Héctor M. Hernández is a senior botanist working at the Instituto de Biología, National Autonomous University of México. He has served as curator, head of the botany department, and director at the National Herbarium of México. His research interests have been focused on the systematics and biogeography of certain genera of Leguminosae, as well as the Mexican members of the cactus family. Over the last eight years, he has devoted a significant amount of his time and effort to participating in the Flora Mesoamericana, a collaborative project between his home institution, the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the Natural History Museum, London.