Issues #0 to #20 (May to December 1991)
FLOERKEA AGAIN IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
Two weeks ago I made a trip to the interior and found
Floerkea proserpinacoides (Limnanthaceae). It grows in
periodically wet places near Salmo and Christina Lake. I
did not have time nor means (my trip was supported by the
Vernon naturalist club) to see, how common it is, but it
was abundant on those places where I found it.
Floerkea was first reported in B.C. by John Macoun, but his
report was based on Limnanthes macounii. Macoun had a
second thought, dropped Floerkea and listed Macoun's
meadowfoam as L. douglasii. (Then he sent the specimen to
Trelease, who finally described L. macounii.) In early
1970's Schofield et al. collected L. macounii on William
Head and the specimens were erroneously labeled as
Floerkea before Bill Parker corrected it. This record was
again a source of apocryphal reports of Floerkea in
British Columbia.
In Salmo and Christina Lake Floerkea grows in seepy places
together with Suksdorfia ranunculoides, Dodecatheon
pulchellum and Delphinium burkei.
(BEN # 0 May-1991)
------------------------------------------
Turner, Nancy J. & Adam F. Szczawinski. 1991. Common
Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms of North America. Timber
Press, Portland Oregon, 311 p. US$54.00 ISBN 0-88192-179-3
I had a short peep into this book, an excellent hard cover
book with colour photographs. You know the authors and
many of you are familiar with the best botanical
publishing house in North America. The book is worth the
high price and the Royal Museum Store will carry it. If
you are in a hurry to get it, Timber Press can be reached
by phone at (503)-292-0745.
(BEN # 1 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
Tod F. Stuessy. 1990. Plant Taxonomy: The systematic
evaluation of comparative data. Columbia University Press,
New York. 514 p. US$55.00 ISBN 0-231-06784-4
I got this book yesterday. It is an excellent publication
summarizing the theory and techniques of (mostly) plant
taxonomy. The author treats the broad topic very clearly
and presents all possible views. In the rich literature you
also find Jim Pojar's pioneering work on chromosome counts
of the Pacific Northwest plants. On the other hand, I do
not know, how could have Stuessy ignored the
phytogeographical works of Hulten or Meusel.
The book ends with this paragraph:
"We as taxonomists celebrate diversity. We celebrate the
wildness of the planet. We celebrate the numerous human
attempts to understand this wildness, and we mourn its
loss through human miscalculation. We sense the aesthetic
of life and much of our efforts are aimed at reflecting
this composition. Above all we celebrate the challenges of
being alive and dealing with the living world. There is no
greater responsibility, privilege, nor satisfaction."
(BEN # 1 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
CLAYTONIA (MONTIA) PERFOLIATA COMPLEX
From: aceska@cue.bc.ca
Last month Dr. John M. Miller visited B.C. herbaria and
went through the collections of Claytonia perfoliata & C.
spathulata (=exigua) complex. He and Dr. Chambers (OSU)
are preparing a treatment of this group to be published
(most probably) in the Systematic Monographs. The summary
of this treatment as I remember it from my conversations
with Dr. Miller:
C. perfoliata is green and has rhomboid basal leaves.
C. parviflora is green and has linear basal leaves.
C. exigua subsp. exigua (= C. spathulata) is glaucous and
bracts are free almost to the base.
C. exigua subsp. glauca is glaucous and bracts are fused
around the stem.
C. rubra is glaucous, bracts are fused, and it grows on
beaches near the ocean.
Seeds have fleshy aril (elaisome) in the notch (almost none
in C. exigua) like in C. perfoliata and C. parviflora.
C. perfoliata x sibirica was found on several locations
(e.g. the Lighthouse Park in Vancouver), and it has two
pairs of bracts.
There were few more things which I don't remember.
Does it sound complicated? Yes, but the answer is simple:
collect what you see (and then see what you had collected).
(BEN # 2 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOWEN ISLAND, VANCOUVER & SOUTHERN INTERIOR
From Terry Taylor c/o <rtaylor@cue.bc.ca>
I would like to mention a few recent finds, by myself and
other naturalists, that may be of interest. On a survey of
the south coast of Bowen Island, near Cape Roger Curtis,
Linaria canadensis, Plantago elongata, Arenaria stricta,
Aspidotis densa, and Camassia were observed. Pityrogramma
was seen on the rock beside Sargeant Bay Park near Sechelt.
Typha angustifolia forms a healthy population near Wreck
Beach, and one collection was deposited in U.B.C.
Herbarium last July. Collected Epilobium hirsutum beside
railway tracks near Ocean Park last summer. Don Benson of
V.N.H.S. reported many plants of Spartina patens at
Maplewood Mudflats. Another threat to our wetlands?
Huber Moore, a naturalist at Keremeos, reported Phacelia
ramosissima near Osoyoos. Although the collection was
sparse, his identification looked correct. He previously
collected Cenchrus longispinus in the same area. Both
collections were placed at U.B.C. He has recently given
me a sterile collection of the Phacelia which I have not
taken to U.B.C. yet. Huber sent descriptions
of his rare plant locations to Ted Lea in the Dept. of
Environment, last [this was the end of Terry's message] ....
(BEN # 2 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: BOWEN ISLAND, VANCOUVER ....
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@cue.bc.ca>
1. The Bowen Island locality looks very suitable for
Githopsis speculariodes (very tiny, some plants still in
flower now), if not Githopsis, then perhaps at least
Heterocodon rariflorum (mostly with only kleistogamous
flowers).
2. What Camassia? Both C. quamash & C. leichtlinii were
collected by John Macoun in "Chilliwack." Do you know any
locations on the mainland coast?
3. My northernmost location of Pityrogramma triangularis
(which, by the way, was recently renamed to Pentagramma
triangularis) is on a small islet from the group of the
so-called "Flower Islets" off the eastern coast of Reid
Island.
4. Spartina patens and especially S. alterniflora are
invasive and do pose a serious threat to the coastal
environment. S. patens has been collected in B.C. by Chris
Brayshaw at Goose Spit off Commox in 1979 and 1984. The
situation of the occurrence of Spartina in the Pacific
Northwest has been summarized in: Spartina workshop
record: Seattle, Washington November 14-15, 1990. (Eds.:
Mumford, T.F.,Jr. et al. 73 p. Washington Sea Grant
Program, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195.
1990. ISBN 0-934539-13-8 Price: US $9.95). Looking for
some references on Spartina I came across the following
beauty: Mi ts'ao yen chiu ti chin chan--22 nien lai ti
yen chiu ch'eng kuo lun wen chi = Research advances in
spartina--achievements of past 22 years. Nan-ching :
Nan-ching ta hsueh hsueh pao pien wei hui, Nan ching ta
hsueh ta mi ts'ao chi hai t'an k'ai fa yen chiu so pien
chi ch'u pan, 1985. (From UC Berkeley BioSci library
QK495.G74 M52 1985.)
5. Typha angustifolia is also spreadable! Cf. Stuckey, R.L.
& D.P. Salamon. 1987. Typha angustifolia in North America:
A foreigner masquerading as a native.[Abstract] Ohio J.
Sci. 87(2):4.
6. For Epilobium hirsutum see: Stuckey, R.L. 1970.
Distributional history of Epilobium hirsutum (great hairy
willow-herb) in North America. Rhodora 72:164- 181.
7. Ron Walker told me that he saw Cenchrus at the junction
of the White Lake road and highway # 97.
(BEN # 2 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW FINE BOTANICAL BOOKSTORE
Flora & Fauna Books
121 First Ave, South
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (206) 623-4727
(BEN # 2 June-1991)
------------------------------------------
CONSLINK
CONSLINK is a bulletin board operated by the Smithsonian
Institution and dealing with issues of conservation. To
subscribe send the following message to
LISTSERV@SIVM.BITNET:
To: listserv@sivm.bitnet
Subject: (does not really matter)
subscribe conslink Your Name
(E.g.: subscribe conslink John Doe.)
The server picks up your return address and puts you on the
list of subscribers. The address of conslink is
conslink@sivm.bitnet and you will get any news and
announcements sent to this address. At the same time,
everything what you send to conslink@sivm.bitnet will be
distributed to all subscribers.
(BEN # 2 June-1991)
-----------------------------------------
RE: CAMAS ON BOWDEN ISLAND
Terry Taylor confirmed that Camassia he found on Bowden
Island was Camassia leichtlinii. I am still looking for
the location of Macoun's collections of Camassia quamash @
C. leichtlinii from "Chilliwack." Rumours about the
occurrence of camas on the Tsawwassen Indian Reserve
persist.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
SAD NEWS
Mrs. Krajina died in her sleep about two weeks ago. I met
her shortly after we came to Canada in 1969. I remember
that I was rather embarrassed when she addressed Prof.
Krajina as "Vladicek," the most diminutive diminutive you
can make from Vladimir. She was the proverbial great woman
behind the great man and she will be missed.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
HERB
You can make a subscription to the HERB network (similar
principle as the CONSLINK mentioned in the last BEN). HERB
contains news about medicinal and aromatic plants. I
posted there a request for information on skirret (a
medieval vegetable, now forgotten) and I got back some
useful information. In turn I answered a request for
information on Malva verticillata and got a thank you
E-mail with a comment on B.C. environmental issues (excerpt
of a letter from the University of Pennsylvania to the
University of New York - see below). You can subscribe to
HERB by sending the following request
listserv@trearn.bitnet
Subject: <does not matter, e.g., Sub HERB>
subscribe herb your name
(e.g. subscribe herb Jim Pojar).
Whatever message you send to herb@trearn.bitnet will be
automatically send to all the subscribers.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
AN EXCERPT FROM HERB
Message from the New York State University [guessed from
the address]:
We will be traveling to Vancouver next week; hopefully we
will find a home in Vancouver or Surrey - somewhere close
to UBC.
A friend from University of Pennsylvania just told me about a
logging raid at UBC; can you confirm the truthfulness of this
rumor?
On June 12, 9:47 PM, my friend wrote:
}
} I find B.C. to be very beautiful, but you may be put off by
} the frontier mentality. There was actually a logging raid
} on the U.B.C. campus when we were there last summer.
} The university clearcut a patch of virgin forest to sell for
} housing. The first thing anyone knew about the plan was
} when they were driven from their houses by the smoke of the
} burning slash. This was right in the city on lands
} entrusted to the university. Imagine what happens out in
} the wilderness! If we were moving to B.C., I think we
} would get heavily involved in environmental groups.
} Unfortunately, things are at such an advanced state of
} decline that no group other than Earth First! seems to have
} the tactics necessary to reverse the course of destruction.
} It's quite a challenge.
}-- End of excerpt
And end of my excerpt.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
Phillips, R. 1991. Mushrooms of North America. Little Brown
@ Co. Boston-Toronto- London, 319 p. [softcover] $29.95
ISBN 0-316-70613-2
Excellent book with "over 1,000 color photographs." You
perhaps know books on "Bulbs," "Shrubs," "Roses" by Roger
Phillips & Martyn Rix, or "Wild Food" by Roger Phillips.
The book on "Mushrooms" continues in this tradition. It has
nice 'studio' photographs, short descriptions,
distributions etc. It is an excellent book, but it has one
drawback: it does not list any synonyms. [P.S. Book is
available in the Royal Museum Shop.]
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
ADIANTUM PEDATUM IS NOT IN B.C.
It is official. According to Cathy Paris Adiantum pedatum
occurs only in the eastern North America and what we know
under that name from British Columbia should be called
Adiantum alleuticum (Rupr.) Paris. A. pedatum subsp.
calderi described by Cody from Quebec and reported from
several serpentine localities (mainly) in eastern North
America is just A. alleuticum. A. pedatum subsp.
subpumillum described from Jim Pojar's specimens by Wagner
is treated as an ecotype without any taxonomic value.
Paris, C.A. 1991. Adiantum viridimontanum, a new maidenhair
fern in eastern North America. Rhodora 93: 105-122.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
FROM CONSLINK
EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS
The ancient forests of the Pacific Northwest are the last
relatively intact "old-growth" ecosystems in the United
States. Found principally in northern California, western
Oregon and Washington, and southeast Alaska, these forests
contain the world's most diverse collection of giant evergreen
trees: cedar, Douglas fir, western hemlock and Sitka spruce.
Some of the oldest trees were seedlings at the time the Magna
Carta was signed seven hundred years ago; one of the most
spectacular, the Douglas fir, can live as long as 1,2000
years. But today, less than five percent of the original
forest is protected. The rest is being logged at the rate of
nearly 70,000 acres per year, threatening not only the
remaining trees but a wide variety of rare animal species as
well. Among these are the northern spotted owl, which was
recently listed as a threatened species under the Endangered
Species Act, and the marbled murrelet, an unusual seabird that
depends on old growth forests to nest and reproduce.
The Wilderness Society has launched a national public
education campaign intended to protect spectacular stands of
trees that have been the focus of intense local and national
controversy, including the publication of a book, Saving Our
Ancient Forests . In an easy-to-read style, it outlines a
blueprint for protecting these national treasures, such as
recommending using recycled paper products instead of
throwaways, and emphasizes alternative construction methods
that reduce reliance on wood. Saving Our Ancient Forests
also provides colorful descriptions of the animals that
populate ancient forests, and highlights several endangered
plant species that directly benefit human health, including
the cascara tree, whose bark is used as a laxative, and the
Pacific yew, whose bark contains a powerful cancer-fighting
chemical called taxol. A companion coloring book, Color the
Ancient Forest , introduces youngsters to the unusual animals
and plants that give ancient forests their unique character.
Saving Our Ancient Forest can be purchased directly from The
Wilderness Society for $5.95, plus $3.00 for shipping and
handling, by writing to: The Wilderness Society, P. O. Box
296, Federalsburg, MD 21632-0296. The companion coloring book
is available for $4.95 from The Wilderness Society, 900
Seventeenth Street, NWW., Washington, D.C. 20006-2596.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
REVIEW OF NEW BIODIVERSITY JOURNAL
By Jan Schlamp
The Canadian Museum of Nature recently released the first
issue of its new quarterly bulletin, Canadian Biodiversity.
The stated goals of the bulletin are to publish articles on
biodiversity, bridge the gaps between professional disciplines
and the public, circulate news on Canadian and world
biodiversity, express views on the needs and value of
biodiversity research, discuss methods, principles, and ethics
of biodiversity conservation, and review books and major
articles on biodiversity, and indeed the first issue goes far
towards meeting all of these goals. The issue opens with
three essays on biodiversity on definitions, rationales for
conservation, and ethics. These are followed by several brief
articles ranging from a review of the U.S. Biodiversity Act
placed before the U.S. Congress in January of 1991 to a
scientific report of a pilot GIS study of tree diversity in
Canada, an indication of the diversity within the bulletin.
Short scientific papers, legislative and NGO updates,
philosophical essays, and even a page of environmentally
oriented quotes made for interesting reading, the only
drawback being that there was no apparent organization to
their occurrence within the bulletin. There were two separate
sections entitled Biodiversity News Notes (short
communications and notices of upcoming meetings and
conferences) and Book & Periodical Niche (where various books,
journals and journal papers are reviewed and followed by
complete ordering information). As far as the last section is
concerned, the reviews and descriptions of the books and
journals should prove very useful, but it is unclear how the
articles are chosen for review (only two on fishes in the
first issue) or whether such reviews would be a good use of
space.
On the whole, I found this to be a refreshing new
publication with articles and news not repeated in other
popular journals. Additionally, the issue was aesthetically
pleasing. It was printed on sturdy, non-glossy, cream-colored
recycled paper (using vegetable oil ink) and contained nice
graphics in the margins and in various open areas. I thought
the page of quotes was an especially nice touch.
Canadian Biodiversity is available in either an English
or French edition, and may be ordered from the Canadian Centre
for Biodiversity, Canadian Museum of Nature, P.O. Box 3443,
Station D, Ottawa, Ontario K1P 6P4, Canada. Individual
subscriptions: Canada--Can $15; Developed countries--US $15;
Developing countries--Can $5. Library subscriptions are twice
these amounts.
(BEN # 3 17-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
THE USSR VEGETATION SYNTAXA PRODROMUS by K. Korotkov, O.
Morozova & E. Belonovskaja. Edited by Dr. Gregory Vilchek
First review of USSR vegetation syntaxa, classified by
Braun-Blanquet method. 1000 associations and 60 classes.
Characteristic species, main ecological features etc. 250
references, 300 pages. US$25.00 Send the order to
Dr. Gregory Vilchek
P.O.Box 25
Moscow, 117071
USSR
with a check for US$25.00 made up to the account
4778.56.02427, Longyearbyen Sparebank, Sparebank,
Svalbard, Norway.
(BEN # 4 18-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
JIM POJAR RE: BEN #3
Mrs. Krajina was a wonderful lady. I'll always remember the
field trip with her and "Vlady" up the Stewart-Cassiar
road back in 1973, and her Boletus soup.
Who is Cathy Paris? Is this the face that launched a
thousand name changes, and toppled the towers of
pteridophyte taxonomy? Those of us who have seen Adiantum
"imbricatum" (as I call it) in the wild know that it is a
taxon, with as much legitimacy as, say, Trillium
hibbersonii.
(BEN # 4 18-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: ADIANTUM SUBPUMILUM
Cathy Paris was a student of David Barrington (he studied
Polystichum in Costa Rica). There is a strong eastern bias
in pteridology and areas with a great phytogeographical
diversity such as the Pacific Northwest are viewed and
treated in the same manner as the Canadian Shield. One
sample from B.C. and one from Washington are usually enough
to make conclusions. Cathy saw a locality of A. subpumilum
in Washington (either La Push or Neyah Bay). I would like
to mention the observation of Judith Jones who plants A.
subpumilum commercially and she claims that there are
"reversals" to the normal form in about 2 per cent of
plants. I agree that this case is about the same as
Trillium hibbersonii, but what is T. hibbersonii? Dr.
Kruckeberg and the Seattle botanists still distinguished
what they called A. alleuticum, a stiff plant with upright
pinnae.
(BEN # 4 18-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
ERYTHRONIUM MONTANUM -- REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
TO: All field botanists
FROM: G. Allen, University of Victoria
allenr@uvvm.bitnet
Erythronium montanum (avalanche lily) is only known from
two areas in B.C. Last summer four of us (Gerry Allen and
Joe Antos from UVic, Richard Hebda and Bob Ogilvie from
RBCM) flew to the vicinity of Mt Waddington to look for it,
and found LOTS of plants. It is locally abundant above
the mouth of the Homathko River (Scar Creek, Hidden Mt.,
Landmark Mt.), and has also been found above the
Klinaklini River (Saffron Creek, Hoodoo Creek). (This is
about 51 6 to 51 20 N, 125 0 to 125 45 W.)
If you are doing field work in the B.C. Coast Mts. this
summer (anywhere between Garibaldi Park and Terrace!),
please keep your eye out for avalanche lilies. (Field
marks: White flowers, plain green leaves, found above 800
m elevation.) If you find a new locality, please send
info (lat, long, elev, and if possible a pressed sample)
to Gerry Allen, Department of Biology, University of
Victoria, Victoria, B.C. V8W 2Y2 (or by e-mail to
ALLENR@UVVM.bitnet). We are looking at morphological and
genetic variation in E. montanum, and we would like to know
how widely distributed it is in B.C. Your assistance will
be much appreciated.
[Gerry is going to the CBA meeting - I hope, she will give
us a short report in BEN. - aceska@cue.bc.ca]
(BEN # 5 20-June-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOTANY B.C. 1991
From: Del Meidinger
Everyone I've talked to thoroughly enjoyed the meetings and
field trips. Assumming that they're mostly telling the
truth, the meetings were again successful. There were lots
of opportunities for inter-agency communication, learning
about streams and stream-side ecosystems, the basics of
conservation biology, lichen-forming fungi, bogs, and
estuaries. The accommodations, food and facilities were
AOK and the weather cooperated. Some great T-shirts were
made, and enjoyable evening entertainment was provided by
everyone (especially Adolf; the quartet of Andy, Dave,
Mike and Donald; and the 'Spice' presenters).
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOTANY B.C. 1992
From: Del Meidinger
Place: Lac La Jeune (Kamloops)
When: end of May, early June
Topics: Weeds, Grasses, Aquatic vegetation, Saprophytic &
Parasitic plants, and whatever else seems appropriate for
the area.
Organizing Committee: Evelyn Hamilton, Bob Scheer, Fraser
Russell, Alex Inselberg, Wayne Erickson, and Ted Lea.
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
ADDITIONAL TOPIC FOR BOTANY 1992
From: Andy MacKinnon
"Botanical Songs" (anybody with a song about plants, or
with plants in it, or a song which could be corrupted by
punsters to be about plants e.g. "Friends and Anemones",
should send words or, better still, sheet music, to me or
Dave Clark for inclusion in a Botany B.C. songbook).
There was a general feeling that the next meeting should be
more 'basic' (i.e. not 'applied') botany.
[Andy added the 'Botanical Songbook' idea after the 'AGM'.
Other ideas that came up after the fact were presentations
on 'weird plants' -- instead of just saprophytes/parasites.
Del Meidinger]
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
ERYTHRONIUM MONTANUM IN THE WASHINGTON CASCADES
From: Terry Taylor
I have seen E. montanum as far north in Washington as the
Bagley Lakes area, beside the trail below Herman Saddle.
This is on the north side of Mount [...] Washington. I
had previously believed it did not reach beyond the south
side of Baker in this area. If any plants have managed to
cross the Nooksack River there could possibly be
populations on the south side of the Chilliwack valley.
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
OKANAGAN FIELDTRIP
From: Andrew Harcombe
After refinding a letter sent to Ted Lea from Huber Moore,
the CDC group, in concert with Trevor Goward and Malcolm
Martin from Vernon went on a search for Phacelia
ramosissima. Mike sarrell had transferred the location
onto a colour air photo after talking to Huber. Although
it turned out to be the wrong location, the Group of Seven
found and collected the Phacelia, a first for Canada.
Growing with it was Penstemon richardsonii and Thelypodium
laciniatum-- this latter species has now been seen in
several diferrent locatio [...] of Halimobolos whitedii
near Oliver. What an obscure plant to locate in tall
grass! Huber also reports it from near Keremeos and near
Cawston.
We also saw Dave Murray in Anchorage earlier this month, in
the company of 3 Russian botanists. He passed on his
greetings. Apparently you have connected with them
electronically though the University?
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
CONFERENCE ON BOREAL FOREST
From: louis@cs.athabascau.ca (Louis Schmittroth)
Our organization, the Friends of the Athabasca has been
battling a huge forest giveaway here in Alberta for the
past three years. This is the ALPAC (85% Japanese owned)
pulp mill project, which is now unfortunately under
construction.
Associated with this is a ``Forest Management Agreement''
giving the pulp mill company rights to 70,000 sq kms of
public land. This agreement has not yet been signed. We
are trying to get a hand in the negotiating the terms of
this agreement, but prospects are dim. We need to raise
the level of public interest and concern with forestry
issues, and have therefore decided to sponsor a Conference
on the Boreal Forest. Here is the announcement we have sent
out:
Friends of the Athabasca Environmental Association
Announcing a Conference on The Boreal Forest
What is it, how should it be managed, will it survive?
When: October 4,5,6, 1991, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
Where: Athabasca, Alberta (100 miles north of Edmonton)
Who: The general public, foresters, politicians
Why: To share knowledge, gain insight, influence policy
Fee: $50 for 3 days, $30/day for Saturday or Sunday
(half-price for students, seniors, and the ``needy'')
Friday evening will be devoted to registration, and a
keynote address describing the boreal forest in all its
beauty and diversity. There will be a cash bar and an
informal social gathering. Coffee and lunch will be
available at the conference hall Saturday and Sunday. Two
half-day sessions are planned for both Saturday and
Sunday. Each session will begin with a keynote talk, which
will be followed by short presentations from each of four
panelists. The audience will have adequate time for
questions and discussion following panel presentations.
The four general areas are: Ecology of the Boreal Forest,
Non- fibre Uses of the Forest, Use and Management of the
Forest, and Lookin to the Future.
J. Stan Rowe, author of the widely acclaimed collection
of essays Home Place, has accepted our invitation to be
a speaker, as has Herb Hammond, RPF, of Winlaw, B.C., who
has pioneered new methods in forest management. David
Schindler and Susanne Bailey will both participate in the
conference, as will Bill Fuller. Other speakers will come
from government, the University of Alberta, the forest
industry, the native community, local small-scale forest
users, and community-based forestry in other parts of
Canada.
Address:
Boreal Forest Conference, Friends of the Athabasca,
Box 1351, Athabasca Alberta T0G 0B0
Tel. 403-675-4408, 2993, 2601, 3349
(BEN # 6 4-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
POLYSTICHUM KWAKIUTLII ALERT
From: Adolf Ceska
Last year Dave Wagner (Univ. of Oregon, Eugene) described a
new species of Polystichum from British Columbia, Polys-
tichum kwakiutlii (Wagner, D.H. 1990. Polystichum kwakiutlii
sp.nov., the elusive bipinnate ancestor of P. andersonii.
Amer. Fern J. 80: 50-52.). It is a hypothetical diploid
parent (with P. munitum) of P. andersonii. The type specimen
was collected at Alice Arm in 1934. It resembles P. braunii
(bipinnate fronds with pinnules having short petioles), but
it has proliferous bulbils on rachis and entire indusia.
The following key to B.C. Polystichum species (from the
manuscript of the Vascular Plants of British Columbia) may
help to identify this elusive species. P. kwakiutlii and P.
californicum (collected in 1897 on Texada Island) were
excluded from the Vascular Plants of B. C.; species that has
not been collected since 1940 do not officially occur in
B. C. (Ignore all specimens older than I am!)
A. Can you look for P. kwakiutlii and other Polystichum
species (we have only one specimen of P. setigerum in
our herbarium)?
B. Can you look for a hybrid P. andersonii x munitum? I saw
a large population of this hybrid in the Mt. Baker area.
The hybrid looks like P. munitum with slightly more
incised pinnae and has leaves with proliferous buds.
Polystichum key (after D.H. Wagner)
1. Fronds pinnate, the pinnae not deeply cleft again, with
only shallow teeth along the margin.
2. Lowest pinnae triangular or subtriangular to broadly
trowel-shaped, symmetrical; all pinnae spreading-
spinulose; stipe length less than one tenth of the
frond; spores spiny .................... P. lonchitis
2. Lowest pinnae ovate to lanceolate-falcate, asymmetri-
cal; pinnae incurved-spinulose; stipe length more than
one tenth of the frond; spores with folded or bumpy
surface, without spines.
3. Pinnae arranged in the plane of the frond, distant;
stipe and rachis persistently chaffy with scales
more than 1 mm wide; indusia ciliate; pinnae
cuneate at the base ................... P. munitum
3. Pinnae folded inwards and oriented about 45ø to the
plane of the frond, imbricate; stipe and rachis
often naked; scales less than 1 mm wide; indusia
entire; pinnae oblique at the base .. P. imbricans
1. Fronds bipinnatifid to bipinnate, the pinnae deeply
lobed, incised, or again pinnate.
4. Pinnae not at all spinulose nor apiculate
......................................... P. lemmonii
4. Pinnae apiculate to spinulose.
5. Fronds clearly twice pinnate, the pinnules dis-
tinct, sessile or petiolate
6. Fronds with a vegetative buds on the rachis;
indusia entire .................. P. kwakiutlii
6. Fronds without vegetative buds on the rachis;
indusia sparsely ciliate on the margins.
7. Pinnules at the base of the pinnae of unequal
length, those pointing up conspicuously
larger than those pointing down
............................... P. setigerum
7. Pinnules at the base of the pinnae about the
same length ..................... P. braunii
5. Fronds bipinnatifid, the pinnules adnate to the
costa for more than 2 mm, usually with fused bases.
8. Pinnae lacking filiform scales on either sur-
face.
9. Pinnae acute at the apex, especially at the
base of the blade, armed with coarse (visible
without magnification) spreading teeth; stipe
shorter than 1/4th of the frond
............................ P. kruckebergii
9. Pinnae obtuse at apex, especially at the base
of the blade, armed with fine, incurved
teeth; stipe at least 1/4th of the frond
length ....................... P. scopulinum
8. Pinnae with filiform scales beneath.
10. Fronds with a vegetative bud on the rachis,
usually one third of the way down from the
tip.
11. Indusia sparsely ciliate on the margin;
infralaminar trichomes with contorted
projections ............. P. andersonii
11. Indusia entire; infralaminar trichomes
simple .................. P. kwakiutlii
10. Fronds without a vegetative bud.
12. Pinnae not incised to the costa, the
pinnules connate at least one-fourth
their length .......... P. californicum
12. Pinnae incised to the costa, the pin-
nules scarcely connate ... P. setigerum
(BEN # 7 10-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
CARPET BEETLES OUTDOORS
From: Cris Guppy
In June both Adolf Ceska and Lesley Kennes brought in varied
carpet beetles [Anthrenus verbasci] collected from local
flowers in gardens [Angelica archangelica & Chrysanthemum
leucanthemum]. I have compared these with specimens in the
collection, and there is no doubt as to there identity.
Lesley Kennes' sample included one Dermestid which was slightly
larger and black. It appears to be an Orphilus sp., of which
there are several similar species.
[Moral of the story: Do not bring carpet beetles into your
herbarium with collected plants! - AC]
(BEN # 7 10-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
SANICULA MARILANDICA ETC.
From: Jim Pojar
Adolf, [..ethnic remarks deleted...] how common or uncommon are
Sanicula marilandica, Parnassia parviflora, and Agrimonia
striata up here in the Skeena drainage? I used to think they
were just around Hazelton-Cedarvale, but Rosamund found the
first two in a young aspen stand along the Telkwa High-Road
near Glentanna (also known as Glacier Ho! because of the
stupendous view).
Last summer I found Pyrola grandiflora in alpine tundra up in
the Telkwa Mtns. Are there any records from further south.
Answers - AC
We have some old collections of Sanicula marilandica from
Kitlathdamot, Nass River (WB Anderson 1925), Kitwanga,
Skeena River (CF Newcombe, 1922) and Kitimat (Mrs. Mendel,
1970). When I went through the Sanicula folder I found a
collection of Trautvetteria caroliniensis (misidentified
by the Mayor of Esquimalt) from West Kootenays (Maryland
Creek, 49 04' 116 54.5'). Agrimonia only from Hazelton and
Kispiox and Parnasia parviflora mainly in eastern B.C.
(but also in Vanderhoof). Pyrola grandiflora south in the
Cassiar District and Ft. Nelson. Nice collections from
Gladys Lake by you, Jim. Check sepals on your Telkwa
specimens. They should be longer than broad, if they are
triangular, go for P. chlorantha!
SEND US VOUCHER SPECIMENS FOR YOUR FINDS !
(BEN # 7 10-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: ERYTHRONIUM MONTANUM
Fred Nuszdorfer sent me a map where he indicated the occurrence of
E. montanum from the Lillooet area. Sites were seen and reported
by Bob Green and Paul Courtin, but there are no voucher
specimens.
REMEMBER TO COLLECT VOUCHER SPECIMENS OF ANY INTERESTING EXTENSION!
(BEN # 7 10-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
CHRYSANTHEMUM LEUCANTHEMUM IN SMITHERS
From: Marten Geertsema
There seems to have been an explosion of ox-eye daisy in the Smithers
area this year. Many fields and road sides that a few years ago, and
even last year, had a few scattered plants, now are white with
the daisy. We plan on mapping the extent of infestations this
summer.
Perhaps Banner's poorly managed "farm" is also the epicenter
of this composite.
(BEN # 7 10-July-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: ERYTHRONIUM MONTANUM
From: G. Allen
Thanks to BEN readers for the tips on Erythronium montanum
locations; they are being followed up as you read this. Please
keep up the good work, and COLLECT VOUCHERS. A reminder: E.
montanum is very difficult to distinguish from E. grandiflorum
(yellow glacier lily) EXCEPT when in flower; shape of the leaf
bases is not a reliable field character. The
latter species is much more common than the former, especially
away from the coast.
[COMMENT: I agree with you, Gerry, and I would like to stress
again, collect vouchers!! Lately I got reports of Gentiana
platypetala from mountains above Jordan River, Abies concolor
from hot springs near the Yukon border, etc., etc. You don't
have to have a plant press (should not it be a standard
equipment of crews studying forest vegetation?), an old phone
book is fine. On a piece of paper write where, how, when, and
who. We all get excited when we see plants growing out of their
ranges and sometimes make mistakes in identification. Adolf ]
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
TWO HUNDRED YEARS OF BOHEMIAN BOTANISTS ON THE PACIFIC COAST
From: A. Ceska
Two hundred years ago, August 10, 1791 THADDAEUS HAENKE, the
first Bohemian botanist on the Pacific Coast, came with
Malaspina's expedition to Nootka Island. The Malaspina's
expedition stayed on Nootka Island till August 28, 1791. A part
of Haenke's collection was sent to the Czech National Museum in
Prague where K.B. Presl (with the help of his elder brother
J.S. Presl and other specialists) published "Reliquiae
Haenkeanae" and described some new species from our area. I can
mention Dryopteris expansa, Torreyochloa pauciflora, Oenanthe
sarmentosa, Carex anthoxanthea, Calamagrostis nutkatensis, and
yes, even Rosa nutkana.
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
PROF. RUDOLF BECKING IN VICTORIA
From: A. Ceska
Prof. Rudolf Becking will be in Victoria from August 10 through
August 14. He is a prominent vegetation scientist and you may
know especially his excellent review article on the Braun-
Blanquet school (Becking, R. 1957. The Zurich-Montpellier
school of phytosociology. Bot. Rev. 23: 411-488). He is
interested in phytosociology of old growth forests and in
marbled murrelets, and he wants to visit the murrelet nesting
site in Walbran Valley. He will be in the museum (herbarium and
bird collection) Monday Aug. 12. If you want to meet Prof.
Becking, please phone me at work (387-2423 or 356-0908) or at
home (477-1211 - 24 hr. answering service).
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
CENCHRUS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: A. Ceska
I was in the Okanagan Valley last week and collected Cenchrus
on the outskirts of Osoyoos (Highway #3 and 25th Street). Terry
Taylor also mentioned the species on BEN. I will notify the
Agriculture Canada weed specialists about this fact. This grass
is not pleasant when it sticks to your pants, although it is
better than Opuntia fragilis.
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
PLANT TAXONOMISTS ONLINE
From: A. Ceska
E-mail addresses of about a hundred plant taxonomists(and about
20 herbaria) are listed in the PTO list. I can send you a copy
of the list, if you are interested.
There is a computer network conference called BIO-NAUT where
people ask questions on how to contact this or that biologist
anywhere in the world and often somebody else knows the answer.
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
Muller, Mary Clay. 1991. Field Guide to rare vascular plants of
the National Forests in Alaska. R10-MB-128 USDA Forest
Service, Alaska Region, Juneau, AK. 63 p.
[USDA Forest Service, Alaska Region, Box 21628, Juneau, AK
99802-1628]
Nice small field guide with illustrations of about 40 species
rare in coastal Alaska. The full list of rare plant taxa of the
"US Forest Service Region Alaska" is given in appendix.
I found it a very interesting reading.
(BEN # 8 8-August-1991)
------------------------------------------
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THIS BEN IS ENTIRELY DEVOTED TO ERICACEAE - THE HEATHER FAMILY
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PREFACE
This is a BIG BEN ! I had a hard time to put it together.
If you want to read it, make a hard copy (what a term!), this
stuff is not for a screen reading. I ran the contributions
through the style checker and the readability index calls for
grade 16! Fasten your seat belts!
One word you should know before reading this BEN is the
TAUTONYM. (I could not find it in any dictionary, including the
Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary of Unusual and Preposterious Words!) The
tautonym is a species name in which the species part (specific
epitheton) repeats the generic name. Tautonyms are allowed in
the zoological nomenclature, but disallowed in the botanical
nomenclature. But are they really disallowed? Read on, if you
want to know the answer.
I would like to thank Bob Ogilvie, Del Meidinger, Terry Taylor
and Oluna for their contributions.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
VACCINIUM IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: R.T. Ogilvie
One of the values of a taxonomic treatment which is
continental or country-wide in scope is that it can present a
comprehensive treatment of species throughout their range,
showing their geographic diversity, and formalizing this
diversity by treating it at the rank of species, subspecies or
variety. To understand a species in British Columbia it is
helpful to know its taxonomic variability throughout its
geographic range. For example, the Ferns and Fern-allies of
Canada (Cody & Britton, 1989) provides a valuable perspective on
circumpolar species such as Athyrium filix-femina, Gymnocarpium
dryopteris, and Dryopteris filix-mas, and also helps clarify our
species problem in B.C. Polystichum through concepts derived from
the pioneer research on cytotaxonomy, polyploidy, and
hybridization of Polystichum in Europe and North America.
A recently published monograph of Vaccinium in North
America, by Vander Kloet (1988), gives an interesting alternative
view of our British Columbia species of blueberries,
huckleberries and cranberries.
Of the 17 native taxa of Vaccinium in B.C., 7 occur across
Canada and the rest are mainly cordilleran or coastal. Five of
the B.C. taxa are omitted from Vander Kloet's treatment, except
for being listed without discussion, in an appendix of synonyms.
Among these are the tetraploid Vaccinium alaskaense which is
included in the diploid V. ovalifolium. There are a number of
distinctive characters separating these two taxa: leaves,
pedicels, fruit, corolla shape, and time of flowering; all these
characters were tabulated and discussed by Calder and Taylor
(1968). Vaccinium globulare is combined under V. membranaceum,
and the nomenclature is confused with V. deliciosum: V.
membranaceum var. rigidum is a synonym of V. globulare, not a
synonym of V. deliciosum, as indicated by Vander Kloet. Also, V.
occidentale (ssp. occidentale), a tetraploid, is lumped into V.
uliginosum, a diploid. The diploid V. microcarpum is included in
the tetraploid V. oxycoccos (s. str.), as is var. intermedia the
hexaploid hybrid between these two taxa. And there is no
recognition of the North American taxon Vaccinium vitis-idaea
ssp. minus.
Vander Kloet gives a brief commentary on finding hybrids
among V. ovalifolium, deliciosum, and caespitosum at Forbidden
Plateau, and among V. ovalifolium, deliciosum, and membranaceum
at Mount Seymour. But no morphological or chromosomal data are
given to support that these are indeed interspecific hybrids
rather than phenotypic intermediates among those species.
Here then, is another way to look at our B.C. species of
Vaccinium; it is one which emphasizes similarities rather than
elucidating differences. Unfortunately, we are given the author's
conclusions with no explanation, no discussion, and no supportive
data from which we can evaluate these conclusions.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
COMMENTS TO VANDER KLOET'S VACCINIUM TREATMENT AND BOB'S REVIEW
From: Adolf Ceska
1) I did not find Vander Kloet's treatment interesting. Weird would be
a better term.
2) If you do not recognize Vaccinium alaskaense, you can find
many hybrids "whose parentage is a curious mixture of V.
deliciosum, V. ovalifolium and V. membranaceum" (Vander Kloet
p. 124) on Paradise Meadows and Mt. Seymour.
3) There are people among us, who can identify sterile Vaccinium
alaskaense with closed eyes. (On the last Botany BC meeting Fred
Nuszdorfer ate branches of Vaccinium ovalifolium, but would not
touch branches of V. alaskaense; according to Fred, those are not
edible.)
4) More favourable review of Vander Kloet's book by Bill Crins
was published in the last Canadian Field-Naturalist 105:145.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
VACCINIUM GLOBULARE
From: Del Meidinger
The taxonomic entity known as Vaccinium globulare Rydb. (V.
membranaceum Dougl. ex Hook. var. rigidum {Hook.} Fern.) is
locally common in the Flathead River valley of B.C., but rare to
infrequent throughout the rest of the southeast interior. The
reason this entity is interesting is that on our side of the
Canada - U.S border, ecologists have generally NOT recognized
Vaccinium globulare, whereas in Montana and Idaho, Forest
Service ecologists do not recognize Vaccinium membranaceum --
their guides only note Vaccinium globulare!
Key characters distinguishing the two species are based mainly
on the shape of the leaves and flowers:
Vaccinium globulare: leaves oblong-obovate, rounded to abruptly
acute at the apex, 2-4(5) cm long; corollas as broad as long.
Vaccinium membranaceum: leaves ovate or ovate-oblong, gradually
acute to acuminate at apex, 2-5 cm long; corollas longer than
broad.
Patricia Martin studied the "taxonomy of the Vaccinium
globulare, V. membranaceum complex in western Montana" as part
of her Masters Thesis in Wildlife Biology. She found that almost
all the flowers collected in Montana & Idaho had corollas that
were broader than long, some were equal (round) and NONE were
longer than broad. In looking at leaf shape, she found a lot of
variability. She felt that the shapes of the second, and
sometimes the third and fourth leaves were "least altered by
physiological developments from position on the stem or flower
formation" and should be used for species differentiation.
However, both membranaceum- and globulare-like leaves were found
in the area with globulare-like flowers. It seems that she
considered that flower shape was inconclusive as collections
that she made from near the 'type' locality of V. membranaceum
had corollas that were broader than long. In using leaf shape,
she concluded that "no pattern of distribution for any type was
obvious".
So, what do we conclude? Based on descriptions of Vaccinium
globulare, we do have this entity in B.C. (definitely in the
Flathead valley; I'm not sure of the other locations cited in
Straley et al. as there are only three specimens in the Victoria
herbaria). Whether we should recognize the entity as a species
or variety of V. membranaceum is not clear from morphological
characters and requires some further biochemical evidence! Until
then, we should have a closer look at leaf and flower morphology
of our Vaccinium's in SE BC!
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
VACCINIUM ALASKAENSE VS. DELICIOSUM
From: Terry Taylor
Does anyone know how to distinguish between young or depauperate
populations of Vaccinium alaskaense and robust ones of V.
deliciosum?
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOG CRANBERRY
From: R.T. Ogilvie
What is the botanical name for the bog cranberry? When
placed in the same genus as the blueberries and huckleberries the
name is Vaccinium oxycoccos. But if the cranberries are
considered generically different from Vaccinium, the correct
genus name is Oxycoccus. This results in the combination
Oxycoccus oxycoccos, where the same word is used for the genus
and species. And this is where the nomenclatural problems arise.
The Code of Botanical Nomenclature does not permit the
specific epithet to exactly repeat the generic name (a TAUTONYM).
But taxonomists are not in agreement over how this rule is to be
applied. Some take a literal interpretation of the rule, and say
if the generic name and specific epithet are not spelled exactly
the same this is a "paratautonym" not a tautonym, and such names
are acceptable. There are several examples where the genus and
species have slightly different spellings because of different
case endings or because of a Greek vs. Latin spelling. Oxycoccus
oxycoccos and Lycopersicon lycopersicum (the tomato) are examples
of the latter, and are nomenclaturally correct according to these
taxonomists. Other taxonomists have argued that the intent of the
rule is to avoid using the same word for the genus and specific
epithet, including situations where they have different spellings
and are a potential source of confusion; further examples of
these are: Lysichitum/Lysichiton, trachycaulum/trachycaulon,
macrocarpum/macrocarpon, polyanthemus/polyanthemos.
There has been periodic discussion of tautonyms over the last
10-15 years. E.L. Little proposed an amendment to the Botanical
Code to include orthographic variants (as in Latin and Greek
case endings) as tautonyms if these variants of the specific
epithet repeat the generic name. This proposal was opposed by
Nicholson (1975 [all cited papers published in TAXON - AC]) on
the grounds that including orthographic variants of names
("paratautonyms") as tautonyms would lead to a subjective
definition of tautonyms, and would make the rule difficult to
follow. Little's proposal was rejected at the nomenclature
sessions of the Leningrad Botanical Congress (1975). Terrell
(1977) presented a lengthy argument against accepting
paratautonyms and made another proposal to redefine tautonyms to
include orthographic variants. This proposed amendment was also
rejected by the 1981 Sydney Botanical Congress. Terrell, Broome
and Reveal (1983) got around the problem of the paratautonym
Lycopersicon lycopersicum by proposing to conserve the widely
used name Lycopersicon esculentum, and rejecting the name
Lycopersicon lycopersicum. This was accepted by the 1987 Berlin
Congress. At the same Congress Rajwar (1985) proposed an
amendment to Recommendation 23B.1(e): "In forming specific
epithets, authors should comply with the following suggestions:
to avoid those which have the same meaning as the generic name
(pleonasm), particularly those that could be considered having
the same origin or as a variant spelling of the generic name
(paratautonyms)". This proposal was rejected at the Congress.
The most recent ruling on tautonyms was by the nomenclature
editor of Taxon (Nicholson, 1987), and it dealt with our plant
Vaccinium oxycoccos. MacMillan was the first to propose treating
the cranberries under Oxycoccus, and he made the combination
Oxycoccus oxycoccus (L.) MacMillan 1892. This is obviously a
tautonym; but Nicholson states that it must be corrected to
Oxycoccus oxycoccos, since it is based on Linnaeus' spelling of
V. oxycoccos. With this corrected spelling Nicholson concludes
that this is not a tautonym and so it is acceptable as the
correct name. But other botanists have voiced dissatisfaction with
this application of the rules, pointing out that MacMillan
intentionally published six tautonyms along with his Oxycoccus
oxycoccus, just as Karsten published a series of tautonyms along
with Lycopersicum lycopersicum. The rules of nomenclature allow
the correction of unintentional spelling errors, but it is clear
that MacMillan's and Karsten's tautonymous spellings were
intentional.
At the present time there is no overall resolution of these
nomenclatural problems: one specific case (the tomato) has been
solved by conserving a more widely used name, but there is still
disagreement over the definition of tautonym, and disagreement
over whether "paratautonyms" are nomenclaturally correct, and
disagreement over whether intentional tautonymous spellings can
be corrected and validated.
To go back to the initial question, the correct botanical
name of bog cranberry, according to the most recent ruling, is
Oxycoccus oxycoccos (L.) MacMillan if placed in a separate
cranberry genus, or Vaccinium oxycoccos L. if included in the
blueberry and huckleberry genus.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
ESSAY ON TAUTONYMS
From: A. Ceska
Once upon a time my friend Marlene gave birth to a
baby girl. Marlene and her husband Brian decided to call the
baby ERICA. A few days later Brian came to the hospital to
take his wife and child home and somebody asked him what
the baby's middle name was going to be. "HEATHER," was his answer.
When he told Marlene this, she shook her head and said:
"Isn't that redundant?" Some botanists would consider this a
pleonasm and would be reluctant to accept it, just as Marlene
was.
ERICA HEATHER OLIVER [not a fictitious name !!!] is now
chasing boys somewhere around Los Angeles. Brian could have
answered, "Her middle name is ERIKA, with a 'k' as in 'knight'."
This would be the so-called paratautonym, and I hope it would
have been rejected even by the hospital official.
The International Code of Botanical Nomenclature does
not allow tautonyms. Bubo bubo bubo (owl) or Bufo bufo bufo
(toad) normally accepted in zoological nomenclature are
ridiculed by us, reasonable botanists. In his excellent book
"Composition of Scientific Words" W.R. Brown wrote:
"NOMENCLATURE NEED NOT COMPETE WITH THE HALLELUJAH CHORUS."
But has anybody checked, how Haendel spelled his
Hallelujah's? It really does not matter, since I know that he
meant to write "Hallelujah, Alleluia, Halleluiah."
No tautonyms at all.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
SHOULD LEDUM REST IN PEACE?
From: A. Ceska
Based on cladistic analysis Kron and Judd (1990) united Ledum
with Rhododendron. There are some significant differences
between these two genera (e.g., Ledum has free petals and
capsules splitting from the bottom up, whereas Rhododendron has
fused petals and capsules splitting from the top down). If you
treat Ledum as a part of Rhododendron, you will run into some
new names coined by Kron & Judd (1990) and by Harmaja (1990):
R. groenlandicum (Oeder) Kron & Judd = L. groenlandicum
R. columbianum (Piper) Harmaja = L. columbianum,
R. neoglandulosum Harmaja = L. glandulosum,
R. subarcticum Harmaja = L. decumbens,
R. tomentosum (Stokes) Harmaja = L. palustre.
If you wish to treat Ledum decumbens as a subspecies of
Rhododendron tomentosum, you have to create a new
combination. If you prefer to treat Ledum as Ledum, you
just shake your head.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
VACCINIUM MYRTILLOIDES ON VANCOUVER ISLAND ?
From: Adolf Ceska
Vander Kloet's map of the distribution of V. myrtilloides has
two dots on Vancouver Island. I have not seen any specimens of
this species from here. Have you ever come across it?
V. myrtilloides is the only western species with hairy twigs.
Looking for V. myrtilloides, you can find Geocaulon lividum. On
the first sight it looks like Vaccinium, but it belongs to the
Santalaceae. We know only three location of this plant on
Vancouver Island (Wowo Lake, Anderson Lake, and Turtle Lake).
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
SPOTTED RHODODENDRON ALBIFLORUM
From: O. + A. Ceska
Last summer we found a population of R. albiflorum with
yellowish to reddish dots on the corolla. The buds have a red
tinge and flowers seem to be smaller than in normal plants.
The population occurs in the Mt. Brenton area north of Duncan on
Vancouver Island. We would greatly appreciate any sightings (or
specimens) of similar plants.
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW LITERATURE
Vander Kloet, S.P. 1988. The genus Vaccinium in North America.
Agriculture Canada Research Branch Publication 1828.
Canadian Government Publishing Centre, Ottawa. xi + 201 p.
$48.50 ISBN: 0-660-13037-8 [paperback]
[Reviewed by R.T. Ogilvie in this BEN.]
Middleton, D.J. 1991. Infrageneric classification of the genus
Gaultheria L. (Ericaceae). Bot.J.Linn.Soc. 106: 229-258.
[Ten sections and 22 series with more than 130 species. The
author includes Pernettya into Gaultheria. Mr. Austin
Wilson used to have an excellent collection of Gaultheria
in his Victoria garden. He would appreciate this paper more
than I can.]
Ravanko, O. 1990. The taxonomic value of morphological and
cytological characteristics in Oxycoccus (subgenus of
Vaccinium, Ericaceae) species in Finland. Ann. Bot. Fennici
27: 235-239.
[The author was unable to distinguish tetraploid Vaccinium
oxycoccos from hexaploid V. hagerupii. In Finland there
were enough morphological characters to separate diploid V.
microcarpum.]
Kron, K.A. & W.S. Judd. 1990. Phylogenetic relationships within
the Rhodorae (Ericaceae) with specific comments on the
placement of Ledum. Syst. Bot. 15: 57-68.
[See Should Ledum rest in peace?]
Harmaja, H. 1990. New names and nomenclatural combinations in
Rhododendron (Ericaceae). Ann. Bot. Fennici 27: 203-204.
[See Should Ledum rest in peace?]
(BEN # 9 5-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
MONTIA HOWELLII AND CIMICIFUGA ELATA IN BC? (OR ELSEWHERE?)
From: Tom Kaye, Oregon Department of Agriculture
kayet@cgrb.orst
Does anyone have information on recent sightings of either of
these plant species? Both taxa are candidates for listing as
Threatened or Endangered under the Oregon Endangered Species
Act. We are currently involved in cooperative projects with the
U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service
regarding these plants in Oregon, and we would like to know
their status to the north. Has anyone seen either of them
recently? Montia howellii grows in vernally moist habitats west
of the Cascades (in Oregon, often in dirt roads through
pastures!), and Cimicifuga elata occurs in old-growth
Douglas-fir, usually on north slopes. Any information on these
species in Canada would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
(BEN # 10 14-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: MONTIA HOWELLII AND CIMICIFUGA ELATA IN BC?
From: A. Ceska
Some time ago I tried to answer the same question to Peter
Zika. My feeling is that Montia howellii is more overlooked
than really rare. It is common on Rocky Point (page 92 in
the Washington Atlas, the unmarked peninsula with Garibaldi
Hill), and infrequent along the shore in Victoria (Harling
Point, Cattle Point), Trial Island, near Ladysmith (Yellow
Point) and on Hornby Island. It has a similar distribution
as our endemic Limnanthes macounii, but it has a wider
ecological range (it also grows on glacial till - heavier
soil - where Limnanthes usually does not occur).
The fact that M. howellii grows on disturbed soils does not
surprise me. The main threats of Montia and other annual
species are the land development and especially the
competition of introduced perennial grasses. In Garry oak
habitats (Q. garryana) introduced species make almost 50
per cent of all species (Roemer, 1974, Ph.D. dissertation).
Disturbance (such as trampling or light grazing) helps to
keep open areas suitable for establishment of annual
species.
In the draft of "rare species tracking list" developed by
the B.C. Conservation Data Centre, Montia howellii and
Castilleja levisecta have the highest rarity rating of all
the species of the coastal British Columbia.
Cimicifuga elata last collected in B.C. Cascades in the mid
1950's. Older (1916 or so) collections from Mt. Cheam by
Macoun. Bob Ogilvie and I were looking for it in 1984-6,
did not find any. This spring I saw the Cimicifuga habitats
in Portland and have a better picture about its ecological
niche. I hope it is still with us, in spite of the logging.
I will repost your note in spring, if we (BEN and I) are
still on E-mail.
(BEN # 10 14-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: BEN #2 - CLAYTONIA EXIGUA SUBSP. GLAUCA
From: Art Guppy
c/o cris.guppy@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca
I am very glad to see that Miller & Chambers are about to
correct a botanical oversight of extraordinary tenacity:
i.e., the failure to recognize that the small, early
flowering, glaucous Claytonia with fully connate cauline
leaves is not C. perfoliata, but is obviously close to what
has been called C. spathulata. I regret they have used the
subspecies classification, rather than varieties, but at
last two plants have been put together.
The little connate-leaved Claytonia is very abundant each
spring on Camas Hill [Art's property on Sooke Rd. past the
junction of Kangaroo Rd. - AC] right beside where I park my
car, and it has been a source of irritation to not have a
reasonable name for it. In disturbed areas (e.g., my veg.
garden) it grows by hundreds amid thousands of
C. perfoliata, and I have seen exactly two intermediates --
probably hybrids. Otherwise the taxa are entirely distinct.
Last winter, looking over old photos, I noticed two taken
in John Dean Park, April 12, 1966: one shows typical C.
spathulata [= C. exigua subsp. exigua], the other shows the
form with fully connate leaves, so certainly they grew
together there then, and likely still do. It would be
interesting to look for intermediates; if there are none,
it would be very interesting. I will collect on Camas Hill
and watch for hybrids to turn up again.
(BEN # 10 14-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW PUBLICATIONS, PAPERS, ETC.
ECOSYSTEMS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA by Meidinger, D. & J. Pojar
[eds.]. 1991. Special Report Series no. 6. B.C. Ministry of
Forests, Victoria, B.C. xii + 330 p. ISBN 0-7718-8997-6
Price: $25.00 [Paperback, spiral binding] Available from:
Crown Publications Inc., 546 Yates Str., Victoria, B.C. V8W
1K8 (604) 386-4636 Fax.:(604) 386-0221
[This is a fascinating publication! It ..."describes
terrestrial ecosystems of British Columbia within the
framework of the ... biogeoclimatic ecosystem
classification." It is a result of about 15 years of
surveys and studies (not counting the studies done by
Krajina and his students) and it is loaded with useful
information. User will have no difficulties to navigate
through the book, in fact, you do not have to read the book
at all. Just look at the pictures! British Columbia
criss-crossed with all biogeoclimatic zones marked; for
each zone a typical slope profiles (catenas?) with main
associations (and even the Sasquatch with a Teutonic helmet
in fig. 61, peeping from the bushes!). Congratulations
guys, you did a very nice job! The price (in Canadian $$$)
is very reasonable. - AC]
(BEN # 10 14-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
SYMPOSIA, MEETINGS
A PUBLIC SYMPOSIUM ON B.C.'S THREATENED & ENDANGERED
SPECIES
When: September 28 & 29, 1991
Where: Robson Square Conference Centre, Vancouver, B.C.
Organized by the Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society &
the Federation of B.C. Naturalists
Further Information:
Endangered Species Conference
c/o/ Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society
P.O.Box 34129, Station "D"
Vancouver, B.C. V6J 4N3
Phone: (604) 736-8750
SYMPOSIUM ON BIODIVERSITY OF NORTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA
When: October 28-30, 1991
Where: The Flamingo Resort Hotel, Santa Rosa, California
Presented by: University of California
Cooperative Extension and Wildland Resources Center
REGISTRATION $75.00 per person if received by Sept. 15, 1991
(Checks payable to U.C. Regents)
Further information:
Extension Forestry,
University of California
163 Mulford Hall
Berkeley, CA, 94720
(415) 642-2360
INTERNET jleblanc@nature.berkeley.edu
(BEN # 10 14-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: BEN #2, #10 - COMMENTS ON CLAYTONIA EXIGUA, ETC.
From: Ken Chambers, via Tom Kaye (kayet@cgrb.orst.edu)
Dear Adolf,
I showed Ken Chambers here at OSU the exchange in BEN
concerning Claytonia and his work with John Miller, and he
offered to make this contribution to the next BEN. Your
readers may find it interesting.
--Tom Kaye
Ken Chambers:
In BEN #2 Adolf Ceska noted some information, given him by Dr.
John M. Miller, about our pending revision of the Claytonia
(Montia) perfoliata complex; and in BEN #10, Art Guppy verified
from his personal observations that a perfoliate form of C.
exigua exists (named by us as subsp. glauca). Claytonia exigua
is the correct name for what goes by Montia spathulata in most
current references. As Adolf reported, this species differs
from C. perfoliata and C. rubra by its near lack of an
ant-attracting elaiosome on the seeds; its other major
difference is in having chromosome numbers based on x=8,
whereas all C. perfoliata and C. rubra are based on x=6. We
have never seen natural hybrids between exigua and perfoliata,
which Art said might occur in stands of the two species he has
observed. Such hybrids would be completely sterile, but there
is a rare chance that their chromosome number might double to
make a fertile allopolyploid. That would indeed be interesting
to discover.
The perfoliate-leaved C. exigua subsp. glauca is always found
to be diploid, with 2n=16; the one other subspecies of C.
exigua is polyploid (4x and 6x in California; usually 6x in the
Pacific Northwest). On Vancouver Island, C. perfoliata and C.
rubra are polyploid and intergrading, the most common
chromosome levels being tetraploid (2n=24) and hexaploid
(2n=36). Diploid C. rubra is in the Cascade Range and eastward
and is a very distinct taxon morphologically, usually red in
color due to betalain pigments, deltoid-leaved, and usually
with a deeply notched "perfoliate" leaf-disc below the
inflorescence. The subspecies on Vancouver Island, called ssp.
depressa, is not glaucous (as Adolf said) but rather is green
and has ovate leaves densely massed in a flattened rosette.
Where it co-occurs with C. exigua, the latter
taxon is distinctive in being gray-glaucous, becoming flesh-
colored as the foliage ages; its leaves are linear to narrowly
spatulate. As already mentioned, the seeds of rubra have a
distinct elaiosome, lacking in exigua. These taxa are quite
thoroughly confused in the treatment in "Vascular Plants of the
Pacific Northwest," by C. L. Hitchcock.
Another overlooked taxon in Claytonia in our region is the
fertile tetraploid derivative of the hybrid, C. sibirica X C.
perfoliata; its species name is C. washingtoniana (Suksd.)
Suksd. It does not have "two pairs of bracts" as Adolf said,
but rather has a single pair of cauline leaves which are
broader and more symmetrical than in C. sibirica and may show a
little basal fusion. It is told from sibirica by its smaller
flowers whose pedicels often are 2-4 at a node in the raceme,
with irregular internode lengths between nodes--versus the very
regularly spaced, one-per-bracteate-node flowers of sibirica.
Washingtoniana differs from C. perfoliata in its larger flowers
and in having a bract at each node of the raceme. Its
chromosomes are a combination of the 12 large ones of sibirica
with the 12 small ones of perfoliata. All three taxa have
seeds with a large elaiosome, and their leaves have an expanded
blade, versus the linear to slightly spatulate leaves of C.
exigua ssp. glauca. There are also linear-leaved types within
the C. perfoliata complex (we use the name C. parviflora for
them); but they are upright, not depressed plants, green not
glaucous, and have seeds with a conspicuous elaiosome.
[Adolf: Many thanks to Prof. Chambers for his contribution. I
apologize for the inaccuracies in BEN #2 (and in any other
BEN).]
(BEN # 11 22-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
SAXIFRAGA CESPITOSA ETC. ON MT. WELLS, VICTORIA
From: Art Guppy c/o cris.guppy@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca
I visited Mt. Wells, off Humpback Rd. May 31 and noticed, in
addition to many of the usual plants for the area, items of
possible interest. There are masses of Saxifraga cespitosa
-- close to var. emarginata (Small) Rosend: glandular only, but
somewhat lax in habit -- on the west side of the summits (where
low cloud collects at night in spring and early summer). The
same plant is on Camas Hill [Art's property on Sooke Rd. - AC],
also on the west side, but in smaller numbers. On one of the
secondary summits of Mt. Wells there are a very few plants of
Luina hypoleuca, rather small in stature (15 cm) and very
handsome. Nearby is what I take to be Arenaria rubella, though
some plants look like annuals. However, two had the remains of
last year's inflorescences. Perhaps introgression with A.
stricta? (Read Minuartia rubella and M. tenella, if preferred.)
Regarding Saxifraga cespitosa, Clark's Wild Flowers of B.C. has
a photo of a few-flowered, probably depauperate plant of this
species which he states was a "densely pubescent form occurring
hear Sooke Harbour." -- apparently what Hitchcock calls var.
subgemmifera and which is reported to occur in the Puget Sound
area. Has anyone seen this pilose or arachnoid form on
Vancouver Island?
(BEN # 11 22-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
MT. FINLAYSON (NEAR VICTORIA, B.C.) CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC
From: Adolf Ceska
Few weeks ago owners of Mt. Finlayson posted no trespassing
signs on the trail to Mt. Finlayson. Mt. Finlayson is a nice
hill (elev. 415 m) adjacent to the Goldstream Provincial Park.
It is a locality of several plants rare on Vancouver Island
(Cheilanthes gracillima, Idahoa scapigera, Crocidium
multicaule, Orobanche fasciculata, Trifolium depauperatum,
Woodsia scopulina, etc.) and the type locality of Saxifraga
rufidula. Sisyrinchium douglasii and Arctostaphylos columbiana
form nice stands near the top. From the rich bryoflora I would
like to mention relatively rare liverworts Targionia hypophylla
and Athalamia hyalina. Dr. Newcombe collected Lomatium
macrocarpum (the only locality known on Vancouver Island) and
Arnica cordifolia (Jennet Renfroe knows it from the nearby
Highlands) on Mt. Finlayson, but I do not know where.
Any publication that mentions the Goldstream Provincial Park
also mentions Mt. Finlayson, usually with a comment that Mt.
Finlayson is not a part of the Park. Why not ? My friends in
the B.C. Ministry of Parks, should not you buy it ? If you do,
get Jocelyn Hill (locality of Meconella oregana, Githopsis
specularioides, Idahoa and Crocidium) as well. You will create
a nice, exciting park reaching from the Goldstream Park
(s.str.) to Mackenzie Bight.
(BEN # 11 22-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
EDITORIAL NOTES
From: Adolf Ceska
The problem of long lists of addresses has been solved thanks
to our network guru Gary Shearman. All subscribers on BITNET
and other NET's should get uncluttered BEN. Subscribers on All-
in-One (Royal B.C. Museum and a part of the B.C. government)
can use "rwd" or "pwd" commands (read-without-distribution or
print-without-distribution, respectively) to suppress printing
of addresses. Other B.C. government subscribers (on PROFS etc.)
may have a similar system available; just ask your system
operator.
In order to get this system running I had to divide the
original distribution list into three separate lists.
Consequently, if you use an automatic reply to BEN's (as Rick
Kool once did), you will address only that part of subscribers
that are on the same distribution list as you are. E.g., if you
are on BITNET, you will communicate only with the BITNET
subscribers and not with those on the B.C. government networks.
In order to make sure that you contribution gets to all
subscribers, please submit it to my address (aceska.cue.bc.ca
from non-government net's or simply aceska from all-in-one
etc.).
(BEN # 11 22-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
PERIGLACIAL NOTES FROM THE HAINES TRIANGLE
This summer I was fortunate indeed to visit the Alsek-
Tatshenshini area of the so-called Haines Traiangle of
northwestern-most British Columbia. It was primarily a
reconnaissance-level evaluation of a proposed wilderness
area centred on Tats Creek in the Alsek Ranges of the St.
Elias Mtns., but naturally I also botanized.
The terrain is spectacular and unrelentingly formidable,
including "some of the most rugged country in North America"
(Holland 1976). We were mostly in the Alsek Ranges, which
lie between the Coast Mtns. to the east and the higher, wet
ter, more heavily glaciated Icefield and Fairweather ranges
to the west. Mountain slopes are very steep, dissected, and
brushy, while the valley floors of the major streams are
vast, flat, and occupied by braided rivers heavily charged
with glacial sediments. "The low timberline and general lack
of vegetation in many parts, coupled with many evidences of
stagnant and receding ice, give the appearance of a land
just emerging from its glacial cloak" (Holland op. cit.).
Nevertheless, there are lots of interesting plants, which
we'll get to in a bit.
The valley of the Alsek River provides the only low-
elevation breach of the windward mountain front, so some
interesting weather funnels in from the North Pacific. The
climate of most of the Alsek Ranges Ecosection (Fenger et
al. 1990) appears to be a cold transitional type, drier than
that of the wet coastal belt (which occurs mostly in ad-
jacent Alaska), but moister, considerably snowier, and less
continental than that of the Tatshenshini Basin Ecoregion to
the east (basically north and east of the confluence of the
O'Connor and Tatshenshini rivers).
Based on Krajina's original map but no fieldwork, we used to
think that the Coastal Western Hemlock zone penetrated into
this part of the province along the lower Tatshenshini and
Alsek. But we were wrong. The biogeoclimatic zonation
portrayed on the 1:500,000 regional map (Pojar & Nuszdorfer
1988) was corrected following fieldwork by Ketcheson and
others in 1988/89, and is accurately depicted on a 1:500,000
wildlife habitat map (Fenger et al. 1990)
The middle Tatsheshini drainage (Duke Depression Ecoregion;
see Fenger et al.) is relatively straightforward, with a
sequence of more or less typical BWBSdk, SWB, and AT in a
cold dry climatic region. From the O'Connor River on down
the Tatshenshini, things change dramatically.
Ketcheson (1989) delimited a cold coast-transition climatic
region, basically t he Alsek Ranges from the height of land
west of the middle Tatshenshini and south and west from the
O'Connor. Subzones in this region are: BWBSwc (wet cold
boreal); previously undescribed; 100-600/700 m SWBwc (wet
cold subalpine); previously undescribed: 600/700-900/1000 m
AT (undifferentiated alpine); previously undescribed;
900/1000 plus m These subzones have no equivalent in B.C.,
although the landforms and vegetation (see Viereck and
Dyrness 1980) are similar in many respects to that of the
Chugach and Wrangell mountains of south central Alaska.
Lower elevations along this stretch of the Tatshenshini
(BWBSwc) have open forest and scrub, with Populus bal-
samifera ssp. balsamifera extensive on floodplains and
carrying on up the lower slopes, where joined by scattered
Picea glauca and Betula papyrifera, and lots of willows.
Populus tremuloides is uncommon, Pinus contorta and Abies
lasiocarpa appear to be absent, and I saw no Tsuga
heterophylla, Picea sitchensis, or Alnus rubra. Spruce and
other conifers appear to be absent along the B.C. portion of
the Alsek above its confluence with the Tatshenshini.
The extensive stands of balsam poplar are noteworthy. In
places (such as along Ninetyeighter Creek) it is the only
tree species present except for scattered white spruce, and
dominates an unusual forest type with an understory of Alnus
crispa ssp. sinuata and a forest floor rampant with Coelog-
lossum viride and Boschniakia rossica.
Young seral vegetation on sandy-gravelly riverbars is
characterized by Salix alaxensis, S. sitchensis, Alnus
incana, Shepherdia canadensis, Dryas drummondii, Epilobium
latifolium, Hedysarum mackenzii, and Solidago spathulata. I
collected Salix setchelliana on such a riverbar at the
confluence of the Tatshenshini and O'Connor.
Mountain slopes and valleys at medium to high subalpine
elevations are covered primarily by shrubby vegetaion,
mostly willows and slide alder (Alnus crispa ssp. sinuata).
The Spruce-Willow-Birch zone here has no scrub birch (Betula
glandulosa) and only scattered white spruce. There are some
very open stands of white spruce and balsam poplar, with a
thick understory of slide alder and willows.
The predominant thickets have tall shrubs of slide alder,
willows (Salix commutata, monticola, alaxensis, barclayi),
other shrubs such as Sorbus sitchensis and Ribes laxiflorum,
and a lush herb layer including Epilobium angustifolium,
Heracleum lanatum, Valeriana sitchensis, Dryopteris
"assimilis", Senecio triangularis, Veratrum viride, Gym-
nocarpium dryopteris, Aruncus dioicus, Sanguisorba sitchen-
sis, Pyrola asarifolia, and Rubus arcticus.
There are many moist meadows dominated by Calamagrostis
canadensis, Epilobium angustifolium, and Heracleum lanatum.
In late July the fireweed was in bloom, and huge mountain-
side patches were suffused with pink, which highlighted a
dark tracery of grizzly bear trails.
The SWB also has extensive Festuca altaica-dominated
meadows. A Festuca altaica-Geranium erianthum moist meadow
at 780 m near Tats Lake featured Phleum alpinum, Calamagros-
tis canadensis, Hierochloe odorata, Trisetum spicatum,
Vahlodea atropurpurea, Carex macloviana, Luzula parviflora,
Angelica lucida, Trientalis arctica, Erigeron peregrinus,
Veronica wormsk- joldii, Pyrola asarifolia, Aconitum del-
phiniifolium, Artemisia norvegica, Arnic a latifolia,
Senecio triangularis, Epilobium angustifolium, Achillea
millefolium, Rubus arcticus, Veratrum viride, Ranunculus
occidentalis, Viola langsdorfii, Sanguisorba sitchensis,
Valeriana sitchensis, Moehringia lateriflora, and Vaccinium
caespitosum. I also found Saussurea americana in this com-
munity.
A drier Festuca altaica-Empetrum nigrum meadow had Trisetum
spicatum, Cares microchaeta, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Vac-
cinium uliginosum, Galium boreale, Achillea millefolium,
Huperzia selago, Coeloglossum viride, and Botrychium lan-
ceolatum.
The extensive alluvial gravel bars and freshly exposed till
support a Salix- Dryas drummondii-Epilobium latifolium
community type, with thickets of Salix alaxensis, S. mon-
ticola, S. commutata, S. lanata, S barclayi, S. arctica,
Alnus crispa ssp. sinuata, Shepherdia canadensis, and
stunted balsam poplar. Other characteristic species include
Heracleum lanatum, Equisetum variegatum, C alamagrostis
canadensis, Deschampsia cespitosa, Trisetum spicatum,
Erigeron acris, Arabis lyrata, Pyrola asarifolia, Castilleja
unalaschcensis, Parnassia kotzebuei, Stereocaulon paschale,
S. tomentosum, and Rhacomitrium spp.
There are also some nice sloping fens on toe slopes, with
Trichophorum cespitos um, Eriophorum angustifolium, Carex
capillaris, C. membranacea, C. kelloggii, C. garberi ssp.
bifaria, Platanthera dilatata, Equisetum arevense, E.
variegatum, Erigeron peregrinus ssp. peregrinus, Tofieldia
pusilla, Viola palustris, Sanguisorba sitchensis, Anemone
parviflora, Thalictrum alpinum, Pinguicula villosa, Poten-
tilla fruticosa, and Leptarrhena pyrolifolia.
The alpine tundra vegetation of the drier climatic region,
as for example on calcareous sedimentary ridges at 1500-1700
m on the west side of the Tatshenshini near Sediments Creek,
is about what would be expected---- dwarf willows, Dryas,
Festuca altaica, and lots of lichens. The prevailing tundra
type can be characterized as Salix reticulata-Festuca al-
taica, with Salix polaris, Dryas integrifolia, D. oc-
topetala, Potentilla diversifolia, Solidago multiradiata,
Campanula lasiocarpa, Bistorta vivipara, Myosotis alpestris,
Artemisia norvegica, Antennaria monocephala, A. umbrinella,
Gentiana glauca, G. propinqua, Cerastium beeringianum,
Stellaria monantha, Senecio lugens, Zygadenus elegans,
Sibbaldia procumbens, Veronica wormskjoldii, Anemone par-
viflora, Lupinus arcticus, Arctostaphylos rubra, Hedysarum
alpinum, Mertensia paniculata, Sanguisorba sitchensis,
Silene acaulis, Sedum rosea, Lycopodium alpinum, Aconitum
delphiniifolium, Empetrum nigrum, Poa alpina, P. arctica,
Phleum alpinum, Festuca brachyphylla, Carex microchaeta, C.
albo-nigra Kobresia myosuroides, and Juncus drummondii.
Snow beds have Salix reticulata, S. polaris, Artemisia
norvegica, Carex microch aeta, Phyllodoce empetriformis,
Valeriana sitchensis, Veratrum viride, Ranunculus occiden-
talis, and Vahlodea atropurpurea.
Exposed windblown ridgecrests with fine scree supported
excellent cushion plant tundra that included Dryas in-
tegrifolia, D. octopetala, Silene acaulis, Saxifraga
tricuspidata, S. cernua, S. adscendens, S. nivalis, S.
punctata, Potentilla fruticosa, P. uniflora, P. hyparctica,
Salix polaris, S. stolon- ifera, Vaccinium uliginosum,
Taraxacum ceratophorum, Senecio lugens, Antennaria
monocephala, A. alpina, Hedysarum alpinum, Papaver
radicatum, Anemone parviflora, Myosotis alpestris, Oxyria
digyna, Astragalus alpinus, Campanula lasiocarpa, Ranunculus
nivalis, Cardamine bellidifolia, Stellaria monantha, Sedum
rosea, Draba spp., Agropyron violaceum, Hierochloe alpina,
Festuca brachyphylla, Poa arctica, Trisetum spicatum, Luzula
spicata, L. arcuata, Carex albo-nigra. I also collected
Polemonium boreale ssp. boreale var. villosissimum,
Oxytropis huddelsonii, Arnica louiseana ssp. frigida, A.
angustifolia ssp. tomentosa, Erigeron uniflorus ssp.
eriocephalus, and Saxifraga bronchialis ssp. funstonii on
these ridges.
West over the height of land on upper slopes (acid intrusive
Noisy Range-it was) on the west side of Tats Creek, the
alpine tundra in the moister, transition climatic region was
quite different. At 1020 m, a Cassiope stelleriana-Empetrum
nigrum-Phyllodoce glanduliflora mesic to moist, alpine
heath: Cassiope mertensiana, Phyllodoce empetriformis, P
Xintermedia, Vaccinium uliginosum, V. caespitosum, Salix
stolonifera, S. arctica, something intermediate between the
two (funny goings-on between S. arctica and S. stolonifera
in this region, as I recall Argus mentions), S. reticulata,
Lycopodium sitchense, L alpinum, L. clavatum, Huperzia
selago, Castilleja parviflora, Valeriana sitchensis,
Hieracium triste, Luetkea pectinata, Artemisia norvegica,
Veratrum viride, Trientalis arctica, Sanguisorba sitchensis,
Rubus arcticus, Antennaria umbrinella, Bistorta vivipara,
Pedicularis capitata, Anemone richardsonii, A. parviflora,
Gentiana glauca, Arctostaphylos rubra, Carex microchaeta,
Vahlodea atropurpurea, Festuca altaica, Hierochloe alpina,
Luzula parviflora, and L. arcuata.
At 1300 m, Salix-Empetrum nigrum-Loiseluria procumbens with
Salix reticulata, S. stolonifera, Arctostaphylos rubra,
Cassiope tetragona, Dryas octopetala, Sedum rosea,
Pedicularis capitata, Silene acaulis, Artemisia norvegica,
Antennaria monocephala, Lupinus arcticus, Gentiana glauca,
Anemone narcissiflora ssp. interior, and I also collected
Primula cuneifolia ssp. saxifragifolia, which was common.
On Pentice Ridge east of the Melbern Glacier, at 1600 m on
granitic rubble, I collected Dodecatheon frigidum, Arnica
louiseana ssp. frigida, and Oxytropis jordalii.
Note that I was only there for three days, and only had a
few hours to spare for real collecting. No doubt there are
other interesting species and B.C. rarities to be dis-
covered. The region is virtually uncollected west of the
Tatshenshini. It definitely deserves a proper biological
survey, not just our usual rushed, opportunistic reconnais-
sance. Perhaps something like the expedition to the Brooks
Peninsula. There is money around these days, if a campaign
were to be properly orchestrated. And don't forget the area
is under siege by heartless mining interests and Howe Street
charlatans.
Sincerely yours,
Jim Pojar
Forest Science Officer
Smithers
(BEN # 12 24-September-1991)
------------------------------------------
PC VTAB 1.3
From: Del Meidinger
Version 1.3 of PC-VTAB is now available. If you haven't
heard of PC-VTAB, it's a PC version of the UBC VTAB program
for vegetation and environment data tabling. It combines
the best features of the mainframe VTAB and the BCFS
vegetation tabling program (VEGSORT), constancy data
tabling program (CONMENU), and environment/mensuration data
program (ENTREE). So, if you're collecting, entering,
editing, and tabling vegetation data, this program is for
YOU.
For a copy, send three high density diskettes to :
Del Meidinger
Forest Science Research Branch
BC Ministry of Forests
31 Bastion Square
Victoria V8W 3E7
It takes about 2.8 Mb of hard disk space.
(BEN # 13 7-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOTANICAL 'COFFEE' TALK
From: Del Meidinger
Times-Colonist -- October 3, 1991 -- FRONT PAGE
"Kiwis spend years hunting orchid - then sit on it"
"AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- Botanists who spent years
searching for a rare orchid-- thought to be extinct --
found the precious flower when they accidentally sat on it
during their lunch break.
After four futile days wallowing in a peat bog in search of
the tiny Corybas carsei, the demoralized conservation
department botanists paused for lunch and found they were
sitting on the flower, the New Zealand 'Herald' reported.
The orchid blooms just two days a year.
Despite the weight of the scientists, the plant was not
harmed and 14 others were found nearby.
They are being kept at a secret location."
Note: I wonder if our conservation botanists have any
stories that would merit the front page of the
Times-Colonist!
[I sent the story through E-mail to three botanists in New
Zealand. Their answer, if any, will appear in the next BEN
- AC]
(BEN # 13 7-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
NOXIOUS WEEDS
From: Jim Pojar
JANOS anxiously awaits the results of your district-wide
weed survey. Gap analysis is certain to confirm our fears;
heavy infestations centred on the Banner property, with an
alarming secondary upwelling at Bigelow Lake (S. Thomson
residence).
And what about Lythrum salicaria ???? It could be
infiltrating the Bigelow littoral as we "speak".
[Jim,
I have just returned from the speakers tour to Gold River,
Courtenay, and Parksville. As a school trustee you may be
interested in one school that had a head lice infestation.
Shortly after a head check they had an earthquake drill and
children cuddled up under the desks and loudly counted to
sixty. I am sure that the earthquake drill helped to spread
lice.
Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) has made it to
Quadra Island, and to the Campbell River and Courtenay River
estuaries. Naturalists from Courtenay are pulling it out
and composting, but Motel Washington planted it around
the motel's pond. The management does not want to destroy
it and the naturalists suggested a municipal bylaw banning
this plant from Courtenay gardens. Meanwhile, the
municipality of Esquimalt with their ecologically minded
mayor (Cris Clement, R.P.Bio 348) banned untidy lawns with
Taraxacum, Hypochaeris and Leontodon.
I also checked a population of Spartina patens near Goose
Spit, Comox, discovered in the 1970's by Chris Brayshaw.
Spartina is doing very well in the upper Salicornia zone. -
Adolf]
(BEN # 13 7-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
SOMETHING OF LITTLE IMPORTANCE
FROM: Andy MacKinnon, Forest Geriatrician
I need some sound botanical advice, BEN editor. I have
always believed that members of the genus Ribes could be
separated into 'gooseberries' and 'currants' depending on
whether they were armed (gooseberries) or not (currants).
Several people (and several published works) agree.
Recently I have come upon two books which differ, one of
them describing Ribes lacustre, for example, as "prickly
currant" (an oxymoron?). Please advise.
Please append to my previous request this one (unless you
can solve it pre-BEN):
One common name for Rubus arcticus is 'dwarf nagoonberry'.
I have been unable to determine the origin of this unusual
name. Could someone please enlighten me?
Thanks, Adolf. As with bank cards and Botany B.C., I don't
remember how I got along before BEN.
Regards,
Andy MacKinnon, Old Growth Project
387-6536 (fax) 387-0046
(BEN # 13 7-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
NOXIOUS WEED ALERT
From: Roy Cranston
Just received a copy of BEN #13 through David Ralph. I was
previously unaware of this ... service, Please add my name
to your mailing list for future additions.
For information we have issued Weed Alerts to noxious weed
personnel on the following:
1. Rush Skeletonweed - Chondrilla juncea. This was discovered at
the CP Rail station at Sirdar in 1990. Identification confirmation by
Bob Ogilvie.
2. Wild Four O'Clock - Mirabilis nyctaginea. Discovered at
Spences Bridge by Ministry of Agriculture staff in 1991.
3. Velvetleaf - Abutilon theophrasti. Found in cornfield at
Chilliwack in fall of 1990.
4. Syrian bean caper - Zygophyllum fabago. Reported to us by
Okanagan County, Wash. weed control staff as being right on the
border at Nighthawk. Surveys on our side of the border failed to
find any plants.
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
POSITION OPEN - BOTANY TECHNICIAN - ROYAL ONTARIO MUSEUM
The Botany Department of the Royal Ontario Museum is
seeking a Technician to maintain two herbarium collections,
the Vascular Plant Herbarium (TRT) and the Cryptogamic
Herbarium (TRTC), and to do other related activities
associated with each.
The incumbent will sort, identify, mount, and label
specimens, enter data on computer, maintain herbarium
equipment and supplies, fill loan requests and respond to
public inquiries, and participate in fieldwork.
Qualifications include a University degree with
specialization in Botany and at least 2 years technical or
collections-related experience. Candidates must be able to
identify fungal and/or vascular plant specimens; experience
with bryophytes, lichens or algae would be an asset. Strong
organizational skills and high level of accuracy are
required as well as demonstrated communication,
interpersonal and supervisory skills. Experience with
MS-DOS, Wordperfect and dBase are also essential. Previous
fieldwork would be an asset, and the qualified candidates
must be able to undertake fieldwork under isolated
conditions and move and carry heavy objects. A driver's
license is required.
Please apply in writing, no later than October 18, 1991,
to: Cheryl McClellan, Human Resources Department, Royal
Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ont. M5S 2C6.
Phone: 416-586-5547, FAX: 416-586-5863
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
WASABI SEARCH UNSUCCESSFUL
From: Adolf Ceska
Last weekend Dan Borman (WA) with his wife and a small
child came to search for wasabi on Rendezvous Islands near
Quadra Island. Wasabi, or Japanese horse radish (Eutrema
wasabi) is an essential ingredient to sushi or sashimi as
all the Yuppies on the BEN list certainly know.
Dan heard about wasabi having been grown there, however, his
search turned out only a new locality of Petasites japonicus.
He said that an interesting system of terraces was build in
the creek valley and it is difficult to imagine that all
that work would be done only to plant Japanese colt's foot,
whose culinary value in Japanese cuisine is marginal.
It is possible that a similar search in spring or early summer
could bring better results.
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
ELECTRONIC BOTANY HOW TO
From: Adolf Ceska
When Rick Kool introduced me to CONSLINK list I rejected it
immediately, objecting that it would add to my e-mail I had
to read (cf. Hans Roemer's reaction to BEN). After few
messages I received through the CONSLINK, I realized that
there is another dimension to the e-mail than messages
about oncoming parties or calls for lost or forgotten
trolleys. I subscribed not only to CONSLINK, but also to
HERB, ECONET, WILDNET, BIOSPHere, RECYCLE etc., etc. To
satisfy my programming ambitions I read PASCAL lists.
Occasionally I called for help addressing the lists, or
answered the question asked by others. (I have already
mentioned several of these lists on previous BENs and I'll
bring a longer list of lists later.)
I missed a list that would deal with botany and the
Pacific Northwest and I created BEN. The first pre-BEN
message was a news about fruiting Takakia, a mysterious
liverwort of the Queen Charlotte Islands and Brooks
Peninsula which turned to be (as Barbara Murray predicted)
in fact a moss. I thought Jim Pojar and people in Smithers
should know. The BEN subscriber list has been growing ever
since.
I would like to answer Bill Burk's message (BEN #13) and I
solicited several articles on electronic communication that
will cover these questions.
Some questions are answered in Gary Shearman's article (How
BEN works). Rick Kool in Datastroika calls from breaking
the Government computing structure and getting access
to TELNET and FTP.
The advantages of having TELNET and FTP are clear:
If you have the access to TELNET, type
telnet melvyl.ucop.edu
You will get connected to the library catalogue of the
University of California libraries with over 10,000,000
titles and you can search for whatever you want. If you do
not know, how to search, type "help" at the prompt and the
help will come. There was a case of mushroom poisoning of
seventy-seven Vancouver policemen this spring (the Hyatt
Regency Hotel served raw morels at the retirement party for
the Chief of the Vancouver Police) and I was asked what was
the toxin and how to detect it (I guess that a mass
poisoning on the police party calls for an
investigation!). MELVYL gave me bibliographic references of
about fifty books dealing with mycotoxins.
Another nice network service is TAXACOM. Based in Buffalo,
you can access it through your modem by phone, however, you
have pay for your phone call. A cheaper way to get to TAXACOM
is through FTP (File Transfer Protocol) by typing a command
ftp herbarium.bpp.msu.edu
Few words of warning. FTP is NOT a user-friendly operation.
You have to know what you are doing. I have several
articles on how to use FTP and I will stuff them in BEN. At
this time I am appending a short list of instructions
distributed by TAXACOM (How to use TAXACOM FTP server ...).
The access to MELVYL and TAXACOM is free of charge. There
are obviously better data bases such as DIALOG, where you
have to pay connecting charges and a fee for any bit of
information you extract from the data base.
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
HOW BEN WORKS
From: Gary Shearman <shearman@cue.bc.ca>
I'm sure we are all enjoying Adolf's "BEN" newsletter. I
must congratulate Adolf for his initiative in taking
advantage of the opportunity to make BEN so widely
available. Adolf has asked me to explain how BEN gets
distributed.
BEN is being distributed as electronic mail on the
Internet. The Internet has evolved over a number of years
into a very large and extremely important vehicle for the
academic and research communities. It is a high speed
electronic "highway" or "pipeline" connecting university
campuses, research labs and developers in a large and
growing number of countries. The whole Internet itself is
now growing very rapidly, 30% a month is the figure that I
have seen.
The cue telecommunications node is one of the distribution
points for BEN. CUE is connected to BCNet, which is our
regional network. BCNet is a part of CA Net, which is the
Canadian component of the Internet. CA Net is connected
to the rest of the Internet at two points, Vancouver and
Toronto.
CUE has established a "distribution list" for BEN. A
distribution list solved the annoying and growing problem
of seeing everyone's name at the start of each BEN. Adolf
mails an issue of BEN to that list and it automatically
gets delivered to the individual "mailbox" of each person
on the list.
For those receiving this through the BC Systems All-in-One
or Profs services, the route is somewhat different. Adolf
has now split BEN into a couple of other lists expressly
for people using Government e-mail service. The connection
between that service and the Internet is still evolving.
[See article on DATASTROIKA !]
Adolf has already mentioned other distribution lists
available to the Internet community, such as "Herb", which
is a list containing news about medicinal and aromatic
plants. As many of you with Internet connections will
already know, it is also possible to log into remote
services, such as the University of California's MELVYL
library catalog [through TELNET], and to retrieve files from
remote archive servers [using FTP].
A short personal anecdote might best serve to illustrate
the potential of this wonderful resource.
Some months ago I had occasion to ask a technical question
on one of the newsgroups connected to the Internet. I had
several answers back in 24 hours. The most useful one
came from a gentleman at the University of Tasmania! He
recommended that I join a new list on the subject that was
just starting up at Yale. That incident certainly brought
home to me just what a powerful vehicle the Internet is.
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
DATASTROIKA
From: Rick Kool <rkool@cue.bc.ca>
When David Mattison, a Librarian at the BC Records and Archives
Service, first mentioned the concept of 'datastroika' to me, I
knew I had found a kindred spirit. For years, I had been
boggled by the monopoly on computing and electronic
communications that the British Columbia Systems Corporation
(BCSC) had. All government electronic mail had to go through
one of BCSC's three clunky systems- IBM's Profs, WangOffice, or
DEC's All-In-One.
The problem with BCSC were both the cost, and the hassle. Most
email in most government ministries is internal, that is, you
are most likely to be communicating with someone in your
branch, then in your ministry, then in other ministries, and
least likely to go out to the rest of the world. So, to get a
message to a guy down the hall, I have to hook into a computer
across town, send a message, pay for someone to handle the call
and store it until my associate also logs on to a distant
machine to get my message. This is not cheap! Why not, I
thought, have email decentralized- have it live in my building
for all of the internal stuff, and then use BSCS as a router
for anything going elsewhere. And, at the same time, save on
the cost of using an expensive system with a high overhead
cost!
The other problem is that BCSC won't let me do what I want to
do. While BCSC is part of the Internet through its association
with BCNet, I can't seem to get them to let me use the Telnet
or FTP features of BCNet. Telnet, for example, allows a user
to jump to the logon of a distant computer anywhere in the
world. One use of this is for on-line library searches. The
University of California has an on-line catalogue of many
millions of volumes, all of which can be searched at no cost
through a Telnet connection. Other libraries in North America
and Europe also have this option, assuming you can get to them.
FTP (anonymous file transfer protocol) allows a user to logon
to a remote host and take files. This might mean going into a
software repository at Stanford and getting the latest virus
checker, or going into the Jet Propulsion Lab and taking a
number of the Voyager images. REAL Internet email lets you do
these things- BCSC seems to have difficulty.
The real solution is to have all the different branches and/or
ministries to have their own Internet address. The cost is
relatively cheap and communication within government would
still be easy (as easy as it is to talk to anyone anyplace in
the world). Telnet and FTP would be available, at no charge,
to those wanting to use them. IF YOU ARE A GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEE, ASK YOUR SYSTEMS PEOPLE ABOUT GETTING ACEESS TO
TELNET AND FTP.
Datastroika is unlikely to come about quickly. However, voice
your concern! Ensure that you can access your electronic
birthright, the freedom of network access!
{As an added note, the University Computing Services of the
University of BC puts out a great monthly publication, Campus
Computing. Call them for a free subscription! - RK}
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
HOW TO USE TAXACOM FTP SERVER ON THE ACADEMIC/RESEARCH
NETWORK
TAXACOM FTP Server allows Internet access to scientifically
oriented text files and programs, especially those dealing
with aspects of systematic biology. Available for
downloading is the journal Flora Online, the DELTA
taxonomic programs, the LABELS3 herbarium data management
programs, and other material of interest to systematic
biologists. Access is by "anonymous FTP" at
ftp herbarium.bpp.msu.edu or 35.8.196.1.
From a computer connected to the Internet, start the FTP
program and use either the host name or IP address given
above as the destination, e.g. FTP 35.8.196.1. Enter
"anonymous" as the user id. "Dir" or "ls" lists the files
in the current FTP SERVER directory. "Cd" to change
directories; the TAXACOM files are located under the
subdirectory "pub" (once connected at the "FTP>" prompt,
type "cd pub"). To return to the previous parent directory
type "cd .." "Get <filename>" copies the remote file to
your computer, "mget" uses "*" as a wild card symbol to
copy multiple files in one operation. For help with other
FTP commands, type "help" at any FTP> prompt. When
downloading compressed (8-bit) files be sure to specify
"binary" or "image" at the FTP> prompt before issuing a
"get" or "mget" command, otherwise the files you retrieve
will be unusable. The programs you receive are generally
for MS-DOS microcomputers, so you should copy these to such
machines.
(BEN # 14 14-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
MUSHROOM DAY IN THE ROYAL BRITISH COLUMBIA MUSEUM
When: Saturday October 26, 1991 10:00 - 16:00
Where: Royal B.C. Museum - Lobby
This is an annual event organized by the mycologists from
the Pacific Forestry Centre (John Dennis, Brenda Callan &
Al Funk) with help of other mushroom enthusiasts (Ted
Underhill, Adolf & Oluna Ceska) and often also with moral
support of Andy MacKinnon.
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
TRIP TO SAANICH INLET
From: Adolf Ceska
On October 12 the expedition consisting of Hans Roemer,
John Pinder-Moss, Oluna and Adolf tried to find a locality
of poison oak (Rhus diversiloba) in Saanich Inlet. Poison
oak was collected there by J.R. Anderson about ninety years
ago. We launched our three-men Zodiak in the Goldstream
Marina and went slowly along the shores of the inlet from
the marina to the mouth of the Spectacle Creek and to Elbow
Point. We did not find any poison oak.
We used this opportunity to check the Giant Chain Fern
(Woodwardia fimbriata) on the Malahat side of Saanich
Inlet. This locality was discovered by J.R. Anderson.
Later Dr. Newcombe and his son followed Mr. Anderson's
instructions and made a nice collection of Woodwardia in
1919. In 1977 we used Dr. Newcombe's notes and rediscovered
the site on a field trip with Jim Pojar and George Douglas.
(Jim found it.)
The population of Woodwardia has declined since our trip in
1977. There were about thirty plants of Woodwardia
there in 1977, today we found only about twelve plants. Some
old thick rhizomes had one or two relatively small leaves and
we saw several dead rhizomes. The series of cold winters,
denser and darker growth of a second growth forest, or drier
soil conditions are probably responsible for the decline.
I phoned to people who watch the Woodwaria population on
Mark Lane off Willis Point and their plants are growing
well.
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
DUCKS UNLIMITED, ENVIRONMENTALISTS LOCKED IN BATTLE
Calgary Herald, Oct. 12?/91 (Jim Love via BIOSPH-L)
For months, environmentalists in Manitoba have fought a
bitter, public battle over the plan by Ducks Unlimited to
build an office building amid some of the best waterfowl
habitat in the country.
No full public federal environmental review will be done.
The building is two stories and will have 100 employees.
The location in Oak Hammock Marsh has been compared to
Point Pelee National Park in Southern Ontario. The marsh
is half the size of Prince Edward Island. The Centre hopes
to attract 200,000 visitors annually. The World Wildlife
Fund is fighting the project.
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: BEN #11
ALASKA FISHERMEN PROTEST BC MINE
From: J.A. Love (via BIOSPH-L)
US fishermen who work the lower Alsek River have set aside
their differences with river rafters and joined their
opposition to the Windy Craggy copper mine in northwestern
British Columbia. "I'd like to send a message to the BC
government that as a commercial fisherman, as a person who
makes his living on this river, they should not let this
mine go through," said Paul Smith, who has fished the Alsek
for 10 years. , "A mine would wipe out this river and not
only that, it will destroy one of the greatest
wilderness rivers in the whole West Coast so that no one's
kids will be able to enjoy it."
The mine is proposed by Geddes Resources of Toronto but
opposed by environmentalists and river rafters on the Alsek
and Tatsenshini Rivers. Glacier Bay rangers said more than
635,000 kilograms of fish were caught last year on the
lower Alsek river.
Greg Dungeon, a law enforcement officer in the Glacier Bay
preserve, said fishermen who used to object to the
disruption caused by river rafters now see them as allies
to protect the fisheries and a traditional way of life.
"They're now seeing rafters as confederates rather than
conspirators," said Dungeon.
Mine proponents say it would employ 600 people for at least
20 years and would contribute one percent to the worlds
copper production. There are concerns, however, that the
deposit's high sulphide content will create an
uncontrollable problem with acid mine drainage. Smith said
he is worried about acids and chemicals which will be
contained in a tailings pond behind a huge earthen dam in a
high earthquake zone.
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
WILDERNESS BRAWL LOOMS:
Calgary Herald October/91 (Jim Love via BIOSPH-L)
The conflict over Tatshenshini wilderness in northwestern
BC "is probably going to be hotter than South Moresby.
It's a classic wilderness story, a national and
international issue," says Harvey Locke a Calgary Lawyer
who' president of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness
Society.
To Geddes Resource Limited of Toronto (Northgate
Exploration and Cominco are major shareholders) want to
take the top off Windy Craggy mountain in an open pit
mining operation that would giver it access to one of the
richest mineral deposits in Canada. - 165 million tonnes of
ore over the next 50 years. - copper, cobalt, sliver, gold.
- 350 million a year in gross copper revenues alone.
Geddes President Gerald Harper says mine will be in
operation in mid-1990s if it gets appropriate environmental
approvals. Project will generate $200 million in direct
taxes.
Main Environmental issues: A 100 kilometre long roadway and
an acid-rock drainage lake that will be formed by two dams.
Harvey Locke says that if the Lake Geddes plans to build on
a tributary of Tats Creek (Flows into Tatshenshini river)
and gets into the river it will turn it into an "acid
sewer" and wipe out a major Alaskan Salmon fishery
downstream. This is one of the most seismically sensitive
areas of North America.
Gerald Harper downplays the danger from the man-made lake
that would be five kilometres long by one kilometre wide by
saying the lake is necessary because the waste material
mined with copper has a high iron ore sulphide content
which will eventually produce sulfuric acid when exposed to
air and water. Its put under water to stop that process.
- All structures will be designed to withstand an
earthquake that would be powerful enough to topple
mountains and produce tidal waves that would wash away
coastal communities.
- "If our dam go breached by an earthquake of that size
there wouldn't be a Tatshenshini river for it to flow
down."
- As for the road, road traffic will be limited after
production to four trucks a day (During production one
every ten minutes).
- Fuel and slurry (mine ore in water) will be transported
by pipeline).
US National Parks Conservation Association and World
Wildlife Fund are working to draw attention to the problem.
They have obtained coverage by numerous magazines,
including LIFE.
The Tatshenshini wilderness is probably the most densest
grizzly bear habitat in the world. Its the only place in
BC where the Blue Bear or glacier bear, a species of black
bear can be found. There are golden and bald eagles in
abundance.
Locke says, "Its scenically astounding with big glaciers
coming down to the river at 1000 feet elevation - one of
the wildest places I've ever seen," says Locke, an
experienced wilderness traveler who places the Tatshenshini
river trip among the two 10 river experiences in the world
along with Africa's Zambezi some Himalayan rivers and the
Bio-Bio in Chile.
Locke, president of a group that in the past advocated a
co- operative approach to issues such as management of the
Waterton National Parks ecosystem and Bow Valley Corridor
developments says "No compromise is possible on this open
pit mine. No mine is the
only solution."
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
VICTORIA MARATHON
Del Meidinger and Andy MacKinnon participated in the
Victoria Marathon on October 13. They both finished. It was
the first marathon for Del, the second for Andy.
Congratulations!
(BEN # 15 23-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
MUSHROOM SEMINAR - UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
"Mushroom biology, notes on Agaric ecology, biogeography,
evolution, anatomy, taxonomy and impact on society"
Speaker: Dr. Scott Redhead - Biosystematics Research
Institute, Ottawa
Time: Friday October 25, 1991 3:00 p.m.
Place: University of Victoria, Cunningham Building 146
Free: Coffee and cookies
(BEN # 16 24-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
KULAJDA [kool-aida] - SOUTH BOHEMIAN MUSHROOM SOUP
Ingredients: handful or more of dried mushrooms, 3 medium
potatoes, caraway, salt, 400 g sour cream, table spoon of
flour (Five Roses - All Purpose), vinegar.
Boil dried mushrooms, diced potatoes, caraway and salt for
20-35 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Mix flour into
sour cream and add it in the soup. Boil for 15 minutes. Add
salt and a few drops of vinegar (be careful not to overdo
it!).
(BEN # 16 24-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
WANTED: DOCUMENTED DESTRUCTIONS OF NATIVE PLANTS
From: Nancy Turner & Alison Davis
Nancy Turner and Alison Davis (Environmental Studies
Program - UVIC) started an inventory of documented cases
of the destruction of rare, endangered or unusual plants in
"natural" park areas. This could include park activities
such as trail or road construction, moving, placement of
structures or ditches, etc. over plant habitat, theft of
plants, or any other intentional or unintentional human
activity.
If you know of any such case, please provide as much
information as possible about the circumstances: date,
season, location, what took place, what plant(s) were
involved, and what was the impact on plant populations,
with quantitative estimates if possible. We would like your
assessment of how the destruction happened, and how or if
it could have been avoided. Would you be willing to be
cited in this inventory as "personal communication."
We are hoping to compile this information to see if any
patterns emerge that would provide clues for suggestions to
avoid such incidents in the future. For example, we suspect
that park works projects undertaken in the winter months
may cause undue destruction of plants not visible or
recognizable at this time of year. If initial
reconnaissance could be made during the growing season,
placement of trails, picnic tables, pit toilets, or salmon
spawning channels could be adjusted to avoid specific
patches or populations of plants.
The results of this study would, we hope, be published in a
journal like Canadian Biodiversity. Thanks for any
observations (or insights).
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: DOCUMENTED DESTRUCTIONS
From: Adolf Ceska
1) You can contact Nancy through e-mail by sending a
message to BTURNER at the governmental network or to
Bob.Turner@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca
2) When Nancy phoned me about this project, she quoted my
article in the Victoria Naturalist that described destruction of
Nuttall's quillwort (Isoetes nuttallii) in Beacon Hill
Park. - The city parks department erected a plaque
commemorating that a principal of a Japanese high school
donated several sakura trees to Victoria. The only suitable
place for this very important memorial was a wet depression
hosting locally rare plants.
3) Several years ago Oak Bay engineering department
serviced hydrants in Uplands Park in winter and their heavy
truck got stuck in a big vernal pool in the open meadow area
of the park. To cover the mess they brought a load of
gravel and spread it over the tracks. I have to stress that
the Oak Bay parks department did not know what the other
department was doing.
4) Ignorance is a common denominator of all these cases.
"Father, forgive them: for they do not know what they do."
[Luke 23:34]. We Bohemians would say "O sancta simplicitas!"
[O holly simplicity!] These were the last words of the Czech
reformer Jan Hus at the stake when he saw an old peasant
woman bringing a bundle of sticks to throw on the pile.
5) There is a remedy. Form, join, contact, support, help
local groups such as Friends of Beacon Hill Park, Thetis
Lake Nature Sanctuary Association (the danger of building
the Vancouver Island highway "Colwood Interchange" in
Thetis Park is still real !!), Neighbours of the Chinese
Cemetery. Ten years ago I went with the Oak Bay municipal
council to Trial Island. It was out of season, but people
making decisions realized that Trial Island is more than
a pile of rocks. It is an ecological reserve now.
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
RARE AND ENDANGERED SPECIES & MT. FINLAYSON
From: Sherry Kirkvold (skirkvold@cue.bc.ca)
Just a note to let you know that the info from BEN 11 on
Mt. Finlayson has been circulated within our office [B.C.
Ministry of Parks]. The people who look after purchasing
land had no idea of the botanical value of the area, only
its recreation value. Unfortunately, the asking price for
this piece of land is the reason that nothing is happening
at present, although there is certainly an interest in
acquiring this property.
I would suggest that botanists continue to share their
knowledge about localities of rare plants etc. to assist
those responsible for acquiring land in making informed
decisions.
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
CURRANTS, GOOSEBERRIES, AND OTHER OXYMORONS
From: Bob Ogilvie
(bob.ogilvie@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca)
When I read Andy MacKinnon's request for advice and
enlightenment on oxymorons and nagoons I couldn't resist
the urge to respond.
Currants and gooseberries are separated by three
characters: gooseberries have spines and prickles, the
pedicels are not jointed so the berry falls with the stalk
attached, and the flowers and berries are solitary or in
small (2-4) clusters. Currants lack spines and prickles,
the pedicels are jointed so the berry falls without a
stalk, and the flowers and berries are in elongated
racemes.
These three characters are usually correlated, so some
taxonomists have used them to define separate genera:
Grossularia - the gooseberries, and Ribes - the currants.
Unfortunately for taxonomists these three characters are
not consistently correlated: there are prickly currants
(Ribes lacustre, Ribes montigenum) and spineless
gooseberries (Ribes inerme)**. Splitters have dealt with
these anomalies either by making a third genus (Limnobotrya
lacustris, Limnobotrya montigena), or else ignoring them.
These misfits have also been given a diversity of common
names: Ribes lacustre has been called prickly currant,
bristly currant, bristly black currant, swamp black
currant, black gooseberry, swamp gooseberry, and swamp
black gooseberry.
Oxymorons are not restricted to Ribes. How about Black
Blueberry for Vaccinium membranaceum (Taylor & MacBryde),
or Red Blueberry for Vaccinium parvifolium (Hitchcock). And
there is Rubus, divisible into the blackberries having a
fleshy receptacle which forms part of the fruit, which
should be black; and the raspberries in which the
receptacle is not fleshy and the fruit separates from it
leaving a hollow centre, and the fruit should be red. Thus,
we have Rubus pubescens called Red Blackberry and Rubus
leucodermis called Black Raspberry.
Which brings us around to Andy's second question: Rubus
arcticus - nagoon berry. I always associate this name with
other vernacular names like: osoberry, wahoo, yampah,
wapato, or puccoon - resonant folk-names which enliven
botanical nomenclature.
I know these few words cannot do justice to such
fundamental questions, but I hope they have cast a small
light which will illuminate the way to an ultimate
understanding of nagoons and oxymorons.
** Spineless gooseberry (Ribes inerme) is not only
an oxymoron, but also a misnomer. It has spines ! - AC
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
RE: NOXIOUS WEEDS - MIRABILIS NYCTAGINEA
From: Terry Taylor (c/o rtaylor@cue.bc.ca)
Huber Moore found a population of Mirabilis nyctaginea near
Okanagan Falls about three years ago.
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
BEN MAIL BOX
From: "William R Burk" <WMRBURK@UNC.BITNET>
When I received over 25 copies of the same message on 7
October from you, I was a little reluctant to communicate
as I had trouble deleting the messages. But that has been
fixed. As I may have mentioned before, I am the biology
librarian at the University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill
and also I am a botanist with the formal education in
mycology. I was very excited to see your notice about
Scott Redhead's talk and only wished I was in your area.
We have a local mushroom club of about 85 people which I
helped co-found ten years ago. Presently I am the
Secretary/Treasurer and help put together the club's
newsletter. I hope we could use the recipe that you
provided in our mycophagy section of the newsletter. Let
me know if it is all right to do so. My special interest in
botany, although old-fashioned, is the bibliography of
mycology. If there are others out there with similar
interests in any area of botany, I would certainly like to
hear from them. I appreciate your electronic newsletter.
Bill Burk
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
MUSHROOM DAY IN THE ROYAL BRITISH COLUMBIA MUSEUM
Mushroom Day October 26 was a success. The Newcombe Program
thanks to the Pacific Forestry Centre (Brenda Callan, John
Dennis, Rod Garbutt), external experts who happened to be
in Victoria (Scott Redhead, Lorelei Norvell), and all
volunteers (Al Funk, Ted Underhill, Andy MacKinnon, David
Lai, Oluna Ceska) for their help.
If you are interested in a list of mushrooms on the show,
send me a message (aceska@cue.bc.ca).
David Lai took addresses of people interested in mycology.
If you are interested in joining a mycological group in
Victoria, send your name to Brenda Callan
(bcallan@pfc.forestry.ca).
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW LITERATURE
Arora, David. 1991. All that the rain promises and more... : a
hip pocket guide to western mushrooms. Ten Speed Press,
Berkeley, California. xxii+261 p. : ill. ; 18 cm.
[I heard that this is a nice book and I have ordered few
copies for the Royal Museum Shop.]
Harmaja, H. 1991. Taxonomic notes on Rhododendron
subsection Ledum (Ledum, Ericaceae), with a key to its
species. - Ann. Bot. Fennici 28: 171-173.
[Further arguments for inclusion of Ledum into the genus
Rhododendron. New name for Ledum palustre as Rhododendron
should be R. tomentosum Harmaja.]
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEXT BEN
BEN will be silent in November.
After thirty years of marriage, Oluna and I decided to have
a honeymoon. I was in the Czechoslovak army when we got
married and they gave me one day for the wedding and two
days for travel. The situation in Czechoslovakia was
extremely tense. The Berlin Wall was just being erected and
Oluna's parents insisted on our marriage: they wanted to
see Oluna as a widow of a fallen soldier rather than a
heartbroken girlfriend.
We are going to paramos and jungles of Ecuador.
I have a material for one more BEN and I hope to put it
together before I leave. It will be a technical issue with
lists of discussion lists, info on useful computer software
and on problems with networking. Boring topics for most of
you, but you can skip it, if you are not interested.
Hasta luego!
(BEN # 17 31-October-1991)
------------------------------------------
CORRECTION OF BEN # 17
In WANTED: DOCUMENTED DESTRUCTIONS OF NATIVE PLANTS I gave
a wrong GEMS (Government E-Mail System?) address of Bob Turner:
His correct address is RDTURNER. Cdnet address was correct:
(bob.turner@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca).
Snail address : Nancy Turner & Alison Davis, Environmental
Studies Program, University of Victoria, Victoria, B.C.,
V8W 3P4
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
MARK IN YOUR CALENDAR
December 4, 1991 - David Douglas Society Annual Meeting.
Phone Bill young (652-3002) for details.
December 5, 1991 - Seminar on "Finnish forest ecosystem
studies in laboratory scale: nutrients, carbon,
biodiversity" by Dr. Heikki Setala (Univ. of Jyvaskyla,
Finland) - Pacific Forestry Centre, 506 West Burnside,
10:30 a.m.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW SUBSCRIBER
Judy Godfrey's GEMS address is JGODFREY.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
HIGH AWARD TO LASZLO ORLOCI
Prof. Laszlo Orloci (Univ. Western Ontario, London, Ont.)
was elected to the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in
summer 1991.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW PUBLICATION
Douglas, G.W., G.B. Straley & Del Meidinger [eds.]. 1991.
Vascular plants of British Columbia. Part 3 - Dicotyledons
(Primulaceae through Zygophyllaceae) and Pteridophytes.
Special report series # 3, B.C. Ministry of Forests. 177 p.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
THANK YOU ALL
I was surprised how many e-cards I got to our belated
honeymoon. The nicest came from Jim Pojar: "Adolf, I
thought your life and 'work' in Victoria has been one long
honeymoon." Thank you, Jim, you are very kind indeed!
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
USEFUL DISCUSSION LISTS
In previous BEN's I mentioned few lists worth subscribing
to (CONSLINK, HERB).
Most of the lists are served by a program LISTSERV and in
order to subscribe, you have to send the following message
To: listserv@<node-id>
Subject: ... does not matter ...
subscribe <list> your name
E.g. If I want to subscribe MUSEUM-L@UNMVM.BITNET, I will
send the following message:
To: listserv@unmvm.bitnet
Subject: get me on museum-l
subscribe MUSEUM-L Adolf Ceska
That's it. Do not send your subscription to the list
address (such as museum-l@unmvm.bitnet). If you do, the
message goes to all the subscribers and they will see right
away that you misunderstood my instructions.
I grouped the lists into several categories. The lists are
order by their activity. Those most active are listed
first, least active last.
1) Lists on ecology and environment
ECONET@MIAMIU.BITNET - A discussion of Ecological and Envi
BIOSPH-L@UBVM.BITNET - Biosphere, ecology, Discussion List
CONSLINK@SIVM.BITNET - Discussion on Biological Conservation
RECYCLE@UMAB.BITNET - Recycling in Practice
UNCEDGEN@UFRJ.BITNET - Public discussion List about Envir
2) Lists on botany, use of plants, applied botany
HERB@TREARN.BITNET - Medicinal and Aromatic Plants discussion list
NEWCROPS@PURCCVM.BITNET - New crops
AG-FORST@IRLEARN.BITNET - BIOSCI AgroForestry Bulletin Board
AGRIC-L@UGA.BITNET - Agriculture Discussion
3) Lists on botanical techniques, classification, etc.
TAXACOMA@MSU.BITNET - TAXACOM announcements
TAXACOMP@MSU.BITNET - TAXACOM programmers
TAXACOMT@MSU.BITNET - TAXACOM technical
CLASS-L@SBCCVM.BITNET - Classification, clustering, and phylogeny est
MORPHMET@CUNYVM.BITNET - Biological Morphometrics
4) Lists of certain societies and interest groups
ASEH-L@TTUVM1.BITNET - AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORIANS
ENTOMO-L@UOGUELPH.CA - Entomology discussion list
ECOLOG-L@UMDD.BITNET - Ecological Society of America list
EJC@SUVM.BITNET - Information Exchange Among Ecology Students a
ENVST-L@BROWNVM.BITNET - Environmental Studies Discussion List
MUSEUM-L@UNMVM.BITNET - Museum topics
PACIFIC@BRUFPB.BITNET - Pacific Studies, whatever comes
5) Lists of general network information
NEW-LIST@VM1.NoDak.EDU - List of new lists
BIO+NAUT@IRLEARN.BITNET - Search for an address (biologists)
LISTS NOT SERVED BY LISTSERV
An excellent list of this kind is WILDNET. If you want to
subscribe, send your message (in free language) to Eric
Woodsworth / Canadian Wildlife Service / Saskatoon / Canada
/ 306-975-4023 !ejw@access.usask.ca or
woodsworth@sask.USask.ca
LISTS FOR BIRDERS
BIRDEAST@ARIZVM1.BITNET
BIRDCNTR@ARIZVM1.BITNET
BIRDWEST@ARIZVM1.BITNET
BIRDCHAT@ARIZVM1.BITNET
BIRDBAND@ARIZVM1.BITNET
BIRD_RBA@ARIZVM1.BITNET
The National Birding Hotline Cooperative (NBHC) is pleased to
announce that another list, BIRDBAND, has been added to those
available for those interested in wild birds. The following lists
are now available on NBHC:
BIRDEAST -- Transcripts of current Eastern U.S. Hotlines
BIRDCNTR -- Transcripts of current Central U.S. Hotlines
BIRDWEST -- Transcripts of current Western U.S. Hotlines
BIRDCHAT -- A list to discuss birding experiences, birding
hotspots, and just about anything else of interest
regarding wild birds. Please, no chatter here about
pet birds.
BIRDBAND -- A list provided for bird banders to discuss their
trade.
BIRD_RBA -- The original NBHC list, now reserved for discussions
amongst those providing hotline transcripts to the
first three lists.
The rules are few and simple: 1) no discussion of pet birds is
allowed on BIRDCHAT or BIRDBAND. 2) no postings of any sort, other
than transcripts of bona fide U.S. hotlines, are allowed to
BIRDEAST, BIRDCNTR, or BIRDWEST. That's it!
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
POP UP YOUR dBASE FILES
A shareware program POPDBF is an excellent program. With
the use of a hot key, you can access different data bases
from your application program. You
can browse, view, and even export data from the data base
into a word processor. The registration costs US$35.00.
The program is in a file POPDBF.ZIP on the Big Blue &
Cousins (Victoria IBM PC Users' Group) bulletin board and
I downloaded a copy. I browsed through the manual (over 50
pages) and was amazed. The cut-and-paste capability of
the program is impressive.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW VERSION OF DELTA PROGRAMS
New versions of the DELTA programs are now available on the
Taxacom FTP server. The server can be reached via anonymous
FTP at: herbarium.bpp.msu.edu (35.8.196.1).
These were made available for network distribution by M. J.
Dallwitz, CSIRO Division of Entomology, Canberra, Australia.
New features include:
Changes to CONFOR in formatting and typesetting
directives, an option for translating into HENNIG86
format, and directives for character images.
Intkey has been completely rewritten, new features
include: improved scrolling, pop-up menus and help
screens, the ability to link illustrations with
characters and taxa, improved memory handling for
larger data sets, among others.
The DELTA programs run under MS-DOS and are distributed as
self-extracting, archive files with *.exe file names. There
are also three text files in the distribution.
When FTPing from the Taxacom FTP server, be sure to put FTP
into "binary" mode, with the "binary" or "image" command at
the "FTP>" prompt, otherwise the 8-bit, self-extracting archive
files will be unusable.
(From: TAXACOMT list)
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
LASER PRINTER ARCHIVAL QUALITY ?
There have been a vivid discussion on TAXACOM TECHNICAL re
archival quality of the laser printer prints. Most
participants agreed that teh laser printers produce
permanent copies. The last contribution, however, was
rather interesting:
From: TAXACOM TECHNICAL <TAXACOMT@msu.edu>
Authorizing-Users: Linda Sims <MNHEN003%SIVM.BITNET@msu.edu>
To: Adolf Ceska <aceska@CUE.BC.CA>
Reply-To: Linda Sims <MNHEN003%SIVM.BITNET@msu.edu>
Subject: Laser printer generated labels.
>From TAXACOMT@msu.edu Tue Oct 29 07:26:02 1991
>Comments: Converted from PROFS to RFC822 format by PUMP V2.2
From: Linda Sims
I submitted for testing with the Conservation Analytical Laboratory of the
Smithsonian Inst., a series of untreated, treated, and several types of printer
labels (mainframe,desktop laser and impact printer generated). The results were
published in the "Curation Newsletter" Spring 1990, No. 10:2-3. However,
under field conditions (Peruvian jungle), a recent finding has changed my views
on this topic and I can no longer recommend laser printed labels for entomol-
ogical labels. These problems and new preliminary findings will be published in
the "Insect Collection News" due out Nov. 1991.
Linda Sims
Dept of Entomology
National Museum of Natural Hist.
Smithsonian Institution
MNHEN003@SIVM.BITNET
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
FROM WILDNET
Subject: The truth about StatSoft and CSS:STATISTICA
Message-Id: <9110281436.AA00521@pmbrc.UUCP>
Sender: pmbrc!ejw (Eric Woodsworth)
The document "The Truth about Statsoft and CSS:STATISTICA" by Leland Wilkinson
(president of Systat, Inc) is a searing condemnation, with a number of
examples, of a company named StatSoft which has been "producing
marketing materials which contain serious factual errors and false allegations
concerning SYSTAT, SPSS, STATGRAPHICS, and other statistical packages.
Furthermore, its extremely negative marketing materials conceal the fact
that StatSoft has imitated SYSTAT's advertisements, many of its algorithms,
and even copyrighted material in SYSTAT and other packages."
The numerous examples demonstrate how CSS produces very wrong results for
many basic procedures, how it obviously fails to understand many of the
procedures and graphical techniques in other packages, and how it attempts
to cover up its incompetence.
The basic moral of the story is "don't buy it". For further details, contact
Systat, Inc. I can provide details to those who are interested.
(BEN # 18 8-November-1991)
------------------------------------------
EDITORIAL
BEN is back. Our trip to Ecuador was exciting and
interesting but if you want to go there for a honeymoon,
better wait those thirty years. It was quite stressful.
We enjoyed a short trip to the tropical jungle (where we
got lost); paramos were equally exciting. Ecuadorians
were nice to us. We did not have money to get to
the Galapagos, so we should try again one day.
I was thinking about BEN every day and I got tears in my
eyes when I saw a sign "BIG BEN BAR" in the Alameda Hotel
in Quito.
Before we left I sent earlier issues of BEN to those
botanists around the Pacific Northwest who are not on
e-mail. I will include their notes in the next issue of
BEN.
I would like to stress that (paraphrasing WILDNET's
disclaimer) all "information and opinions expressed in
BEN are solely the responsibility of the originator."
(BEN # 19 21-December-1991)
------------------------------------------
LAST MINUTE CHRISTMAS PRESENTS - ALTIMETER WATCHES
Cassio 376 and Cassio 510 watches combine the watch with
an altimeter, barometer and a depth sensor (for diving).
There is also a Citizen brand that does about the same.
(BEN # 19 21-December-1991)
------------------------------------------
BOTANICAL SEMINARS - UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
Biology Department, UVIC
All seminars on Friday at 146 Cunningham 15:00-16:00
with Social Hour in Carl Reading Room 16:00-17:30.
Jan 24, 1992 Louis Hobson (UVIC): Carbon concentrating
mechanisms in aquatic plants.
Jan 31, 1992 Rolf Mathews (SFU): The paleoecology of rising
timberlines and falling lakes - an early
Holocene analogue for the future climate in
western Canada.
Feb. 14, 1992 Nigel Livingston (UVIC): Are plants masters
of thermodynamics, economics and feedback
theory?
Feb 28, 1992 M. Jones (Okanagan College): Biological costs
and benefits of ectomycorrhizae?
(BEN # 19 21-December-1991)
------------------------------------------
NEW LITERATURE
Pojar, J. 1991. Subalpine and alpine vegetation of the
Gladys Lake Ecological Reserve, northern British Columbia.
Contributions to Natural Science #12, Royal British
Columbia Museum. 28 p. ISSN 0829-609X Price: $2.00 + GST
($0.14). Available from the Royal Museum Shop or from
the Crown Publications.
This publication is a good survey of vegetation of a part
of the Spatsizi Plateau Wilderness Park. Jim did
the fieldwork in 1975 when he was still with the Ecological
Reserves Unit. The work describes plant communities and
gives their floristic composition in several summary tables.
The vegetation-habitat relationships are summarized in
separate tables.
Jermy, Clive & Josephine Camus. 1991. The illustrated field
guide to ferns and allied plants of the British Isles.
Natural History Museum Publications, London. xiv + 194 p.
ISBN 0 565 01172 3 [Paperback] Price: $21.50.
"Written by experts on the staff of Botany department at
The Natural History Museum, London. [The book] is a definitive
account of the species of ferns and allied plants
encountered in Britain and Ireland." Good identification
keys. "The salient diagnostic points are clearly listed
against line drawings made by Peter Edwards" (pteridologist
at the Kew herbarium). This is an excellent treatment. One
thing I did not like is the omission of synonyms.
(BEN # 19 21-December-1991)
------------------------------------------
SATIN FLOWER: A NAME CHANGE
From: R.T. Ogilvie
bob.ogilvie@rbm.galaxy.bcsystems.gov.bc.ca
Early spring brings to each region its own
spectrum of gay flowers. One of the showiest
of the display in the Pacific North-west is
the "Grass Widow", which dangles magenta cups
from the summit of its slender, swaying stems.
These words were written by Harold St. John in 1931 in a
paper on the nomenclature of the Satin Flowers (Grass
Widows, or Purple-eyed-grass) in the genus Sisyrinchium or
Olsynium. In B.C. there are two taxa: a coastal one
restricted to the saaniche habitats of Vancouver Island and
adjacent Gulf Islands (Sisyrinchium douglasii), and an
Interior taxon restricted to the Adams Lake - Chase -
Little Shuswap Lake area (Sisyrinchium inflatum).
Two recent publications have proposed splitting off the
Satin Flowers from the rest of the Blue-eyed-grass taxa
into a separate genus. One of these, by Goldblatt, Rudall
and Henrich (1990, Syst. Bot. 15:497) is based on the
results of a cladistic analysis, the other paper by Anita
Cholewa and Douglass Henderson (1991, Madrono 38:232), is a
short note on the nomenclature of Sisyrinchium inflatum.
The satin-flowers differ from the blue-eyed-grasses in
having larger flowers, 2-3 (1-4) flowers per inflorescence,
reddish-purple (not blue) flowers but varying from light
magenta, pale lilac-pink, reddish-purple to deep-purple;
the filaments of the stamens joined together in a tube
between one-third to one- half their length, and the tube
slightly to strongly enlarged at the base; and the stems
are more rounded and the leaves are non- equitant.
It was David Douglas who discovered the coastal satin-
flower in 1826 at The Dalles just east of the Columbia
River Gorge, and it was named Sisyrinchium douglasii by
Dietrich in 1838. Rafinesque split off the satin-flowers
into a new genus Olsynium in 1836, and the combination
Olsynium douglasii (Dietrich) Bicknell was made by Bicknell
in 1900. The Interior satin-flower was discovered by
Wilhelm Suksdorf at Spangle just south of Spokane,
and it was named by him in 1923 as Olsynium inflatum
Suksdorf.
Harold St. John's 1931 paper, from which the above lines
are quoted, evaluated the characters separating Olsynium
from Sisyrinchium, and he concluded that flower colour is
too trivial a character and filament fusion too variable to
warrant recognition of separate genera. In the same paper
he argued for recognition of separate species for the
coastal and Interior satin-flowers, since they maintain
their morphological differences and show no sign of
hybridizing where they grow together naturally in
south-central Washington, and when cultivated in the same
garden they maintain their distinguishing features. St.
John treated the two taxa as Sisyrinchium douglasii
Dietrich and Sisyrinchium inflatum (Suksdorf) St. John.
The recent paper by Goldblatt et al. (1990) presents the
results of a cladistic analysis of 26 morphological,
anatomical and chromosomal characters of the New World
sisyrinchiums and related genera. They conclude that the
separation of Olsynium from Sisyrinchium should be
recognized. Douglass Henderson and Anita Cholewa, who have
done biosystematic studies on the Pacific Northwest
sisyrinchiums, agree that the satin-flowers warrant generic
recognition, but the Interior taxon should be treated as a
variety, not a species. In their 1991 note they accept
Olsynium douglasii for the coastal satin-flower, but make
the name change Olsynium douglasii var. inflatum (Suksdorf)
Cholewa & Henderson for the Interior satin-flower.
We have thus gone through a full cycle of name changes,
starting with Sisyrinchium in the 1800's, Olsynium from
1900 to 1930, Sisyrinchium for the last sixty years, and
now back again to Olsynium. Nor is this the end of the
nomenclatural story. We also have a yellow-eyed-grass on
the southwestern coast which we have been calling
Sisyrinchium californicum (Ker-Gawl.) Dryand. Does the
yellow-eyed-grass stay with the blue-eyed-grass genus or go
into the purple-eyed satin-flowers? Fortunately for future
splitters, the question has already been answered; in 1812
the yellow-eyed-grasses were split off into the genus
Hydastylus. So there is the name Hydastylus californicus
(Ker-Gawl.) Salisbury for those who wish to use it.
(BEN # 19 21-December-1991)
------------------------------------------
THE SEARCH FOR RARE PLANT COLLECTIONS
From: Del Meidinger
On December 9th, George Douglas and Del Meidinger visited
the Williams Lake Forest Region herbarium (WLK). This
herbarium contains 5622 mounted sheets of vascular plants.
Through the efforts of Anna Roberts and Ray Coupe', this
is one of the best small herbaria in BC. The plants are
well mounted and kept, and the identifications are
excellent.
With Anna's assistance, we examined 83 sheets of rare
plants for entry into the Conservation Data Centre
data bank. Almost all these collections were Anna Roberts!
A suggestion for BEN: a synopsis of BC herbaria; local
College, Federal, Provincial (BCFS, BC Environment, etc),
plus the UVIC, UBC and Royal BC Museum herbaria. Info
such as address, # of specimens mounted, (and unmounted?),
curator, accessibility, etc. [Add: pest control, special
collections, duplicate exchange, loans, u.s.w. - AC]
RE: THE SEARCH ...
From: Adolf Ceska
1) Anna Roberts' contribution to the knowledge of plants in
the Cariboo-Chilcotin area is phenomenal. If you do not
know Anna, or if you are not sure, check "The Birds of
British Columbia" Volume One, page 39. Anna is an excellent
ornithologist and she can listen to birds while collecting
plants. I visited the Williams Lake herbarium quite a few
years ago and I agree with Del. I wish the Royal BC Museum
would get more duplicates from Ray & Anna (or Jim, or ?).
2) Speaking about important herbaria. What is the
situation with the BC Forest Service herbarium in Nelson?
I know that it contains many good distribution records from
SE British Columbia. Is it still in the storage, who knows
where?
3) The suggestion for the herbarium synopsis is fine and
any contributions are welcome.
Question for the BENitos outside BC: Does your herbarium
have any specimens from British Columbia? The Anderson's
collection, for instance, went to the Pullman herbarium.
Where are the old collections from Port Renfrew's Botanical
Beach University of Minnesota station?
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)
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RE: CHONDRILLA JUNCEA (BEN # 14)
From: Malcom E. Martin, R.R. #1, 3 - 48,
Vernon, B.C. Canada V1T 6L4
We have had Chondrilla juncea just north of Vernon since at
least 1985 or 86 on bare, unstable sides of a disused
gravel pit. No competition, plenty of room to spread but it
doesn't to be doing so, bar a few plants on roadside
nearby. Lulling us into a false sense of security?
[Chondrilla looks like an anorexic chicory: a composite with
heads of blue flowers on wiry stems with wiry leaves - AC]
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)
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RE: VACCINIUM SP. (BEN # 9)
From: Ed Tisch, Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA 98362
Here on Olympic Peninsula, where I have collected data on
Vaccinium for many years, I've rarely had trouble
separating mature V. alaskaense, V. ovalifolium and V.
deliciosum in the field. The first two, though often
similar in size, are readily separable on vegetative
features alone. Our larger Vaccinium species have
depauperate (juvenile) evergreen forms that do present
problems where V. alaskaense, V. ovalifolium, V.
parvifolium and V. membranaceum occur mixed. I've always
felt a bit uncertain about these.
Relative to Terry Taylor's question regarding the
separation of juvenile V. alaskaense and robust specimens
of V. deliciosum, I would offer the following suggestions;
(1) V. deliciosum is relatively shade intolerant and rarely
extend into shaded environments -- nor does V. alaskaense
(at least over here) often extend into subalpine meadows
where V. deliciosum tends to occur in admixture with V.
membranaceum. (2) Therefore, in older, closed forests
expect to find V. alaskaense; in younger (subalpine)
forests with canopy openings be on the alert for occasional
V. deliciosum. (3) The leaves of V. deliciosum tend to be
glaucous, widest above the middle, basally cuneate, and
usually stand somewhat upright on the twig. Those of V.
alaskaense are generally non-glaucous, widest at or below
the middle, basally obtuse or rounded, and tend to have a
horizontal disposition.
Relative to A. Ceska's question regarding the occurrence of
V. myrtilloides on Vancouver Island: after 25 years of
"looking" I have never encountered anything that even
resembles V. myrtilloides on the Olympic Peninsula -- which
shares quite a bit of phytogeography with Vancouver Island.
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)
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RE: CIMICIFUGA ELATA (BEN # 10)
From: Ed Tisch
Tom Kaye asked about Cimicifuga north of Oregon. There are
only 3 or 4 records of this plant on the Olympic Peninsula,
probably all in fairly close proximity in a moderately warm
north-south valley called Elwha Canyon. Two early
collections, one definitely from that area, are listed in
G.N. Jones' (1936) Botanical Survey of the Olympic
Peninsula. About 10 years ago, on "posted" property in that
same valley, I stumbled into a small population growing at
the shaded base of a basaltic cliff. If anyone wished to
see the site, I'd be willing to guide them to it. This is
just north of Olympic National Park, very close to the
road, in an area bristling with NO TRESPASSING signs.
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)
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PLAYING GOD - WHY WE SHOULDN'T TRY TO SAVE EVERY ENDANGERED
SPECIES
This is a title of an article series related to the problem
of vanishing species. The series is published in THE ATLANTIC
magazine, January 1992 issue (vol. 269, no. 1) and it is
worth reading. [AC]
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)
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NEW BOOKS -- PHILLIPS STRIKES AGAIN
Some time ago I announced a new mushroom book by Roger
Phillips. Malcolm Martin pointed out to me that Roger Phillips
wrote a nice book on European mushrooms and although there
are many mushrooms that grow both in Europe and North
America, Phillips used different photographs for each book.
Malcolm recommend to buy the European edition as well, if
you can find it.
Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix joined their forces again and
produced the Random House "indispensable new reference book
for every gardener" similar to those on Roses, Shrubs or
the Bulbs. This time it is on PERENNIALS. It does not fit in
one volume and the authors had to split their topic into
"Early" and "Late" perennials. Each volume costs $30.00, I
have not bought it, but I will.
(BEN # 20 31-December-1991)