Issues#120 to #125

IN SEARCH OF THE FERN SEED (PART 1 OF 3)
From: "Robbin C. Moran" <biobrm@aau.dk>
  originally published in the Fiddlehead Forum 22: 37-40. 1995

In  Shakespeare's  Henry  IV,  Falstaff,  Prince  Hal, and Poins
scheme to rob a rich merchant on his way to London in  the  dark
hours  of  the  early  morning.  Because they need help with the
heist, one of Falstaff's  henchmen  tries  to  persuade  another
thief  to  join  them.  He  says to the thief: "We steal as in a
castle, cock-sure; we have the receipt  of  fern-seed,  we  walk
invisible."  To  which  the  thief replies, "Nay, by my faith, I
think you are more beholding to the night than to fern-seed  for
your walking invisible" (Act 2, Scene 1, lines 95-98).

What  do  the  thieves mean by fern seed? Anyone who has taken a
botany course knows that ferns don't have seeds;  instead,  they
disperse  by  tiny  dustlike spores. Did people in Shakespeare's
day believe that ferns had seeds? And what's this about  walking
invisible?

In 1597 when Henry IV was written and performed, the belief that
ferns  had  seeds  was common and widespread. To be sure, no one
had ever seen a fern seed, but they couldn't imagine  how  ferns
(or  any  plant,  for  that matter) could reproduce without such
propagules. Therefore they reasoned that ferns must have  seeds.
"The  views  of  those  who  believe  all  plants have seeds are
founded on very reasonable conjectures," wrote Joseph Pitton  de
Tournefort, a celebrated French botanist, in 1694.

But  sometimes  the  conjectures  went  too  far. The early her-
balists, for example, claimed that  the  fern  seed  had  to  be
invisible  because  no  one  had ever seen it. Furthermore, they
asserted that it conferred invisibility to the  bearer;  if  you
held  the  fern  seed, you walked invisible. They also specified
that the seed could only be collected at midnight on St.  John's
Eve  (Midsummer's  Night Eve, June 23), the exact moment it fell
from the plant. You could catch it by stacking 12 pewter  plates
beneath  a  fern  leaf; the seed would fall through the first 11
plates and be stopped by the 12th. If you came up  empty-handed,
it  was  because goblins and fairies, which were allowed to roam
freely that one night of the year, had snatched the seed  as  it
fell.

Of  course,  not  everyone believed all this about invisibility,
but they did believe that ferns had seeds. The only problem was,
what was the fern seed? Many early botanists  suspected  it  was
the  dust  liberated  from the dark spots or lines (the sori) on
the underside of the fern leaf.  Other  botanists  thought  that
this  dust  was  not seed, but instead equivalent to pollen that
impregnated a female organ somewhere on the plant.

The first person to scientifically  investigate  fern  dust  was
Marcello  Malpighi,  the  famous  Italian anatomist. In the late
1600s, he focused his microscope on the curious, dark  spots  or
lines  on  the  undersides  of  fern leaves. These resolved into
hundreds of tiny "globes" or "orbs" (the  sporangia),  each  en-
circled  by  a  thick,  segmented band (the annulus). Inside the
orbs sat the  dust,  which  appeared  as  round  or  bean-shaped
bodies.  He noted that the dust was hurled out of the orb by the
catapultlike action of the annulus. Nearly half a century later,
Malpighi's observations were confirmed and elaborated by  Nemiah
Grew,  an  English microscopist. But the observations of neither
man solved whether the dust was equivalent to pollen or seed.

Even the great Swedish botanist Carl  Linnaeus,  the  Father  of
Botany,  was  puzzled about the nature of fern dust. In a letter
written in 1737 to fellow Swedish botanist Albrecht von  Haller,
he  said  that  "this  powder  seen  under a microscope, exactly
agrees with the dust of the anthers in other  plants."  But  one
month later he said "[I know] nothing about the imperfect tribes
of  plants  [mosses  and  ferns]  and  must confess my ignorance
whether what I see is seed, or dust of the  anthers."  In  1751,
however,  he changed his mind and asserted that the dust was the
true fern seed. Despite his  flip-flopping,  Linneaus  was  sure
about one thing: ferns had seeds.  [... continuing in BEN 121]
(BEN # 120  2-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
PREDICTING METHANE EMISSION FROM BRYOPHYTE DISTRIBUTION
From: jill bubier <jbubier@kaos.unh.edu>

Bubier,  J.L.,  T.R.  Moore  and  S.  Juggins.  1995. Predicting
      methane emission from bryophyte distribution  in  northern
      Canadian peatlands. Ecology 76: 677-693.

Abstract.  A  predictive model for bryophyte distribution, water
table position, and seasonal mean methane (CH4  )  emission  was
developed  for  two areas of northern peatland: the Clay Belt of
Ontario and the Labrador Trough of Quebec. Water table  position
and  CH4 flux were the most important environmental variables in
canonical correspondence analyses (CCA) of bryophyte data. Water
chemistry constituted a second environmental gradient, independ-
ent of hydrology and CH4 flux.

Weighted averaging  regression  and  calibration  were  used  to
develop  a  model  for  predicting  log  CH4 flux from bryophyte
distribution. The model showed an increase in log CH4 flux  from
hummock  to  carpet  and  pool  species,  corresponding  with  a
decrease in height above the  mean  water  table  position.  The
exceptions  were  rich-fen  pool species, which had low CH4 flux
optima in  spite  of  their  moisture  status.  Tolerances  were
greatest  for mid-hummock and least for carpet and pool species.
No overlap in  tolerances  occurred  between  hummock  and  pool
species,  suggesting  that  species  at either end of the height
gradient are the best predictors of CH4 flux.

Error analyses showed that bryophytes are equally  as  effective
as water table position for predicting mean CH4 flux even though
bryophytes    are    only   surrogates   for   the   degree   of
anaerobism/aerobism in the peat  profile.  Bryophytes  are  dis-
tributed in well-defined zones along microtopographic gradients;
they  integrate  long-term  changes  in  the  water table, which
fluctuates on a daily and seasonal basis along  with  CH4  flux,
and  may  be  more easily mapped with remote-sensing techniques.
Bryophytes, however, are only useful  for  predicting  CH4  flux
within  a  region; similar species values cannot be extrapolated
to  other  northern  peatlands  where  different  climatic   and
biogeochemical  factors  may  result  in different ranges of CH4
emission. The model may  be  used  in  palaeoreconstructions  of
methane  emission  and  for  biological  monitoring  of  climate
change.
(BEN # 120  2-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
BROOM SYMPOSIUM - PORTLAND, OREGON - APRIL 16-18, 1996
From: "Clayton J. Antieau" <antieau@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu>

The CA Exotic pest Plant Council, OR Dept. of  Ag,  the  Pacific
Northwest Exotic Pest Plant Council, and the WA State Weed Board
are  jointly  sponsoring  a  broom  symposium  (includes Scot's,
French, Spanish, and Portuguese brooms). The symposium  will  be
held  16-18  April  1996 at Portland State University, Portland,
Oregon, USA. Symposium focuses on biology, ecology, and  manage-
ment of brooms.

For more information:

Weed Control
Oregon Dept of Agriculture
635 Capitol Street NE
Salem, OR  97310-0110

You  can  also  contact:  Dennis  Isaacson @ 503-986-4621, Carla
Bossard @ 916-758-1602, or Laurie  Penders  @  206-872-2972,  or
Steve Hinton <steveh@hevanet.com>
(BEN # 120  2-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
IN SEARCH OF THE FERN SEED (PART 2 OF 3)
From: "Robbin C. Moran" <biobrm@aau.dk>
  originally published in the Fiddlehead Forum 22: 37-40. 1995

Uncertainty  reigned  until  1794  when  John Lindsay, a British
surgeon, showed that ferns reproduced from their dust.  He  dis-
covered  this  while  stationed  in  Jamaica,  where  he noticed
hundreds of young ferns arising on freshly  exposed  soil  after
rains.  With  a  microscope, he searched the soil in the hope of
finding a fern seed, but was unsuccessful. Undaunted, he decided
to sow some of the dust-which he  suspected  as  the  true  fern
seed-and keep it in his room for observation.

Lindsay gathered the dust from several weedy ferns and sprinkled
it  over  soil in a flower pot. He placed the pot in a window of
his room, watered it daily, and every  day  or  two  examined  a
small portion of the soil with his microscope. Here he describes
what happened.

   "I could always readily distinguish the dust or seeds from
   the  mould, but observed no alteration till about the 12th
   day after sowing, when many of the small seeds had put  on
   a  greenish colour, and some were pushing out their little
   germ, like a small protuberance, the rudiment of  the  new
   fern.  This  little  protuberance gradually enlarged. They
   had acquired small roots, and the remains  of  the  little
   seeds were still discernible where the roots of the infant
   plant  commenced.  Although  the young ferns were now very
   conspicuous by the microscope, the  naked  eye  could  see
   nothing  but  a  green  appearance  on  the surface of the
   mould, as if it were covered with some  very  small  moss:
   this  was the numberless young plants from the quantity of
   the seed sown. In some weeks this moss began to appear  to
   the  naked eye like small scales which gradually enlarged:
   they  were  generally  of  a  roundish  figure,   somewhat
   bilobate,  but  sometimes  more  irregular; they were of a
   membranous substance, like some of the  small  lichens  or
   liverworts,  for which they might readily be mistaken, and
   of a dark green colour. At last  there  arises  from  this
   membrane  a  small  leaf,  different from it in colour and
   appearance, and shortly  after  another  still  more  dif-
   ferent.  Now  each  succeeding  leaf grows larger than the
   last, till they attain the full size, and are complete  in
   all  the  parts  and  discriminating  characters  of their
   respective species."

Clearly, Lindsay thought he had seen a full-sized  fern  develop
from  a  mote  of  fern dust. He therefore felt certain that the
dust was the true fern seed.

A busy medical practice kept Lindsay from making further  obser-
vations,  until  one  day  he  received a letter from Sir Joseph
Banks, president of the Royal Society of London  and  scientific
advisor to the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. Banks asked Lindsay
to  collect  Jamaican plants, especially ferns, and send them to
England for cultivation. Lindsay wrote back that given the  risk
of transporting green ferns over such a great distance, he would
send  some of their seeds instead. Banks must have been flabber-
gasted that Lindsay claimed knowledge of the true fern seed.  He
wrote  back  that  if  Lindsay could furnish the means of making
ferns grow from seed, he would be given  the  credit  of  having
made a valuable discovery, one that he (Banks) would communicate
to the Linnean Society of London.

Lindsay  sent  Banks the seeds along with instructions for their
sowing.  The  result  was  pteridological  history.  Thanks   to
Lindsay's information, gardeners in England learned to propagate
ferns  from spores, and they passed this knowledge to colleagues
in other countries. Ferns began to enrich greenhouses,  gardens,
and  parks around the world. Furthermore, the horticulturists at
Kew began raising ferns sent from far  corners  of  the  British
Empire.  They  amassed the world's largest and most species-rich
collection of living ferns-a distinction held to this  day  (the
Kew   collection   is   important   scientifically  as  well  as
horticulturally). James Edward Smith, a pteridologist and one of
England's leading botanists, commemorated Lindsay for  his  dis-
covery by naming a genus of tropical ferns after him: Lindsaea.

Yet  Lindsay's  observations  raised  more  questions.  Were the
"membranes" or "scales" he observed equivalent to the seed  leaf
or  cotyledon of flowering plants? If the dust was equivalent to
the seed, where were the pollen-producing anthers? (The  pollen,
of  course,  was necessary to "stimulate" the development of the
seed.) How and when did pollination take place? [.... conclusion
in BEN 122]
(BEN # 121  9-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
CIMICIFUGA ELATA - ELWHA RIVER VALLEY, OLYMPIC PENINSULA, WA
From: Ed Schreiner <Ed_Schreiner@nps.gov>

We discovered several "new" populations of Cimicifuga  elata  in
the  Elwha  River  valley during summer 1995. The plant was pre-
viously known to occur in the Elwha - evidently first discovered
by A.D.E. Elmer in the early 1900s. We do  not  know  where  his
specimens  came from but presume he encountered the plant in the
Elwha. At present, we know of 16 sites of 1-5 individuals  along
the  Whiskey  Bend Road in Olympic National Park. The plants are
mostly in the road cut but a few are in the forest above.  Addi-
tionally,  a  sizable  population  of nearly 300 individuals was
discovered on the "Cascade Rock" nature trail  above  the  Elwha
Campground. Here, many plants are within 1 meter of the trail in
the  "trail  cut" but many other individuals occur on the slopes
above and below the trail. All these populations were mapped and
permanent plots established for future monitoring. Our permanent
plots were established so we could potentially  test  hypotheses
concerning  behaviour of the plants as "singles", "groups" (of 3
or more individuals within a 1m2  area)  as  well  as  examining
plant  demography  in  the "undisturbed", "road cut", and "trail
cut" situations. It looks to us  like  the  plants  may  benefit
considerably  from the mineral soil exposed by the human distur-
bance. Most plots were in Douglas-fir/bigleaf  maple  stands  on
steep  slopes  (> 35 degrees). We suspect that there needs to be
some subsurface moisture available. Our results are  in  general
agreement with those of Thomas N. Kaye (Oregon) who has prepared
a  summary  of  populations throughout western Oregon and in the
Olympics.

Interestingly, clusters of individuals in  the  trail  cut  were
always  below  a  larger,  fruiting, individual above. It seemed
that the "parent" dropped seeds  along  the  trail.  Looking  at
genetic  links among clusters and populations should prove quite
fascinating.
(BEN # 121  9-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
CIMICIFUGA ELATA - SOME COMMENTS ON ITS ECOLOGY & DISTRIBUTION
From: Thomas Kaye <kayet@ava.bcc.orst.edu>

In 1992 and 1993, the Plant Conservation Biology Program at  the
Oregon Department of Agriculture engaged in cooperative research
with  three  Bureau  of  Land Management Districts and three Na-
tional Forests in Oregon to evaluate the habitat  of  Cimicifuga
elata  and  the  effects of timber harvest on populations of the
species. Our results are too lengthy to summarize  here,  but  a
few  points  may  be of interest to readers of BEN. For example,
for a rare species, C.  elata  is  unusual  in  having  a  large
geographic range (B.C. to southern Oregon) and widely scattered,
usually small populations. Oddly, though, at the southern end of
the  species' range the populations tend to be quite large (over
1,000 individuals), possibly associated with  cryptic  taxonomic
differences  between  northern  and southern types (Ed Alverson,
pers. comm.) or ecotypic differences.

After sampling populations throughout Oregon, and Washington  to
a  lesser  degree,  we  concluded  that there were three primary
habitat features common to most populations:

 1. Hardwoods in the canopy. Nearly all populations occurred  in
    Douglas-fir forest with some component of hardwoods, usually
    Acer macrophyllum.
 2. Subsurface   moisture.  Some  form  of  subsurface  moisture
    availability was in evidence,  and  populations  were  often
    near creeks or rivers.
 3. North  slopes.  The  majority  of  populations  occurred  on
    northwest to  northeast  aspects  (although  a  few  notable
    populations broke this rule).

It  is very gratifying to hear the results of studies in Olympic
National Park that corroborate these  findings.  We  also  found
many populations along road cuts and trails, and attributed this
pattern  to  increased  light  availability and mineral soil for
seedling establishment.  I  encourage  Ed  Schreiner  to  pursue
studies  of  population  genetics  of this species--indeed, they
could be very interesting.

Incidentally, timber harvest/canopy removal tends to  result  in
rapid growth of individual plants and an increase in the propor-
tion  of  reproductive  plants in the population. Populations in
undisturbed old-growth forest tend to have few or  no  reproduc-
tive  plants.  We  believe  the species' natural distribution is
related to the formation of canopy gaps. Clear-cut  timber  har-
vest,  however,  may  only  result  in  a  short-term  burst  of
reproduction. Information from ten to thirty years after harvest
is sadly lacking, and we suspect that C. elata could be  'choked
out' of densely stocked forest stands. Instead, careful thinning
of forest stands could be beneficial to the species.

Kaye,  Thomas  N.  and Melissa Kirkland. 1994. Cimicifuga elata:
      status,  habitat  analysis,  monitoring,  inventory,   and
      effects of timber management. Final Report. Oregon Depart-
      ment of Agriculture, Salem, Oregon.

      Contact  Tom  Kaye  <kayet@bcc.orst.edu> for copies of the
      report: Oregon Department of Agriculture, 635 Capitol  NE,
      Salem, OR, 97310, USA.

(BEN # 121  9-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
IN SEARCH OF THE FERN SEED (PART 3 OF 3)
From: "Robbin C. Moran" <biobrm@aau.dk>
  originally published in the Fiddlehead Forum 22: 37-40. 1995

We  smile  at  these questions today, knowing that they are com-
pletely misguided, but they were valid questions to botanists in
the 1700s and early 1800s. It wasn't until 1844  that  Karl  von
Naegeli,  a  German  botanist,  steered questions about the fern
seed in the right direction. By focusing his microscope  on  the
undersurfaces  of  the  prothalli  (the membranes or scales that
Lindsay originally reported), von Naegeli saw  globose  papillae
containing dark, spiral filaments. He noticed that the papillae,
when  wet,  burst  at the tip and released the spiral filaments,
which then began to wiggle and swim away. He knew  that  similar
papillae  and filaments had been found in mosses and liverworts,
where they were called antheridia, in  allusion  to  the  "male"
anther  of  the  flower.  Thus, von Naegeli adopted the name an-
theridia for the papillae he saw on fern  prothalli.  But  where
did the spiral filaments swim to?

This  question  was answered in 1848 by Michael Jerome Leszczyc-
Suminski, a Polish count with a botanical bent.  He  found  that
the  spiral  filaments  swam to another kind of papilla also lo-
cated on  the  undersurface  of  the  prothalli.  This  type  of
papilla, which we now call an archegonium, was flask-shaped with
a long neck and a single, large cell at the base. When the sperm
swam to the archegonium, they wiggled downwards between the neck
cells  and  penetrated  the large basal cell. After penetration,
this cell (now known to  be  an  egg  cell)  developed  into  an
embryonic  fern  with  roots,  stem, and leaves. This baby plant
eventually grew into a mature fern with spore-bearing leaves.

What developed from  Leszczyc-Suminski's  observations  was  the
picture  of fern reproduction still taught today. In a series of
quick nutshells this is it: The spores (fern dust) are  produced
on the undersides of the leaves in sporangia. They are liberated
from the sporangia, land on a suitable substrate, and germinate.
They grow into prothalli that bear the sex organs-archegonia and
antheridia-which   produce  egg  and  sperm,  respectively  (the
prothalli of some ferns produce only one kind of sex organ). The
sperm are released from the antheridia when water is present and
swim to the archegonia and  fertilize  the  egg.  The  resulting
cell,  the zygote, develops into an embryo with stem, roots, and
leaves. This embryo grows by widening  its  stem  and  producing
larger  and  larger leaves until a spore-bearing leaf eventually
appears. At this point the process is complete.

This sequence of events is known  as  the  fern  life  cycle-the
bugbear  of  many  Introductory Botany students. It has two dis-
tinct  phases,  or  generations.  The  first   is   called   the
gametophyte  generation  because  it produces the gametes or sex
cells. The second is called the sporophyte generation because it
produces the spores. The gametophyte consists of the prothallus,
and the sporophyte consists of the "normal" fern plant we  typi-
cally  think  of-the  one  with  roots,  stems, and leaves. Each
generation develops from a single cell: the gametophyte  from  a
spore, the sporophyte from a zygote.

One  point  must  be  made  about these two generations, a point
often dimly understood: The gametophyte is the sexual generation
because it produces the sex cells, egg and sperm.  In  contrast,
the  sporophyte  is  the  asexual generation because it produces
asexual spores; it does not produce sex cells. Remember this the
next time you spot a leafy fern luxuriating in  the  wild.  What
you  are  looking  at is an asexual being, one that does not and
cannot engage in sex. This point is difficult to  grasp  because
we  tend to equate, erroneously, our own bodies with that of the
fern sporophyte. But unlike plants,  humans  and  other  animals
produce  their gametes directly by meiosis; we have no interven-
ing  gametophytic  (sexual)  stage  that  produces  gametes   by
mitosis.

But  to  return  to  the fern-seed. Botanists today realize that
spores and seeds are completely different structurally. A  spore
consists  of  a  single cell and contains no preformed embryonic
parts. In contrast, a seed (typically) consists of  hundreds  or
thousands  of cells and contains stored food (the endosperm) and
an embryo. Moreover, spores and seeds differ in what  they  give
rise  to.  A  fern  spore  gives  rise  to the prothallus of the
gametophyte generation; a seed, to the baby  plant  of  the  new
sporophyte generation.

These  differences  between  spores and seeds seem so great that
most of us are astonished when we  learn  that  early  botanists
once  seriously  considered spores were seeds. But our astonish-
ment is only proof that botany has progressed. Nowadays,  it  is
the belief in the fern seed that walks invisible.

Selected References and Notes.

The  history  of  ideas  about sexual reproduction in plants and
animals, especially how it reflects prevailing social  attitudes
about  sex,  is  treated by John Farley, Gametes & Spores, Ideas
about  Sexual  Reproduction,  1750-1914  (Baltimore:  The  Johns
Hopkins University Press, 1982).

John  Lindsay described his observations on fern reproduction in
"Account of the Germination and Raising of Ferns from the Seed,"
Transactions of the Linnean Society 2: 93-100 (1794).

The  life  of  Leszczyc-Suminski  is  documented  by  Cezary  W.
Domanski  in  "M.J.  Leszczyc-Suminski  (1820-1898),  an Unknown
Botanist-Discoverer," Fiddlehead Forum 20: 11-15 (1993).

Author's address: Dr. Robbin  C.  Moran,  Dept. of  Systematical
                  Botany, University of Aarhus, Denmark


UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA HERBARIUM CLOSED FOR FUMIGATION
From: Olivia Lee <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>

University  of British Columbia Herbarium (UBC), Vancouver, B.C.
will be closed for fumigation from December 18, 1995 to  January
2, 1996.
(BEN # 122  16-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW RECORDS OF LICHENS FROM THE QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS
Brodo,  Irwin  M.  1995.  Lichens and lichenicolous fungi of the
      Queen Charlotte  Islands,  British  Columbia,  Canada.  1.
      Introduction  and  new  records for B.C., Canada and North
      America. Mycotaxon 56: 136-173.

Abstract. The Queen Charlotte Islands lie off the west coast  of
North  America,  and  are  characterized  by  a strongly oceanic
climate, coniferous rain forest and rocky  shores,  with  a  low
mountainous  region raising to 1100 m. Its lichen flora is abun-
dant and diverse,  with  numerous  disjunctions  and  new  taxa.
Fifty-four crustose lichens and lichenicolous fungi are reported
as  new  for British Columbia, among them six are new to Canada,
and 18 are new to the North American flora. The new  combination
Porpidia ochrolemma (Vain.) Brodo & R. Sant. is made.

[The  most interesting reports: Lecidea crassilabra - previously
known only from Australia and New Zealand; Pyrenopsis  tasmanica
- previously known from Tasmania and New Zealand.- AC]
(BEN # 122  16-December-1995)
------------------------------------------
NEW RECORDS OF VASCULAR PLANTS FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: Frank Lomer c/o UBC Herbarium <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>

The  following  species,  not included in the Vascular Plants of
British Columbia Vol. 1-4 (Douglas et  al.  1989-94)  have  been
recently  identified,  overlooked, or newly added to the collec-
tion at the University of British Columbia Herbarium (UBC).

Aster frondosus (Nutt.) T. & G. - First collected July 28,  1939
   at  the  "edge  of  Osoyoos  Lake" by J.W. Eastham (Eastham #
   6122). I collected it again September 29, 1993 on the  north-
   east  shore  of  Osoyoos  Lake  (Lomer # 93-281) where it was
   sparsely scattered among  other  annual  species  just  above
   waterline.

   Pressed  specimens  are  difficult  to distinguish from Aster
   brachyactis, but live plants are  easily  recognized  by  the
   small  white  (fading  to pink) ray flowers. The rays are not
   readily apparent once the plant is pressed.

   Curiously, on September 30,  1994,  I  again  found  a  small
   population of A. frondosus (about 20 plants) growing in moist
   compacted sand south of Pattullo Bridge in Surrey, 12 km east
   of  Vancouver  (Lomer # 94-228). The area was part of a large
   sand landfill dredged from the Fraser River.  Numerous  other
   species  native east of the Coast Mountains also grew at this
   site (Carex atherodes, Carex brevior, Sphenopholis  obtusata,
   Astragalus  canadensis, Potentilla rivalis, and many others),
   no doubt originating from material  washed  down  the  Fraser
   River  from  the interior B.C. This would indicate that Aster
   frondosus almost certainly grows in the Fraser drainage  east
   of the Coast Mountains.

Aster  pilosus  Willd.  -  I have seen this late flowering Aster
   growing in seven different locations around Vancouver. It  is
   an  introduced species native to eastern North America. First
   collected November 1, 1990 on a vacant lot at 5th Avenue  and
   Yukon  Street,  Vancouver  (Lomer  90-199). Also collected in
   Coquitlam, New Westminster, and Surrey. There  are  always  a
   few  plants growing around the old CN railyards, east of Main
   Street, near the VIA Rail Station, Vancouver.

Centaurea nigra L. - First collected July 28, 1994 in  front  of
   Riverview Hospital near Pitt River Road, Coquitlam (Lomer 94-
   164).  A  large  population  also in the back of the hospital
   along a dirt road.

Chenopodium fremontii Wats. var fremontii - Numerous collections
   at UBC. The oldest is from August 1, 1943, collected  at  the
   "base  of  limestone cliff, above hotel," Fairmont Hotsprings
   (Eastham 11087).
   This species seems  to  favour  protected  areas,  especially
   limestone  cliff bases and commonly under large Douglas-firs.
   The latest collection at UBC is  July  24,  1993  along  Sage
   Creek  Road,  calcareous  cliff  crevices, 49 deg. 08' N. 114
   deg. 24' W. (Lomer 93-163).
   Easily confused with the common weedy Chenopodium album, with
   which it sometimes grows, but  Ch.  fremontii  is  a  smaller
   plant  with  a  characteristic leaf shape, more finely mealy,
   and with a smaller, more  delicate  inflorescence.  Collected
   from   Princeton,  Keremeos,  Cawston,  Osoyoos,  Summerland,
   Kamloops, Clearwater, Spence's  Bridge,  Williams  Lake,  and
   west  of  Alexis Creek. I would consider this native plant to
   be frequent in southern British Columbia east of  the  Coast-
   Cascade Mountains.

Chenopodium  polyspermum  L.  -  I have seen this weedy European
   species from at least  8  locations  from  around  Vancouver:
   Spruce  Street  &  Broadway, Vancouver (Lomer 90-164), Surrey
   (Lomer 90-001, 90-182), New Westminster (Lomer  90-156),  and
   Coquitlam (Lomer 90-157, 94-245).

Gypsophila  scorzonerifolia  Ser.  -  First  collected in gypsum
   piles (appropriately) at Lafarge Cement Plant, foot of No.  9
   Road, Richmond, August 25, 1988 (Lomer 88-137) where it still
   persists  today.  This Asian species is also well established
   as a roadside weed in the Columbia River Valley in  southeast
   British  Columbia  form  Windermere to Canal Flats (Lomer 93-
   184, 93-209).
   Gypsophila scorzonerifolia can be told from G. paniculata  by
   its  pinkish  flowers,  less  diffuse  panicle, and glandular
   inflorescence. The two species grow together in Windermere.

Polygonum bistorta L. - Mount  Edziza,  "Solifluction  terraces"
   July  14, 1973. Collected by K. Beamish, J. Pojar and K. Wade
   (UBC 145135). Does anyone know if this is the only record  of
   this northern species for B.C.?

Prenanthes  sagittata  (Gray) A. Nels. - Kishinena Valley "moist
   place at roadside" July 22 1970. Collected by K. Beamish (UBC
   130057). There is also a good specimen of this species in the
   Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria (V), collected from
   Grizzly and Akamina Creek, August 13, 1976 (V 93810).

Ranunculus bulbosus L. - Collected May 1, 1995 in the Deep  Cove
   area,  north  of Victoria (Birch Road, west of Saanich Road -
   Lomer 95-003, and across from Deep Cove Store on West Saanich
   Road - Lomer 95-006). According to Vascular plants of British
   Columbia this species was last collected in B.C. in 1890.

Sagina apetala L. - Collected around Victoria (Dallas  &  Simcoe
   Street  -  Lomer 95-082, Chinese Cemetery - Lomer 95-054, and
   at the parking lot of Thetis Lake Regional Park -  Lomer  95-
   056).

Spergularia  bocconii  (Scheele)  Ascherson  &  Graebner - Three
   mislabeled specimens have been  recently  found  in  the  UBC
   herbarium and identified as this European weed:
    1. August  27,  1939:  "near  Kamloops"  - collected by E.S.
       Tisdale (UBC 8074) labeled  Spergularia  diandra  (Guss.)
       Bois.
    2. June 4, 1949: Spotted Lake west of Osoyoos - collected by
       L.R. Sieburth (UBC 69796) labeled as S. diandra.
    3. August  27,  1950:  Shumway Lake south of Kamloops - col-
       lected by V.J. Krajina (UBC  106015)  labeled  S.  marina
       (L.) Griseb.
   Spergularia  diandra  is  a less densely glandular plant with
   blackish seeds, not yet known in British Columbia.
   This year (1995) I found immature plants  around  a  pond  by
   Haynes  Point Provincial Campground, Osoyoos that were in all
   likelihood S. bocconii.

Veronica biloba L. - Collected across from the Old  Post  Office
   in  Greenwood,  May  27,  1995  (Lomer 95-057). Abundant in a
   backyard lot and also seen in two other places in town.
   This is a distinctive glandular annual  species  of  Veronica
   from  central  Europe. The owner of the property where I col-
   lected this plant had not seen it before this year. She  told
   me  that she first noticed it after she sprayed the area with
   Roundup last year to clear  the  knapweed  and  clover.  Next
   spring  thousands of these little plants showed up covering a
   large patch of ground.

Vicia lathyroides L. - This species has  been  well  established
   for many years in the Victoria area: Mill Hill, May 7, 1966 -
   collected  by  K.  Beamish  (UBC  116604), Island View Beach,
   April 30, 1995 (Lomer 95-032).
(BEN # 123  6-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
AQUATIC PLANT INFORMATION RETRIEVAL SYSTEM (APIRS) ONLINE
From: AQUAPHYTE, vol. 15, no. 2 - Fall 1995

The Aquatic Plant Information System (APIRS) is now online,  24-
hours  a  day.  The 41,000-item database about freshwater macro-
phytes is the largest of its kind, and since 1981, it  has  been
used  by  thousands  of  various users [see BEN 87 --- 5-January
1995]. The users had to write or phone to the  APIRS  office  in
Florida and the APIRS office performed their data base searches.
Now  users  may  use the database by themselves, searching it in
whatever ways they see fit. Use of the database remains free  of
charge.

The  APIRS is available through the Internet as a World Wide Web
site:
   http://aquat1.ifas.ufl.edu/
(or you can telnet directly to 128.227.242.241). After following
the sign-on procedure (logon as "guest" - no apostrophes  -  and
<return>  for  password  and  another  <return>  for the default
terminal), you may search the database in myriard  ways:  search
by keyword, author, date, citation, plant species, etc. [I found
that  it  is  rather tricky to sign out. To end the search press
return in the search mode, than enter Q twice. You will get  the
system's  $ sign. Enter "exit" - no apostrophes - to disconnect.
- AC]

The Centre for Aquatic PLants welcomes reprints  from  research-
ers.  Authors  can  search  the  database  for  their  name (use
lastname$ - $ will take care of initials, etc.)  and  send  any-
thing  not  already  listed.  The address is: Center for Aquatic
Plants, Aquatic  Plant  Information  Retrieval  System  (APIRS),
University  of  Florida,  7922 N.W. 71st Street, Gainesville, FL
32606, USA.

The Aquatic plant World Wide Web site
   http://aquat1.ifas.ufl.edu/
offers a variety of free and  for-sale  products  and  services.
Besides  the  APIRS  database  you  can  access line drawings of
aquatic plants,  high  resolution  photographs  of  aquatic  and
wetland plants, etc. You can contact two aquatic plant Extension
Specialists  and  link  with other sites of interest to botanist
and aquatic plant ecologists. The APIRS office  is  planning  to
develop  an interactive "short course" about aquatic and wetland
plants as part of this Web site.
(BEN # 123  6-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
NONINDIGENOUS SPECIES IN WESTERN AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS - SYMPOSIUM
From:  Mark   Sytsma   <MARK@sbii.sb2.pdx.edu>   
   via   <pacific-biosnet@listproc.wsu.edu> [abbrev.]

Where:   Smith   Memorial  Center,  Portland  State  University,
   Portland, Oregon
When: 27 March 1996

Nonindigenous, introduced species have severely altered  aquatic
ecosystems  in  the  West.  Numerous  other  species threaten to
invade and cause further damage. The Symposium will  provide  an
opportunity  for  aquatic  system managers, scientists, and con-
cerned citizens to learn about the biology and potential manage-
ment strategies for some important  nonindigenous  species  cur-
rently present in, or threatening to invade, the West.

Symposium speakers include:

Lars  Anderson  -  Invasive  and  Competitive Characteristics of
   Hydrilla verticillata.
Curtis Daehler - Spartina Invasions in Pacific Estuaries:  Biol-
   ogy, Impact, and Management.
Debra Eberts - Purple Loosestrife: A Threat to Western Waters.
Fred  Nibling  - Zebra Mussels: A Threat to Western Aquatic Sys-
   tems.
John Lehman - A Case Study of Species  Invasion  by  the  Inver-
   tebrate  Predator  Bythotrephes  (Crustacea:  Cladocera)  and
   Associated Biological Effects in the Great Lakes.
Robert Behnke - Fish Culture and Nonindigenous Organisms.
Doug Jensen - Effective Exotic Species Boater Education: Where's
   The Best Bang For The Buck?
Hiram Li - Creatures of  Light  and  Darkness:  Management  with
   Exotics.
Jay  Troxel - Federal Response to Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance
   Species.

Western Aquatic Plant Management Society Annual Meeting
North American Lake Management Society Regional Meeting

When: 28-29 March 1996

Following the Symposium, the Western  Aquatic  Plant  Management
Society  (WAPMS) will hold its annual meeting on 28 and 29 March
1996. The meeting will include contributed papers on  the  biol-
ogy, ecology, and management of aquatic vegetation.

Some preliminary WAPMS Contributed Papers Session:

Sharon Walton - Hydrilla Eradication on Two King County Lakes.
Bob  Storer  &  Sharon  Walton  - King County's Lake Stewardship
   Program.
Kathy Hamel - Educating Aquatic Plant Wholesalers and  Retailers
   About Prohibited Species.
Victoria  T.  Zipperer et al. - Ecological effects of the exotic
   cordgrass,  Spartina  alterniflora,  on  the  benthic  inver-
   tebrates of Willapa Bay, WA.
Ingrid  M.  Wertz  &  Eugene B. Welch - Egeria densa Decline and
   Response to Drawdown, Alum and Harvesting.
Alexis Andrews. Highland Lake Phosphorus Loading Study:  Terrain
   and  Water  Quality Analysis Through a Geographic Information
   System and Empirical Models.
John D. Madsen & Kurt D. Getsinger. Response of  Euasian  water-
   milfoil and the native aquatic plant community to a triclopyr
   application in Lake Minnetonka, MN: One year posttreatment.
Eric  M.  Coombs  -  Biological  Control  of Purple loosestrife,
   Lythrum salicaria, in Oregon.
Jenifer  Parsons  -  Troublesome  Exotic   Aquatic   Plants   in
   Washington.
Mark  Swartout  &  Tom  Clingman - Long Lake Milfoil Eradication
   Project.
Ron P. Crockett - Herbicide Use on Oregon Coast Removes European
   Beachgrass Ammophila arenaria (L.) and Enhances Snowy Plover,
   Charadarius alexandrinus (L.), Nesting Habitat.
David S. Lamb - In-lake Restoration Effort at Sacheen Lake (Pend
   Oreille County, Washington): Whole Lake Application of SONAR"
   (fluridone) for Control of Myriophyllum spicatum.

Western chapters of the North American Lake  Management  Society
(NALMS) will host a series of nontechnical workshops on March 29
for  concerned  citizens interested in becoming more involved in
lake management. Contact Jean Jacoby  (206-296-5526)  for  addi-
tional  information  on the workshops. the Northwest. Contact Al
Smith (503-229-5410 ext. 375) for additional information.

Contact Mark D. Sytsma (503-725-3833; h2ms@odin.cc.pdx.edu)  for
additional program information.

Contact Marilyn Schoeder (303-781-8287 [Colorado]) for registra-
tion  materials.  Registration cost is $75 for the Symposium and
the WAPMS and NALMS meetings.
(BEN # 123  6-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
GENERA OF THE NITROGEN FIXING TREES
From: James Brewbaker <brewbake@hawaii.edu>
         [based on Brewbaker et al. 1990 - see References]

A  summary  table  is  provided of trees and large shrubs (> 3 m
high) that were validated as nodulating, and known  or  presumed
to  fix  nitrogen.  The  summary is derived from NFTA's expanded
database that includes about 1500 taxa.  Only  one  family  that
includes  nodulating plants, the Datiscaceae, does not appear in
this table, as the genus Datisca lacks arboreal or woody forms.

Most of the 115 genera of N-fixing trees and  shrubs  (NFT)  are
legumes.  As  calculated  by  de Faria et. al. (1989) nodulation
characterized 23% of 349 tested caesalpinioid  species,  90%  of
454 tested mimosoids and 97% of the 2592 papilionids.

Nodulation  involves  symbiosis  with  rhizobial bacteria in the
legume and in the genus Parasponia (and possibly other  taxa  in
the  Ulmaceae). All other non-leguminous genera are nodulated by
actinomycetes of the genus Frankia.

            LIST OF GENERA OF NITROGEN FIXING TREES

BETULACEAE: Alnus (38/38)

CASUARINACEAE: Allocasuarina (11/20), Casuarina (8/45),
Gymnostoma (1/2)

CORIARIACEAE: Coriaria (16/16)

ELEAGNACEAE: Elaeagnus (10/45), Hippophae (1/3), Shepherdia
(2/3)

LEGUMINOSAE:
   CAESALPINIOIDEAE [nodulation found in 23% of tested species -
all "positive" genera listed here]: Brownea (1/30), Chamaecrista
(2/250), Colvillea (1/1), Cordeauxia (1/2), Dialium (1/40),
Dicymbe (2/13), Dimorphandra (2/25), Epurea (1/14),
Erythrophleum (2/9), Gossweilerodendron (1/2), Hardwickia (1/1),
Lysidice (1/1), Maniltoa (1/20), Sclerolobium (3/35), Tachigali
(2/24)
   MIMOSOIDEAE [nodulation found in 90% of tested species, only
the larger genera listed]: Acacia (193/1200), Albizia (30/150),
Calliandra (11/200), Inga (14/350), Mimosa (3/400), Newtonia
(1/11), Parapiptadenia (1/3), Paraserianthes (1,5), Prosopis
(15/44), etc.
   PAPILIONOIDEAE: [nodulation found in 97% of tested species,
only the larger genera listed]: Aeshynomene (2/150), Caragana
(4/80), Chamaecytisus (1/30), Clitoria (1/70), Dalbergia
(17/100), Desmodium (including Codariocalyx and Ougeinia)
(4/300), Erythrina (26/108), Indigofera (1/700), Laburnum (4/2-
6), Lonchocarpus (8/150), Robinia (3/4), Sophora (7,50),
Swartzia (8/135), Tephrosia (1/400), Wisteria (4/6), etc.

MYRICACEAE: Comptonia (1/1), Myrica (13/35)

RHAMNACEAE: Ceanothus (14/55)

ROSACEAE: Cercocarpus (4/20), Purshia (1/2)

ULMACEAE: Aphananthe (1/5), Celtis (2/80), Parasponia (3/6),
Trema (2/30)

Note: First number is the number of species validated as  NFT's;
second is number of species in the genus.

References:

Brewbaker,  J.L.,  K.B.  Willers,  &  W. Macklin. 1990. Nitrogen
   fixing trees; Validation and prioritization. "Proceedings  of
   IUFRO  Congress,"  Montreal,  Canada. Publ. by IUFRO, Vienna,
   Vol. 2: 335-349. (Reprinted in Nitrogen Fixing Tree  Research
   Reports 8: 8-16. 1990.)
   
de  Faria,  S.M.,  G.P.  Lewis,  J.I. Sprent, & J.M. Sutherland.
   1989.  Occurrence  of  nodulation  in  the  Leguminosae.  New
   Phytol. 111: 607-619.
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
CONFERENCE: PEATLANDS FOR PEOPLE IN VANCOUVER B.C.

Where:  George Curtis Law Building, University of British Colum-
   bia, Vancouver, B.C.
When: January 26-28, 1996

The conference "Peatlands for people" is organized by the  Burns
Bog  Conservation  Society.  Its goal is "to explore and advance
multi-stakeholder  actions  for  achieving   sustainability   of
world's disappearing peatlands."

The  speakers  will  include Jim Pojar (rare aquatic and wetland
plants), Allen Banner (peatlands in British  Columbia),  Richard
Hebda (discussion on Burns Bog), Martin Gabauer (Sandhill Cranes
in  Burns  Bog),  Anne  Brown (methane production in peatlands),
Ralph May (use of peatlands for cranberry farming),  Tony  Cable
(peatlands  and  peat  extraction),  Alison  Gail (eco-sites and
tourism within metropolitan communities). The well known English
botanist, writer and TV personality Dr. David  Bellamy  was  in-
vited as a keynote speaker (Celebration of mires/peatlands).

For more information contact
Burns Bog Conservation Society
Phone: 604-572-0373, FAX: 604-572-0374
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
VICTORIA, B.C.: BOTANY NIGHT & NATIVE PLANT GROUP

Tuesday,  January 16, 1996: Botany Night - Del Meidinger "Forest
   Ecologist in SE Asia" - Swan Lake Nature House, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, January 18, 1996: Native Plant Group of  the  Victoria
   Horticulture  Society  - Adolf Ceska "Rare plants of southern
   Vancouver Island and their protection" - University  of  Vic-
   toria, Clearihue Building, Room A 215, 7:00 p.m.
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
THE EUROPEAN MAGAZINE LOOKS AT CRAWLING THROUGH CYBERSPACE
From: The European MagAZine No. 279 (14-20 Sept. 1995) p.6,7.

The  Internet  grew  up  in  such an unregulated way that no one
really knows exactly how much is really out there in cyberspace.
As any net user will tell you, trying to find what you want  can
be  difficult  and  time-consuming.  There  is  no comprehensive
Internet telephone book that allows you to  look  up  someones's
net address (URL).

So  what can the baffled netsurfer do? If you want to find a web
page related to your favourite group etc., you  crawl.  Crawling
the  web  in  search  of  URLs Usenet or newsgroups is a serious
business. A search engine is the name given to the programs  and
Internet  resources  dedicated to crawling. Some are commercial,
others are free.

http://fuzine.mt.cs.cmu.edu/
   Lycos - the king of the online search engines.  This  massive
   database,  maintained  by  Carnegie Mellon University, is the
   first place you should go to on your web search.

http://akebono.stanford.edu/yahoo
   Yahoo web crawler has the only disadvantage that it is biased
   towards US sites. European web sites often fail to get recog-
   nized or fail to post their URL.

http://harvest.cs.coloradu.edu/
   Harvest  contains  more  than  25,000  3w  sites  with  fewer
   duplications than Lycos.

http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/Data Sources/WWW/Servers.html
http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/Data Sources/bySubject/Overview.html
   These are one of the most essential and powerful search tools
   on the net.

http://cui_www.unige.ch/w3catalog
   CUI   index   is   mainatined  by  the  Centre  Universitaire
   d'Informatique in Geneva. It is a  well  maintained  database
   which  allows  you  to  search  existing  web  catalogues and
   produce detailed summaries and links. It  has  around  13,000
   entries so you should have no trouble getting what you need.
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
PLANTS DATABASE FOR WASHINGTON STATE AND OTHER STATES OF THE USA
From: "John A. DeLapp" <jdelapp@halcyon.com>
  originally posted on <pacific-biosnet@listproc.wsu.edu>

For  those  folks with Web access the PLANTS database allows the
downloading of a list of Washington state plants from  the  fol-
lowing URL:

http://trident.ftc.nrcs.usda.gov/plants/staselec.html

The data file can be imported into any spreadsheet, database, or
word processor. (If you are lucky enough to use a Macintosh, you
can  use  the  shareware macro program TypeIt4Me to allow you to
type the abbreviation (symbol) of the  name  and  have  the  Mac
enter the full name automatically within any program.)

The text of the web page follows:

PLANTS State Data Download Screen

Information:

The  reports  contain  the  symbol,  scientific  name,  accepted
name/common name, and family. The data is in ascii  text  format
with  fields  enclosed in double quotes and delimited by commas.
The files are not compressed.

Data:

Alabama       Kansas         New Mexico       Virginia
Alaska        Kentucky       New York         Washington
Arkansas      Louisiana      North Carolina   West Virginia
Arizona       Maine          North Dakota     Wisconsin
California    Maryland       Ohio             Wyoming
Colorado      Massachusetts  Oklahoma         American Samoa
Connecticut   Michigan       Oregon           Guam
Delaware      Minnesota      Pennsylvania     Palau
Florida       Mississippi    Rhode Island     Puerto Rico
Georgia       Missouri       South Carolina   US Minor Outlying
Hawaii        Montana        South Dakota          Islands
Idaho         Nebraska       Tennessee        Virgin Islands
Illinois      Nevada         Texas            Fed. S. Micronesia
Indiana       New Hampshire  Utah             Marshall Islands
Iowa          New Jersey     Vermont          N Mariana Islands

Copyright Information:

The data found in PLANTS for the plants known  to  occur  within
North  America  were  provided  under a cooperative agreement by
John Kartesz and his staff at the Biota of North America Program
(BONAP). Portions of these data are copyrighted (@ 1994) by John
Kartesz, Biota of North America Program.  The  copyright  notice
must be preserved on all copies. Cooperator derived data that is
altered  by  the user cannot redistribute it as PLANTS data. All
users of PLANTS data are to acknowledge the  contributions  made
by  USDA,  Soil  Conservation Service and BONAP. When using this
information, you must use the copyright notice.
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PLANT TAXONOMISTS (ASPT) NEWSLETTER ONLINE

Beginning in January 1996, the ASPT Newsletter will no longer be
distributed as hard copy. It will be posted quarterly on a World
Wide Web (WWW) Server maintained by the  NMNH,  Smithsonian  In-
stitution. The following URL will bring you directly to the ASPT
Web Page and Newsletter <http://www.nmnh.si.edu/aspt/>.
(BEN # 124  13-January-1996)
------------------------------------------
"COYOTE TOBACCO" - NICOTIANA ATTENUATA IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
From:  Frank Lomer, Honourary Research Associate, UBC Herbarium,
   Vancouver, B.C. c/o <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>

Nicotiana attenuata Torrey, "Coyote tobacco", has been collected
in B.C. many years ago from Spence's Bridge and Lytton, but  has
not been seen for quite some time.

N.  attenuata  is listed in Endangered, Threatened and Sensitive
Vascular Plants of Washington (Washington  State  Department  of
Natural  Resources;  January  1994) as "S2 - Sensitive:imperiled
because of its rarity or because it is vulnerable to  extinction
or extirpation." There is a single old collection at UBC: August
2, 1912 from Spence's Bridge collected by J.A. Teit (Teit # 55).

In July 1991 I found N. attenuata growing around the rocky hills
northeast  of  Osoyoos  Lake.  There were about 6 healthy plants
growing under the shelter of a large  Douglas  fir.  I  did  not
collect  any  specimens. In 1992 I returned to the same spot and
found no plants. On July 12 1993, a few days after a major  fire
had  hit  the  area, I found a single small insect-damaged plant
under the same Douglas fir. In 1994 I could find  no  plants  at
this  site.  Further south, however, in an area I had not looked
before, I found a number of plants scattered in flat depressions
on the rocky outcrops  at  the  edge  of  sandy  Purshia  flats.
Another small population grew in a sandy area at the base of the
rocky  hills and I collected a branch: N.E. Osoyoos Lake July 1,
1994 (Lomer # 94-089).

On July 19, 1995 I collected N. attenuata about 1 km.  south  of
the  Pattullo  Bridge  in Surrey, about 12 km. east of Vancouver
(Lomer #95-039). A single large plant with many seeds was  grow-
ing  in  a  large sand landfill that was dredged from the Fraser
River. This plant probably arose from seed that was washed  down
the  Fraser  River  from the interior of B.C. This means that N.
attenuata very  likely  still  grows  somewhere  in  the  Fraser
drainage, perhaps it can still be found around Lytton.
(BEN # 125  4-February-1996)
------------------------------------------
FIELD GUIDE TO WETLAND PLANTS

Guard,   B.   Jennifer.  1995.  Wetland  plants  of  Oregon  and
   Washington. With contributions from John  Cristy,  photos  by
   Trigve  Steen.  Lone  Pine Publishing, Vancouver, B.C. 239 p.
   ISBN 1-55105-060-9 [softcover] Price: US $19.95.

Description of more than 330 plant species with over 300  colour
photographs.

This  concise  and  easy-to-use field guide provides a wealth of
information about the plants of rich aquatic and wetland ecosys-
tems of our region. Grouped by the habitat this guide  describes
wooded wetland, wetland prairie, marshy shore, shrub swamps, and
the submerged and floating community.

Lone Pine Publishing's phone number is 1-800-661-9017.
(BEN # 125  4-February-1996)
------------------------------------------
DIGITAL MUSHROOMS: A NEW WWW SITE: DIGITAL EXSICCATE OF FUNGI
From: Ewald Langer <ewald.langer@UNI-TUEBINGEN.DE>
      originally posted on TAXACOM <TAXACOM@CMSA.BERKELEY.EDU>

The  Institute of Biology, "Spezielle Botanik and Mykologie", of
the University of Tuebingen, Germany, offers a new WWW site  for
mycology. Our WWW pages are an online help for determination and
information  of  fungi  including  descriptions,  keys,  TEM/SEM
photos and illustrations. The pages are in development. Species,
preferably types are added from time to time.  The  language  of
the pages is English.

The "Digital Exsiccate of Fungi" is located at the URL:
   http://www.uni-tuebingen.de/uni/bbm/index.html
(BEN # 125  4-February-1996)
------------------------------------------
RE: INTERNET SEARCH ENGINES [BEN # 124]
From: Roger Whitehead <rwhitehead@cix.compulink.co.uk>

A  very  fast  and  efficient  search  engine  is to be found at
Digital's Alta Vista site:
   http://www.altavista.digital.com/
You might like to add that to the list in BEN.
(BEN # 125  4-February-1996)
------------------------------------------
SUMMER JOBS IN BOTANY: WESTERN WASHINGTON AND OREGON
From: Charles Halpern <chalpern@u.washington.edu>
        originally on ECOLOG-L <ECOLOG-L@UMDD.UMD.EDU>
The College of Forest Resources, University  of  Washington  and
Department  of  Forest  Science, Oregon State University will be
offering summer jobs in field botany and forest ecology (western
Washington and Oregon). Please direct questions and applications
to the individuals listed below.

1. FIELD BOTANIST, western Oregon (13 June-31 August, or later)

Assist with long-term ecological studies of green-tree retention
harvest, Umpqua National Forest,  OR.  Establish  plots,  sample
understory  vegetation, measure trees, and quantify site charac-
teristics. Requires familiarity with the flora of western Oregon
(experience with mosses, lichens, and  grasses  desirable);  ex-
perience  in  vegetation  sampling  and  use  of floristic keys;
training in plant  systematics/ecology.  Requires  attention  to
detail,  legible  handwriting,  ability/willingness to work long
hours under strenuous conditions and to work/live cooperatively.
Housing provided; days/hours negotiable; salary $8.00/hr.

2. FORESTER, western Oregon and Washington (13  June-15  Septem-
ber, or later)

Measure  tree  heights/diameters  and obtain tree ages in mature
forests throughout western Oregon  and  Washington  as  part  of
ecological  study  described  above.  Must  be  able to identify
western Cascade tree species. Ability/willingness  to  learn  to
operate  a  Criterion laser instrument to precisely measure tree
heights and an increment borer to obtain tree ages. Attention to
detail, legible  handwriting,  ability/willingness  to  work  in
steep  and  brushy  terrain, willingness to camp for most of the
summer (housing may be  available  at  some  sites).  Days/hours
negotiable; salary $7.50/hr.

3.  FIELD  BOTANIST,  western  Washington  (1  June, or later-31
August, or later)

Assist with  studies  of  plant  composition  and  diversity  in
managed  forests  on  Weyerhaeuser  lands in western Washington.
Establish plots, sample understory  vegetation,  measure  trees,
and quantify site characteristics. Requires familiarity with the
flora  of  western Washington; experience in vegetation sampling
and use of floristic keys; training  in  plant  systematics  and
ecology.  Requires  attention  to  detail,  legible handwriting,
ability/willingness to work long hours  under  strenuous  condi-
tions  and  to  work/live cooperatively, willingness to camp all
summer. Days/hours negotiable; salary $1400/month.

For more information on Jobs 1-3 contact: Shelley Evans, E-mail:
saevans@u.washington.edu, Phone: (206) 616-4095.

4. FOREST ECOLOGY FIELD ASSISTANT, western Oregon and Washington
(17 June-6 September)

Assist in studies of upland and riparian forests  in  the  moun-
tains  of  western  Oregon  and Washington. Research sites range
from recently disturbed areas to  old-growth  forests.  Will  be
based  at  the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Blue River, OR.
Duties include measuring trees and snags, and  assessing  causes
of tree mortality. Requires college courses in Forestry, Botany,
or  related  fields; field experience in forest or other vegeta-
tion sampling; skill in tree identification; ability/willingness
to work long hours in difficult terrain. Junior or higher stand-
ing desirable. Housing provided at the Andrews  Forest;  several
camping trips away from the Andrews required. Salary $7.00/hr or
more, depending on experience.

For  more information on Job 4 contact: Dr. Steve Acker, E-mail:
ackers@fsl.orst.edu, Phone: (541) 750-7325

To apply for any/all jobs send the following to  both  addresses
below by march 1, 1996:
 1. Handwritten cover letter: describe interests/qualifications;
    state  which job(s) you wish to apply for; indicate dates of
    availability; list names and phone numbers of two references
    (see below),
 2. Resume (typewritten),
 3. Copies  of  college  transcripts  and/or  professional  work
    product,
 4. Have two letters of reference sent to BOTH addresses:

Shelley Evans                      Dr. Steve Acker
College of Forest Resources        Department of Forest Science
Box 352100, Univ. of Washington    FSL 020, Oregon State Univ.
Seattle, WA  98195-2100            Corvallis, OR  97331-7501
(BEN # 125  4-February-1996)
------------------------------------------