collections from Mexico are also significant, further contributing to the knowledge of the region's flora.

Bridges’s botanical work is remembered through the numerous plant species named in his honor (indicated by the epithet "bridgesii") and by the lasting value of his plant collections, which are housed in herbaria around the world. His contributions helped to shape the understanding of plant biogeography and taxonomy in the Americas. He died in California in 1865.