Issues#110 to #119
VERNACULAR NAMES: WHY WE NEED (OR DO NOT NEED) THEM
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
I remember the first vernacular name of a vascular plant my
mother taught me: kontryhel [con-tree-hell], a Czech name for
Alchemilla. I don't know the etymology of the Czech name, but I
remember the mnemonic my mother used: "Mrs. Kondrys (a pub
keeper from across the street - imagine what I knew when I was
four!) picked it." For Czechs, Alchemilla would be easier to
remember and easier to pronounce than kontryhel. Kontryhel,
however, has a great advantage over Alchemilla: it can get
through the declination mill of the Czech language without any
damage, whereas Alchemilla halts the Czech language in all forms
except the nominative singular.
The Czech language requires the use of vernacular names because
the scientific names are incompatible with the Czech grammar.
According to the rules, "scientific names are treated as Latin
regardless of their derivation," and Czechs cannot handle Latin
in Czech sentences. Even in the Czech scientific texts you have
to use common names, never mind how absurd, artificial, or
difficult to remember they may be. Common names fill the holes
where the Latin names would halt the sentence. The scientific
name of a given plant is usually appended immediately behind the
vernacular name in parentheses: people ought to know what plant
you are really talking about. E.g., kontryhel ostrolalocny
(Alchemilla acutiloba). It is the structure of the Czech lan-
guage that dictates the use of vernacular names. Russian grammar
is equally incompatible with Latin names, but in addition,
Russians use a different alphabet; Latin names are difficult to
accommodate in Russian written sentences even when Latin names
are in the form of nominative singular.
Nobody can blame Japanese for using vernacular names. With the
exception of Tsuga or Aucuba (Japanese names treated as Latin),
Japanese cannot transcribe most scientific names and they had to
develop their own botanical nomenclature. The Japanese language
is quite flexible in accepting English words (e.g., fo-ku =
fork, ay-soo-cree-moo = ice cream, hen-de-mayku = megaphone).
but the attempt to replace Japanese vernacular names with Latin
names transcribed in katakana would be irrational. Again, it is
the incompatibility of the Latin names and the language that
necessitated a creation of vernacular nomenclature in Japan.
What about English? I am not a linguist, but I don't see any
major incompatibility between Latin names and English grammar.
Latin names can be used directly in English sentences and we
don't have to use "Lady's-mantle" for "Alchemilla" just to keep
the sentence grammatically correct. The only area where there is
any "incompatibility" between Latin and English is in the
pronunciation. However, do we really need English common names
just because we don't know (or we don't agree on) how to
pronounce scientific names? I believe that we can get through
"Dryas integrifolia" more easily than through "Entire-leaved
white mountain-avens." I have met many "lay people" -
naturalists, amateur botanists, and garden enthusiasts who
prefer using scientific names; vernacular names mean almost
nothing to them. Let's be grateful to the English language that
it can accommodate scientific names as well as it does. In my
opinion, we do not have to create a parallel nomenclature of
vernacular names just because we have occasional difficulties
with pronunciation of scientific names.
(BEN # 110 19-August-1995)
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HISTORICAL RECORD OF GOLDEN PAINTBRUSH, CASTILLEJA LEVISECTA
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
COSEWIC (Committee on status of endangered wildlife in Canada)
followed the example of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and
designated Castilleja levisecta as a threatened species in
Canada. This species once occurred from Oregon north to Van-
couver Island in British Columbia. Only 10 disjunct populations
of this plant now exist, in open grasslands ranging from south
of Olympia, Washington north through the Puget Sound to South-
west British Columbia, Canada [BEN # 79].
There are only two localities in British Columbia where the
species still survives: Alpha Islet and Trial Island (obviously
the largest population among the 10 known locations), and both
are Ecological Reserves. There are several historical collec-
tions from around Victoria. One plant of Castilleja levisecta
grew in Beacon Hill Park in Victoria: it has not been seen since
1992.
In her reminiscence of the past history of the Craigflower area
(part of View Royal, Victoria), Alice (Heron) King mentioned
golden paintbrush:
"There was a large hay field where children did not play, or
they would be lectured by Johnny Stewart. Joe Stewart, Amy's
brother, and his family camped on adjacent property. This is the
only place I have ever seen where a huge patch of yellow
paintbrush bloomed each spring. It was destroyed when the
seaplane business took over." [1928-1932]
The location of the site was at the end of Steward Road in View
Royal, Victoria.
Reference:
Alice (Heron) King. 1993. The Heron family and friends. Pp. 66-
69 in Duffus, Maureen. Craigflower Country: A history of
View Royal 1850-1950. Fleming Printing, Victoria. 130 p.
(BEN # 110 19-August-1995)
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POST-GLACIAL VEGETATION IN NORTHWESTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
Spooner, I.S., L. Hills & G.D. Osborn. 1995. An integrated
approach to Holocene palaeoenvironmental reconstruction in
Northwestern British Columbia: Applications of palynology,
sedimentology and resident oral history.
The following is the abstract of a paper presented at the joint
meeting of the Canadian Quaternary Association and the Canadian
Geomorphological Research Group in St. John's, Newfoundland,
June 5-7, 1995.
Susie Lake is an alpine cirque lake situated near tree line on
the eastern slope of northern Coast Mountains, British Columbia
(approx. 58 deg. N., 131 deg. W.). Palynomorph assemblages
recovered from cores were interpreted as proxy indicators of
Holocene climate change. The post-glacial colonizing vegetation
appeared before 7990 +- 80 yr B.P. and consisted of a shrub herb
community dominated by Alnus (alder), Betula (birch), Artemisia
(sage) and Gramineae (grasses). Macrofossil and palynomorph data
suggest that between about 7700 and 2000 yr B.P. timberline
remained above present levels in response to warmer climatic
conditions and was dominated by Picea (spruce) and Abies (fir).
A return to wetter, perhaps colder conditions after 2000 yr B.P.
is indicated by an increase in Tsuga (hemlock) and an absence of
tree macrofossils. A decrease in the frequency of occurrence of
turbidity current deposits in the core generated by a bordering
alluvial fan coincides with an elevated treeline and warmer,
drier conditions. The palaeovegetational record for Susie Lake
is unique when compared to the previously obtained coastal and
interior records and indicates that there are significant dif-
ferences in meso-scale climate trends in western Canada.
Information on Late-Holocene environmental changes was obtained
from resident oral histories. Landslide activity was associated
with concentrated spring runoff during high-snowpack years. A
large rock avalanche was caused by activity along the Queen
Charlotte transform. Both legends and resident histories indi-
cate that volcanic activity on Mt. Edziza may have occurred
within the last millennium indicating that the eruptive history
of Mt. Edziza should be re-evaluated, especially in light of
proposed economic development of the region.
(BEN # 110 19-August-1995)
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NEW PUBLICATION: MOUNTAIN PLANTS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
Taylor, Ronald J. & George W. Douglas. 1995. Mountain plants of
the Pacific Northwest: A field guide to Washington, west-
ern British Columbia, and southeastern Alaska. Mountain
Press Publishing Company, Missoula, Montana. (437 pp.,
>1000 color illustr.) Price - US $20.00
The book will be available in bookstores sometime in September.
At present it may be ordered from Mountain Press Publishing
Company, P.O. Box 2399, Missoula, Montana, 59806.
(BEN # 110 19-August-1995)
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THE DECLINE OF PACIFIC MADRONE: SYMPOSIUM SYNOPSIS
From: Clement W. Hamilton and Paul West c/o <pwest@eskimo.com>
[Copyrighted material released with the authors' permission for
posting on BEN.]
The past several years has seen increasing interest, on the part
of the horticultural public as well as landscape professionals,
in the health of the Pacific madrone, Arbutus menziesii. Several
general trends -- such as the desire for more broad-leaved
evergreens in urban landscapes, the growing appreciation of
native plants of ornamental and ecological value, and ever
augmented plant-physiological stress due to urbanization --
converge on the madrone. People are almost unanimous in their
praise of the tree's desirability for urban landscapes, and also
unanimously puzzled about what might be causing its decline in
urban areas of the Pacific Northwest.
The symposium on "The Decline of Pacific Madrone: current
theories and research directions" was held at the University of
Washington Center for Urban Horticulture April 28, 1995. About
200 researchers, professionals, and interested citizens gathered
to share their knowledge and perspectives. They sought to deter-
mine whether any common understandings could be reached and what
future research might be of greatest help to the madrone. Two
questions underlay the twelve presentations and ensuing discus-
sions: 1) What are the nature and causes of the decline of
Arbutus menziesii in urban environments of the Pacific
Northwest? and 2) How can the madrone be propagated, restored,
and managed in urban landscapes?
This symposium was initiated by a group of Seattle community
activists who had been witnessing the gradual demise of many
formerly handsome madrones along Magnolia Bluff. In 1994, they
won special funding to determine how to reverse this decline as
mitigation for the West Point sewage treatment plant at nearby
Discovery Park. Save Magnolia's Madronas, as they called them-
selves, recognized that the madrone's decline was widespread
throughout the Seattle area, and that research was needed to
better under stand the causes of decline.
At the beginning of the symposium, Christopher Chappell and
Gregory Ettl spoke of the natural context of the madrone, Chap-
pell noting the apparent importance of fire in the establishment
and persistence of plant associations in which madrone
predominates. Fairly dry, sunny sites with shallow, well drained
soil seem to be prime madrone habitat.
Richard Hunt considered that a particular growth characteristic
of the madrone actually may accelerate its decline. When the
tree becomes stressed, it flowers more prolifically, an evolu-
tionary strategy to continue its lineage despite its possibly
impending death. That excessive flowering, however, detracts
from the resources to put into new terminal shoot growth, and
the tree produces fewer new leaves. As flowering increases and
leaf production declines, the tree may begin to lack the vigor
necessary t o defend itself against the canker-causing diseases
described by Hunt and by Ralph Byther.
Dana Bressette and Clement Hamilton have been sampling in-
dividual madrone trees west of the Cascades, recording site
conditions and grading tree health. Their preliminary results
suggest that two characteristics correlate with decline: tall,
single-stemmed growth habit and thin bark. This implicates
exposure of the stem as a primary causative factor. Bressette
noted also that she witnessed bark exfoliation more often on
south sides of samples, possibly implicating sun exposure as a
direct cause of decline. Their observations complement a model
of stand decline that A.B. Adams has proposed. He noted that the
trees studied in the landscaped area of Magnolia Bluff exhibited
more dieback and canker than do the trees in the natural setting
of nearby Thorn dyke Park. This led him to posit a positive
feedback process whereby the disturbance and exposure caused by
landscape development causes a stress response in the tree, such
as exfoliation of the bark. This may then predispose the tree to
infection by pathogens, which accelerates the decline. As the
tree canopy dies back and individual trees are lost, the ex-
posure of the stand further increases, thus augmenting the
potential for general decline.
Trees are dying, but these are typically remnant trees of former
forest stands that have not been able to adjust to changes --
usually clearing -- in the environment around them. In contrast,
young, vigorous madrone trees can be seen growing up along
highways, in parking lot medians, and in other stressful urban
situations. It appears, therefore, that madrones can thrive in a
wider variety of conditions than found in its usual habitat, if
they are established as juveniles within those same growing
conditions. Madrones have been witnessed growing at the edges of
wetlands, in irrigated turf, and under closed conifer canopy,
for instance. This perspective holds promise that madrones can
find new niches in many parts of the urban landscape.
This hope is fueled by great evidence that madrones can be
readily propagated from seed. The work of Ray Maleike, Rita
Hummel, Diana Privett, and Rico Gonzclez indicates that con-
tainer production is within reach using standard nursery prac-
tices. Another challenge is transferring the plants from the
nursery into the landscape. Thus far, the work of Hummel,
Privett, Gonzclez, and Tony Shoffner has focused on establishing
1- to 3-gallon sized material. Because madrone exhibits sen-
sitivity to transplanting, smaller material offers more im-
mediate potential. Working with small material presents special
challenges to the landscape manager, however, requiring extra
protection in environments with heavy traffic, careful monitor-
ing for pests (notably slugs and root weevil), and allowing the
juvenile bushy habit and low branching to prevail in order to
protect the trunk. The challenge does not end with establishment
of the trees, as Phil Coker points out; proper arboricultural
treatment depends on understanding the physiology of mature
trees.
At the close of the symposium, participants discussed over
twenty areas of research that could benefit madrones in the
future, among them the following: 1) systematic study of the
canker-causing organisms; 2) genetic study of disease resis-
tance, coupled with a program of selecting, propagating, and
introducing desirable plants; 3) exploring the possible sig-
nificance of mycorrhizal associations; 4) trial plantings in
different types of urban site; 5) determining the size and area
of minimum viable populations in urban greenbelts; and 6) com-
parative study of different approaches to pruning and other
arboricultural practices.
Seldom does one plant species, outside of agriculture or produc-
tion forestry, arouse such a high degree of concern as has
Arbutus menziesii. The contributors to this volume hope that
their work has helped lay a significant foundation for a heal-
thier future for the Pacific madrone.
Proceedings from the symposium will be published this fall and
will be available from the Center for Urban Horticulture,
University of Washington GF-15, Seattle WA 98195, for $15 US.
(BEN # 111 26-August-1995)
------------------------------------------
CAREX PRAIREA IN MONTANA
From: Toby Spribille
</S=T.SPRIBILLE/OU1=R01F14D03A@mhs-fswa.attmail.com>
The recent exploration of the calcareous wetlands in the Tobacco
Valley in northwest Montana has resulted in numerous new records
for the region and an interesting overview of bryophyte diver-
sity in an otherwise poorly-known area. One of the most sig-
nificant finds to date is the discovery of Carex prairea Dewey
in two marl fens near the village of Trego in the northern
Salish Mountains. This species is very rare in the west, and is
present in British Columbia only in the Fraser Plateau region.
Phytogeographically, it can be regarded as a northeast North
American element at its western periphery; its discovery in
northwest Montana represents a range extension south from
central B.C. and west from the northern Great Plains.
The plant was first brought to my attention by Jack Triepke, a
botanist on the Fortine Ranger District, who collected it in a
large marl fen/Betula glandulosa carr. It was subsequently
collected in another fen in the vicinity. At the latter site it
was the dominant cover, forming extensive hummocks with Carex
gynocrates. The seeping water had a pH of 7.2.
In addition to the Carex, many other rare or infrequent species
were discovered in the second fen. These include the mosses
Scorpidium cossoni, Meesia triquetra and Catascopium nigritum
and the rare lichen Cetraria sepincola, known from only a hand-
ful of collections south of the Canadian border. It was found to
be locally common on twigs of Betula glandulosa.
Voucher specimens of Carex prairea: MONTANA; FLATHEAD CO.:
Collins Fen, Lime Creek, 25. July 1995, J. Triepke FJT025;
Magnesia Creek, abundant in rich fen, 21. June 1995,
Spribille 3355; same location, 1. Aug. 1995, Spribille
3902; specimens to be deposited at COLO, MICH, MONTU.
(BEN # 111 26-August-1995)
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ALIEN SPECIES IN HAWAII - DATABASE OF DATA SOURCES
From: Philip A. Thomas - National Biological Service
Haleakala Field Station <halesci@hawaii.edu>
I am working on a project sponsored by the Research Corporation
of the University of Hawaii to compile a database of sources of
information RE: alien species in Hawaii. I would be very inter-
ested to hear from anyone who has any kind of data on alien
species (plants, animals, etc.) which occur in Hawaii. Data can
be field notes, electronic databases, incidental or spatial
observations, etc. I would appreciate any information.
Please respond to me directly with a brief description of the
data that you have/know about, or if you would like further
details about this project.
(BEN # 111 26-August-1995)
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EUROPEAN YEW - TAXUS BACCATA - YIELDS AN ANTI-CANCER DRUG
From: The European MagAZine, 31 Aug - 6 Sept 1995, p. 12.
The natural compounds in yew are being used in the manufacture
of a new anti-cancer drug being developed by the French phar-
maceutical company Rhone Poulenc Rorer. The result of long-term
research into the taxoid compounds is the drug Docetaxel
[=Taxotere], which has recently undergone trials by the European
Society for Medical Oncologists. The women who took part in the
trial all had advanced breast cancer and secondary liver
tumours. In a quarter of the patients tested, the liver tumours
disappeared completely and in half of the group they shrank by
50 per cent or more.
Docetaxel is showing a high activity in patients where current
therapy is limited and where prognosis is extremely poor. Also,
the recommended dose and schedule are suitable for outpatient
treatment. Docetaxel takes just one hour to administer and only
five or so treatments are usually required. But, as with any
anti-cancer drug, there are side effects, including fluid reten-
tion, lower back pain, vomiting and chest tightness. If licensed
by the European Medical Evaluation Agency, Docetaxel should be
on the market by the end of the year.
In southern England, hedge clipping and collecting companies are
already springing up to satisfy the new demand. Every year 200-
300 tonnes of English yew clippings are now sent to France. The
collection process is selective and only European yew no thicker
than a pencil can be processed. The clippings must be dry,
unadulterated by other garden refuse and reach cold storage
within 48 hours of being cut. One tonne of clippings produces
just 200 g of the new drug.
Additional references (from CARL's Uncover):
Gelmon, K. 1994. The taxoids: paclitaxel and docetaxel. The
Lancet, 344(8932): 1267.
Lavelle, F., Bissery, M.C., & Andre, S. 1995. Preclinical
Evaluation of Docetaxel (Taxotere). Seminars in oncology,
22(2 - Supp 4): 3.
Pazdur, R., Kudelka, A. P., & Kavanagh, J. J. 1993. New Drugs:
The taxoids: paclitaxel (Taxol) and docetaxel (Taxotere).
Cancer treatment reviews, 19(4): 351.
Verweij, J. 1994. Docetaxel (Taxotere), a new anticancer drug
with promising potential? British journal of cancer,
70(2): 183.
(BEN # 112 13-September-1995)
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TWO SPECIES OF PICRIS (ASTERACEAE) ADVENTIVE IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
& Frank Lomer c/o <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>
Two species of the genus Picris have been found recently in
British Columbia. Picris is a genus of about 45 species dis-
tributed in Europe, Asia and Africa. It belongs to the tribe
Lactuceae, the tribe of the Asteraceae family that is charac-
terized by having heads with only ligulate flowers. Within the
tribe Lactuceae, Picris has the following characteristic com-
bination of characters: plants with cauline leaves; stems with
stiff, scattered hairs; achenes beaked, with plumose (feather-
like) pappus.
Picris hieracioides L. was collected in British Columbia on
Cedar Hill (=Mt. Douglas), Victoria, in 1887 (Macoun, CAN -
cited in Groh, H. 1947. Canadian Weed Survey, 4-th Report 1945,
p. 44) and two years ago east of Greenwood on Phoenix Mine Road,
at the base of the roadside, mine waste clearing about 4 km to
highway # 3 to Grand Forks (Frank Lomer s.n., 12 July 1993 -
UBC, V).
Picris echioides L. has been reported from Alberta, Saskatchewan
and Ontario. One plant of this species appeared in a potato
patch in Dave Coombes' garden in Victoria (Government at Niagara
Str., Adolf Ceska, # 29629, August 15, 1995 - V).
(BEN # 112 13-September-1995)
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NEW PUBLICATION - CHESS LYONS REVISED
Lyons, C.P. & Bill Merilees. 1995. Trees, shrubs & flowers to
know in British Columbia & Washington. Lone Pine Pub-
lishing, Edmonton, Alberta. 375 p. ISBN 1-55105-044-7
[softcover] CDN$ 18.95, US$ 15.95
The first edition of Chess Lyons' popular guide was published in
1952. The original guide (written for "scouts and grandmothers")
has been revised again, for the fourth time. The new publisher
retained the original typeset and Chess Lyons' line drawings,
including the mysterious picture of a man with a hat and a tie
(Chess Lyons himself?), used as a scale for shrubs. A new sec-
tion with over 400 colour photographs of plants has been added
as a help for identification.
The publisher has a toll-free phone number: 1-800-661-9017 and a
toll-free FAX number: 1-800-424-7173.
(BEN # 112 13-September-1995)
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DISCUSSION LIST FOR PEOPLE INTERESTED IN HERBARIA
From: Dr. Mary Barkworth <STIPOID@CC.USU.EDU>
During the last few years, several of us in the Pacific
Northwest and Intermountain Region have met on various occasions
to discuss topics of mutual interest concerning our herbaria. A
topic at each of these meetings has been databasing, sharing
information, and making the value of the collections in our care
better known and better appreciated, both internally and exter-
nally. One way of doing this that we discussed was making it
possible to obtain distributional information from several
herbaria at one time.
After talking with Brand Niemann of the National Biological
Service and reading the recent bulletin that came out from NBS,
it seems like this might be a good time to start moving forward
to a formal proposal. To help in the development of a coopera-
tive proposal, Jim Smith at Boise State University has formed a
newsgroup for exchanging ideas, comments, etc.. To subscribe to
the newsgroup, send a message to: listserv@idbsu.idbsu.edu [or
listserv@idbsu.bitnet]. Leave the subject line blank. The mes-
sage to send is: subscribe HERB-L your ordinary name. For in-
stance, my message would be: subscribe HERB-L Mary Barkworth
Once subscribed, when you wish to communicate with anyone con-
cerning matters that relate to herbaria of the Pacific Northwest
and/or Intermountain Region, use: HERB-L@idbsu.idbsu.edu as the
address. Lower case (herb-l) works, but you need to know that
last character is the letter l, not the number 1.
(BEN # 112 13-September-1995)
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KLAUS H. LACKSCHEWITZ (1911-1995) - IN MEMORIAM
From: Toby Spribille, Interior Northwest Botany News # 9
</S=BOTANY-NEWS/OU1=R01F14D03A@mhs-fswa.attmail.com>
[The following are autobiographical notes written by Klaus
Lackschewitz last winter after he was diagnosed with terminal
cancer. They describe the life and work of Montana's botanist,
whose efforts contributed very significantly to the knowledge of
the flora of the state. His books are now in widespread use in
the U.S. Forest Service and are accepted as standard references
for the flora of west-central Montana. He died in Missoula on 10
August 1995, at the age of 84. The notes are reproduced with
permission of Mrs. Gertrud Lackschewitz. --TS]
I was born May 4, 1911 in a rural forester's residence in the
then Russian province of Livonia, which was in 1918 to become
the independent republic of Latvia. Shortly after the founding
of the new state my father, who had earned his forestry degree
in Germany, was appointed to the State Department of Forestry in
Riga. There I spent my high school years, graduating from a
German Gymnasium with a Classics emphasis. My interest in the
Natural Sciences was strongly supported by gifted teachers and a
father who came from a family of literati in the Natural
Sciences. I attended Botany and Zoology courses for several
years at the "Institutum Herderianum Rigense", a German College.
The political climate in the early thirties in a country border-
ing on the Stalinist Soviet Union was virulent. The German
minority in the Baltic States was gradually disenfranchised and
put under severe economic pressure. Like many of my countrymen I
turned from an academic to a practical career hoping to be able
to survive and stay in the country of my forefathers which we
all loved very much. I took a 2-year crash course at an agricul-
tural college near Berlin, and from 1935-1939 managed and then
leased a farm in Latvia.
After war broke out in the fall of 1939 all of our hopes of
holding on to a place in our homeland were dashed when the
Hitler/Stalin Pact assigned Latvia as a "sphere of interest" to
the Soviet Union. The 150,000 or so ethnic Germans whose
forbears had lived there for 500 years were ordered out and
shipped on boats to resettle in western Poland, on lands taken
away from Polish proprietors. Soon after being "settled", I was
called to the German army. I served on the Russian southern
front from 1941-1945, which then advanced into the Caucasus
area. My familiarity with Russian language and culture helped to
open my eyes and ears in encounters and tradings with the
population. Later on when I was wounded and captured and trans-
ferred about in POW camps in northern Russia, I was able to
serve as interpreter between the camp authorities and my fellow
prisoners, which gave me some advantage under nearly unbearable
conditions. My knowledge of edible plants helped here and there
to augment our starving rations. With shattered health (I was
diagnosed with Tuberculosis), I almost miraculously made it into
a contingent of returnees in 1947, and stumbled back into war-
devastated West Germany, which was then almost a foreign country
to me.
After recovering I worked odd jobs. I decided to emigrate to
the United States or Canada, where many of my countrymen had
gone. In the spring of 1952 my papers were complete and I
crossed the ocean in a contingent of "deported persons", in an
old military transport ship. My German-born sponsor had hired me
to rehabilitate an abandoned farm in New Jersey, a project that
had little prospect of success. So I turned my old hobby, gar-
dening, into a livelihood. I worked in greenhouses and with
landscaping companies, learning about American plants and gar-
dens (and the English language). I specialized in foundation
plantings and rock gardens. Although I was impressed by the
richness of the flora of the East Coast I never felt quite at
home in it.
When my wife obtained a position at the University of Montana in
1960 I was happy to move west to Missoula, Montana. I was im-
mediately taken by the beautiful open landscapes and mountains,
and drawn to investigate the native flora, especially of the
alpine regions. Friends like Frank Rose, who had been gathering
native plants for commercial purposes, introduced me to their
favorite collecting places. Tor Fageraas, at that time head
gardener of the University campus and an experienced mountain
climber, accompanied me an many a field trip in canyons up the
Bitterroots to collect high elevation plants for the university
herbarium. I also became much interested in the use of native
plants for horticultural purposes and established a rock garden
at my house. Since 1965 the Botany Department of the University
as superintendent of greenhouses, and subsequently gave me a
working place in the herbarium. I could now pursue my two major
passions: investigating and collecting native plants in their
natural habitats to further our knowledge about them, and weav-
ing their austere beauty into our garden design.
Until 1994 I collected specimens for over 12,000 herbarium
sheets, mostly from Montana mountain ranges. Next to the Bitter-
roots, the largest amounts were taken from the Anaconda-Pintler
Mountains, the Front Range east of the Continental Divide, and
the Beartooth Plateau. I visited many of the other mountain
ranges, but only a few times each. After all, I had become a
mountain man only after the age of 50. A number of specimens
found had not been collected in Montana before. Agoseris lack-
schewitzii, Erigeron lackschewitzii and Lesquerella klausii
turned out to be heretofore unknown species.
The major fruit of my observations is contained in my guidebook
Vascular Plants of West-central Montana, 1991 and 1993. In order
to facilitate plant identification by the lay user the material
is organized by habitat (which plant am I likely to find here?)
and by frequency of occurrence. The description again takes into
account the surrounding plant associations.
In 1966 I had the opportunity to realize our plan for a Native
Plant Garden around the University Botany Building. Chairman
Sherman Preece shared my enthusiasm, secured the means and
personally helped to collect the plant material. He mobilized
the faculty and graduate students for the actual groundwork of
laying out and planting the garden. Work study students were
found to pluck the weeds, and for a time new plants were added
every year. Several years ago the Native Plant Society took the
garden into their responsibility. Volunteer workers have gra-
ciously contributed their time and effort to maintain the plant-
ings. Thanks to this ongoing labor of love the garden has been
improved as a teaching tool and a display of the beauty of our
native flora.
Klaus H. Lackschewitz
(BEN # 113 24-September-1995)
------------------------------------------
JOSEF POELT (1924-1995)
From: ASPT Newsletter Volume 9(3) - July 1995
Josef Poelt (1924-1995), Emeritus Professor, Institut fur
Botanik, Universitat Graz, Graz, Austria, and a leading
authority on the systematics of cryptogams especially lichens,
died on 3 June 1995 at his home in Graz. Prof. Poelt was born on
17 October 1924 in the small village of Pocking in upper
Bavaria. He studied botany in Munchen, completing his PhD in
1950 and his habilitation in 1959. In October 1965, after
several years as Curator and Lecturer at Munchen, Poelt took a
professorship at the Institut fur Systematische Botanik und
Pflanzen-geographie, Freie Universitat, Berlin. In February
1972, he left this position to become Professor of the Institut
fur Botanik, Graz.In October 1991, after almost 20 years as head
of the Institut, he stepped down to become an Emeritus Profes-
sor. Even in retirement Prof. Poelt remained active, lecturing
until June 1994 and conducting field work and systematic re-
search until his death.
Prof. Poelt leaves an impressive body of systematic research
reported in over 320 publications, which reflect his diverse
interests in floristics, morphology, evolution, and class-
ification. His flora Bestimmungsschlussel Europaischer Flechten
(1969) is a standard reference for lichenology. His floristic
interests, however, were not limited to Europe; Prof. Poelt
traveled extensively, especially conducting field research and
floristic studies on the lichens of the Himalayas. Although most
of his publications are in this specialty--the systematics of
lichen-forming fungi--many are on non-lichenized fungi and
bryophytes, and a few on vascular plants. The significance of
his scientific research has been recognized with numerous
awards, including membership in the Bavarian Academy of Science,
honorary membership in the Regensburg Botanical Society, foreign
membership in the Linnean Society of London, corresponding
memberships in the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Botani-
cal Society of America, and Acharius Medals from the Interna-
tional Association of Lichenologists. Also, Prof. Poelt was
President of the 4th International Mycological Congress, which
was held in Regensburg, Germany in 1990.
Prof. Poelt was a capable and enthusiastic teacher. Over his
long university career he trained many talented students, first
in Munchen, and later Berlin and Graz. To these students and
numerous colleagues and collaborators, he provided freely a
fountain of ideas and research suggestions. Both his institution
and his home were international meeting places where science and
friendships flourished. Over time his scientific family grew to
include many generations of students, all directly or indirectly
influenced by Prof. Poelt's ideas. This large group of
lichenologists and mycologists should be recognized as the
"Poelt School."
In addition to his scientific achievements, Prof. Poelt was a
devoted husband and loving father. After the early death of his
wife, Christa, he cared for their young daughters. He is sur-
vived by these two daughters, Julia Poelt and Mag. Doris Poelt.
Paula DePriest, Department of Botany, NHB-166, Smithsonian
Institution, Washington, DC 20560-0001, USA.
(BEN # 113 24-September-1995)
------------------------------------------
AAAS - PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY SESSION - VANCOUVER JUNE 1995
From: Dr. Robert Vance <vance@gsc.emr.ca> via QUATERNARY
<QUATERNARY@MORGAN.UCS.MUN.CA> [abbreviated]
Report on 'Palaeoecology and Palaeoclimatology of the Pacific
Northwest' session held during the AAAS (American Association
for the Advancement of Science) Pacific Division meeting at the
University of British Columbia, June 1995. [BEN has published
several abstracts of papers presented on this meeting. From Dr.
Vance report I selected only those parts that dealt with ter-
restrial vegetation. - AC]
....Following lunch, the focus shifted to terrestrial records
of climate change. R. Spear (State University of New York at
Geneseo) discussed pollen evidence of vegetation and climatic
change in northern Yukon. A sparse herb tundra prevailed at 18
ka, indicating cold, dry conditions. The 6 ka palaeoecological
record features the expansion of black spruce (Picea mariana)
and alder (Alnus) populations in south and central Yukon, sug-
gesting decreased temperatures and/or increased precipitation.
R. Hebda (Royal British Columbia Museum) summarized Holocene
palaeoecological investigations in British Columbia, emphasizing
that the 6 ka time slice is best viewed as a 'time of transi-
tion' from warm, dry conditions in the early Holocene to cooler
and moister climate; much like today's, but slightly warmer.
Lake- levels were rising from early Holocene lows, high eleva-
tion treeline remained higher-than-present, and western hemlock
(Thuja plicata) was expanding along the coast. On southern
Vancouver Island, Garry oak (Quercus garryana) was more abundant
at 6 ka than it is today, suggesting that at least in this area
of the province dry conditions persisted. R.W. Mathewes (Simon
Fraser University) summarized 18 ka conditions in British Colum-
bia, pointing out that the widely used date of 18 ka for maximum
ice-sheet expansion is at variance with data from southwestern
British Columbia that suggest interstadial conditions at this
time. Rather than the cold and dry conditions outlined by
CLIMAP, Mathewes reviewed palaeobotanical data indicating more
humid and temperate conditions in the Pacific Northwest. R.E.
Vance (Geological Survey of Canada) reviewed the existing
palaeoecological data base of the Canadian prairie provinces.
Most, if not all of the region was covered by the Laurentide
glacier at 18 ka, although somewhat controversial radiocarbon
dates on lake cores in western Alberta (within the so-called
'ice-free corridor'), suggest that ice free areas existed at 18
ka. Sparse shrub tundra prevailed, suggesting cold and dry
conditions. In contrast, the rich and varied 6 ka database
outlines significant vegetation, geomorphic, and lake-level
responses to warmer and drier climatic conditions. Major vegeta-
tion zone boundaries (i.e. grassland and boreal forest) were
located farther north than today, treelines were situated
upslope of current positions, forest fires more frequent and
lake- levels lower than today. P.E. Wigand (University and
Community College System of Nevada) rounded out the regional
palaeoecological syntheses by summarizing pollen and woodrat
midden records from the northern intermontane west of the United
States. Records west of the Cascades indicate cold and moist
conditions at 18 ka, whereas cold and dry conditions prevailed
in the northern interior and southern intermountain regions. In
northern Nevada, an 1100 m depression in the limit of pine
(Pinus) growth suggests a drop in temperature of at least 8.5oC.
Like British Columbia, 6 ka conditions in the northern intermon-
tane west were on the downhill side of peak postglacial aridity,
and a synchronous (from Oregon to southern Nevada), dramatic
increase in precipitation at 5500 BP marks the onset of condi-
tions similar to the present.
Following the afternoon coffee break, attention shifted to
'alternative' proxy indicators of climate change; that is,
indicators that have not been as extensively used as
palaeobotanical data to reconstruct past climate. M. Hickman
(Devonian Botanic Garden and University of Alberta) opened with
a discussion of diatom evidence of salinity, lake-level, and
climatic change, focusing on records from central Alberta. The
diatom stratigraphy of Goldeye Lake, a possible 18 ka record
from western Alberta, outlines an interval of high salinity,
supporting pollen evidence of pronounced aridity. Diatom data
from central Alberta suggest that significant swings in salinity
and lake-level occurred during the mid- Holocene, underlining
the potential these sensitive indicators of the hydrologic
budget have to document rapid environmental changes that may not
be recorded by palaeobotanical markers. S.A. Elias (University
of Colorado) followed with a summary of insect evidence of
palaeoenvironmental conditions in Alaska. At 18 ka, insect
remains indicate that, in contrast to dry, continental climatic
conditions in interior Alaska, southwestern Alaska and at least
central regions of the Bering Land Bridge were subject to more
mesic conditions, supporting shrub-tundra communities. By 6 ka,
essentially modern environmental conditions were established
throughout Alaska. However, spruce (Picea) forests did not
arrive in lowland sites until 4200 BP, some 8000 years after the
time that insect evidence suggests that conditions were warm
enough to support spruce forest. I.R. Walker (Okanagan Univer-
sity College) ended the session with a review of the potential
chironomid remains have for reconstructing past climate. Results
from low elevation coastal sites tend to support palaeobotanical
inferences of a warm, dry early Holocene followed by the onset
of conditions similar to the present by 6 ka. Current research
foci include analyses of sedimentary records from climatically-
sensitive saline lakes and high elevation tarns, as well as
development of quantitative models for palaeoclimatic in-
ferences.
Those who wish more information on the session (including
abstracts and addresses for all contributors) are encouraged to
contact either Robert Vance, Geological Survey of Canada, 3303-
33rd St. NW, Calgary, AB T2L 2A7 Canada (vance@gsc.emr.ca) or
Ian Walker, Okanagan University College, 3333 College Way,
Kelowna, B.C. V1V 1V7 Canada (iwalker@NKC1.OUC.bc.ca).
(BEN # 113 24-September-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW INTERNET DISCUSSION LIST: ANNOUNCING PACIFIC-BIOSNET
From: "Clayton J. Antieau" <antieau@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu>
...connecting the Pacific Northwest (USA) Biological Resources
and Ecological Restoration Community
Washington State University Cooperative Extension is pleased to
announce the availability of PACIFIC-BIOSNET. PACIFIC-BIOSNET is
a free, moderated mailing list that was created in September
1995 to serve as a forum to provide information about and ex-
change ideas involving native plants, weeds, ecological restora-
tion, wetland science, conservation, and biological resource
regulation and management, with emphasis on Pacific Northwest
issues. It's intended to be a comfortable, supportive place for
subscribers from all levels of expertise to express themselves,
seek information, and connect with others with similar inter-
ests. While honest differences of opinion are welcome, flames
and personal attacks are not. PACIFIC-BIOSNET features a digest
version as well as a regular list and has all posts to it stored
by topic. All posts will eventually be available on an ftp site
accessed via anonymous ftp.
To subscribe, please send your subscription request to:
listproc@listproc.wsu.edu
In the body of the email message, type:
subscribe pacific-biosnet Your_Real_Name
Owner/Moderator: Clayton J. Antieau (360-379-5610 ext. 204):
antieau@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu
Washington State University Cooperative Extension--Jefferson
County 201 West Patison Port Hadlock, WA 98339-9751
(BEN # 113 24-September-1995)
------------------------------------------
NATIVE PLANT FORUM
A one day workshop is being planned to provide an opportunity to
hear about current programs and initiatives involving use of
native plants in British Columbia.
Where: Vernon, B.C.
When: Saturday, November 25, 1995
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Cost: The workshop will be free but you will have to pay your
own travel costs.
Proposed agenda:
Morning: Short presentations about native plants by agencies and
individuals.
Afternoon: Workshops on
Native plant biology and seed collection
Native plant propagation and culture
Species uses and programs involving native plants
Formation of a BC Native Plants Council
For information and registration contact:
Diane Gertzen, Nursery and Seed Services Branch, Ministry of
Forests, 14275-96th Ave., Surrey, B.C., V3V 7Z2, Phone: 604-930-
3309, FAX: 604-775-1288
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW NAMES IN SCAPOSE POPPIES (PAPAVER SECTION MECONELLA)
For his treatment of the genus Papaver for the Flora of North
America, D.F. Murray made one new nomenclatural combination and
validated two names previously published by Randel: Papaver
radicatum subsp. kluanensis (D. Love) D.F. Murray, P. macounii
subsp. discolor (Hulten) Randel ex D.F. Murray, and P. nudicaule
subsp. americanum Randel ex D.F. Murray.
Murray, D.F. 1995. New names in Papaver section Meconella
(Papaveraceae). - Novon 5: 294-295.
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
LITTLE ICE AGE TEMPERATURE ESTIMATED USING CASSIOPE TETRAGONA
A unique opportunity to study conditions for plant growth at the
onset of glaciation was offered as a retreating glacier at
Ellesmere Island, Canada, revealed well-preserved, subfossil
plants of Cassiope tetragona (that lived between 1485 and 1610
AD). Predictions based on regression between modern plant per-
formance and climatic data from the study site imply that the
mean temperature of the period immediately preceding the glacia-
tion of the area was about 0.7 deg. C lower than today. This
estimate is independently supported by the correlation between
growth and mean July temperature seen today among different
sites. The result supports the idea that the pre-Little Ice Age
plants were killed suddenly by permanent snow embedment and not
by the glacial movements or temperature limitations.
Havstrom, M. T.V. Callaghan, S. Jonasson, & J. Svoboda. 1995.
Little Ice Age temperature estimated by growth and flower-
ing differences bewteen subfossil and extant shoots of
Cassiope tetragona, an arctic heather.
Functional Ecology 9: 650-654.
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW BRYONET-L DISCUSSION LIST
From: Janice M. Glime <jmglime@mtu.edu>
I have been encouraged by Gillis Een to use the old name of
Bryonet-l (note that it is an l as in liverwort, not the number
one) for this list serve for bryologists. My intention was to
join the bryophyte ecologists and provide a forum for asking
questions and discussion, particularly to benefit all the iso-
lated graduate students and faculty around the world. Of course
all systematists are welcome, and even an occasional systematics
question will be welcome, but my primary purpose was to serve
the other areas of bryology. Non-bryologists who want to ask
bryological questions or to tap into the discussions are welcome
to take advantage of the net. So, Bryonet-l is up and running.
If you want to subscribe:
mail to:
majordomo@mtu.edu
no subject
message:
subscribe bryonet-l
Do not include your email address. Majordomo will take it from
your mail. You should get a message back telling you about the
bryonet-l and how to unsubscribe.
Address of the owner: Janice M. Glime, Department of Biological
Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931-
1295
e-mail: jmglime@mtu.edu, phone: 906-487-2546, FAX 906-487-3167
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
PLANTS OF THE WESTERN BOREAL FOREST & ASPEN PARKLAND
Johnson, D., L. Kershaw, A. MacKinnon & J. Pojar. 1995. Plants
of the western boreal forest and aspen parkland. Lone Pine
Publishing and Canadian Forest Service, Edmonton. 392 p. ISBN 1-
55105-058-7 [softcover] CDN$24.95, US$19.95
The book includes more than 800 colour photographs and about 900
line drawings of plants from the boreal zone. It covers the area
from Alaska, Yukon, British Columbia to western Ontario.
The book is the third in the series of very popular field guides
[cf. BEN # 31 and BEN # 76]. When I opened the book I got an
impression that the authors ignored botanical literature of the
last thirty years, because the nomenclature and taxonomy of
vascular plants seemed rather rusty and obsolete. I found the
explanation of this in the Introduction - Plant Names: "Scien-
tific names largely follow Scoggan (1978-1979) for vascular
plants, ... " The authors even had the nerves to write "The bog
orchids, for example, are placed in the genus Habenaria [mostly
a tropical genus - AC] in this book, while other works may refer
to this genus as Platanthera [a circumpolar genus - AC]." In my
review of the "Coastal Plants..." [BEN # 76] I pointed out that
the complexity of taxonomy and nomenclature was too much
simplified with the phrase "Also known as ..." In this volume,
"Also called ..." often refers to a correct, commonly accepted
scientific name (e.g., "Also called Orthilia secunda"). I am
sorry to say that the choice of Scoggan's Flora of Canada as a
standard reference for scientific names was a grave mistake.
I like and admire the format of these field guides. The content
is presented in fresh way, combining colour photographs and text
with keys, line drawings, tree and leaf silhouettes, etc. I
missed the comparison tables in this volume. One interesting
feature has been added: 175 small colour photographs of
"wildflowers" that enable users to identify the family and send
them to a proper section of the guide.
The publisher has a toll-free phone number: 1-800-661-9017 and a
toll-free FAX number: 1-800-424-7173.
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
NATIVE WILDFLOWERS OF CALIFORNIA - CD-ROM
From: Brother Eric Vogel <evogel@stmarys-ca.edu>
Brother Alfred Brousseau F.S.C. (1908-1988) made a collection of
35mm color slides of Native Wildflowers of California which
consists of over 20,000 slides of over 2,000 species. The object
of this project is to make this material available to all. The
project if a not-for-profit one and asks for a donation to help
defray the production costs.
The first output of this project is in the form of CD-ROM's
containing 2,000 pictures of 665 species of flowers. These
pictures were scanned using a Barneyscan and saved as 8 bit PICT
files for use on the MAC and changed to 8 bit TIFF files for the
DOS version. It is intended to continue this project in the
attempt to make Brother Alfred's complete collection available.
Native Wildflowers of California CD-ROM, containing 2,000 pic-
tures of 665 species of wildflowers, indexed and classified is
now available for IBM compatible machines (as well as for Macin-
tosh) Since this is not-for profit project, we are asking for a
$35.00 donation for each CD. Make checks payable to Brousseau
Project and send them to Brother Eric Vogel, Saint Mary's Col-
lege, POB 5150, Moraga, CA, 94575. Be sure to state which ver-
sion you wish.
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
RE: COMMON NAMES - FROM OUR MAIL BOX - PART I
From: Terry Taylor c/o Rosemary Taylor <rotaylor@unixg.ubc.ca>
The discussion on the value of common names is interesting. Yes,
I believe mosses and lichens should have common names, but not
necessarily always to the species level. In order to slow the
rate of species loss a much greater appreciation and knowledge
of the natural world must be created than the abysmally low
level that now prevails. The general awareness and value placed
on cryptogams is almost non-existent. However, I am frequently
asked the name for a moss or lichen, and a reply such as rock
tripe or belly button lichen receives a much better reception
than Umbilicaria. The genus or family level is probably close
enough, as anybody wanting more information than this is prob-
ably already using species names. The examples presented against
English names are certainly ludicrous, but many resource
managers also do not identify with Latin names, and these people
make decisions regarding preservation, whether botanists agree
with this or not, so species level English names may be advan-
tageous for forestry and similar inventories. The use of English
names for birds seems to be accepted by professionals, although
there are certainly fewer taxa involved.
From: "Alexej B. Borkovec" <aborkove@CapAccess.org>
More than three cheers to you for your subject article. I am a
biochemist and just a very amateurish botanist who nevertheless
is greatly bothered with these mostly idiotic pseudo-common
names. Thank you very much. Regards, Alexej (Sasha) Borkovec
From: Elisabeth Harmon <EBHarmon@aol.com> [abbrev.]
Your article was forwarded to my list, where I read it with
great amusement and chagrin. For many years my husband, the
grandson of a professor of botany, has refused to use Latin
names. He is totally confused by case. His mother, an avid
horticulturist from birth, always uses botanical Latin. While I
must say that California poppy is a lot easier to say than
*Eschscholtzia californica maritima*, it becomes ridiculous when
you add it to the yellow-one-with-gold-in-the-middle.
The public, American and otherwise, are most strongly influenced
by the media. Unfortunately, I have not heard of any grants to
shows or magazines to teach children Latin or botanical flower
names. Yes, that's where a change would have to start. Databases
with correct spelling would have to become available in the
computers these children have at school. Botanical gardens would
have to use the correct plant names for their children's garden-
ing classes. And someone, would have to get the whole ball
rolling.
(BEN # 114 9-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
CLASSIFICATION AND INVENTORY OF THE WORLD'S WETLANDS
From: Dr. Pekka Pakarinen <PAKARINEN@cc.Helsinki.FI>
The latest issue of Vegetatio (1995, Vol. 118:1-192), edited by
C.M. Finlayson and A.G. van der Valk, contains the proceedings
of a symposium 'Classification and inventory of the world's
wetlands' held at the IV International Wetlands Conference in
Columbus, Ohio, USA, in 1992. Wetland and peatland class-
ification systems and the status of wetland inventories are
discussed in fourteen articles:
- Scott, D.A. & Jones, T.A.: Classification and inventory of
wetlands: A global overview.
There is a need for a simple global classification system. It
is suggested that the Ramsar classification system should be
adopted generally for international purposes.
- Hughes, J.M.R.: The current status of European wetland inven-
tories and classifications.
The status of European wetland inventories is summarized for
44 countries. The total area of designated Ramsar wetlands in
Europe in 1994 was 7.4 Mha.
- Pakarinen, P.: Classification of boreal mires in Finland and
Scandinavia: A review.
The paper reviews the development of peatland classifications
in Fennoscandia (Finland, Sweden, Norway), with a discussion
on circumboreal classification and corresponding vegetation
types in Canada.
- Gopal, B. & Sah, M.: Inventory and classification of wetlands
in India.
We propose a hierarchical classification of wetlands based on
their location, salinity, physiognomy, duration of flooding
and the growth forms of the dominant vegetation.
- Lu, J.: Ecological significance and classification of Chinese
wetlands.
Natural wetlands are classified into three main groups: coas-
tal and estuarine wetlands, riverine and lacustrine wetlands,
and peat bogs. Artificial wetlands include four types: paddy
fields, aquatic culture ponds, water storage reservoirs, and
salt pans. The total extent of wetlands in each province has
been estimated.
- Taylor, A.R.D., Howard, G.W. & Begg, G.W.: Developing wetland
inventories in Southern Africa: A review.
The status of wetland inventories and availability of data
sources is reviewed for the ten countries of southern Africa.
- Pressey, R.L. & Adam, P.: A review of wetland inventory and
classification in Australia.
Past and current approaches in Australia are reviewed, and the
issue of a global classification scheme is discussed.
- Semeniuk, C.A. & Semeniuk, V.: A geomorphic approach to global
classification for inland wetlands.
A geomorphic classification on criteria other than vegetation
is proposed, based on their host landform and degree of wet-
ness.
- Naranjo, L.G.: An evaluation of the first inventory of South
American wetlands.
The paper evaluates the reliability of the South American
wetlands inventory and its impact on wetland conservation in
South America during the last six years.
- Zoltai, S.C. & Vitt, D.H.: Canadian wetlands: Environmental
gradients and classification.
For peatlands, the primary division should be acidic Sphagnum-
dominated bogs and poor fens on one hand and brown moss-
dominated rich fens on the other. Non peat-forming wetlands
lack the well-developed bryophyte ground layer of fens and
bogs.
- Cowardin, L.M. & Golet, F.C.: US Fish and Wildlife Service
1979 wetland classification: A review.
We review the performance of the classification after 13 years
of use. The classification structure consists of five hierar-
chic levels. The principal problem areas are discussed
(definition of wetland, definition of classification taxa,
lack of basic ecological data, limitations of remote sensing).
- Wilen, B.O. & Bates, M.K.: The US Fish and Wildlife Service's
National Wetlands Inventory Project.
The current status of the National Wetland Inventory in the
conterminous US and Alaska is described, with information also
of the availability of inventory products (list of hydric
soils, list of wetland plant species, map reports and bibliog-
raphic listings).
- Novitzki, R.P.: EMAP-Wetlands: A sampling design with global
application.
The wetland component of the Environmental Monitoring and
Assessment Program (EMAP) of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is designed to provide quantitative assessments
of the current status and long-term trends in the ecological
condition of wetland resources.
- Finlayson, C.M. & van der Valk, A.G.: Wetland classification
and inventory: A summary.
An international committee under the auspices of an interna-
tional agency (e.g. IWRB, Ramsar Bureau, IUCN) needs to be
established to develop a classification system and guidelines
for carrying out a complete inventory of the world's wetlands.
(BEN # 115 10-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
FUNGAL GALLS ON MENZIESIA - A UNIQUE REPORT OF MYCOPHAGY
From: Dr. Brian D. Compton <bcompton@unixg.ubc.ca>
Compton, Brian D. 1995. "Ghost's ears" (Exobasidium sp. affin.
vaccinii) and fool's huckleberries (Menziesia ferruginea
Smith): a unique report of mycophagy on the central and
north coasts of British Columbia. Journal of Ethnobiology
15(1):89-98.
Exobasidium spores may infect the leaves, stems, and flowers of
fool's huckleberry or false azalea, resulting in organ deforma-
tion and hypertrophic growth that accompanies fungal develop-
ment. Eventually the fungus sporulates on the surface of
mycocecidia (fungal galls) that range from 1-2 cm in size and
are somewhat berry-like (i.e., globular, somewhat sweet, and
crisp). The mycocecidium produces a whitish bloom when sporulat-
ing, but the immature structure may be pale rose to purplish.
The cultural roles of mycocecidia (fungal galls) of the fungus
Exobasidium sp. affin. vaccinii on Menziesia ferruginea Smith
(false azalea, or fool's huckleberry) among various Pacific
northwest coast cultures are identified and discussed. As many
as nine distinct coastal groups named and ate these mycocecidia.
These galls were occasionally eaten fresh when they were found
but there is no evidence that they were gathered or prepared in
any way. Among at least three coastal groups, the Henaaksiala,
Heiltsuk, and Tsimshian, the mycocecidia had mythological impor-
tance.
(BEN # 115 10-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
SPECIMEN EXCHANGE
From: Toby Spribille
</S=T.SPRIBILLE/OU1=R01F14D03A@mhs-fswa.attmail.com>
via HERB-L <HERB-L@IDBSU.IDBSU.EDU>
We are working on establishing a small herbarium in northwest
Montana and are interested in the possibilities of exchanging
specimens with other herbaria for the purpose of stocking our
collection of Carex, Vaccinium and other genera. We have miscel-
laneous material collected in northwest Montana, including
vascular plants, lichens and bryophytes (quite a few of the
latter, in fact).
We are particularly interested in material from other parts of
Montana, as well as Idaho, Washington, British Columbia and
Alberta. If anyone is interested in exchanging material, please
let me know. Unfortunately, we are not yet listed in the Index
Herbariorum, but intend to do so soon.
Toby Spribille
North Zone Herbarium
Fortine Ranger District
P.O. Box 116
Fortine, MT 59918
(BEN # 115 10-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
RE: COMMON NAMES - FROM OUR MAIL BOX - PART II
From: Bianca Davis <davise@BLUE.CS.NYU.EDU>
I suppose you will be getting a great many responses, but I
wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your article, which
Tom Stuart posted on Alpine-L. I am a botanical artist and
illustrator and gardener, not a botanist. But without correct,
universal scientific names I would be lost. More and more books
are substituting pseudo-common names in their indexes and texts,
and this makes doing research more time-consuming for me, as I
don't just use keys and floras. Often my research must include
standard texts written for gardeners and other such materials.
Even at exhibits organized by botanical illustrators and artists
I will be asked to supply common names for plants that really do
not have one. Some of the plants I draw and paint are alpines
from remote regions. Perhaps the yak herders or nomads have
cutest common names for these things -- often I feel like tell-
ing people to hike up there themselves and find out. Ha! And
isn't is "imperialism" for *us* to be making up names for these
plants anyway? Shouldn't the locals have a say?
It is so wonderful for me to be able to consult a flora in a
language I don't read, but can use, because the names are in
Latin, and I can piece the rest together...
You say we should take botany out of the kindergarten. I say the
opposite. As you point out, children have no problem with these
things. Before my four year old nephew moved on to an interest
in the Revolutionary War, he had successfully memorized hundreds
of scientific names of dinosaurs and other creatures. Botany is
not taught in schools, but it used to be. Children and adults
could also draw, to some degree or other, what they saw, and
this is a great way to learn about a plant. People cannot
respect or care for what they have never been taught to take
seriously or understand. I know many people who consider them-
selves "environmentalists" who don't know the name of a single
plant--they consider all plants silly flowers. The schools
should teach botany from a young age, and teach children how to
draw and paint what they see. Then maybe even PBS would start
having some serious programs about plants, not just animals.
I am also a gardener. As you can see, my perspective is one of
an amateur and layperson. Many gardeners are somewhat hostile to
botanists. They find keys intimidating. (They need more usable,
gardener oriented keys.) But at least rock gardeners have a
respect for the names of their plants! I have no problem with
common names for truly common plants. Tasha Tudor is perfectly
free to call her violas whatever she likes, just as I am free to
call my dogs all sorts of weird names. The problem comes when I
start asking everyone I know to learn all that stuff, put it in
books, rewrite things, and remember that I don't call my dog a
dog, I call him a teddy bear.
Long live botany, botanists, and scientific names. As I said,
I'd be lost without them--literally,I could not do my job. So
thanks, and good luck. - Bianca
From: Bob Simmonds <simmonds@olympus.net>
A reply to Dr. Weber: While I can understand your position, I
think there are other points to be considered. In today's educa-
tional system, the number of students learning Latin is very
small, and the number learning Classical Greek essentially zero.
During my teaching career (in geology) I found it necessary to
offer a mini-course on the meanings of common Greco-Latin roots
in scientific terminology. While the meaning of eg "Eohippus" is
immediately obvious to me, it might as well be Martian to most,
and labelling the beast as "Dawn Horse" is far more helpful
(Yes, i am aware that the name is no longer valid, and that
illustrates a problem with the scientific terminology...it keeps
changing as earlier references turn up...witness the demise of
"Brontosaurus".) Furthermore, most vascular plants, at least,
*have* common names in areas where the population is gatherers
who have been in place for a long time. It would seem only fair
to use these names, at least on the specific level.
From: Weber William A <weberw@spot.Colorado.EDU>
Probably I should have pointed out that I use scientific
nomenclature to teach these benighted people the meanings of the
words in their own English language! I also have no gripe
against using common names that have grown up within a culture.
But even these are not usable when you are talking to a Chinese
or Russian or even a Swedish friend.
In the Boulder Camera at the beginning of August 1995, a
quotable quote: Astronomer Carl Sagan, in his first public
appearance since undergoing a bone marrow transplant in April,
telling a Seattle audience that adults are sending the wrong
messages to kids: "One trend that bothers me is the glorifica-
tion of stupidity, that the media are reassuring people it's all
right to know nothing, that in a way it's cool. That to me is
far more dangerous than a little pornography on the Internet."
(BEN # 115 10-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
PUFFBALLS FROM A LILLOOET ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE
From: "Brian D. Compton" <bcompton@unixg.ubc.ca>
Compton, Brian D. 1995. Puffballs from the past: identification
of gasteromycetes from a Lillooet archaeological site and
speculation regarding their aboriginal use. Canadian
Journal of Archaeology 19:154-159.
Abstract: Puffballs representing three species in two genera
(Abstoma reticulatum, Bovista dakotensis and B. tomentosa) are
reported from an archaeological site in the traditional ter-
ritory of the Lillooet, one of the Indigenous Peoples of British
Columbia. These fungi are presumed to represent human-collected
materials that arrived in British Columbia by way of aboriginal
trade from the South or East. Their cultural roles likely were
mythological, medicinal, talismanic or shamanistic.
(BEN # 116 19-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
BOTANICAL RECONNAISSANCE OF TUXEDNI WILDERNESS AREA, ALASKA
From: "S. Talbot" <75327.1053@compuserve.com>
Talbot, S. S., S. L. Talbot, and S. L. Welsh. 1995. Botanical
Reconnaissance of Tuxedni Wilderness Area, Alaska.
Biological Science Report 6. U.S. Department of the Inte-
rior, National Biological Service, Washington, D.C. 41 p.
Abstract: The vascular flora of two small maritime islands,
Chisik and Duck Island (2,302 ha), comprising Tuxedni Wilderness
Area in western lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, was recorded to deter-
mine species composition where few previous collections had been
reported. The field study was conducted in sites selected to
represent the totality of environmental variation within Tuxedni
Wilderness Area. A total of 290 species -- 279 native and 11
introduced -- was identified. To provide a comparative
phytogeographic framework, we analyzed data from published
reports that categorized vascular plant distribution patterns
from circumpolar, North American, and Alaskan perspectives. The
flora of Tuxedni Wilderness primarily includes species of cir-
cumpolar (36.6%), eastern Asian (22.9%) and North American
(20.4%) distributions. The most important longitudinal distribu-
tional classes within North America consist of transcontinental
(59.9%) and extreme western species (32.2%). The distribution of
Tuxedni species in latitudinal zones peaks in the high subarctic
and low subarctic and gradually decreases from the low to high
arctic. The annotated list of species in the Tuxedni Wilderness
Area expands the known range for many species, filling a dis-
tributional gap within Hulten's Central Pacific Coast district.
Forty-four range extensions are reported. Latitudinal zone
comparison based on the Raunkiaer life-form spectrum suggests
the flora of the Tuxedni Wilderness Area is closest to the high
subarctic zone. Key words: Coastal, life form, middle boreal
zone, phytogeographic, upper oroboreal zone, vascular flora.
The publication is available free of charge and may be obtained
by writing: Stephen Talbot, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1011
East Tudor Road, Anchorage, Alaska 99503
(BEN # 116 19-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
FACULTY POSITION - FOREST RESOURCE SPECIALIST
From: David Silverberg <silverberg@IGC.APC.ORG>
via <FOREST@LISTSERV.FUNET.FI>
In September 1995, The School for Field Studies opened a new
Centre in Barkley and Clayoquot Sounds, British Columbia,
Canada. It is registered with the Private Post-Secondary Educa-
tion Commission of British Columbia. The Centre focuses on
sustainable ecosystem management of natural resources in the
coastal zone. The main campus of the school is in Bamfield with
extensive field work and teaching in Barkley and Clayoquot
Sounds.
The School for Field Studies is one of the largest private post-
secondary experiential educational institutions designed to give
students the opportunity to contribute to critical environmental
management issues in various ecosystems (BC, Australia, Kenya,
Costa Rica, South Cacos). The Centre is staffed with a director,
three full-time resident faculty (Forest Resource Specialist,
Coastal Ecologist, Resource Economist), several adjunct off-site
faculty (First Nations Resource Sociologist, Salmon Biologist,
Forest Policy Expert), four graduate interns, one student af-
fairs manager, one site manager, assistant site manager, and a
satellite logistics coordinator. The Centre offers fall and
spring semester programs, as well as two four-week summer
programs. Each program has 32 student participants. Courses are
accredited through Boston University and the student's Canadian
or US home institution. Faculty are approved as lecturers
through Boston University. Faculty are required to live on-site.
Room and board are provided by SFS.
The Forest Resource Specialist Faculty will address sustainable
ecosystem management. Professional interests should include:
forest and wildlife management; landscape-scale ecosystem
management principles, forest and fisheries planning, alterna-
tive forest models in the context of sustainable development,
social forestry, forest ecology, resource sociology, Canadian
and British Columbian provincial land-use management.
The faculty position requires a dedicated educator who is facile
with interdisciplinary analysis combining management with
methodological insights from the fields of resource management
and natural sciences. A familiarity with landscape-scale ecosys-
tem management principles and the history of British Columbia
land use management are essential.
Faculty own a portfolio which includes the supervision of one
case study, their participation in two other related case
studies and the supervision of 10 community identified directed
research projects each semester. Lectures, workshops, labs,
field trips are utilized within discussion-oriented decision-
based case studies. In addition faculty offer community
workshops and lectures based on needs assessments.
Requirements: Ph.D. or Masters Degree with at least four years
of practitioner/applied experience. Relevant work/living in
British Columbia or similar temperate coastal zone ecosystems.
At least 2 years teaching at the undergraduate level with full
course responsibility, a demonstrated commitment and passion to
innovative teaching programs, experience working with applied
conservation/management issues in a diverse community context,
proven leadership skills in a start-up institution, desire to
facilitate education of highly motivated students, wit and good
humor in an intensive, immersion educational setting.
For more information or to apply, please call or e-mail/fax
cover letter, CV and 3 references (addresses and e-mail/phone
numbers) to:
Dr. David Silverberg, Director
School for Field Studies
GPO Bamfield
British Columbia V0R 1B0
CANADA
604-728-2390 phone; 604-728-2391 fax
e-mail: silverberg@igc.apc.org
(BEN # 116 19-October-1995)
------------------------------------------
FREEZE-DRYING OF FUNGI DOES NOT WORK TOO WELL
From: Dr. Brenda Callan <BCALLAN@PFC.Forestry.CA>
During a fungal biodiversity workshop Oct. 15-19, 1995, at USDA
Headquarters in Beltsville, MD., a presentation and discussion
session on herbarium curation was led by Dr. Quixan Wu from the
Field Museum in Chicago. Freeze-drying as a preservation method
for fungal herbarium specimens was discussed. Mycologists
present at the workshop agreed that this technique was unsatis-
factory for a number of reasons:
1. Freeze-dried fungi retain their macroscopic features such as
color and form for a few years, but are extremely fragile,
and soon break into small unrecognizable fragments after
normal use.
2. Freeze-dried fungal tissue disintegrates and loses both
macroscopic and microscopic morphological features after
rehydration.
Conventional drying methods (40 C in a drying oven) often cause
shrinking, and some discoloration and distortion of macroscopic
features of fungi. However, the resulting specimens are struc-
turally stronger and thus less likely to break apart during
subsequent examination, and important key microscopic features,
such as spore morphology, remain constant and rehydrate beauti-
fully even in very old collections. A conventionally-dried
fungus accompanied by good field notes is a far better long-term
investment than a freeze-dried collection.
Traditionally, fungal herbarium accessions are microscopically
examined either by using preserved slides included with the
specimen, or by sectioning and rehydrating a small piece of
tissue. The latter technique does not work with most freeze-
dried specimens, whose tissues collapse upon rehydration.
(BEN # 117 2-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
CO-OPERATION BETWEEN BOTANISTS AND PLANT PATHOLOGISTS
From: Dr. Stephan Helfer <S.Helfer@RBGE.ORG.UK>
from TAXACOM <TAXACOM@CMSA.BERKELEY.EDU>
For the past few years I have been working on the taxonomy and
floristics of rust fungi (and some powdery mildews). During this
work it has struck me how little co-operation there is between
higher plant collectors and plant pathologists.
Most botanists collect the cleanest specimens they can find, and
some pathologists only collect infected parts of host plants,
making it near impossible for the botanists to identify them to
any detail. Both sides are thereby losing out: the botanist, as
many biotrophic parasites are very host specific, and the
presence of e.g. a rust can help with the identification /
taxonomy of a plant; and the pathologist plainly because valu-
able information can not be provided.
I therefore propose that specimen collectors of both disciplines
keep in mind the interests and needs of the other
discipline.They can thereby help themselves and each other as
well as the community as a whole.
(BEN # 117 2-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
RE: COMMON NAMES - FROM OUR MAIL BOX - PART III (THE END)
From: Jari Oksanen <jari@ibg.uit.no> (from bionet.plants)
Nordic scientists are perhaps the greatest sinners in coining
"colloquial" or "vernacular" names which are used only in
academic papers. Special committees of botanists have been
working in Finland to invent names for macrofungi, lichens,
mosses, hepatics, etc. Similar efforts have been made in Norway
and Sweden as well. These lists are usually regarded as
authoritative, and if someone uses other names (e.g. genuinely
vernacular or colloquial names) the person is accused of using
"wrong" or "unofficial" names. Since the scientific community is
small and living in a compact geographic area, the "correct"
usage of national names can be controlled.
Personally, I find very difficult to understand why all plants
should have national names, especially when only a few people in
the whole country know those plants. When you write "jauhepi-
karitorvijakala", "karheatorvijakala" or "ruskopikari-
torvijakala", it is guaranteed that nobody understands you.
Those people who know these organisms have to check in some name
list that they are Cladonia chlorophaea, Cladonia grayi and
Cladonia pyxidata (I could not find a Finnish name for Cladonia
merochlorophaea, but it might by something like "jyvapikari-
torvijakala"). Those people who don't know these plants (the
vast majority of Finns) won't know their Finnish names either.
One of the funniest cases I've met was an article in a Finnish
conservation magazine on Aphyllophorales. The article used only
Finnish names. However, those Finnish names were invented by the
author of the article, and had not been published anywhere
(later they were published, I believe). So it was guaranteed
that only the closest friends of the author could know what
these fungi were. However, the idea was that a general reader
was not disturbed by cumbersome Latin names - it was not impor-
tant that these names had no meaning to any reader.
In Finland the botany students still have to learn the Latin
names (except in some basic courses). However, it seems that
here in Norway only national names are taught to students (and
many species have two national names: one in both official
Norwegian languages). I've moved recently from Finland to Nor-
way, and I think this is a problem when discussing with young
generation Norwegian botanists or students.
(BEN # 117 2-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
KEN SARO-WIWA AND EIGHT COLLEAGUES HANGED IN NIGERIA
From: Web pages at http://www.oneworld.org/
World outrage tinged with despair greeted the news on Friday
November 10, 1995 that Nigeria's best-known human rights ac-
tivist Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight of his colleagues had been
hanged.
Saro-Wiwa, who was a successful writer and businessman, was
leader of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni peoples, which
had campaigned against the pollution and exploitation of their
land by multinational oil companies - especially the Shell Co.
Ken Saro-Wiwa was a recipient of the Goldman Environmental Prize
and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Leaders at the Commonwealth summit in Auckland, angered at
General Abacha's disregard of their pleas for clemency, agreed
to suspend Nigeria immediately from the Commonwealth. The
country now has two years to embrace democracy or face permanent
exclusion.
You can find more on Web pages at http://www.oneworld.org/
Also on that site is a transcript of The Drilling Fields and
condemnation from writers around the world in an article from
PEN International, press releases from the Ogoni Community
Association in London (including a plea from Saro-Wiwa's son,
Ken Wiwa, calling for international action to stop the execution
of his father) and Greenpeace statements. We have also inter-
viewed Glen Ellis, Director of the Drilling Fields - the award-
winning TV documentary that helped bring the exploitation of the
Ogoni land and people by Shell and the military government to
the world's attention.
(BEN # 118 14-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
REPORT OF FOSSIL ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAE FROM THE EARLY DEVONIAN
From: Bryce Kendrick <bkendric@sol.UVic.CA>
Taylor, T. N., W. Remy, H. Hass & H. Kerp. 1995. Fossil arbus-
cular mycorrhizae from the early Devonian. Mycologia 87:
560-573.
This paper reports the first unequivocal evidence of arbuscules
in a presumably mutualistic endomycorrhizal symbiosis. Although
vesicles closely resembling those of modern VAM (vesicular-
arbuscular mycorrhiza) fungi have previously been reported in
fossils in the Rhynie Chert, the photomicrographs illustrating
this paper are the first to show the truly diagnostic structure
of endomycorrhizal fungi, the arbuscule. Arbuscules are finely
branched, tree-like fungal structures that are produced inside
cells of the host root cortex, and it is these structures that
form the vital interface between fungus and plant. Now fossil
material of Aglaophyton from the Devonian has been found con-
taining both vesicles and arbuscules. On the strength of these,
a new genus, Glomites, has been described as the fossil
homologue of the modern genus Glomus. In the opinion of this
abstractor (BK) the VAM fungi must now surely be recognized as
among the most conservative of all eukaryotic organisms, since
their morphology has changed little if at all in 400 million
years.
(BEN # 118 14-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
WWW SITES OF INTEREST
List of WWW Sites of Interest to Botanists
http://meena.cc.uregina.ca//bio/botany.html
http://biomserv.univ-lyon1.fr/botany/botany.html (mirror)
List WWW Sites of Interest to Ecologists
http://biomserv.univ-lyon1.fr/Ecology-WWW.html
http://meena.cc.uregina.ca//bio/ecology.html (mirror)
The long file ("A Collection of Botany Related URLs") with all
the links will still be available in Helsinki:
http://www.helsinki.fi//botany.html
The menu page for the new system is at:
http://www.helsinki.fi//bot_menu.html
A large collection of forestry links is available at the WWW
Virtual library for Forestry at
http://www.metla.fi/info/vlib/Forestry.html
Indices Nominum Supragenericorum Plantarum Vascularium:
http://matrix.nal.usda.gov:8080/star/supragenericname.html
A New Palaeo-Ecosystem Atlas and literature review on the web:
http://www.soton.ac.uk//adams1.html
Cambridge University Press has established a WWW site:
http://www.cup.org
The Quaternary Research Association now has a WWW page at:
http://www2.tcd.ie//qra.html
Environment Canada's WWW server:
http://www.ns.doe.ca
The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is an
initiative of the NBS to foster the development of a distributed
electronic network of biological data and information maintained
by a variety of Federal and State government agencies, univer-
sities, museums, libraries, and private organizations. The NBII
is available on the Internet:
http://www.nbs.gov/nbii/
The TAXACOM List Archive is also indexed by date, author and
thread, and is conveniently browsable as a Word Wide Web Hyper-
mail archive:
http://muse.bio.cornell.edu/archive/taxacom.html
Missouri Botanical Garden has expanded web resources:
http://www.mobot.org
(BEN # 118 14-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
REXFORD F. DAUBENMIRE (1909-1995)
From: ASPT Newsletter Volume 9(4) October 1995
Rexford F. Daubenmire, a widely-recognized expert in plant
ecology, died at his home in Mount Plymouth, FL, USA on 26
August 1995. Dr. Daubenmire was born in Coldwater, OH, USA on 12
December 1909. He received a bachelor's degree from Butler
University, Indianapolis, IN, USA in 1930; a master's degree
from the University of Colorado in 1932; and a doctorate from
the University of Minnesota in 1935.
He taught at the University of Idaho for 10 years and then, in
1946, joined the Washington State University faculty. He
remained at the university in Pullman for 29 years and became
professor emeritus of botany after his retirement.
Dr. Daubenmire's research involved classifying the forest and
grassland vegetation of the Pacific Northwest. His class-
ification scheme, once considered radical, emphasized the poten-
tial vegetation of an area, rather than what vegetation existed
after human intervention. Two of his books, Plants and Environ-
ment: A Textbook of Plant Autecology (1947) and Plant Com-
munities: A Textbook of Plant Synecology (1968) served as stand-
ard reference texts for university students.
Dr. Daubenmire is survived by his wife and a daughter.--
(Abstracted from The New York Times, 8 September 1995).
(BEN # 119 28-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
HYDRILLA VERTICILLATA IN WASHINGTON STATE
From: Jenifer Parsons <JENP461@ecy.wa.gov>
On June 1, 1995, Hydrilla verticillata was discovered in
Washington State. Hydrilla is an aggressive non-native aquatic
plant which will out-compete native plants if given the oppor-
tunity. Where it has become established (in the southern United
States as far north as Delaware and west to California) its
rapid growth has radically changed aquatic environments. Mil-
lions of dollars are spent each year attempting to control its
growth. Because this is the first known population of Hydrilla
in the Pacific Northwest, aggressive action was taken to attempt
its eradication.
The Hydrilla population is located in the 73 acre Pipe/Lucerne
lake system in southern King County, approximately 20 miles
southeast of Seattle. Identification was confirmed by the
presence of distinguishing tubers and through enzyme analysis
conducted at the University of California in Davis. The enzyme
analysis also indicated that this Hydrilla population is the
monoecious variety. The plants were well distributed throughout
the lake, but are still in a pioneering stage. After the iden-
tification was confirmed, the State Department of Ecology began
working closely with personnel from King County Surface Water
Management Division to decide on plan of action. The following
sequence of events ensued:
- A public meeting was held for community members, attended by
more than 100 people. At the same time the media were
notified, and several television stations and newspapers
reported on the problems.
- The Aquatic Plant Management Society held their annual
meeting in Bellevue, Washington in early July. A Hydrilla
Task Force was formed from the scientists attending this
meeting, all of whom have had experience dealing with
Hydrilla in other parts of the country. The Task Force
recommended treating the lake with aquatic herbicides and
stocking sterile grass carp to eradicate the plant. Quaran-
tining the lakes, screening the outlet, and posting signs
about Hydrilla were also encouraged.
- An experienced dive team was hired to map the Hydrilla
population and to survey several lakes near Pipe/Lucerne
Lake to see if the plant had spread. No other populations of
Hydrilla have been found.
- An emergency rule was developed to list Hydrilla as Class A
weed in the State Noxious Weed List. This provides the State
with more authority to control the plant.
- The lakes were treated with a systemic aquatic herbicide
during August and September. The objective was to weaken the
plant before they began setting tubers (which happens when
day length shorten to less than 13 hours).
- Another public meeting was held in the fall of 1995. At that
time, the Hydrilla looked weakened, and what small tubers
were produced did not appear viable.
Successful eradication of this plant will be a long term
project. Decisions will be made late next spring when the plants
begin growth whether to continue with herbicide treatments,
stock sterile grass carp, or both.
Jenifer Parsons, Washington State Department of Ecology,
Environmental Investigations and Laboratory Services Program,
P.O. Box 47710, Olympia, WA 98504-7710; phone: 360-407-6679,
FAX: 360-407-6884; e-mail: JENP461@ecy.wa.gov
(BEN # 119 28-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
SYNOPSIS OF THE LICHEN GENUS PELTIGERA IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
Goward, T., B. Goffinet, & O. Vitikanen. 1995. Synopsis of the
genus Peltigera (lichenized Ascomycetes) in British Colum-
bia, with a key to the North American species. Canadian
Journal of Botany 73: 91-111.
28 species with one new species (Peltigera cinnamomea Goward)
are treated in the paper.
(BEN # 119 28-November-1995)
------------------------------------------
WWW SITES RELATED TO GARDENING
From: Barry Glick <barryg@SLIP.NET>
via <ALPINE-L@HEARN.NIC.SURFNET.NL>
The URL for the GardenWeb home page is:
http://www.gardenweb.com
The URL for the Mystery Plant Contest is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/contest/
The URL for the Crossword Puzzle Contest is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/puzzle/
The URL for the Garden Spider's Web is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/spdrsweb/
The URL for the Seed Guild is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/seedgd/
The URL for the Southern Perennials & Herbs is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/sph/
The URL for Sunshine Farm & Gardens is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/sunshine/
The URL for the Cyber-Plantsman is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/cyberplt/
The URL for the GardenWeb Forums is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/forums/
The URL for the Garden Exchange is:
http://www.gardenweb.com/gardxchg/
Rita Heaton of Devon England, holder of the NCCPG Sisyrinchium
collection has written a very informative article about her
collection and growing Sisyrinchium.
The article can be found at-
http://www.gardenweb.com/cyberplt/gengen/sisyrin.html
(BEN # 119 28-November-1995)
------------------------------------------