IN MEMORIAM, 213-217
IN MEMORIAM PROF. TONE WRABER
Ko sem pred dobrima dvema letoma pisal besedilo ob sedemdesetletnici profesorja Toneta Wraberja, nisem niti slutil, da bo prišel čas za nekrolog tako neusmiljeno zgodaj in iznenada. Profesor je odšel po krajši, a hudi bolezni 6. julija 2010.
Profesor Wraber se je rodil 4. marca 1938 v Ljubljani v intelektualno bogatem okolju. Njegov oče je bil znani slovenski fitocenolog dr. Maks Wraber, kar je prav gotovo vplivalo na njegovo nadaljnjo pot, saj se je pokojni Tone "okužil" z ljubeznijo do rastlinskega sveta že zelo zgodaj. Enoumje takratne politike je utesnjevalo svobodnejši duh in drugačne nazore Tonetove družine. Kot otrok je doživel hude stiske, saj je bil oče nekaj časa celo politični zapornik; to je morda še podžgalo Tonetovo željo in slo k čim širši in čimbolj poglobljeni izobrazbi in razgledanosti, ki smo jo mlajši kolegi pri njem tako občudovali.
Po maturi na klasični gimnaziji v Ljubljani leta 1956 je v letih 1956-61 študiral biologijo na Univerzi v Ljubljani. Po diplomi se je najprej zaposlil kot kustos v Prirodoslovnem muzeju Slovenije, že leta 1963 pa je izšel njegov vodnik "Naše zaščitene rastline", prvo pomembnejše delo botaničnega naravovarstva do tedaj. Leta 1968 je bil imenovan za asistenta v Botaničnem vrtu Ljubljanske univerze. To je bilo obdobje številnih terenskih ekskurzij po Sloveniji, katerih rezultat so bile nove najdbe za floro Slovenije in številna nova nahajališča redkih vrst. Predvsem pa vestno in prizadevno zbiranje herbarijskega materiala za zbirko Herbarija Univerze v Ljubljani. Čas bo pokazal kratkovidnost današnjega vrednotenja znanosti, utesnjenega v številke in točkovanja, ki pa ne zmore oceniti časa, znanja in energije potrebne za to, da sistematično obdeluješ floro ozemlja, kjer uspeva 3000 rastlinskih vrst! In greš seveda tudi prek meja, v bližnje in oddaljene države! Leta 1973 je Tone Wraber začel univerzitetno kariero kot asistent, upokojil se je kot redni profesor pred dobrima dvema letoma, maja 2010 pa je bil imenovan tudi za zaslužnega profesorja Biotehniške fakultete.
Profesorju Wraberju je bogato poznavanje jezikov in stroke omogočalo daljša študijska bivanja v tujini. Komaj triindvajsetleten mladenič se je že izpopolnjeval v fitocenologiji pri začetniku srednjeevropske fitocenološ-ke šole, profesorju Braun-Blanquetu v Montpellierju v Franciji. Daljši čas je deloval na univerzi v Trstu pri vodilnem italijanskem botaniku Sandru Pignattiju, pod mentorstvom katerega je leta 1972 izdelal tudi doktorsko disertacijo o vegetaciji skalnih razpok v Julijskih Alpah.
Plodovita so bila tudi njegova študijska bivanja v Londonu, kjer je obdeloval botanično gradivo, pridobljeno na njegovih eksotičnih ekskurzijah. Z njimi je začel že leta 1969 kot udeleženec jugoslovanske odprave na Anapurno in 1972 na Makalu. Med čezmorskimi
ekskurzijami je bila še posebno uspešna tista v Cen-tralnoafriško republiko. Profesorju ni bila tuja niti ekso-tika naše nekdanje skupne države. Veliko energije in časa je namreč posvetil raziskovanju flore Balkana, predvsem Kosova, Makedonije, Albanije in Črne Gore.
S ponosom lahko zapišem, da je profesor Wraber postal moj mentor že v gimnazijskih letih. Obiskal je koprsko gimnazijo in imel tam predavanje, naslednjega dne pa smo šli na terensko ekskurzijo; ker je deževalo, jaz pa nisem imel dežnika, sem vedril pod njegovim ... In čez eno leto je bil že moj mentor pri raziskovalni nalogi. Zame nepozabna je bila študentska ekskurzija na Kosovo leta 1984. Njegovo odlično poznavanje tamkajšnjih razmer, tako družbenih kot naravnih, je nam, študentom, omogočilo vpogled v eksotiko rastlinstva in navad Balkana. Profesor Wraber nam je odkrival botanično najslabše poznane in najbolj zakotne predele takratne Jugoslavije; vselej pa je bil tudi vir podatkov o zgodovini, etnologiji in kulturi območja, skozi katerega smo potovali.
Če so bile ena od Wraberjevih ljubezni Alpe, je bila druga prav gotovo Mediteran. Po mami je bil Primorec in odličen poznavalec družbenih razmer v Istri in na Tržaškem. V sedemdesetih in osemdesetih letih je botanično "ponovno odkril" Slovensko Istro: Osp, Strunjan in Ronek, Steno in Sv. Štefan v dolini Dragonje, Sečovelj-ske soline, Sv. Katarino pri Ankaranu, Kubed ... Tudi njegova zasluga je, da so ti enkratni prostorčki danes zakonsko zavarovana območja.
Profesor Wraber je opisal sedem za znanost novih taksonov, drugim je revidiral taksonomski status, našel je desetine novih vrst za floro Slovenije in nova nahajališča redkih vrst. Pri tem pa ne smemo pozabiti na Toneta Wraberja kot izkušenega fitocenologa klasične šole, ki se ukvarja predvsem z združbami nad gozdno mejo, s skalnimi razpokami in melišči.
Meni bo ostal pokojni Tone najbolj v spominu kot pedagog, saj sem bil njegov prvi (torej najstarejši) doktorand. Njegova predavanja so bila vselej odlično pripravljena, podkrepljena z diapozitivi z vseh koncev sveta in obogatena z zanimivostmi.
V svoji karieri je bil urednik ali član uredniškega odbora Proteusa, Scopolije, Varstva narave, Hladnikije, tudi koprskih Annalov. Bil je tudi ustanovitelj in predsednik Botaničnega društva Slovenije, aktiven član številnih mednarodnih združenj, njegova bogata bibliografija - če se omejimo le na strokovno in znanstveno -pa posega v področja floristike, taksonomije, botanične zgodovine, fitocenologije in varstva narave.
Ko se je profesor Wraber po upokojitvi umaknil z univerze in se preselil na deželo, v Polhov Gradec, se je posvetil rastlinam tudi na svojem vrtu, lotil se je nedokončanih projektov, neutrudno je pisal, praktično dokler mu je težka bolezen to dopuščala. Po njegovem odhodu je zazijala v slovenski botaniki nepopisna praznina, saj ni nikogar, ki bi ga lahko nadomestil v njegovem znanju
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in širini. Odšel je zadnji klasični botanik v Sloveniji, ki je vedel "vse" o rastlinah; rodoljub, poliglot, naravovar-stvenik, gornik ... Naj mu bo lahka domača zemlja, ki jo je tako dobro poznal in tako močno ljubil!
IN MEMORIAM PROF. TONE WRABER
Two years ago, when I was writing a text for the occasion of Prof. Tone Wraber's 70th birthday, I could hardly imagine that the need for an obituary would come so very early and suddenly. The professor passed away after a brief but serious illness on 6 June 2010.
Professor Wraber was born on 4 March 1938 in Ljubljana in an intellectually rich environment. The fact that his father was a known Slovene phytocenologist Dr. Maks Wraber surely influenced his career path, evoking late Tone's love for plants at a very early age. Political narrow-mindedness in those days stifled the free spirit and liberal beliefs of Tone's family. His father was even a political prisoner, which caused Tone great distress as a child; it might have also encouraged his need and passion for a broad and complex education and worldliness that younger colleagues so admired in him.
After finishing the classical gymnasium in Ljubljana in 1956, he studied Biology at the University of Ljubljana from 1956 to 1961. Upon his graduation, he started working as the curator of the Slovenian Museum of Natural History. In 1963 he published his guidebook "Naše zaščitene rastline", the first relevant work on botanical conservation. Five years later he was appointed assistant at the Botanic gardens of the University of Ljubljana. That was the period of numerous field excursions around Slovenia, which resulted in new findings of Slovenian flora and several new localities of rare species, but most of all it was the time of conscientious and intense work on the herbarium collection for the Herbarium of the University of Ljubljana. Time will judge the improvidence of the current system for evaluation of science, limited to numbers and points yet unable to evaluate the time, knowledge and energy needed for the systematical study of flora in the area with 3000 plant species! With travels to nearby and distant countries! In 1973, Tone Wraber started his university career as an assistant, and retired as a full professor two years ago. In May 2010, he was named distinguished professor of the Biotechnical Faculty.
Due to his extensive knowledge of languages and his professional field, Professor Wraber was able to study abroad for a long period of time. As a 23-year-old student he worked with the founder of the Central Euro-
pean Phytocenological School, professor Braun-Blan-quet in Montpellier in France, building on his knowledge of phytocenology. For an extended period of time he worked at the University of Trieste with the leading Italian botanist Sandro Pignatti, who also mentored his doctoral dissertation on rock-crevice vegetation in the Julian Alps in 1972.
His study stays in London were also very productive, with extensive work done on the botanical material from his exotic excursions. His first was in 1969 when he joined the Yugoslav expedition to Annapurna and in 1972 to Makalu. Among overseas excursions, the one to the Central African Republic was particularly successful. Even the exoticness of our former common country was not foreign to the professor - he dedicated a lot of his energy and time to the research of the Balkan flora, mostly in Kosovo, Macedonia, Albania and Montenegro.
I can proudly say that Professor Wraber became my mentor when I was still in secondary school. At one occasion, he visited the gymnasium in Koper, gave a lecture there and the following day took us on a field excursion. It was raining; I didn't have an umbrella, so he kindly offered me shelter under his. One year later, he was already my mentor for a research paper. For me, an unforgettable experience was the study excursion to Kosovo in 1984. His extensive knowledge of local conditions, both social and natural, gave us, the students, an insight into the exotic vegetation and also habits and customs of the Balkans. Professor Wraber showed us the botanically least known and the remotest parts of former Yugoslavia; and always provided additional information on history, ethnology and culture of the area that we were travelling through.
If one of Professor's loves were the Alps, the other one was surely the Mediterranean. His mother was from Primorska, and he was well acquainted with the cultural situation in Istria and Trieste with its surroundings. In the 70s and 80s he botanically "re-discovered" Slovenian Istria: Osp, Strunjan and Ronek, Stena and Sv. Stefan in the Dragonja Valley, the Sečovlje salt pans, Sv. Katarina near Ankaran, Kubed ... Also to his credit, these unique spots are nowadays legally protected areas.
Professor Wraber described seven taxa previously unknown to science; he revised taxonomic status of others, found tens of new species for the Slovene flora and new localities of rare species. In addition to all of this, we must not forget Tone Wraber as an experienced phytocenologist of the classical school, which deals mostly with plant communities above the timberline, rock-crevices and taluses.
The late Tone will stay in my memory mostly as a teacher, since I was his first (and therefore the oldest) doctoral student. His lectures were always immaculately prepared, supported by slides taken from all around the world and rich in interesting facts.
ANNALES • Ser. hist. nat. • 20 • 2010 • 2
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In the course of his career, he was an editor and a member of the editorial board of Proteus, Scopolija, Varstvo narave, Hladnikija, and Annales from Koper. He was the founder and president of the Botanical Society of Slovenia, active member of numerous international associations, his vast bibliography - if we limit ourselves only to scientific and research texts - covers the fields of floristry, taxonomy, history of botany, phytocenology and nature conservation.
When Professor Wraber retired and left the university to live in the countryside in Polhov Gradec, he dedi-
cated himself to plants in his garden, he worked on his unfinished projects, he wrote untiringly as long as the serious disease allowed him. His death left an immense void in Slovenian botany, since there is no one left who could match him in his knowledge and broad mind. The last classical Slovenian botanist, who knew "everything" about plants, left; a patriot, polyglot, conservationist, mountaineer ... May he rest in peace in the home soil that he knew so well and loved so much!
Mitja Kaligaric
ŽIGI DOBRAJCU V SLOVO (1979-2010)
Konec julija 2010 nas je razžalostila novica o tragični nesreči našega sodelavca in prijatelja Žige, ki se je udeležil predstavitve potapljanja z uporabo rebreather-jev v Miramaru pri Trstu.
Žige se spominjamo kot tople, odprte osebe, ki je znala hitro navezati stik v družbi. Bil je navdušen košarkar in potapljač. Njegova ljubezen do morja je bila tako močna, da je vpisal študij biologije na ljubljanski
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univerzi z željo, da bi se dokopal do poklica, ki bi ga povezal z morjem, mu omogočil raziskovati njegove skrivnosti. In tako se mu je tistega dne, ko ga je njegov prijatelj Borut pripeljal na Morsko biološko postajo, da se dogovori za opravljanje diplomske naloge, začela nasmihati možnost, da uresniči svoje sanje. Idejo, da bi raziskoval favno kriptobentoških rib, je sprejel z odprtimi rokami, saj ga je veselila tako z vidika skrivnostnih rib kot tudi zaradi potapljanja, brez katerega pri nalogi ne bi šlo. Dela se je lotil zelo predano in zavzeto in res, rezultati niso izostali. Skupaj s sodelavci je objavil nekaj znanstvenih prispevkov, tudi v naravoslovnih Analih. Uspelo mu je odkriti nenavadne ribice, o katerih je komajda kaj znanega. Se preden je zaključil z vzorčenjem za diplomsko nalogo, je bil zaradi svojih vrlin sprejet v delovno razmerje na Morski biološki postaji Nacionalnega Inštituta za Biologijo, kjer je osnovne biološke veščine nadgradil s praktičnim delom na raziskovalnih plovilih in v laboratoriju ter na vzorčenjih pod vodo.
Z Žigo so prišle na postajo tudi nekatere povsem nove danosti. V avli postaje je vzpostavil sistem velikih akvarijev, v katere je naselil samoniklo ribjo združbo in mnoge pridnene nevretenčarje. Veliko večino življa je polovil sam, nekatere tudi v številnih nočnih potopih. Seveda so lično urejeni akvariji in pestro življenje v njem, za katerega je zgledno skrbel, postali obvezna točka za obiskovalce iz osnovnih in srednjih šol pri ogledu biološke postaje. Pred kratkim je postal tudi ladjevodja raziskovalnega plovila. Udeležil se je mnogih mednarodnih delavnic na temo podvodnih vzorčenj in raziskovalnih veščin v različnih sredozemskih krajih. Se posebej rad je sodeloval z avstrijskimi kolegi iz raziskovalne skupine dr. Michaela Stachowitscha in jim pomagal pri vzorčenjih v slovenskem morju. Žal ni imel priložnosti, da bi nam uspel pokazati celoten obseg svojega raziskovalnega potenciala.
V zadnjih letih je opravil ogromno število podvodnih vzorčenj, se seznanil z različnimi tehnikami zajemanja vzorcev in postal dober podvodni fotograf. Delo pod vodo ga je najbolj veselilo. Koliko mu je pomenilo, dobro pove odgovor, ki ga je dal v nekem intervjuju: "Če sem živčen, če kaj ne štima, grem pod vodo, kjer je mir, tišina, morski zvok. Super je, da se malo odklopiš, nazaj prideš kot nov."
Podvodni snemalec je postal povsem po naključju. Ko je v slovensko morje februarja 2009 zašel trinajst-metrski kit grbavec, si je Žiga brez oklevanja nadel potapljaško obleko in skočil v vodo. Marsikdo bi pred takšnim dejanjem dvakrat premislil, toda ne Žiga. On je živel v skladu s svojo percepcijo življenja, živel je za trenutke. Kot navdušen filmofil bi gotovo citiral Willa Smitha v filmu Hitch: "Življenje ni število vdihov, ki jih narediš, temveč število trenutkov, ki ti vzamejo sapo". In tisti trenutek je vzel sapo ne samo Žigi, ampak tudi drugim, ki smo lahko prisostvovali druženju z grbavcem.
Eden zadnjih takih trenutkov je bil še pred nekaj tedni, ko smo se po opravljenem vzorčenju podružili s trojico delfinov blizu oceanografske boje.
Odiseja strastnega zaljubljenca v morje se je tragično zaključila v Miramaru, kamor ga je prignala želja po izpopolnjevanju v potapljaških veščinah. Danes akvariji samevajo, terenska vzorčenja so turobna in tiha ... V naših srcih ostajajo lepi spomini na vedrega in marljivega sodelavca in prijatelja!
V imenu sodelavcev Morske biološke postaje NIB
Lovrenc Lipej
IN THE MEMORY OF ŽIGA DOBRAJC (1979-2010)
At the end of July 2010, we learned the sad news about the tragic accident of our colleague and friend Žiga, who attended the presentation of rebreather diving at Miramar near Trieste.
We will remember Žiga as a warm, open and sociable person. He was an enthusiastic basketball player and diver. His love for the sea was so strong that he enrolled at the Faculty of Biology at the University of Ljubljana in the hope of a profession which would connect him to the sea and enable him to search through its secrets. And so one day his friend Borut brought him to the Marine Biology Station to arrange his diploma thesis and Žiga came closer to fulfilling his dream. He grabbed the opportunity to do a research on the cryptobenthic fish fauna with both hands, not only because of the mysterious fish but also the diving, which was required. He was enthusiastic and devoted to his work, and soon the results were there to prove it. In cooperation with his colleagues, he published a few articles, also in Annales Series Historia Naturalis. He managed to discover unusual and hardly known fish. Before finishing his sampling for the thesis, the Marine Biology Station of the National Institute of Biology employed him due to his excellent qualities. He upgraded his core biological skills with field work on research vessels and in laboratory and with underwater sampling.
Žiga added many novelties to the Marine Biology Station; in the station lobby he set up a system of large tanks, and filled them with an indigenous fish assemblage and numerous benthic invertebrates. He caught most of the animals himself, some also while night diving. Needless to say that the tanks and the vivid life in them, which he meticulously cared for, drew attention of the elementary and secondary school visitors to the marine station. Not long ago, Žiga was appointed the head of the research vessel. He attended numerous
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international workshops on underwater sampling and research skills in various Mediterranean towns. He especially liked working with our Austrian colleagues from Dr. Michael Stachowitsch's research team, helping them with sampling in the Slovenian sea. Unfortunately, he never had a chance to show us the full spectre of his research potential.
In the course of the last few years, he did a large number of underwater samplings, got acquainted with various sampling techniques and became an excellent underwater photographer. Work under water was the thing he enjoyed most. How much it meant to him is illustrated in the following answer from one of the interviews: "If I'm nervous, if there's something wrong, I go under water where there is peace and quiet and the sound of the sea. It's great to relax, you come back a new man."
He started working as an underwater photographer purely by chance. When in February 2009, a 13-meter-long humpback whale found itself in the Slovenian sea, Ziga put on his diving suit without hesitation and
jumped into the sea. A lot of other people would think twice before doing something like that, but not Žiga. He lived according to his own rules, he lived for the moments. As an enthusiastic film buff he would surely quote Will Smith in Hitch: "Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away." And that moment didn't take only Žiga's breath away; all of us who came close to the whale were speechless. One of these moments, the last one, happened only a few weeks ago when we were socializing with three dolphins after finishing sampling near an oceanographic buoy.
The journey of a passionate sea lover ended tragically at Miramare, in his pursuit to improve his diving skills. Today the aquarium tanks are empty; field samplings are gloomy and quiet... In our hearts we keep the memories of a joyful and diligent colleague and friend!
On behalf of all the Marine Biology Station NIB staff
Lovrenc Lipej