Donald Dungan Dod

He went to Long Beach Junior College and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a major in Chemistry. After a stint in the oil industry he entered San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, CA, where he met his future wife, Annabelle Jean Stockton (aka Tudy). They graduated with a master's degree in Divinity and a Master in Christian Education respectively.

In 1946 the Dods established a Presbyterian ministry in El Guacio in western Puerto Rico, which included among many other activities a health clinic, a social work program and public health efforts. During their 17-year stay in Puerto Rico, they “became enamored of the flora and fauna of Puerto Rico”. While Tudy became interested in birds, Donald became an extremely well versed amateur orchidologist, having discovered well over fifty new orchid species and (having taught himself the rudiments of botanical Latin) described many of them himself.

They moved to the Dominican Republic in 1964 and remained there until his retirement in 1988. Continuing his varied activities as minister and social worker, Donald Dod became instrumental, among other causes, in the establishment of the Santo Domingo Botanical Gardens and the Museum of Natural History there, and in the creation of natural reserves on the island.

Donald Dod was a research associate at the Department of Botany, of the University of California, Berkeley.

The Dods were made Caballeros de Colón, the highest civilian award of the Dominican Republic.

Named after him is the Parque Nacional Donald Dod, as well as the orchids

• Epidendrum dodii L.Sánchez & Hágsater
• Lepanthopsis dodii Garay
• Psychilis dodii Sauleda
• Schiedeella dodii Burns-Bal.
• Specklinia dodii (Garay) Luer
• Lepanthes dodiana W.R.Stimson
• Trigonochilum dodianum (Ackerman & Chiron) Königer

and named after Annabelle Dod

• Epidendrum annabellae Nir
• Lepanthes tudiana Dod
• Psychilis × tudiana Dod

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