Issues #90 to #100 (January to April 1995)
NEW SPECIES OF DOUGLASIA FROM NORTHWESTERN ALASKA
An article published in Novon featured a description of Doug-
lasia beringensis, a new species from the Seward Peninsula in
the Bering Strait region of Alaska. Douglasia beringensis is
most similar to Douglasia montana (from Montana, Idaho, Wyoming
and British Columbia). The paper also deals with the Russian and
North American concepts of the genus Douglasia and Androsace and
gives a key to all nine species of Douglasia known from North
America.
Ref.: Kelso, S., B.A. Yurtsev & D.F. Murray. 1994. Douglasia
beringensis (Primulaceae): A new species from northwestern
Alaska. - Novon 4: 381-385.
(BEN # 90 28-January-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW BOOK: "LICHENS OF SOUTHEASTERN ALASKA, AN INVENTORY"
Geiser, L.H., K.L. Dillman, C.C. Deer, & M.C. Stensvold. 1994.
Lichens of southeastern Alaska: An inventory. - USDA
Forest Service, Alaska Region, R10-TB-45, Tongass National
Forest, Petersburg, Alaska. 145 p. [78 bibl.ref.]
This inventory includes 453 lichens from southeastern Alaska,
and is the most comprehensive lichen inventory of that region to
date. Most of the occurrence documented here are from 258 plots
that were established on the Tongass National Forest between
1989 and 1993.
The introductory parts of the book describe southeastern Alaska,
most of which is in the Tongass National Forest; and discuss
inventory methodology and results. The bulk of the book is
comprised of descriptive entries for each of the 453 lichens.
Each entry includes a distribution map of southeastern Alaska,
description of habitat, range, abundance in southeastern Alaska,
abundance in North America, and sensitivity to air pollution
(when known). Special notes are included for some taxa to high-
light range extensions or unusual collections.
The 49 fine pen and ink illustrations of selected lichens were
drawn by Alexander Mikulin, a visiting lichenologist from the
Russian Academy of Sciences.
The book can be obtained, at no cost, from Everett Kissinger,
Stikine Area, Tongass National Forest, Box 309, Petersburg,
Alaska 99833, or Mary Stensvold, Sitka Ranger District, 201
Katlian Street, Suite 109, Sitka, Alaska 99835.
(BEN # 90 28-January-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW BOOK: LATE QUATERNARY STUDIES IN BERINGIA - BIBLIOGRAPHY
Beaudoin, A.B. & F.D. Reintjes. 1994. Late Quaternary studies in
Beringia and beyond, 1950-1993: An annotated bibliography.
- Archeological Survey Occasional Paper no. 35, Provincial
Museum of Alberta, Edmonton. 386 p. ISBN 0-7732-1387-2
[soft cover], CDN $ 14.95.
The bibliography includes references to research papers, books,
monographs, short notes, theses, conference abstracts, con-
ference reports, popular articles, and commentaries published
between 1950-1993. The citations deal with surficial geology,
glacial history, climate history, palaeontology, archaeology,
and palaeoenvironments in Beringia between about 50,000 and
10,000 years ago. References include abstracts, where available.
The bibliography comprises 1001 citations, annotated by topic,
geographic area and library location, and is accompanied by a
comprehensive index. Beringia is defined as the northern hemi-
sphere region centred on Siberia and Alaska-Yukon and bounded by
the Lena River to the west and the Mackenzie River to the east.
Other areas covered in this bibliography include western Siberia
between Lena and Yenisey Rivers, northeastern China, northern
Korea and Japan. It also covers the portion of the northern
Pacific Ocean and offshore continental shelf that would have
been terrestrial during the Late Pleistocene full-glacial.
[Available from: The Museum Shop, c/o The Provincial Museum of
Alberta, 12845-102nd Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5N 0M6,
Tel.: (406) 453-9108 (Publications); FAX: (403) 454-6629. Major
credit cards accepted.]
(BEN # 90 28-January-1995)
------------------------------------------
URGENT CALL FOR CORRECTIONS TO THE JEPSON MANUAL
From: Margriet Wetherwax <margriet@UCJEPS.HERB.BERKELEY.EDU>
orig. on TAXACOM <TAXACOM@CMSA.BERKELEY.EDU>
Have you found any typographical errors or minor substantive
errors in The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California (J.
Hickman, ed.)? If so, the Jepson editors would be grateful to
receive your input before April 1, 1995 to aid in production of
the next printing of the The Jepson Manual (1st edition). Cor-
rections that change pagination cannot be considered for incor-
poration in the next printing (but see below). Any substantive
corrections that require editorial judgement should be accom-
panied with documentation (e.g., literature or voucher
citation). Please send your corrections to Bruce Baldwin,
Curator of the Jepson Herbarium, 1001 Valley Life Sciences Bldg.
#2465, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-2465. e-mail
communication of your corrections can be sent to
jepson@ucjeps.berkeley.edu. Thank you!!
In preparation for production of a more extensively revised 2nd
edition of The Jepson Manual, the Jepson editors would also
greatly appreciate any documented corrections of more substan-
tial errors or problems in the Manual. All corrections that
would change pagination of the Manual fall under this category.
To aid editorial procedures, please segregate any corrections of
this type under separate heading from typographical and other
minor corrections discussed in the previous paragraph. These
corrections can be sent to the same address given above.
(BEN # 90 28-January-1995)
------------------------------------------
PAST ISSUES OF BEN
All issues of BEN are stored on the gopher
vifa1.freenet.victoria.bc.ca .
You can access them by typing
"gopher vifa1.freenet.victoria.bc.ca" (no parentheses)
at the system prompt and selecting the following items from from
the Freenet Victoria gopher menus:
Home Gopher server: freenet.victoria.bc.ca
1. Astronomical Images/
2. Atmospheric Ozone Information/
3. Commercial Enterprises/
--> 4. Environment and Science Information/
5. Frequently Asked Questions (08/93 and 08/94)/
6. Go for Fun (Gopher Fun Stuff)/
...... etc.
NEXT MENU:
Environment and Science Information
1. About the Environment Information
2. B.C. Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks/
3. Biodiversity Information/
--> 4. Botany/
5. Climate and Weather/
.... etc.
NEXT MENU:
Botany
--> 1. Botanical Electronic News/
2. Rare Plants of British Columbia
3. Search the rare plant list <?>
NEXT MENU:
Botanical Electronic News
1. Botanical Electronic News Searchable Index <?>
2. Issues #0 to #20
3. Issues #21 to #40
4. Issues #41 to #60
5. Issues #61 to #74
6. Issues #75 to #89
All issues of BEN are WAIS indexed and you can search them for
any word or name you want (item 1 on the menu above).
You can set up bookmarks to BEN on your home gopher (see BEN
#71) or you can ask your "system" people to include the BEN
pointer in your gopher's menu. Give them the following Link
Info:
Type=1
Port=70
Name=Botanical Electronic News
Path=1/environment/Botany/ben
Host=vifa1.freenet.victoria.bc.ca
The URL is:
gopher://vifa1.freenet.victoria.bc.ca:70/11/environment/Botany/ben
(BEN # 90 28-January-1995)
------------------------------------------
UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA - BOTANY/ENVIRONMENT
From: "Hugues B. Massicotte" <hugues@unbc.edu>
The Faculty of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies of
the new University of Northern British Columbia offers 3 main
B.Sc. options for the scientifically and biologically inclined
candidate. The B.Sc. in Natural Resource Management can be
accomplished with 4 different majors (Forestry, Wildlife,
Fisheries, Recreation & Tourism). The recognition that manage-
ment of any natural resource has implications for all other
natural resources is a primary driving factor in the under-
graduate curriculum for this degree. The Forestry major is
designed to meet national and provincial accreditation
standards.
The B.Sc. in biology offers 4 different majors (Biology,
Fisheries, Plant Science, Wildlife) and this program is designed
to present the major concepts of contemporary biology at the
molecular, cellular, organismic, population and community
levels.
A third B.Sc. program in Environmental Science also offers a
broad-based curriculum to help candidates deal with contemporary
complex environmental questions and issues.
At present, a M.Sc. program is already available and it is
anticipated that a Ph.D. program should be in place by 1996.
For more specific information on these programmes, one should
contact the office of the registrar at UNBC at (604) 960-5555.
Faculty
Dr. Josef Ackerman, bio-fluid mechanics related to the ecology
and evolution of plants and animals, and implications of
these processes in environmental systems.
Dr. Lito Arocena, geochemistry of natural processes in ter-
restrial environment (cation balance in forest ecosystems,
soil mineralogy and chemistry, acid mine drainage and
industrial wastes.
Dr. Max Blouw, ecological genetics and behavioural ecology of
fishes and shellfish.
Dr. Darwyn Coxson, plant environmental physiologist (functional
diversity, plant survival strategies, nutrient cycling).
Dr. Keith Egger, molecular approaches to the study of fungal
biodiversity, particularly forest mycorrhizal communities
and population genetic structure.
Dr. Arthur Fredeen, plant ecophysiology (acclimation and adapta-
tion of understory plants to light, stomatal physiology
and photosynthesis in boreal forest species.
Dr. Fred Gilbert, management, habitat requirement and impacts of
human activities on wildlife populations.
Dr. Michael Gillingham, population and wildlife ecology, modell-
ing, plant-herbivore interactions and behavioural ecology.
Dr. Allen Gottesfeld, surfacial ecology of Northern BC, fluvial
geomorphology, terrain analysis, watershed processes.
Dr. Kevin Hall, periglacial processes, glacial sedimentology,
Quaternary environments.
Dr. Alex Hawley, animal and human interaction with the environ-
ment.
Dr. Daniel Heath, molecular approaches to address questions in
the evolution and ecology of fishes.
Dr. Peter Jackson, atmospheric science including mesoscale wind
flow, micrometeorological measurements, atmospheric
fluxes.
Dr. Winifred Kessler, ecological studies to support integrated
land and resource management.
Dr. Kathy Lewis, role of disease in natural disturbance of
ecosystems, disease epidemiology, population genetics of
root disease fungi.
Dr. Staffan Lindgren, chemical ecology of forest insects, espe-
cially bark beetles, forest pest management.
Dr. Hugues Massicotte, botany, forest and microbial ecology with
emphasis on structure and function of mycorrhizal associa-
tions and rhizosphere organisms.
Dr. Katherine Parker, wildlife biology especially plant-animal
interactions, nutritional and physiological ecology, and
bioenergetics.
Dr. Ellen Petticrew, aquatic science especially limnology,
hydrology and sedimentology.
Dr. Michael Walters, ecological and ecophysiological aspects of
northern and montane forests, shortgrass prairies, oak
savannas and tropical forest systems.
Roger Wheate, cartography, GIS, remote sensing and digital
imaging.
Jane Young, plant adaptation in aquatic ecosystems, functional
morphology and anatomy.
(BEN # 91 11-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW MONOGRAPH OF ELDERBERRY (SAMBUCUS)
Bolli, R. 1994. Revision of the genus Sambucus. - Dissertationes
Botanicae, Band 223, J. Cramer in der Gebruder Borntrae-
ger, Berlin - Stuttgart. 227 p. + 29 plates. ISBN 3-443-
64135-0 [soft cover]
The taxa recognized in the new classification of the genus are 9
species, 8 subspecies and 2 varieties. Richard Bolli treats
North American elderberries, Sambucus canadensis and S. cerulea
as subspecies of Sambucus nigra (subsp. nigra and subsp. ceru-
lea). North American members of Sambucus racemosa complex are
all treated as Sambucus racemosa var. melanocarpa. The author
suggests the North American origin of Sambucus racemosa from an
ancestor of S. nigra subsp. canadensis and advocates treating
Sambucaceae, Viburnaceae and Adoxaceae as separate families.
[Sambucaceae and Viburnaceae are traditionally considered as a
part of Caprifoliaceae.]
The publication can be ordered (no price given) from
Institut fur Systematische Botanik
Universitat Zurich
Richard Bolli
Zollikerstrasse 107
CH-8008 Zurich
Switzerland
(BEN # 91 11-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
US NATIONAL WILDERNESS CONFERENCE
From: Terje Vold <tvold@mfor01.for.gov.bc.ca>
The 6th interagency US National Wilderness Conference was held
in Santa Fe, New Mexico last November, 1994. The conference,
whose theme was "The Spirit Lives," also marked the 30th an-
niversary of the 1964 US Wilderness Act. One of the objectives
of the conference was to develop an interagency strategic wil-
derness action plan; this plan should be completed in the next
few months.
The conference was co-sponsored by the four US agencies who
manage designated wilderness areas: the US National Park Serv-
ice, the US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and
the US Fish and Wildlife Service; and also by the National
Biological Service and the Society of American Foresters. About
750 people attended the conference (over 1000 wanted to but many
could not due to space limitations).
British Columbia participants included Dennis Moffatt, Brian
Dyck and Kris Kennett from BC Parks, and myself (Terje Vold)
from the BC Forest Service. Brian presented a joint BC Parks/BC
Forest Service paper, and a poster display was set up on BC's
Protected Areas Strategy.
The conference covered many themes including:
-the role of wilderness as core areas in maintaining biodiver-
sity, and in the ecological management of larger
bioregions (like ecoregions or ecosections)
-the importance of the recently passed California Desert Protec-
tion Act which increases protected areas in 25% of the
state from 2.5 million ha to about 5.7 million ha (about
45% of the overall desert area) - a 3.2 million ha in-
crease. By comparison, there has been a 2.2. million ha
increase in BC over the last 2 years. The Act creates 3
large parks and designates 69 smaller Bureau of Land
Management and US Forest Service wilderness areas.
Some of the keynote presentations:
Stewart Udall, writer and conservationist, former US Secretary
of the Interior, provided an introductory talk to the
conference on "Why are we here?"
Max Peterson, former Chief Forester of the US Forest Service,
now VP with the International Association of Fish and
Wildlife Agencies, provided a "Wilderness Perspective"
since the first National Interagency Wilderness Conference
in 1983.
David Brower, well-known conservationists, previously with the
Sierra Club, spoke on "Wilderness Stewardship - How are we
doing?"
Gaylord Nelson, a former US senator, now a counselor with the
Wilderness Society, talked about "Environment-Population-
Sustainable Development".
Ed Grumbine, Director of the Sierra Institute and author of
"Ghost Bears" discussed "Future Trends" in wilderness
preservation.
Roger Kennedy, Director of US National Park Service, gave his
vision of wilderness preservation within the national park
system.
Joe Feller, a law professor at Arizona State University, spoke
about "Grazing and Wilderness in Conflict"
Jerry Asher, a Bureau of Land Management resource specialist,
spoke about invasive alien plants and how this can "Crush
the Wilderness Spirit".
Ron Pulliam, Director with the National Biological Survey,
discussed how the NBS intends to provide information
needed to manage and conserve biological resources.
Ed Zahniser, writer with the National Park Service, and son of
the author of the 1964 US Wilderness Act, Howard Zahniser,
gave a personal first-hand account of his father's
struggles in getting the Act passed 30 years ago.
John Roush, president of the Wilderness Society, spoke about
"The Biological Values of Wilderness".
Bruce Vento, congressman who chairs the subcommittee on national
parks, forests and public lands, spoke on "Barriers to
Wilderness Preservation".
There were many more speakers at the conference as well, and I
can provide a summary of talks I attended to anyone wanting more
information.
(BEN # 91 11-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
SUMMER JOBS IN FOREST ECOLOGY: PACIFIC NORTHWEST
From: Charles Halpern <chalpern@u.washington.edu>
DESCRIPTION: Field crew and crew leader positions are available
to assist with ecological studies of alternative methods of
forest harvest in the Gifford Pinchot (Washington) and Umpqua
(Oregon) National Forests. Tasks will include establishing
permanent plots, sampling understory vegetation, measuring
trees, assessing site characteristics, quantifying amounts/types
of coarse woody debris, and additional measurements to charac-
terize vegetation composition and structure. The locations of
the study sites and the nature of the field work will require
extended periods of camping near field sites or in staying in
bunkhouses. We will work 8-day periods with 5 days off.
QUALIFICATIONS: Familiarity with the flora of western Oregon and
Washington; previous experience in sampling forest understory
vegetation or coursework in botany and ecology; ability to
identify plants and collect/catalog specimens; attention to
detail and legible handwriting; ability and willingness to work
long hours under harsh field conditions.
SALARY: $1400/month or more, depending on experience and
qualifications.
DURATION: 12 June through early- to mid- September 1995
CLOSING DATE: 21 March 1995. We will continue to accept applica-
tions after that date only if positions remain open.
TO APPLY: Send HANDWRITTEN letter of interest; resume; copies of
either college transcripts or professional work products; and 2
letters of reference to one of us:
MELORA GEYER (for work in Oregon)
Department of Forest Science
Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331
E-mail: geyerm@ccmail.orst.edu Phone: 503-737-6105
Phone days and hours: 2:00-5:00 pm
SHELLEY EVANS (for work in Washington)
Division of Ecosystem Science and Conservation,
College of Forest Resources, AR-10
University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
E-mail: saevans@u.washington.edu Phone: 206-685-9553
Phone days and hours: 7:30-9:30 am (Tu), 11:30-1:30 (W),
5:30- 7:30 pm (Th)
(BEN # 91 11-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
SPOROPHYTES OF TAKAKIA FOUND IN CHINA
From: Bryological Times 81 <bryonet@uni-duisburg.de>
A Cryptogamic expedition in China with the north-western part of
the Yunnan Province as its main object was made from September
to October in 1994. This is the fourth expedition organized by
the National Science Museum, Tokyo, and the Kunming Institute of
Botany, Academia Sinica, during 1993 and 1994. As bryologists we
participated in the field trip. The investigated area includes
Dali, Lijiang, Zhongdian, Degen, Weixi and their neighbourhoods.
Especially, it was the first time for botanists to visit the
southern part of Mt. Meilixueshan, situated at the boundary
between Tibet and Yunnan.
The first author found both antheridial plants and sporophytes
of Takakia ceratophylla in Mt. Meilixueshan. This is the second
locality for sporophytes of Takakia, besides Atka Island in the
central Aleutian district. This suggests that Takakia has a
higher frequency of sexual reproduction than was considered
before.
Authors of the original note in Bryological Times 81:
Masanobu Higuchi, National Science Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Dacheng Zhang, Academia Sinica, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
(BEN # 92 17-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
WHAT IS TAKAKIA ?
From: Dr. Wilf B. Schofield <wilfs@unixg.ubc.ca>
[Genus Takakia was described in 1958 and contains two species.
Its taxonomic position is unclear; most often, it was placed in
the liverworts. Originally, only female gametophytes were known,
until 1990 when sporophytes were found on Takakia ceratophylla
from the Aleutian Islands; sporophytes are still unknown in
Takakia lepidozioides. Here is Dr. Schofield's answer to my
question "What is Takakia." - AC]
Takakia is clearly a bryophyte and is not a liverwort, at least
in the accepted sense. If it must be forced into a familiar
category, it would be placed with the mosses, but, like Sphagnum
(of the Sphagnopsida, not the Bryopsida), has no close relatives
in the mosses. The Class Takakiopsida is available, originally
proposed by M. Mizutani, and seems a more reasonable categoriza-
tion. Sporophyte characters are moss-like: seta elongating
before sporangium differentiation, conducting strand in seta,
photosynthetic seta and sporangium, columella present, etc.
Gametophytic features are unusual, and many are also moss-like:
sex organs, for example, but the leaf units, the absence of
perichaetia and perigonial leaves, the absence of rhizoids,
etc., are very telling and there are some other characters as
well.
In North America T. lepidozioides is widely scattered in coastal
British Columbia and adjacent Alaska, while T. ceratophylla
appears in the Aleutian Islands, where sporophytes and an-
theridia have been found on Adak and Atka Islands, at least, and
are likely to be found elsewhere. T lepidozioides has neither
sporophytes nor antheridia reported, and appears not to be very
closely related to T ceratophylla. Both species are found in the
Himalayas, and T lepidozioides is in Japan and Borneo.
Research will soon be published concerning T ceratophylla, at
least, especially the beautiful studies of K. Renzaglia in
collaboration with D. Smith, K. Macfarlard and P Davison. Fur-
ther researches are in progress by B. Crandall-Stotler, B.
Murray, R.M. Schuster and W.B. Schofield. In future, it is hoped
that molecular information will become available from the re-
searches of B. Mishler. Cytological information has been
reported by K. Inoue and Tatuno [very low number n=4, lowest
among bryophytes] while phytochemistry has been treated by
Markham and Porter.
(BEN # 92 17-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
TRUFFLE DETECTOR REJECTED BY FRENCH TRUFFLE HUNTERS
From: Chris Wilson "Oui, but can you eat it?" (The European
MagAZine, 3-9 February 1995, p. 16 - abbrev.)
With truffles at $560 a kilo, you might have thought that a
machine to find them more reliably than dogs or pigs would
interest truffle hunters. But surprisingly, the new technology
had a frosty response in southwest France this week.
The portable truffle-finder, which goes on sale this year at
$950, uses the latest aroma-detection technology to recognize
the unique scent of the precious underground fungus. The machine
brings scientific rigour to the hunt. It looks like a metal
detector and its network of sensors are held close to the
ground. When the truffle odour is recognized, the machine beeps.
French farmers, however, are resistant to new ideas: "Finding
the truffle is an act of respect and it should be done with a
dog or a pig not a machine. Done like that, it lacks poetry."
Expert trufflres have always used pigs and trained dogs but it
is estimated that the animals may miss 20 per cent of truffles.
"Look at it this way" said another truffler. "I have a farm. I
keep pigs. Each year I buy a pig for $90. It searches for
truffles naturally and it finds me 40-50 kilos a season. After a
year I eat it, and you can't do that with a machine, can you?"
(BEN # 92 17-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
NATIVE VEGETATION WORKSHOP - VICTORIA - MARCH 11, 1995
The Native Vegetation Committee of the Vancouver Island Public
Interest Group (VIPIRG) presents their Second Native Vegetation
Workshop, Saturday March 11, 1995, 9:00 am. to 4:00 pm. at the
University of Victoria, Elliot Lecture Wing.
There will be information booths, displays, guest speakers,
native plant sales and I.D. tables. Mini workshops on propagat-
ing native plants, enhancing Garry oak habitat, gardening with
native plants, walks through the UVIC Native Plant Garden, and
more will be held throughout the day. Bring your mug for mulled
cider, Labrador tea and coffee.
Tickets at the door: $10.00 adults, $8.00 seniors/students.
Proceeds will go to the Native Plant Garden on the UVIC campus.
For further information call Jenny Eastman (479-8382) or Hana
Masata (744-4315).
(BEN # 93 23-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
CALL FOR PAPERS: CONSERVATION & MANAGEMENT OF OREGON'S FLORA
From: Thomas Kaye <kayet@ava.bcc.orst.edu>
The Native Plant Society of Oregon will sponsor
A Symposium on the Conservation and Management of Oregon's
Native Flora
LaSells Stewart Center, Oregon State University, Corvallis,
Oregon, November 15-17, 1995.
The symposium will cover research and current work concerning
the conservation and management of Oregon's diverse native plant
species and communities. Symposium presentations and posters
will be organized under the following themes:
"Ecology, Management, and Conservation of Oregon's Rare Plant
Species" Keynote Speaker: Reed Noss (tentative)
"Bringing Back the Natives: Restoration of Oregon's Native
Plants and Communities" Keynote Speaker: Linda McMahan
(tentative)
"Plant Systematics, Ecology and Biogeography of Oregon's Native
Plants and Communities" Keynote Speaker: Ken Chambers
(tentative)
"The 'Lower' World of Oregon's Floral Diversity - Bryophytes,
Lichens, and Fungi" Keynote Speaker: Dave Wagner (tenta-
tive)
Persons interested in participating in the symposium should
submit an abstract and preferred session to the address below no
later than May 1, 1995. Speakers will be notified by June 1,
1995. Anyone is encouraged to submit abstracts for papers and
posters related to the four themes listed above. Abstracts
should be submitted on a 3.5" computer disk, in Wordperfect 5.0
or higher, along with three paper copies. Abstracts should be
200 words or less using 1.5 inch margins. Please provide a short
biography. Contributors will be asked to bring manuscripts of
their presentations for inclusion in a proceedings volume to be
published later. Indicate whether you prefer to present a con-
tributed paper or poster and if you need any equipment other
than a slide or overhead projector. Submit abstracts to: Tom
Kaye, Dept. of Botany and Plant Pathology, OSU, Cordley Hall
2082, Corvallis, OR 97331-2902. Phone 503-737-2346, Fax 503-737-
3573, email: kayet@bcc.orst.edu.
A registration fee of $40 for NPSO members and $50 for non-
members is due prior to October 1, 1995. Registration fees after
this date will be $50 for NPSO members and $60 for non-members.
Direct inquiries regarding the symposium and registration to
Bruce Rittenhouse, 1300 Airport Lane, North Bend, OR 97459-2000,
503-756-0100 (phone), 503-756-9303 (Fax).
(BEN # 93 23-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
NATIVE WILDFLOWERS OF CALIFORNIA ON CD-ROM [Re: BEN # 86]
From: Brother Eric Vogel <evogel@stmarys-ca.edu>
This CD is for the MacIntosh base (one for the IBM base is in
the process) and contains 2,000 pictures of 665 species of
wildflowers of California, indexed and classified.
["This is from a collection of 20,000 slides collected by
Brother Alfred Brousseau over his lifetime. It takes the form of
super-card stacks, a stack for each alphabetical (latin name)
group of flowers." - BEN # 86]
Contact Brother Eric Vogel (evogel@stmarys-ca.edu) (Snail mail:
St. Mary's College, 1928 St. Mary's Road, Moraga, Ca. 94575) A
donation of $35.00 is requested for this non-profit project.
Make checks payable to: Brothers Community.
(BEN # 93 23-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
GIANT HOGWEED - HERACLEUM MANTEGAZZIANUM - BANNED IN US
From: Elisabeth Harmon, North American Rock Garden Society,
1994-1995 Seed List. Important Notes.
"In the next few years, we shall see increasingly stricter
legislation enacted to control the importation of plants of all
kinds. The federal government and several states already have
compiled a list of banned plants. For example, giant hogweed,
Heracleum mantegazzianum [Apiaceae - Umbeliferae], a favourite
of some gardeners, is now listed under the Federal Noxious Weed
Act of 1992. It is illegal to import or distribute it in inter-
state commerce, and in Washington State, those who are caught
growing it can be fined $750 for the first offense."
[See also BEN # 67.]
(BEN # 93 23-February-1995)
------------------------------------------
BIOCONTROL OF SCRUB OAK ON NANTUCKET ISLAND, MASSACHUSETTS
From: Dr. Meindert de Jong <TPEjong@rcl.wau.nl>
Report on my visit to the University of Massachusetts Field
Station, Island of Nantucket (November 11-20, 1994).
I visited Dr. Wesley Tiffney, Director of the Field Station in
Nantucket <wtiffney@AOL.COM> During the first days of my visit,
I was guided all over the island. I could see the problem of
successional scrub oak (Quercus ilicifolia) overgrowing heath
vegetation engendered by a long history of grazing, now ceased.
At the same time I observed several salt marshes and the native
New England plants growing on them. With the exception of
Limonium, the plants are different from those in The Nether-
lands, although the basic ecology is quite similar.
The original purpose of this visit was the organization of a
biocontrol trial of scrub oak. It was intended to inoculate some
just cut stubs of scrub oak with Chondrostereum purpureum,
silver leaf fungus, to suppress oak resprouting. Fungal prepara-
tions were to be provided by labs in Canada and The Netherlands.
Preliminary field results performed in The Netherlands had
already proved that the silver leaf fungus is an highly effec-
tive controller of resprouting in "American oak" (Q. rubra) and
many other hardwoods. However, it quickly became clear that this
purpose had to be changed since we were not allowed to import a
foreign fungus into this island. So I decided to provide some
information about possibilities of biological control using 'my'
mycoherbicide (using the fungus C. purpureum as if it was a
herbicide). Through a field survey, we would try to show natural
occurrence of this cosmopolitan fungus on Nantucket. sp Together
with Dr. Tiffney and Nantucket conservation land managers we
looked for the purple crusts (basidiocarps of C. purpureum) all
across the island. We finally found these crusts on piles of
firewood, imported from central Massachusetts, in the yard of a
Nantucket fuel merchant. Dr. Tiffney put samples in a moist
chambers in his lab.
This summer, students at the Field Station will seek to document
natural occurrence of C. purpureum on Nantucket island. If it
can be shown that the species is native there, then field trials
of the fungus used as a mycoherbicide for control of scrub oak
resprouting can be carried out.
Acknowledgments.
This research was sponsored by Landbouw Export Bureau (Wagenin-
gen, NL). University of Massachusetts provided lodging
facilities and other in-kind compensation.
(BEN # 94 4-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
JOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE: CIRCUMPOLAR ARCTIC VEGETATION
The Journal of Vegetation Science, vol. 5(1994) published a
Special Feature issue on Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation. The
issue was based on contributions presented at the International
Workshop on Classification of Arctic Vegetation held at the
Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado,
Boulder, CO, 5-9 March 1992.
Table of contents:
Walker, M.D., Daniels, F.J.A. & van der Maarel, E.: Circumpolar
arctic vegetation - Introduction and perspective.
Yurtsev, B.A.: Floristic division of the Arctic.
Murray, D.F.: Floristics, systematics, and the study of arctic
vegetation a commentary.
Daniels, F.J.A.: Vegetation classification in Greenland.
Elvebakk, A.: A survey of plan associations and alliances from
Svalbard.
Koroleva, N.E.: Phytosociological survey of the tundra vegeta-
tion of the Kola Peninsula, Russia.
Matyeva, N.V.: Floristic classification and ecology of tundra
vegetation of the Taymyr Peninsula, northern Siberia.
Razzhivin, V.Yu.: Snowbed vegetation of far northeastern Asia.
Walker, M.D., Walker, D.A. & Auerbach, N.A.: Plant communities
of a tussock tundra landscape in the Brooks Range
Foothills, Alaska.
Talbot, S.S. & Talbot, S.L.: Numerical classification of the
coastal vegetation of Attu Island, Aleutian Islands,
Alaska.
Forbes, B.C.: The importance of bryophytes in the classification
of human-disturbed high arctic vegetation.
Sumina, O.I.: Plant communities on anthropogenically disturbed
sites on the Chukotka Peninsula, Russia.
Lloyd, A.H., Armbruster, W.S. & Edwards, M.E.: Ecology of a
steppe-tundra gradient in interior Alaska.
Odasz, A.M.: Nitrate reductase activity in vegetation below an
arctic bird cliff, Svalbard, Norway.
The issue is being published separately under the series
"Special Features in Vegetation Science." The price is around
300 SEK and it can be ordered from Opulus Press AB, Box 25 137,
750 25 Uppsala, Sweden.
(BEN # 94 4-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW FIELD STATION IN KALIMANTAN TENGAH, INDONESIA
From: Carey Yeager <cyeager@murray.fordham.edu>, originally
posted on CONSLINK <CONSLINK%SIVM.BITNET@uga.cc.uga.edu>
The Rainforest Conservation Biology Group announces the
availability of new housing facilities at its field station in
Kalimantan Tengah, Indonesia. The field station is located at
Natai Lengkuas on the black water Sekonyer Kiri river in Tanjung
Puting National Park. Facilities include motor boats, two 10 m x
12 m buildings for housing and lab work, two 6 m x 6m houses for
permanent staff, a kitchen, four vegetation plots containing
over 2000 tagged trees and a trail system. The site contains a
combination of fresh water peat swamp, heath (kerangas) forest
and lowland dipterocarp forest. We have nine primate species in
the park (orangutan, gibbon, proboscis monkey, red leaf-eating
monkey, silver leaf-eating monkey, long-tailed macaques, pig-
tailed macaque, slow loris and, supposedly, tarsiers), mouse
deer, barking deer, civets, short-nosed fruit bats, false vam-
pire bats, binturang, false gavials, monitor lizards, Malaysian
sun bear, hornbills, kingfishers, storm's stork, arawana, etc.
Current research being conducted at the site focuses on the
impact of habitat degradation on primate group size, composi-
tion, ranging and feeding behavior, phytochemical differences in
food resources as predictors of food preferences, inter-group
communication, vegetation ecology and swamp forest restoration.
The field station works in close collaboration with the park
management on conservation issues and is run through the
auspices of Universitas Indonesia. All research is conducted in
accordance with Indonesian regulations. Research permits must be
obtained from LIPI (Indonesian Institute of Sciences) and PHPA
(Indonesian Department of Forest Conservation) and take ap-
proximately six months to obtain. Permission to work at the site
itself is made by the site operating committee and is contingent
upon housing availability. For more information concerning
research opportunities contact:
Before March 8, 1995 and after Sept. 1, 1995
Carey P. Yeager, Ph.D.
Director (U.S.) Rainforest Conservation Biology Group
Calder Center of Fordham University
Box K, 53 Whippoorwill Road
Phone: (914) 273-3078
Fax: (914) 273-6346
e-mail: cyeager@murray.fordham.edu
Between March 20, 1995 and August 9, 1995
Carey P. Yeager, Ph.D.
Rainforest Conservation Biology Group
D/A Losmen Abadi
Pangkalan Bun 74114
Kalimantan Tengah, Indonesia
Fax: (62)(532) 21923 or 21919
(commercial - often turned off at night - a fax will take 3 days
to one week to reach the station)
(BEN # 94 4-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
SCIENCE CONTRACT REPORTS - INTERIOR COLUMBIA BASIN ECOSYSTEM
From: Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project
(ICBEMP), 112 E. Poplar Street, Walla Walla, Washington.
Phone: 509-522-4030. ICBEMP Electronic Library: 509-522-
4085.
The following reports are currently available:
Chatterton, N. Jerry, Deane Harrison, Richard Page and Michael
Curto. 1994. Introduced Forage Grasses. (77 pages)
Clark, Patrick E. 1994. Livestock-Big Game Interactions: A
Selected Review with Emphasis on Literature from the
Interior Pacific Northwest. (109 pages)
Eversman, Sharon. 1994. Lichens of the Yellowstone Ecosystem.
(102 pages)
Hammer, Samuel. 1995. The Biogeography and Ecology of Species in
the Lichen Genus Cladonia in the Columbia River Basin. (77
pages)
Hammond, Paul C. 1994. Rare Butterfly Assessment for the Colum-
bia River Basin in the Pacific Northwest. (15 pages)
Hammond, Paul C. 1995. Butterflies and Their Larval Foodplants
as Bioindicators for Ecosystem Monitoring in the Pacific
Northwest. (38 pages)
Ingham, E. R. 1995. Soil Organisms, Bacteria, Fungi, Protozoa,
Nematodes and Rotifers. (93 pages)
Kaltenecker, Julie. 1994. Microbiotic Soil Crusts in Sagebrush
Habitats of Southern Idaho. (60 pages)
Kemp, William P. 1994. Rangeland Grasshoppers (Orthoptera:
Acrididae) of Concern to Management of the Columbia River
Basin. (51 pages)
Lattin, John D. 1995. The Hemiptera:Heteroptera of the Columbia
River Basin, Western United States. (57 pages)
McCune, Bruce. 1994. Lichen Species Groups in the Columbia Basin
Ecosystem Functions and Indicator Values. (52 pages)
McCune, Bruce. 1994. Lichen Species Groups in the Columbia Basin
Ecosystem Functions and Indicator Values. Appendix: Lichen
Database Listing for Columbia Basin. (209 pages)
McIver, James, J. R. LaBonte and R. Crawford. 1994. Terrestrial
Invertebrate Predators of the Columbia River Basin: An
Assessment. (74 pages)
McNeal, Dale W. 1995. Report on Allium Columbia Basin Scientific
Assessment Project. (25 pages)
Miller, Jeffrey C. 1994. Assessment of Invertebrates of the
Columbia River Basin: Understory Herbivores (Lepidoptera).
(42 pages)
Muehlchen, Andrea M. 1994. Eastside Ecosystem Management
Project: Functional Groups of Bacteria. (53 pages)
Rasmussen, Christine. 1994. Riparian Community and Bank Response
to Management: A Comparison of Old and New Surveys in the
Prineville District, BLM. (41 pages)
Ross, Darrell W. 1995. Report on Bole and Branch Herbivores. (86
pages)
Schowalter, Timothy D. 1994. Coarse Woody Debris Chewers in the
Columbia River Basin. (12 pages)
Sheley, Roger L., ed. 1994. The Identification, Distribution,
Impacts, Biology and Management of Noxious Rangeland
Weeds. (368 pages)
Wagner, Michael R. and Joel D. McMillin. 1994. Eastside Ecosys-
tem Assessment Project: Role of Canopy Herbivores. (197
pages)
Wicklow-Howard, Marcia C. 1994. Fungi from the Owyhee Region of
Southern Idaho and Eastern Oregon. (40 pages)
Wicklow-Howard, Marcia C. 1994. Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizae
from Sagebrush Steppe Habitat in Western Idaho and Parts
of Eastern and Central Oregon. (37 pages)
Williams, John D. 1994. Microbiotic Crusts: A Review. (63 pages)
Reports are available from:
Walla Walla Xerographic
2 E. Rose Street, Walla Walla, WA 99362
Attn: ICBEMP Request
Phone: 509-522-5401
Verbal and written requests for processing will be assessed the
following costs when applicable:
Cost for duplication is $0.06 per page;
Tax is 7.8%;
Handling cost is $1.00; and
Shipping charges will vary depending on weight of materials.
Payment may be made by check, Visa or Mastercard payable to
"Walla Walla Xerographic".
(BEN # 94 4-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
SLIDES OF INTERIOR BRITISH COLUMBIA PLANTS NEEDED
From: Dennis Lloyd <dlloyd@mfor01.for.gov.bc.ca>
We are looking for colour slides of the following plants for the
Plants of the interior British Columbia:
Apocynum cannabinum hemp dogbane
Arnica parryi Parry's arnica
Hackelia micrantha blue stickseed
Kobresia myosuroides Bellard's kobresia
Lactuca serriola prickly letuce
Luzula piperi Piper's woodrush
Myriophyllum verticillatum whorled water-milfoil
Saxifraga cernua nodding saxifrage
Senecio indecorus rayless mountain butterweed
Senecio pseudaureus streambank butterweed
Vulpia octoflora six-weeks fescue
Should you have any of these, please give me a call at
(604) 828-4129 or FAX at (604) 828-4154. Many thanks.
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
REVOLUTIONARY GREENHOUSE DESIGN FROM THE CZECH REPUBLIC
A group of scientists associated with the Botanical Institute
of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Trebon, Czech Republic,
designed a unique roof solar collector. The key element of the
collector is a glass linear Fresnel lens that concentrates the
direct part of solar radiation to a narrow strip. This strips
lies in the focal plane of the lens, at a distance
approximately 40 cm. Concentrated sun radiation is converted to
heat energy in absorbers, situated in the focal plane. The heat
is taken away with the flowing water to a hot water storage
tank.
The heat collector is also an ideal skylight. The direct part
of radiation is used for heating the water. The space under the
collector, on the other hand, is not overheated and is evenly
lighted by diffused sun light because the optical system
separates and absorbs the direct part of sun radiation.
The most basic function of this type of collector is hot water
preparation, but the system is also ideal for the construction
of winter gardens and greenhouses. The standard panel is 4.2 m
wide and 2.36 m high and consists of six linear Fresnel lenses
(0.75 x 2.0 m). The system was developed and is distributed by
SOLARGLAS s.r.o
nam. Ceskeho povstani 228
161 00 Praha 6 - Czech Republic
tel./fax: 02/316 32 34
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
COLLECTIONS OF LUZULA CAMPESTRIS, MULTIFLORA ETC. WANTED !
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
When I wrote the treatment of Luzula (Woodrush) for the Vascular
Plants of British Columbia IV (Douglas, et. al., 1994 - see BEN
# 75), I was unable to solve taxonomic problems in the Luzula
campestris-multiflora complex and I treated it as one single
species. I was aware of the complicated situation and need for
more serious taxonomic studies.
I contacted my Czech colleague Dr. Jan Kirschner, a specialist
in this group, and we would like to have a closer look at the
Pacific Northwest plants of this species complex. I have been
collecting Woodrush and have amassed a good collection from
coastal British Columbia, but we would like to have material
from wider area of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. I wonder,
if BEN readers could help us to get more well collected
specimens of Luzula, especially those belonging to the Luzula
campestris-multiflora complex.
Collecting instructions (after Kirschner 1982):
Collect plants with underground parts and pay attention to the
formation and length of rhizomes. Specimens that are in full
bloom are best for identification (with exception of some taxa
such as European L. sudetica). More experience is required for
identification of plants with ripe fruits. It is extremely
difficult to identify plants that are past flowering, but whose
fruits are not yet fully developed. When you collect plants with
ripe seeds, shake out some seeds from capsules directly to small
envelopes or paper packets: herbarium specimens are often con-
taminated with seeds from other sheets and mix-up of seeds is
often the cause of misidentification. Habitat data are also
important and should be recorded.
Specimens should be dried, but the drying temperature should not
be set too high. Seeds of this species complex remain viable for
a relatively long time (up to nine years) and we would like to
get some chromosome counts. If you get any material for us,
please, send it to me - my address is:
Adolf Ceska, P.O.Box 8546, Victoria, B.C., Canada V8W 3S2
Ref.: Kirschner, J. 1982. Notes on the determination of the
members of the Luzula campestris-multiflora complex (L.
campestris agg.) in Czechoslovakia. - Zpravy Cesko-
slovenske Botanicke Spolecnosti, Praha 17: 25-37. [Czech]
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
GENE BANKING PROJECT FOR PLANT CONSERVATION - LAKE BAIKAL AREA
From: Dr. Victor Kuzevanov <vic@bogard.irkutsk.su>
About 130 of over 1800 higher plants were recognized as rare and
endangered species for the area of famous Baikal Lake. The
project for the conservation of genetic fond of the unique and
fragile flora around Lake Baikal was started in 1993 at the
Botanic Garden of the Irkutsk State University, Irkutsk. The
Botanic Garden of the Irkutsk State University created in 1941
today occupies 27 hectares, including pine forest, within
Irkutsk city (70 kilometers west of the Lake Baikal).
The primary objectives of the project:
1. to preserve plant genetic fond and biodiversity near the
Lake Baikal - World Heritage Site;
2. to involve the people of Baikal area in rational use of
plant genetic resources;
3. to expand international collaboration/cooperation between
scientists, non-governmental organizations and all levels of
government.
Project includes:
1. expeditions around Lake Baikal for seed collecting in July-
September on foot, car, and boat;
2. seed banking;
3. living field collections of rare and endangered Siberian
plants;
4. propagation, repatriation and introduction of plants;
5. computerized database of plant genetic resources of the
Baikal Lake area with texts accompanied by scanned pictures
and maps to be included in USENET services (bilingual, both
Russian and English);
6. reference herbarium;
7. collection of educational videos and slides;
8. educational programs for school children, students, the
general public, and administration; and
9. free of charge international seed exchange.
In 1994, the project was partly sponsored by the Chicago Botanic
Garden, Betchart Expedition,Inc. of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science, REAP International, Fanny and Leo
Charitable Trust, E.F.F. Shumacher Society, as well as by USIA
and American Association of Museums. The project has a limited
support from the Irkutsk Oblast Governor Administration, the
Irkutsk Environmental Protection Agency, and the Irkutsk State
University.
In 1994, scientists from the Botanic Garden, the Irkutsk State
University, and several research institutes of the Russian
Academy of Sciences has prepared a special report "Concept of
Organization of Plant Gene Banking of Irkutsk Oblast" for
regional Environmental Protection Agency. Seeds of 42 rare plant
species have been included in the seed bank and over 40 living
plant specimens were planted at the display bed for propagation
and educational purposes.
The list of Latin and Russian names of rare and endemic plants
is available on request.
Scientists at the Botanic Garden of the University would like to
discuss with interested foreign colleagues an opportunity to
arrange it as the long-term International Plant Conservation
Project for the Baikal Lake Area. Relative institutions, en-
vironmental organizations, volunteers, and individual profes-
sionals are kindly invited to take part. Any help or sponsorship
would be greatly appreciated.
Dr. Victor Kuzevanov, Director <vic@bogard.irkutsk.su>
BOTANIC GARDEN of Irkutsk State University,
P.O.Box 1457, 93 Koltsov Street,
Irkutsk, 664039, RUSSIA
Phone: +7(3952)435836 - Fax: +7(3952)332238
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
BOTANICAL FOREST PRODUCTS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: AN OVERVIEW
In 1993, 34,544 kg of western yew bark (dry weight) was har-
vested in British Columbia for taxol production. In the same
year the mushroom pickers harvested 125,290 kg of pine mushrooms
and received $3,800,000 for them.
These and other "Botanical forest products" ["non-timber
products" would be more precise!] are covered in the B.C. Minis-
try of Forests report written by Nelly de Geus and released in
January 1995. The report provides an overview of more than 200
botanical forest products harvested in British Columbia. The
report summarizes resource issues associated with the botanical
products industry (and also looks at the similar problems in
neighbouring Washington State and the Pacific Northwest), and
makes recommendations on how the Ministry of Forests should
proceed with the management of these products.
de Geus, P.M.J. 1995. Botanical forest products in British
Columbia: An overview. - Integrated Resources Policy
Branch, B.C. Ministry of Forests, Victoria. 51 p. ISBN 0-
7726-2328-7 [softcover]
The report is available from:
British Columbia Ministry of Forests
Integrated Resource Policy Branch
1450 Government Street, Victoria, B.C. Canada V8Y 3E7
General inquiries: (604) 356-5384 - FAX: (604) 387-6751
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
CHANGES TO REVEAL ALERTING SERVICE (CARL-UNCOVER) [BEN # 75]
From: reveal@carl.org (Reveal Pricing Correspondence)
Brenda K. Bailey, Marketing and Client Liaison
A new enhancement to the UnCover Reveal service will be released
on April 3. This feature will enable users to store search
strategies (e.g. searches by topic or by author name) which will
be run weekly against new articles added to the UnCover
database. The results of these searches will be sent to the
Internet e-mail address stored in your UnCover Profile.
The UnCover Company will begin charging for the Reveal service,
which has been free to individuals for the past year. The charge
is $20 per year for each individual profile. This fee will
permit users to select up to 50 titles from which to receive
tables of contents, and to store up to 25 search strategies.
The $20 annual fee may be paid online by credit card or UnCover
Deposit or Billing account. You may also call the UnCover office
at 800-787-7979 (outside the US at 303-758-3030).
Reveal Service, The UnCover Company
3801 E. Florida Avenue, Suite 200
Denver, CO 80210 - FAX: 303-758-5946
If you have any questions about the new Reveal services or the
fee, please reply to this message, or send e-mail to
reveal@carl.org or phone our office at 800-787-7979 (outside the
US at 303-758-3030).
[To access the database, telnet to: 192.54.81.76 and follow the
menus. - Note: your terminal is most probably VT100.
For more on Carl's UnCover and Reveal see BEN # 75.]
(BEN # 95 16-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
GARRY OAK (QUERCUS GARRYANA) AND WINTER BIRDS
From: "Gross, Eric {co-op}" <EGROSS@FWHDEPT.env.gov.bc.ca>
I am working on my honours thesis, winter bird communities in
urban Garry Oak (Quercus garryana) fragments and have had some
difficulty finding literature incorporating Garry Oak and other
West Coast habitats (e.g., Douglas Fir) and winter birds
(presence/absence and abundance/density). If anyone knows of any
research that has been published dealing with this subject area
or summer birds and oak/other West Coast habitats I would ap-
preciate if you could direct me to them.
Eric Gross
1811 Teakwood Rd.
Victoria B.C. Canada
V8N 1E4
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
WHAT'S NEW IN VASCULAR PLANTS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
Botrychium lineare W.H. Wagner - New species of a Moonwort,
known from Oregon (type locality), Idaho, Montana, California,
Colorado, Quebec, and New Brunswick. Related to B. campestre
from which it differs by having linear segments of the
trophophore, branched in larger forms. Habitat: grassy areas in
the subalpine zone. (Wagner, W.H., Jr. & F.S. Wagner. 1995.
Another widely disjunct, rare and local North American Moonwort.
Amer. Fern J. 84(1): 5-10.)
Franklin's Sedge, Carex franklinii, cannot be distinguished from
Carex petricosa and Carex petricosa var. petricosa should in-
clude C. franklinii as a synonym. C. petricosa var. petricosa
occurs in the western part, C. petricosa var. misandroides in
the eastern part of North America. (Ball, P.W. & M. Zoladz.
1994. The taxonomy of Carex petricosa [Cyperaceae] and related
species in North America. Rhodora 96: 295-310.)
Cabomba caroliniana (Cabombaceae), Murdannia keisak
(Commelinaceae), and Lastenia minor (Asteraceae) reported new
for Washington, Acorus calamus (Araceae), Cabomba caroliniana,
and Mimulus ringens (Scrophulariaceae) reported new for Oregon.
(Madrono 41(4): 330-333. 1994)
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
THE GEOLOGY OF SOUTHERN VANCOUVER ISLAND: A FIELD GUIDE
by C.J. Yorath & H.W. Nasmith (1995) was published for the
Geological Association of Canada, Pacific Section by Orca Book
Publishers, P.O. Box 5626, Station "B", Victoria, B.C., Canada
V8R 6S4. 172 p. ISBN 1 55143-032-0 [paperback] CDN$14.95
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
LIST OF INTERACTIVE IDENTIFICATION PROGRAMS
From: Mike Dallwitz <miked@ENTO.CSIRO.AU>, originally posted on
TAXACOM <TAXACOM@CMSA.BERKELEY.EDU>
I don't have a comprehensive list, but here are a few. Many of
them are commercial (i.e. not shareware or freeware). Some are
available only with data sets, that is, you can't buy the
program and construct your own package - you must produce the
package in collaboration with the software supplier.
ASKATAXA
Fred Rhoades, Biology Department, Western Washington University,
Bellingham, WA 98225, USA. Email: fredr@henson.cc.wwu.edu
CABIKEY
Ian White, CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8DE, UK.
Phone: +44 491 83 2111, Fax: +44 491 83 3508
FLORA
Eirene Williams, Seale-Hayne Dept of Land Use, University of
Plymouth, Newton Abbot, Devon TQ12 6NQ, UK. Fax: +44 626 32 5605
INTKEY
Shareware, available (with several data sets) by gopher or
anonymous ftp from the following Internet hosts.
muse.bio.cornell.edu (directory: /pub/delta)
spider.ento.csiro.au (directory: /delta)
Mike Dallwitz, CSIRO Division of Entomology, GPO Box 1700,
Canberra ACT 2601, Australia. Fax: +61 6 246 4000, Email:
md@ento.csiro.au
LINNAEUS II
ETI, University of Amsterdam, Mauritskade 61, NL 1092 AD Amster-
dam, The Netherlands. Fax: +31 20 525 7238, Email:
els@eti.bio.eva.nl
MEKA
Christopher Meacham, MEACHAM@VIOLET.BERKELEY.EDU, Museum Infor-
matics Project, 501 Banway Building, Univ. of California,
Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
ONLINE
Richard J. Pankhurst, Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh EH3 5LR,
UK. Fax: +44 31 552 0382, Email: rjp@castle.ed.ac.uk
PLATO
Christine Leon, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9
3AB, England
POLLY
Trevor Whiffin, Department of Botany, La Trobe University,
Bundoora, Vic 3083, Australia
TAXASOFT
(Iteractive identification directly from DELTA format and Binary
format <ddproc.exe for DOS available from the net>)
Eric Gouda, Jungfrau 107, NL-3524 WJ Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Email: gouda@cc.ruu.nl [Added by E. Gouda]
XID
XID Services, Inc., Post Office Box 272, Pullman, WA 99163, USA
- Phone/Fax: (509)332-2989 [Added by AC]
XPER
Jacques Lebbe, Service de Me'decine Nucle'aire, Hoital Brous-
sais, 93 rue Didot, 75014 Paris, France
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
INTERACTIVE IDENTIFICATION SOFTWARE II
From: Jim Croft <jrc@ANBG.GOV.AU>, originally also on TAXACOM
<TAXACOM@CMSA.BERKELEY.EDU>
Not really an application for a home PC (although I suppose you
could cram it in), but you might be interested in the smarts
developed by Andrew Taylor (andrewt@cse.unsw.edu.au,
http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au//) at the University of NSW.
Andrew, a computer science engineer rather than a botanist, took
some English language botanical descriptions (Eucalyptus and
Angophora from the Flora of Australia), minced them through some
clever natural language processing algorithms, and reversed
engineered a more or less recognizable DELTA dataset.
He made the dataset queryable on the WWW with clients/browsers
with forms cabability (Mosaic, Netscape, etc.) both as a set of
independent menus and a set of check boxes.
Using some nifty lateral thinking, he figured one could use the
same algorithm to parse an arbitrary description of a plant, and
then match the result of this description against the already
parsed dataset. The result is a dialog box in which you write a
natural language description of the plant and let the server
find the best matches for you.
You can find this application on:
http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au//interfaces.html
This is research in progress at a computer engineering school,
and the server is often under a lot of strain and not available,
but it is worth having a look at the outline and the interfaces.
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL
Angell, D. & B. Heslop. 1994. The Elements of E-mail Style:
Communicate Effectively via Electronic Mail. Addison-
Wesley Publishing Co., New York. 157 p. US$ 12.95 ISBN 0-
201-62709-4 [paperback]
...."is the first practical guide to written electronic com-
munication. It simplifies and summarizes essential writing
techniques so you can upgrade your writing skills and see your
e-mail make maximum impact in minimal time."
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
ROCK AND ALPINE PLANTS DISCUSSION LIST: ALPINE-L
ALPINE-L is an Electronic Mailing List on Rock Gardening, Dwarf
and Alpine Plants, and Their Botany
To subscribe, send to
listserv@nic.surfnet.NL
the following message:
subscribe alpine-l Firstname Lastname City Hardiness-zone
For example:
subscribe alpine-L Reginald Farrar WashingtonDC Zone7a
First published, daily, electronically, by Harry Dewey, Feb. 6-
17, 1995, as: RGJ, the Rock Gardening Journal
Listowner (Netherlands):
Eric Gouda, curator, Botanic Gardens, University of Utrecht.
Jungfrau 107 OR Botanic Gardens
NL-3524WJ Utrecht University of Utrecht
The Netherlands P. O. Box 80.162
NL-3508TD Utrecht
The Netherlands
Listowner (United States):
Harry Dewey, editor, Patowmack Papers, newsletter of the Potomac
Valley
Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society.
4605 Brandon Lane, Beltsville MD 20705-2624 USA
HarryD@capaccess.org Alpine-L@nic.surfnet.NL
Tel.: 301 937-1446
Fax: 301 595-5468 (by appointment)
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
PANAX - GINSENG DISCUSSION LIST
From: Sally Abbott <SABBOTT@GALAXY.GOV.BC.CA>
The B.C. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and
University College of the Cariboo in Kamloops, B.C., invite your
participation in PANAX -- a discussion group for people involved
in the production, processing and use of Panax spp. and Siberian
ginseng. We look forward to an exchange of information on
primary and value-added production as well as research and
extension.
To sign on to PANAX, address an email message to:
mailserv@cariboo.bc.ca
In the body of the message, type the one-line command:
subscribe panax Firstname Lastname
To communicate with the group, address your messages to:
panax@cariboo.bc.ca
For further information, contact:
Al Oliver, BSA, P.Ag.
aoliver@galaxy.gov.bc.ca
Ron Smith, Ph.D.
ronsmith@carins.cariboo.bc.ca
(BEN # 96 27-March-1995)
------------------------------------------
ADMINISTRATIVE ENCIRCLEMENT AND LE CHATELIER'S PRINCIPLE
Le Chatelier's Principle: "Complex systems tend to oppose their
own proper functions."
In the field of human organizations, probably the outstanding
example of this Le Chatelier's Principle occurs in connections
with the Goals and Objectives Mania, a specialized manifestation
of a very ancient and widespread phenomenon known as
Administrative Encirclement.
Let us take an example the case of Lionel Trillium, a young
Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany at Hollyoak
College. Trillium's Department Head, Baneberry, has for some
years now failed to initiate new and interesting hypotheses
about the behaviour of the Slime Molds, his chosen area of
specialization. Paralleling this decline of scientific pro-
ductivity, he has exhibited increasing interest in improving the
"efficiency" of his Department. Baneberry has actually gone to
the extreme of checking out of the library some recent publi-
cations on management science, and his mind is now buzzing with
the terminology of Information Retrieval Systems, etc., and
above all, Management by Goals and Objectives. He fires off a
memo to the staff of his Department requiring them to submit to
him, in triplicate, by Monday next, statements of their Goals
and Objectives.
This demand catches Trillium at a bad time. His studies of
angiosperms are at a critical point. Nevertheless, he must take
time out to consider his Goals and Objectives, as the wording of
the memo leaves little doubt of the consequences of failure to
comply. Trillium doesn't want to think about his real goals and
objectives. He only knows he likes Botany.
But he can't just reply in one line, "I like botany and want to
keep studying it." No, indeed! What is expected is a good deal
more formal, more organized, than that. It should fill at least
three typewritten sheets, singlespaced, and should list Objec-
tives and Subobjectives in order of priority, each being jus-
tified in relation to the Overall Goal and having appended a
time-frame for completion and some criteria for determining
whether they have been achieved. Ideally, each paragraph should
contain at least one reference to DNA. Trillium goes into a
depression just thinking about it. He puts it off as long as
possible, but still it interferes with his study of angiosperm.
He can't concentrate. Finally he gives up his research, stays
home three days, and writes the damned thing.
But now he is committed in writing to a program, in terms of
which his "success" can be objectively assessed by his Chief. If
he states that one objective for the coming year is to write
three papers on angiosperms and he actually writes only two, he
is only 67 percent "successful," even if each of the two papers
is a substantial contribution to his field. His failure to
achieve his stated objectives is demonstrable in black and
white.
The next step is even more catastrophic. Because Trillium has
clearly stated his Goals and Objectives, it is now possible with
rigorous logic how he should spend his waking and working hours
in order to achieve them most efficiently. No more pottering
around pursuing spontaneous impulses and temporary enthusiasms!
No more happy hours in the Departmental greenhouse! Just as a
straight line is the shortest distance between two points, so an
efficient worker will move from Subobjective A to Subobjective B
in logical pursuit of Objective K, which leads in turn toward
the Overall Goal.
Trillium can be graded, not only on his achievements for the
year, but also on the efficiency with which he moves toward each
objective. He has become administratively encircled. The ad-
ministrators, whose original purpose was to keep track of writ-
ing supplies for the professors, now have the upper hand and sit
in judgement on their former masters.
Only one step remains to complete Trillium's shackling in the
chains he himself has helped to forge. On advice of the Univer-
sity administrators, the legislators of his State establish by
law the number of hours a Professor of Botany must spend on each
phase of his professional activities. Trillium may feel impelled
to protest, but how can he? The lawmakers are only formalizing
what he himself has told them, through his Goals and Objectives
statements, he wants to do! Objectives, designed to improve
Trillium's efficiency and measure his performance as a botanist,
has gotten in the way, kicked back, and opposed its own proper
function. Once more the universal validity of Le Chatelier's
Principle has been demonstrated.
Abbreviated from: Gall, John. 1975. Systemantics: How systems
work and especially how they fail. Quadrangle/The New York
Times Book Co., New York. 111 p.
(BEN # 97 1-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
A NEW MODEL FOR LAND INFORMATION MANAGEMENT - ACRONYMS
From: LUCO - British Columbia Government, unnamed document,
page 2.
ALIC ADM's Land Information Council
CLIB Common Land Information Base
CLISP Corporate Land Information Strategic Plan
CORE Commission on Resources and Environment
CRII Corporate Resources Inventory Initiative
FRDA Forest Resources Development Agreement
GIS Geographic Information System
GLIDE Government Land Information Data Exchange
LICC Land Information Coordination Committee
LII Land Information Infrastructure
LIMF Land Information Management Framework
LIS Land Information System
LISC Land Information Strategic Council
LRMP Land and Resource Management Plan
LUCO Land Use Coordination Office
PAS Protected Areas Strategy
RIC Resource Inventory Committee
TRIM Terrain Resource Information Management Program
(BEN # 97 1-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
THE TALES OF NASRETTIN HOCA - JUST AS HE WAS GETTING USED TO IT
A protracted winter reduces the amount of barley available for
Hoca's donkey. So, Hoca gradually cuts down on the barley with
which he feeds his donkey: There is less from one day to the
next. And then he feeds the donkey once every two or three days.
What should he see when he enters the barn one day: The donkey
is dead.
"Pity!" mumbles Hoca. "Just as he was getting used to it, he
died."
>From "The Tales of Nasrettin Hoca." Told by Aziz Nesin, Retold
in English by Talat Halman. DOST Yayinlari, Istanbul.
1988.
(BEN # 97 1-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
GOETHE ON SEX IN PLANTS
It is approximately sixteen years ago [Goethe wrote this in
1820, when he was 71 years old] that Professor Schelver, curator
of the Grand-ducal Immediate Botanical Garden under my direc-
tion, disclosed to me in strictest confidence, in that very
garden on the same paths where I still take my walks, that he
had long had his doubts about the theory ascribing two sexes to
plants and that he was now fully convinced of its untenability.
[Schelver's book, "Critique of the Theory of the Sexuality in
Plants," appeared in 1812.]
In my nature studies I had religiously accepted the dogma of
sexuality in plants and was, therefore, taken aback now to hear
a concept directly opposed to my own. Yet I could not consider
the new theory wholly heretical ... Now his brilliant theory
takes on substance through Henschel's monumentous study ["On the
Sexuality of Plants" published in 1820]; it is earnestly demand-
ing its place in science, although one cannot fortell how that
place will be found.
For the instruction of young persons and ladies this new theory
will be extremely welcome and suitable. In the past the teacher
of botany has been placed in a most embarrassing position, and
when innocent young souls took textbook in hand to advance their
studies in private, they were unable to conceal their outraged
moral feelings. Eternal nuptials going on and on, with the
monogamy basic to our morals, laws and religion disintegrating
into loose concupiscence - these must remain forever intolerable
to the pure-minded! ... Indeed, we recall having seen arabesques
in which the sexual relations within a flower calyx were repre-
sented in an extremely graphic way.
Ref.: Goethe's botanical writings. Translated by Bertha Mueller.
Ox Bow Press, Woodridge, CT. 1989.
(BEN # 97 1-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
IS BENJO A PLACE FOR BEN?
I asked my Japanese friend:
>Can you tell me what "ben" means in Japanese?
>I read somewhere that it means convenient, or useful?
Here is his answer:
You know, Japanese use the Chinese characters. The characters
are ideograms or ideographic characters and we cannot understand
the exact meaning of a certain sound without hearing the whole
sentence.
Several things come to my mind with the "ben" sound: valve,
petal (Ka-ben in Japanese), speech, dialect (Kansai-ben = kansai
accent), convenience, and excreta (Dai-ben = feces or stool).
These words are usually distinguished by Chinese characters.
The same Chinese character is used for "ben" of both benri and
benjo:
benri = convenience
benjo = lavatory or W.C. (ben is convenience and jo is a place)
Another my Japanese friend confirms that excreta, Dai-ben (=
feces or stool), are the first thing that comes to his mind when
he hears "ben" [or "BEN" ?].
(BEN # 97 1-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
BILL VAN DIEREN (1930 - 1995)
Bill van Dieren lost his short fight with lung cancer on March
26, 1995. He was born in Holland in 1930, worked shortly in New
Zealand, and in 1956 he emigrated to Canada. He lived in Van-
couver till 1980, when he moved to Port Alberni. With his en-
gineering background he worked in the oil industry, designed
water supply systems, and in Port Alberni worked on technologi-
cal changes of the MacMillan-Bloedel paper mill.
Bill was an exemplary amateur botanist. He was a keen observer
and was incredibly meticulous in everything he did. After moving
to Port Alberni he started a long-term study of the flora and
vegetation of the Somass River estuary and wrote a detailed
report (1982) on this for the Athabasca University. His study
served as a base for the ecological reserve proposal. In 1984
Port Alberni Museum mounted a large exhibition on the Somass
River Delta based on Bill's collection and photographs. Bill
supported all records by herbarium voucher specimens. He donated
to the Royal British Columbia Museum close to 2,000 specimens
and a collection of about 5,000 photographic slides. He actively
promoted conservation issues within his community and natural
history clubs and shared his botanical knowledge with both
laypeople and professional botanists.
The profile of Bill van Dieren would not be complete without
mentioning his work among the First Nation's people of the west
coast of Vancouver Island. He organized book drives and estab-
lished libraries in villages in Ucluelet, Ahousat, Hesquiat, and
Kyuquot and worked as a lay missionary. The pinnacle of his work
within First Nation's communities was a thorough genealogical
research on several west coast families.
He will be missed by his wife Dorothy, who was his partner in
botanical trips and in his work within the First Nation's, by
his two children, three grandchildren, and by many other people
who were honoured to be his friends. -- Adolf Ceska
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
WASHINGTON STATE NATURAL HERITAGE PROGRAM THREATENED
Funding for the Washington Natural Heritage Program has been
eliminated from the Washington state budget. Senate amendment to
the budget stated that the Program should be supported from the
Department of Natural Resources budget, but at this time it is
not clear if the Natural Heritage Program will indeed get the
amount it needs to perform its function. Since the Nature Con-
servancy funding of the Program is done on a matching basis, the
funds the Program gets from the Nature Conservancy may be cut
back as well.
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW PUBLICATION: BROMUS L. OF NORTH AMERICA
Pavlick, Leon E. 1995. Bromus L. of North America. Royal British
Columbia Museum, Victoria. 160 p. ISBN 0-7718-9417-1 [soft
cover] Cost: CDN$19.95
"This taxonomic work is the first comprehensive treatment of
North American bromegrasses since 1900. Leon E. Pavlick presents
his extensive research of the genus Bromus occurring in Canada
and the United States in a comprehensive and accessible format.
This book contains keys to species, descriptions with habitat
information and distribution maps, synonyms, glossary,
references and index. Of the 51 species described, 30 are newly
illustrated [by Elizabeth J. Stephen and Peggy Frank].
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW PUBLICATION: SUNFLOWER FAMILY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA - VOL. 2
Douglas, George W. 1995. The sunflower family (Asteraceae) of
British Columbia: Volume II - Astereae, Anthemideae,
Eupatorieae and Inuleae. Royal British Columbia Museum,
Victoria. 393 p. ISBN 0-07726-2161-6 [soft cover] Cost:
CDN$29.95
This is volume 2 of a three-volume work by George W. Douglas. It
includes keys to tribes and genera, species descriptions, dis-
tribution maps, illustrations [by Elizabeth J. Stephen],
synonymies, a glossary, a bibliography and an index.
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
HOW TO ORDER PUBLICATIONS OF THE ROYAL BRITISH COLUMBIA MUSEUM
You can order Bromus, Asteraceae Vol. 2, and other Museum publi-
cations in the following outlets:
Individuals order from The Royal Museum Shop at 675 Belleville
Street, Victoria, BC, V8V 1X4, Phone: (604) 356-0505, Fax: (604)
356-8197. Major credit cards, purchase orders, personal cheques,
money orders accepted.
Resale outlets and institutions order from CROWN Publications,
Inc., 521 Fort Street, Victoria, B.C. V8W 1E7, Phone: (604) 386-
4636, Fax: (604) 386-0221. Major credit cards, purchase orders,
personal cheques, money orders accepted.
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
THE SORROWS OF OLD GOETHE
From: R.T. Ogilvie <bogilvie@RBML01.RBCM.BC.CA>
The article in BEN 97 on Goethe's anti-sex views in plants is a
reaction in his old age to his youthful enthusiasm for the
Linnaean sexual system of plant classification. Linnaeus used
the number of stamens for defining Classes, and the number of
carpels for defining Natural Orders (approximately equivalent to
our present-day Families).
Linnaeus' classification system for higher categories was more
precisely a numerical system rather than a sexual system. Each
Class and Order was given a Latin name, a brief Latin descrip-
tive phrase, a short Latin "anthropocentric" phrase, and in some
editions after 1759 the English equivalent for these names and
phrases. Some examples, which may give an idea of what Goethe
was reacting to:
Class Pentandria (Five Males) - five stamens in a hermaphrodite
(bisexual) flower (five husbands in the same marriage).
Class Didynamia (Two Powers) - four stamens, two long and two
short (four husbands, two tall and two short).
Class Monoecia (One House) - male and female flowers on the same
plant (husbands live with their wives in the same house
but have different beds).
Class Dioecia (Two Houses) - male and female flowers on dif-
ferent plants; (husbands and wives have different houses).
Class Polygamia - bisexual flowers, male, or female flowers in
the same species (husbands live with wives and
concubines).
Class Cryptogamia (Clandestine Marriages) - flowers are con-
cealed (nuptials are celebrated privately).
Order Polygamia Aequalis (Equal Polygamy) - many florets with
stamens and pistils (many marriages with promiscuous
intercourse).
Order Polygamia Spuria Segregata (Spurious Separate Polygamy) -
many flower- bearing involucres contained in one common
involucre (many beds united so that they constitute one
common bed).
Linnaeus first published his system in 1735, and republished it
many times with minor changes in the next thirty years. Lin-
naeus' system was widely adopted throughout Europe as a con-
venient means of identifying plants. France was an exception,
where many French botanists such as Gerard, Adanson, and the de
Jussieus rejected the Linnaeus system because of its ar-
tificiality. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a serious amateur botanist,
saw the value of Linnaeus' system for teaching and used it for
his very popular book on plant identification "Essais Elemen-
taires sur la Botanique" (1771). Goethe was a generation younger
than Linnaeus and Rousseau, but like Rousseau he was both an
ardent student of the enlightenment and a serious amateur
botanist. It was during the very last years of his life (1820)
that Goethe wrote his remarks criticising the sexual system of
plant classification.
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
TROUBLE IN TRUFFLELAND
From: "Made-in-China Variety Galls French Gourmets" by William
Drozdiak, Washington Post Foreign Service. Publication
date: 2/18/95 [abbrev.]
PARIS, Feb. 17 -- Ever since classical times, gourmets have
extolled the fragrant virtues of the truffle. The fabled fungus,
known as the "black diamond" because of its rarity and value, is
especially revered in France, where culture is defined by the
taste bud as much as by the eye or the mind.
But as truffle fans are discovering to their chagrin, there is
nothing sacred in the modern global marketplace. While Americans
complain of China's piracy in the electronics trade, the French,
among others, are crying foul because an invasion of Chinese
truffles has enabled unscrupulous dealers to perpetrate fraud in
the guise of one of their greatest culinary delights.
The Asian intruder bears an almost perfect resemblance to the
Tuber melanosporum found in the French woodlands of Dordogne and
Provence. Any superficial disparities can only be detected when
the spores of the truffle -- which can range in size from a pea
to an orange -- are examined under a microscope.
But taste is another matter. Unlike the rich pungency of the
French version, the Chinese truffle, or Tuber himalayensis, has
little appreciable flavor when fresh and can even turn un-
pleasant after a few days. "If it is not consumed quickly, it
becomes nasty and sulfurous," said Louis Riousset, a mycologist,
who is regarded as one of France's most renowned truffle con-
noisseurs.
By dousing the Chinese fungus with some truffle-scented oil or
bunching them in a box that includes a few fragrant chunks of
the French species, dishonest dealers have been able to get away
with incalculable fraud, especially when the truffles are marked
up for re-export to such lucrative markets as the United States.
Indeed, the potential for profits is considerable. While French
truffles sell for about $270 a pound, the Chinese cousin goes
for almost $50 a pound.
The vanishing quantities of the French variety have only en-
hanced the value of the truffle trade. French output has dropped
from 800 tons a year at the end of the last century to less than
20 tons today. "The harvest of the whole country can now be put
into one truck," said Pierre-Jean Pebeyre, heir to one of
France's greatest truffle dynasties.
Meanwhile, the Chinese have rapidly filled the void. The French
federation of truffle producers estimates that since the Asian
fungus began appearing two years ago, several hundred tons of
truffles have been flown in from the provinces of Shandong and
Szechuan. This year, Chinese truffles have become a veritable
plague on the market.
Truffle fraud is difficult to detect. "Since the Chinese and
French truffles have the same look and feel to them, the only
way to know the difference is to have a trained palate taste and
identify them," Rostang said. His own fool-proof method is to
sample the truffle on a piece of toast with salt and olive oil;
an even better way to bring out the pure flavor of truffles is
to mix them in scrambled eggs.
"We have nothing against the Chinese farmers who want to cul-
tivate their truffles, but they should be sold under their own
name and not confused with ours," said Riousset, who has earned
his living digging up and studying truffles in southern France
for more than 30 years. "I know that money breeds all sorts of
scams," he said. "But this is a moral crisis and not just busi-
ness, because it involves a unique part of our culture that is
rooted in our own earth. We cannot allow it to be destroyed."
[Cf. also BEN # 92]
(BEN # 98 7-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
POISON VINE FOOLS GIANT BUTTERFLY
From: New Scientist, 25 March 1995, p.11 (by Ian Anderson)
Australia's largest butterfly, the Cairns Birdwing (Ornithoptera
priamus), could be driven to extinction because it is laying its
eggs on the wrong vine. The butterfly, which can have a wingspan
of more than 18 cm, is being fooled into believing that a vine
imported from Brazil for the nursery trade is the native vine on
which it has always laid its eggs. When the caterpillars emerge
and begin to eat the leaves, they are poisoned by a powerful
toxin. The Cairns Birdwing is found in northern Queensland
between Mackay and Cape York. In some areas near Townsville the
butterfly's population has plummeted to 20 per cent of its
former level. A second species, the Richmond Birdwing (Ornitho-
ptera richmondii) is also falling victim to the vine.
The various species of Birdwing, which are found in Southeast
Asia, Papua New Guinea, northeast Australia and the Solomon
Islands, all feed on local species of the vine Aristolochia. But
in Australia, instead of sticking to the native A. tagala and A.
praevenosa they are also lured onto an introduced species called
Dutchman's Pipe (Aristolochia elegans), imported from Brazil.
But the Dutchman's Pipe contains an unidentified compound which
is highly toxic. The sheep have died after eating the plant, and
the toxin is taking its toll on at least two other species of
butterfly -- the Big Greasy (Cressida cressida) and the Red-
bodied Swallowtail (Pachliopta polydorus).
A number of measures are being taken to save Birdwings. In
Townsville, local people are being urged to rip out the imported
vine from their gardens and replace it with native plants.
Native plants are also being planted in reserves and nature
parks. Nurseries are being asked to stop selling the import.
Dutchman's Pipe is a very aggressive plant, and the native
species cannot compete with it in wild.
(BEN # 99 13-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
CARNIVOROUS PLANT DATABASE - CALL FOR PAPERS
From: Jan Schlauer <zxmsl01@student.uni-tuebingen.de>, and
Rick Walker <walker@cutter.hpl.hp.com>
Although carnivorous plants represent a comparatively small
segment within the vast field of botany, they still generate
intense interest from professional botanists and amateur plant
enthusiasts alike. This is partly due to the great beauty of
these plants and also to their startling mode of heterotrophic
nutrition.
The novelty of these plants makes them an ideal vehicle for
introducing botany to young children. Because many carnivorous
plants are endangered, they can also help in informing the
public about environmental and ecological concerns. However, in
the past, a lack of reliable information about these plants has
hampered their educational potential.
CARNIVOROUS PLANT DATABASE - History and present status
As a result of ongoing, lively discussions in the internet
carnivorous plant mailing list [1], it became clear that there
was both a demand, and sufficient expertise, to establish an
electronic database representing as much of the present
knowledge about carnivorous plants as possible.
A comprehensive synonym checklist and bibliographic database of
scientific names already existed [2], so it was decided to
install a world wide web page to allow searches in this check-
list by a hypertext browser [3]. Through the kind support of
Hewlett-Packard Laboratories, the necessary hardware and storage
capacity were supplied free of charge.
The database has been running since November 15, 1994, having
received (and hopefully answered satisfactorily) nearly 4000
queries from over 850 sites, worldwide.
With the database framework in place, we are working to incor-
porate various supplementary data. This new information is
cross-referenced to both the taxonomic list entries and to other
relevant information. Already included in the database are
pictures, identification keys, and supplementary textual infor-
mation for selected taxa.
The data formats will be held in conformity with TDWG and other
biodiversity data standards so that information exchange with
related databasing projects will be as convenient as possible.
In a monographing project initiated by the German carnivorous
plant society (GFP), a topical outline was developed to help
organize the presentation and collection of information from
different sources.
CALL FOR PAPERS - Which kind of input is needed?
We invite contributions to any/all of the following:
1. Species monograph texts or relevant data.
These should be held in conformity with the standard GFP
monograph framework, trying to cover as many of the topics
mentioned therein (see below). All interested parties are
cordially invited to become monographers in this project.
Monographers will be cited not only as authors in the
database (also intended to be issued on CD-ROM periodically)
but also as authors in a printed version thereof. The
printed version of the database is planned to be a con-
tinuously updated (by new editions or separate supplements)
manual on carnivorous plants.
Some experience in Botany -especially in carnivorous plants-
would be beneficial, but principally all persons with suffi-
cient interest are welcome. The following species are
covered by forthcoming monographs already:
Sarracenia purpurea, Drosophyllum lusitanicum, Dionaea
muscipula, Drosera anglica, D.capensis, D.intermedia,
D.regia, D.rotundifolia, Nepenthes distillatoria,
N.khasiana, N.madagascariensis, N.masoalensis, N.pervillei,
Pinguicula agnata, P.alpina, P.esseriana, P.gypsicola,
P.rotundiflora, P.vulgaris, Genlisea glabra, Utricularia
australis, U.bremii, U.gibba, U.intermedia, U.minor,
U.ochroleuca, U.vulgaris.
Monograph topical outline (extracted from GFP framework. For
a full listing please contact Jan Schlauer:
o Taxonomy & Nomenclature (covered by checklist already)
o Systematics & Evolution
o Description & Variability
o Habitats & Distribution
o Physiology & Ecology
o Uses & Cultivation
o Literature References
2. High quality reference pictures
These should be scanned photographs or line drawings,
preferably of the less known, and not yet satisfactorily
covered species. For image formats and further information
please contact Rick Walker.
3. Identification keys.
4. All further kinds of tips, hints, FAQs, slide presentations,
etc., to be linked into the database.
A great many experts who could share their knowledge are already
connected to the internet (the number increasing daily), and we
would be very happy if some of this expertise could be utilized
for the carnivorous plant database.
Thank you for your consideration and (hopefully) contributions!
For further information, please contact:
Jan Schlauer <zxmsl01@studserv.zdv.uni-tuebingen.de> or
Rick Walker <walker@cutter.hpl.hp.com>
References:
[1] List address: "cp@opus.hpl.hp.com". Subscribe by sending
email, the body consisting of the single line: "SUB CP
Your_first_name Your_last_name" (no apostrophs) to the
address: "listserv@opus.hpl.hp.com".
[2] SCHLAUER, Nomenclatural Synopsis of Carnivorous Phanero-
gamous Plants, Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 15 (3&4),
1987.
[3] WALKER, Carnivorous Plant Home Page, 1994,
http://www.hpl.hp.com/bot/cp_home.
(BEN # 99 13-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
PRESERVING THE RECORD OF NATURE THROUGH COUNTLESS AGES
From: Ann Pinzl <pinzl@scs.unr.edu>
The 10th annual meeting of the Society for the Preservation of
Natural History Collections (SPNHC) will be hosted by the Royal
Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 2-6 June 1995. Everyone
is encouraged to submit papers and posters on natural history
collection management issues for consideration. Meeting ac-
tivities include oral and poster presentations, vendor displays,
etc.
WORKSHOP - Managing the Modern Herbarium The SPNHC Education and
Training Committee in conjunction with the ROM Department of
Botany is offering its first discipline- specific workshop, June
5-6. This program is intended for herbarium managers and
curators, researchers, and all others interested in the preser-
vation, care, maintenance and use of collections of plants and
fungi. Many topics to be presented here are applicable to all
systematic collections.
Monday: Preventive Conservation in the Herbarium Case studies,
panel presentations and discussion will be among the formats
used to explore preventive conservation in the modern herbarium.
Among the topics to be covered: conservation standards; building
design and environment; viable options for integrated pest
management control; choices of papers, adhesives, inks and
plastic products; and a review of available resources on preven-
tive conservation and collections care.
Monday evening: Herbarium Information Bazaar - will provide an
opportunity for interaction among workshop participants and
speakers. The conservators and consultants who will be par-
ticipating in the day's session on Herbarium Conservation will
be on hand with demonstration materials, and to answer questions
about papers, adhesives, plastic products, pest control, inks,
humidity control, or renovation and design. Suppliers will also
be there to discuss and display archival and other herbarium
products.
Tuesday: Contemporary Issues Facing Herbaria Bar Coding: Stand-
ards for Systematic Collections. The results of a survey con-
ducted for the Taxonomic Databases Working Group on the use of
bar codes in systematic collections will be presented. Recommen-
dations for bar-coding specifications, interpretation and stand-
ardization will be made.
Destructive Sampling and Molecular Systematics: Are we moving
toward a consensus? Discussion will focus on the issues related
to the expanding role of destructive sampling of herbarium
specimens: what is the current state of technologies; estab-
lishing guidelines for sampling, for documentation, and optimal
retention of data; how can molecular systematics and herbaria
mutually benefit from new roles for preserved specimens; how can
we best address issues of DNA storage and availability?
For an information packet about the meeting and workshop, in-
cluding registration forms, contact:
SPNHC '95 Conference
Royal Ontario Museum
100 Queens Park
Toronto, Ontario
CANADA M5S 2C6
Inquiries:
Janet Waddington, SPNHC'95 Committee Chair
(tel: 416-586-5593; FAX: 416-586-5863; email: janetw@rom.on.ca)
(BEN # 99 13-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
BOTANY BC - JUNE 20 - 22, 1995 - SOUTH CHILCOTIN
From: Allen Banner <ABANNER@MFOR01.FOR.GOV.BC.CA>
Planned location: South Chilcotin, Timberwest Gaspard Creek
Logging Camp (approx. 90 km southwest of Williams Lake; 40 km
south of Riske Creek)
Accommodation: Limited indoor sleeping accommodation (?30
people) but plenty of camping opportunities
Dates: June 21 through 23rd, 1995
Tentative agenda:
June 21st: Registration and icebreaker (evening)
June 22nd (am): indoor talks
June 22rd (pm): field trip to grasslands and wetlands
June 23rd (all day): extensive field trip to grasslands and
wetlands (2 groups)
Field trips are planned to: Jamieson Meadows (large diversity of
wetlands), Gang Ranch/Dog Creek grasslands, Junction grasslands
(Junction of Chilcotin and Fraser Rivers), Farwell Canyon, Other
Chilcotin grasslands and wetlands in the area.
Confirmed Speakers: Trevor Goward (grassland lichens), Shirley
Saulkeld (botanical illustrations), Maryanne Ignace / Nancy
Turner (ethnobotany), Allen Banner / Will Mackenzie (BC
wetland/riparian classification), Anna Roberts (local wetlands -
field trip).
Contact: Allen Banner (ABANNER@mfor01.gov.bc.ca ; tel 604-387-
6688) soon if you are interested in attending. A mailer will be
going out within 2 weeks to our ever-increasing list of Botany
BC "ites" with more details.
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
MOSQUITO FERN - AZOLLA CAROLINIANA - NEW FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: Frank Lomer, Honourary Research Associate, UBC Herbarium,
Vancouver, B.C. c/o <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>
In December 1994, I was exploring a peat bog in South Burnaby
and came across a small plant I had never seen before. It was
floating at the edge of a large pond in an old peat extraction
site with Lemna minor and Spirodella polyrhiza. It was a
Mosquito Fern (Azolla sp.), a small free floating annual fern-
like plant.
Two species of the genus Azolla are known to occur in British
Columbia:
Azolla filiculoides Lam. is an introduced plant from Europe. We
have collections at UBC only from within the city of
Vancouver. I have not seen it myself except in a nursery
pond (sold?) with aquatics. It can be distinguished by its
larger size (1-10 cm diameter) and the rather thickly
papillose upper leaf lobes.
Azolla mexicana K.B. Presl is known in Canada only from several
places around Shuswap Lake (Brunton 1986, Goward 1994).
There is some dispute as to whether it is native or intro-
duced there. It can be identified under a microscope by
the crosswalls within the barbed hairs (glochidia)
projecting from the massulae (an aggregation of
microspores).
The plants I collected were tiny (all under 1 cm, mostly only 5
mm in diameter) and the upper leaf surfaces were smooth. The
plants contained no spores.
A month later, I found the same plant growing in a deep ditch
transecting a huge cultivated cranberry field in Richmond near
the Fraser River. It was growing so thickly that it formed a
mass of living and dead plants a few meters square and more than
10 cm thick in places. It was clogging the culvert debris screen
and lots of dead plants had accumulated along the ditch bank. I
saw more plants at another culvert further along the ditch.
Again, I could see no spores.
On March 5, 1995, I saw another large accumulation of this
Azolla species floating at the end of a deep ditch at another
section of the same cranberry field about 2.5 km further west.
All were dead plants. This time I could see a yellowish-white
powder scattered over the surface of the debris. These turned
out to be microspores which I collected and examined under the
microscope. The glochidia were all without crosswalls. The
species I found fits the description of Azolla caroliniana
Willd., and eastern North American species known in Canada only
from 1962 collection from Hamilton Beach, Ontario which is now
assumed extirpated (Cody & Britton, 1989).
The three areas where I found this plant contained many other
species native to eastern North America, probably introduced
with cranberry stock from long ago.
The voucher specimens are deposited in the UBC herbarium:
"Richmond, near River Rd. E of No 8 Rd. In slough along CN
tracks running along edges of cranberry bog. January 2, 1995.
Coll. Frank Lomer."
References:
Brunton, D.F. 1986. Status of mosquito fern, Azolla mexicana
Salviniaceae in Canada. Canad. Field-Naturalist 100: 404-
408.
Cody, W.J. & D.M. Britton. 1989. Ferns and fern allies of
Canada. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada. 430 p.
Goward, T. 1994. Mosquito fern: Two new records in British
Columbia. Cordillera 1(2): 23-25.
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
CALL FOR SLIDES OF BRITISH COLUMBIA & ALASKA PLANTS
From: Deb Sholly, US Forest Service, Ketchikan, AK (Phone: 907-
225-3101)
We are looking for slides of the following plants:
Draba borealis var. maxima Platanthera gacilis
Draba kamtschatica Puccinellia glabra
Draba kananaskis Puccinellia kamtschatica
Hymenophyllum wrightii Senecio moresbiensis
Isoetes truncata Stellaria ruscifolia
Ligusticum calderi spp. aleutica
I would like to know what photos are coming, so would appreciate
a phone call. You can send them to:
Deb Sholly, Ecology, US Forest Service, Federal Building,
Ketchikan, Alaska 99901. - Thanks!
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
COLEANTHUS SUBTILIS ALERT
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
I visited Shuswap Lake last weekend and to my surprise found
large stands of moss grass (Coleanthus subtilis) in full bloom.
It looks like the most ideal time to look for this grass along
the mud flats of those lakes and rivers that are fed by water
from glaciers and mountain snow.
In the fall of 1989 we (my wife Oluna, Bryce Bancroft and I)
found Coleanthus subtilis along Shuswap Lake; this was a new for
British Columbia and Canada. Previous collections from North
America were from Oregon and Washington: Sauvie Island near
Portland, muddy shore of Hayden Island at base to I5 bridge, and
Bingen. In 1989 we tried to find Coleanthus on Sauvie Island,
but we found only a few plants on Oak Island, at the N end of a
slough where the road to a boat ramp crosses the dyke.
Coleanthus subtilis is an annual grass and it flowers late in
fall, and evidently also early in spring. Due to its small size
and short time span when it can be found, Coleanthus has been
rarely collected. Now it is time to look for it! I would be
interested in learning more about the distribution of this plant
in the Pacific Northwest. If you find it (and I am sure that you
will if you try), make a collection and write me the location.
Thanks.
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
A CENTURY OF BEN
From: R.T. Ogilvie <bogilvie@RBML01.RBCM.GOV.BC.CA>
The hundredth issue of Botanical Electronic News should not pass
without some comment. In Botany there are various plant cen-
turies, some pertinent to our purpose, others that are not.
The genus Centaurea (Asteraceae) has nothing to do with one
hundred. The name comes from the Greek kentron - a spur, not
centum - a hundred. Centaurea includes notorious species such as
the noxious knapweeds, star-thistle, etc. The name of these
plants comes from Chiron the Centaur, half-man and half-horse
who, according to myth, taught the medicinal herbs to the an-
cient Greek medical-botanists such as Asclepias. Various species
of Centaurea have been used as herbal tonic, stimulant,
diuretic, diaphoretic, purgative, vermifuge, and goodness knows
what else.
Another genus Centaurium (Gentianaceae) has several species,
called Centaury, which have been used as herbal and medicinal
tonics. This genus is also named for Chiron the Centaur.
The Century Plant - Agave americana, got its name from the
belief that it flowered only once in a hundred years. In fact it
flowers more frequently than that, but at least the name has
something to do with a hundred.
Lastly, a Century of Plants, is a set of 100 dried, pressed, and
labelled plants specimens, distributed to herbaria. As a UBC
student I recall Dr. Krajina assembling bundles of "Centuria"
for exchange with other herbaria. Also, Bernard Boivin, another
classical botanist, issued sets of "Centurie de plantes" for
exchange in the early 1950's.
So finally we're back to a Century of BEN, and Adolf Ceska
should be congratulated on achieving this. We hope BEN continues
for at least another hundred issues.
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
RE: BEN CENTURY - REPLY TO R.T. OGILVIE
Thank you, Bob, for your note and thanks to all of you who
contributed to BEN and made its century possible.
At this moment BEN has about 470 direct subscribers and is also
posted on USENET in bionet.plants. I rarely hear from the
readers, mostly only when I do something wrong. For instance:
BEN # 98: " Any superficial disparities can only be detected
when the spores of the truffle -- which can range in size from a
pea to an orange -- are examined under a microscope."
> Adolf,
> WE were amazed at truffle spores the size of an orange.
> This is surely a record. The truffle that produces them
> must be immense.
> Wilf [Schofield] & Olivia [Lee] [UBC Herbarium]
Please, don't write me notes saying that you read BEN and enjoy
or hate it. Instead, I would greatly appreciate any notes,
articles or news that you would like to post on BEN. It is you,
BEN readers and BEN contributors, who can keep BEN running.
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)
------------------------------------------
WILDFLOWERS HOME PAGE
From: garylipe@onramp.net
I have started a WILDFLOWERS home page which might be of inter-
est to your subscribers of BEN. Their input to WILDFLOWERS would
certainly make the page more useful and meaningful to the
readers.
Thanks for your consideration.
Gary Lipe, garylipe@onramp.net
PO BOX 11830, Ft Worth, TX 76110-1830
Visit the WILDFLOWERS page at:
http://rampages.onramp.net/~garylipe/
(BEN # 100 29-April-1995)