Mary Elizabeth Banning

Mary Elizabeth Banning (6 April 1822 – 28 February 1903) was an American mycologist (fungi biologist) and botanical illustrator from Maryland. She formally described 23 previously unknown species of fungi, publishing their type descriptions in the Botanical Gazette and Charles Peck's "Annual Report of the New York State Botanist". She was the first woman outside of Europe to name a fungal taxon.