Special Symposium Issue continues on page 12 Department of Botany & the U.S. National Herbarium The Plant Press
New Series - Vol. 18 - No. 3 July-September 2015 Botany Profile Seed-Free and Loving It: Symposium Celebrates Pteridology By Gary A. Krupnick ern and lycophyte biology was tee Chair, NMNH) presented the 13th José of this plant group. the focus of the 13th Smithsonian Cuatrecasas Medal in Tropical Botany Moran also spoke about the differ- FBotanical Symposium, held 1–4 to Paulo Günter Windisch (see related ences between pteridophytes and seed June 2015 at the National Museum of story on page 12). This prestigious award plants in aspects of biogeography (ferns Natural History (NMNH) and United is presented annually to a scholar who comprise a higher percentage of the States Botanic Garden (USBG) in has contributed total vascular Washington, DC. Also marking the 12th significantly to flora on islands Symposium of the International Orga- advancing the compared to nization of Plant Biosystematists, and field of tropical continents), titled, “Next Generation Pteridology: An botany. Windisch, hybridization International Conference on Lycophyte a retired profes- and polyploidy & Fern Research,” the meeting featured sor from the Universidade Federal do Rio (ferns have higher rates), and anatomy a plenary session on 1 June, plus three Grande do Sul, was commended for his (some ferns have tree-like growth using additional days of focused scientific talks, extensive contributions to the systematics, root mantle or have internal reinforce- workshops, a poster session, a reception, biogeography, and evolution of neotro- ment by sclerenchyma instead of lateral a dinner, and a field trip. The conference pical pteridophytes. In his acceptance meristem). Moran also provided a brought together the world’s pteridolo- speech, Windisch expressed his appre- historical overview of pteridophytes in gists to celebrate the progress of fern and ciation and gratitude to the Smithsonian the Silurian to Early Devonian (at which lycophyte biology to date and to forecast Institution and the selection committee. He time leaves originated); in the Carbon- developments still on the horizon. said that receiving the medal rekindles his iferous (pteridophyte swamps from The Symposium began with open- inner spirit, and remarked that “translating that time were the precursor of today’s ing remarks by Warren Wagner (Chair nature into science is an art.” fossil fuel); at the Cretaceous-Tertiary of Botany, NMNH), Kirk Johnson (Sant Boundary (a spike in fern diversity can Director, NMNH), and Ari Novy (Execu- he first day of the Symposium be seen soon after the asteroid impact); tive Director, USBG). Eric Schuettpelz included a plenary session that was and in the Early Tertiary (warm weather (Curator of Ferns, NMNH) served as Topen to the general public. With produced thick carpets of Azolla in the convener. Noting that the last inter- 10 invited talks, the audience was treated Arctic Ocean leading to a sharp reduc- to an overview of fern and lycophyte national conference on lycophyte and tion in atomospheric CO2 reducing the fern research took place 11 years ago at evolution, genomics, physiology, ecology, greenhouse effect and lowering the the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, horticulture, and conservation. The open- Earth’s temperature). Moran concluded Schuettpelz expressed excitement as ing keynote speaker was Robbin C. Moran his talk with a discussion of iridescence this year’s conference of 97 talks and 30 from the New York Botanical Garden, and in ferns, the diversity of sporangia, and posters, including the 10 invited plenary his talk, “An Overview of Ferns and Lyco- the explosive sporangial dehiscence of speakers, was to focus on discussing new phytes,” provided an exciting introduction the clubmoss Lycopodium clavatum. He and revitalized methods for pteridologi- into the world of pteridology. Starting explained how the spores of this plant, cal research. with the life cycle of pteridophytes, Moran which are highly flammable because of After the opening remarks, Laurence discussed the unique, independently living their high fat content, were used as a sporophyte and gametophyte generations Dorr (Curator and Cuatrecasas Commit- Continued on page16 Travel Walter Adey traveled to Maine (6/17 herbarium cases at the Society for the poster on shifting collections at the Soci- – 7/24) to complete annual field research Preservation of Natural History Collec- ety for the Preservation of Natural History in conjunction with the NOAA Marine tions conference. Collections conference. Sanctuary Program. Rusty Russell traveled to Gainesville, Alain Touwaide and Emanuela Robin Everly traveled to Decorah, Florida (5/18 – 5/22) to speak at the Soci- Appetiti traveled to Iowa City (4/23 – Iowa (6/15 – 6/20) to attend the 47th ety for the Preservation of Natural History 4/25) to attend the annual banquet of the Annual Meeting of the Council on Botani- Collections conference, representing University of Iowa’s History of Medicine cal and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL) at herbarium programs, digitization plans, Society; to Los Angeles and San Marino, Seed Savers Exchange. and the Field Book Project, and convening California (4/26 – 5/7) to meet with col- Vicki Funk traveled to Copenha- and moderating two sessions of computer leagues, present lectures and do research gen, Denmark (5/16 – 5/22) to conduct demonstrations. at the University of California Los research. Eric Schuettpelz traveled to Manhat- Angeles and at the Huntington Library and Gabriel Johnson traveled to India (4/2 tan, New York (5/5 – 5/6) to give a talk Botanic Gardens; and to Athens, Greece – 4/24) to visit the laboratory of Vinita in the 2015 lecture series of the Torrey (6/1 – 6/30) to do research at the National Gowda at the Indian Institute of Sci- Botanical Society. Library of Greece and to deliver classes ence Education and Research and to train Robert Soreng traveled to Turkey and lectures at local institutions. laboratory technicians in methods used to (4/17 – 5/23) to collect grasses for revision Elizabeth Zimmer traveled to Vienna, generate DNA sequence data. of Poa in Turkey and annotate specimens Austria (6/21 – 6/25) to speak at the Plant Sylvia Orli traveled to Gainesville, at Gazi University, Ankara (GAZI). Molecular Ecology and Evolution’s Inter- Florida (5/18 – 5/22) to attend the Society Meghann Toner traveled to Gaines- national Conference. for the Preservation of Natural History ville, Florida (5/18 – 5/22) to present a Collections conference. Melinda Peters traveled to Gaines- Visitors ville, Florida (5/18 – 5/22) to deliver a Ning Zhang, National Museum of Natural (4/14-4/19). talk on mercuric chloride contaminated History Buck Fellow; Vitaceae (1/7/13- 6/30/15). Jan Vandersmissen, Université de Liège, The Plant Press Belgium; History of botany (4/22). Eduardo Pasini, Universidade Federal New Series - Vol. 18 - No. 3 do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Compositae Catherine Phillips, Huntington Botani- Chair of Botany (8/18/14-4/30/15). cal Garden; Cactaceae and Crassulaceae Warren L. Wagner (4/27). ([email protected]) Craig Costion, University of Adelaide, Australia; DNA barcoding (11/3/14 Tom Lovejoy and 14 students, George EDITORIAL STAFF -10/31/15). Mason University; Plant conservation and herbarium tour (5/4). Editor Yeni Rahayu, Bogor Agricultural Uni- Gary Krupnick versity, Indonesia; Sumatran Tetrastigma Peter Schafran, Old Dominion Univer- ([email protected]) (Vitaceae) (2/2-4/17). sity; Southeastern U.S. Isoetes (Isoeta- ceae) (5/5-7/31). Copy Editors Monica Carlsen, Missouri Botanical Gar- Robin Everly, Bernadette Gibbons, Bruce Stein, National Wildlife Federa- Rose Gulledge, and Elizabeth Jacobsen den; Araceae and Zingiberales (2/17/15- 2/16/17). tion; Centropogon (Campanulaceae) (5/7). News Contacts Bo Pan, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botani- Erin Walch, Smith College; Flora of San MaryAnn Apicelli, Rusty Russell, Alice Jacinto internship (5/11-6/26). Tangerini, and Elizabeth Zimmer cal Garden, China; Pueraria (Fabaceae) and related genera (2/20-4/29). Chang-Tzu Wang, Patuxent Research The Plant Press is a quarterly publication pro- vided free of charge. To receive notification of Kenia Velasco, Sociedad para el Estu- Refuge; Collections management (5/11- when new pdf issues are posted to the web, please 5/15). subscribe to the listserve by sending a message dio de los Recursos Bióticos de Oaxaca, to [email protected] containing only the Mexico; Traditional ecological knowledge following in the body of the text: SUBSCRIBE Christine Clancy, Australian and New PLANTPRESS-NEWS Firstname Lastname. of the Dixaza-speaking Community (4/4- Zealand Society for the History of Replace “Firstname Lastname” with your name. 7/31). Medicine; Mediterranean medicinal plants If you would like to be added to the hard-copy (5/14). mailing list, please contact Dr. Gary Krupnick at: Young Eun Chang, International School, Department of Botany, Smithsonian Institution, Belgium; Chinese medicinal plants and PO Box 37012, NMNH MRC-166, Washington, Mamiyil Sabu, University of Calicut DC 20013-7012, or by E-mail: krupnickg@ traditional medicine (4/6-4/17). 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Page 2 Visiting Scientists Have a Sight for Sori Chair his year’s Smithsonian Botanical Symposium Generation Pteridology,” and during the event was unique in its focus on a particular taxo- itself, the pteridophyte herbarium saw nearly 50 nomic group (pteridophytes), as well as in its visitors (see list of visitors beginning on page 2). With T Many of these visitors spent several days conduct- duration (spanning an entire week). “Next Generation Pteridology” (see profile on the cover) focused entirely ing research in the collection, and the great influx on the biology of ferns and lycophytes. The first day of experts resulted in some extensive curation of A was filled with a broad spectrum of accessible presenta- our specimens. In all, more than 500 specimens tions typical of our annual Smithsonian Botanical Sym- were annotated and about a dozen types were posium and the remainder of the week featured a series uncovered and moved to the type herbarium. Per- View of focused colloquia, contributed talks, and workshops. haps most notable was the discovery (by Barbara In all, the scientific program included 127 presenta- Parris, from the Fern Research Foundation, New tions and brought together well over 200 individuals Zealand) of an isotype of Xiphopteris exilis Parris, Warren representing 29 countries. But the event had effects a species that at the time of its publication was L. well beyond the communication of science. Without a known only from the type collection. It was truly doubt, “Next Generation Pteridology” had a profound wonderful to see so many researchers working in Wagner influence in building connections to the Smithsonian the pteridophyte herbarium advancing their own and strengthening collaborations within the pteridologi- projects, while simultaneously improving the cal community. Additionally, the presence of so many value of our specimens and helping us to fine tune of the world’s experts under one roof had a significant our collection for the upcoming digitization. impact on our collection. -Eric Schuettpelz and Warren L. Wagner In the days leading up to and following “Next Visiting botanists overtake the pteridophyte herbarium at the National Museum of Natural History, where they conducted research, annotated specimens, and uncovered types, leading to tremendous benefits to the collections. (photo by Eric Schuettpelz)
University and Fairchild Tropical Botanic Bochum, Germany; Pteridophytes (5/26- Sarah White, Wake Forest University; Garden; Mangifera and Bouea (Anacar- 5/29). Historical expeditions internship (6/1- diaceae) (5/19-5/20). 8/22). Cheng Wei Chen, Taiwan Tsing Hua Uni- Roger Troutman, Independent researcher, versity, Taiwan; Pteridophytes (5/27-5/29). Nina Derzhavina, Orel State University, Ohio; Liatris (Asteraceae) (5/20-5/21). Russia; Pteridophytes (6/2). Chloe Siegel, University of Illinois; DNA Sarah Morris, University of California extraction internship (5/27-8/15). Patrick Herendeen, Chicago Botanic Los Angeles; History of Mediterranean Garden; Fabaceae (6/2-6/3). botany (5/21). Florence Stevenson, University of Mary- land; DNA extraction internship (5/27- Irina Gureyeva, Tomsk State University, Caitlin Redak, Kenyon College; Histori- 8/20). Russia; Pteridophytes (6/2-6/3). cal expeditions and herbarium curation internship (5/25-8/15). Dennise Stefan Bauer, Ruhr-Universität Michelle Nervo, Universidade Federal do Bochum, Germany; Pteridophytes (5/28- Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Pteridophytes Roy Moger-Reischer, University of 5/29). (6/2). Rochester; Pueraria montana var. lobate (Fabaceae) internship (5/26-7/31). Elizabeth Strohbeck, Smith College; Germinal Rouhan, National Museum Araceae and Zingiberales internship (6/1- of Natural History, France; Pteridophytes Jovani Pereira, Ruhr-Universität 8/7). (6/2-6/5). Continued on page 5 Page 3 Two illustrations, Hibiscadelphus stellatus work he was able to analyze the data in Staff and Gymnanthemum koekemoerae, by order to generate a molecular phylogeny Alice Tangerini were featured in “Botan- of the genus. He also revised the material Research & ica 2015: The Art & Science of Plants,” of Trichocline deposited in the herbarium. Activities an annual juried exhibition of botanical Pasini was able to get a one-month exten- art at Brookside Gardens. The exhibit, sion to stay long enough to travel to the which was on display 6 June to 10 July, University of Memphis where he studied On 8 April, W. John Kress presented featured artworks by artists affiliated with Next Generation Sequencing techniques the lecture, “Living in the Anthropocene: the Brookside Gardens School of Botani- with Dr. Jennifer Mandell paid for by a Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.” The cal Art & Illustration and the Botanical Art Smithsonian grant awarded to Funk. lecture was a presentation of the National Society of the National Capital Region. Museum of Natural History’s Senate of Caroline Puente joined the Department Scientists and was offered as part of the of Botany in April 2015 under W. John Museum’s Anthropocene: Life in the Kress. She completed her Ph.D. at James Age of Humans series. The Smithsonian Cook University, Cairns, Australia, in provides a forum to discuss and debate the collaboration with the Australian Tropi- major issues facing the world, and current cal Herbarium, where she worked as an research focuses on our changing atmo- assistant curator. Her doctoral dissertation sphere, our changing forests and oceans, focused on the systematics and biogeog- and our own responses to these changes. raphy of the Australian Ericaceae (Epac- The Smithsonian is also making every rids). At the Smithsonian she is managing effort to preserve our human heritage and the Plant DNA Barcode Project, and is the natural heritage of the planet by con- involved in several studies that use DNA tinuing to build and protect our extensive New Faces barcodes to identify plant species, estimate collections, specimens, and objects. Kress’ phylogenetic biodiversity, and study the lecture focused on these challenges and In early June, Eduardo Pasini, a Ph.D impacts of climate change at the commu- their solutions. student at the Universidade Federal do nity level. On 27 April, the Smithsonian Center for Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil, Learning and Digital Access (SCLDA) returned home after spending 10 months held their 9th annual Smithsonian Day for in the USA, including nine months in the the Council of Chief State School Offi- Smithsonian’s Department of Botany and cers’ Teachers of the Year, a group of the the Laboratory of Analytical Biology, and top educators in each U.S. state, jurisdic- one month at the University of Mem- tion, and district. The program included phis. While in Washington, D.C., Pasini behind-the-scenes activities throughout studied with Vicki Funk and focused on the Smithsonian. Cindy Brown (Smith- his doctoral thesis: Understanding the sonian Gardens) brought a group to the evolutionary processes that led to the Botany Library as a space for the teachers diversification and current distribution of to write blog posts for the Community of the South American genus of Composi- Gardens website. When the group entered tae (Asteraceae), Trichocline. This genus the herbarium, however, they began asking has approximately 24 species, distributed questions about the specimens, what the mainly in the Andes and Southern Brazil. botanists do, and how the gardens and the All of the species are perennial herbs with library work with the botanists. a monocephalic scape presenting beauti- Fortunately, Rusty Russell was on ful and conspicuous ray florets, generally hand to answer their flurry of questions yellow, red or white. Several species are with an impromptu herbarium tour. As endemic and occur in fragile ecosystems, the discussion turned to broader botanical like lowland grasslands or tropical high- research, Russell described the Botany land grasslands. Department’s digitization efforts and how Pasini traveled to the Smithsonian with herbarium specimens are used. Robin the assistance of a Brazilian scholarship Everly described her role in assisting the provided by the Coordenação de Aper- botanists with their research. At the end of feiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Técnico the session, each educator found a creative (Capes). He amplified and sequenced way to incorporate what they had learned nuclear and plastid markers of the species on the tour into their diverse classroom of Trichocline that he had been collecting disciplines, showing that the best teachers for almost four years as well as a number never stop learning. of outgroup samples stored in freezers at Eduardo Pasini (top) and Caroline the US National Herbarium. After the lab Puente. Page 4 of Nature, Vietnam; Pteridophytes (6/3- United Kingdom; Pteridophytes (6/5). Awards & 6/4). Grants Yarely Perez-Atilano, Universidad Claudine Mynssen, Jardim Botânico do Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Mexico; At the Washington Academy of Sciences’ Rio Janeiro, Brazil; Pteridophytes (6/3). Pteridophytes (6/5). annual awards banquet, Paul Peterson Barbara Parris, Fern Research Founda- Jefferson Prado, Instituto de Botanica, received the 2015 award for Outstand- tion, New Zealand; Pteridophytes (6/3- Brazil; Pteridophytes (6/5). ing Scientist in Biological Sciences in 6/5). the greater Washington D.C. area. The Alexandre Salino, Universidade Federal certificate reads, “In recognition of being Lana Sylvestre, Universidade Federal do of Pernambuco, Brazil; Pteridophytes a tireless and prolific taxonomist, collec- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Pteridophytes (6/3). (6/5). tor, and publisher, who has extensively Mark Tebbitt, California University of Pedro Bond Schwartsburd, Federal Uni- revised the classification of the large grass Pennsylvania; Andean Begonia (Begoni- versity of Vicosa, Brazil; Pteridophytes subfamily Chloridoideae and its genera, aceae) (6/3-6/4). (6/5). and for leading the effort to prepare a DNA database for the grasses of North Leticia Pacheco, Universidad Autonoma Esteban Meza Torres, Instituto de America and noxious weeds for the Bar Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Mexico; Pteri- Botánica del Nordeste, Argentina; Pterido- Code of Life.” dophytes (6/4-6/5). phytes (6/5). A. Edward Salgado, Christian Brothers Alejandra Vasco, Universidad Nacional University; Pteridophytes (6/4). Autónoma de México; Pteridophytes (6/5). Victor Amoroso, Central Mindanao Uni- Keir Wefferling, University of Wiscon- versity, Philippines; Pteridophytes (6/5). sin, Milwaukee; Pteridophytes, Caltha (Ranunclulaceae) (6/5). Naomi Arcand, University of Colorado, Boulder; Pteridophytes (6/5). Liang Zhang, Missouri Botanical Garden; Pteridophytes (6/5). Anthony Baniaga and Stacy Jorgensen, University of Arizona; Pteridophytes (6/5). Glenda Cárdenas and Hanna Tuomisto The Award for Outstanding Scientist University of Turku, Finland; Pterido- in Biological Sciences was presented to Dave Barrington, Michael Sundue, and phytes (6/8-6/12). Paul Peterson by Chris Puttock (right). Weston Testo, Pringle Herbarium; Pteri- (photo by Al Teich) dophytes (6/5). Elizabeth Jacobsen, Williams College; Plant Press scientific writing internship Julio Cortes-Molina and Luz Triana- (6/08-7/31). Visitors Moreno, Universidad de Caldas, Colom- Continued from page 3 bia; Pteridophytes (6/5). Sarah Jones, Safety Harbor; Herbarium Augusto Santiago, Federal University of curation internship (6/8-7/2). Pernambuco, Brazil; Pteridophytes (6/2- Joshua Der, California State University 6/5). Fullerton; Pteridophytes (6/5). Jinmei Lu, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China; Pteridophytes (6/8-6/12). James Beck, Wichita State University; Joe Scott Graham, Natural Resources, Pteridophytes (6/3-6/4). Alexandria, Virginia; Herbarium tour Anna Raffeld, Brown University; Listed (6/5). species project internship (6/8-8/22). Michel Boudrie, Independent researcher, France; Pteridophytes (6/3-6/5). Marcelo Guerra, Universidade do Estado Viacheslav Shalisko, University of do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Pteridophytes Guadalajara, Mexico; Pteridophytes (6/8- Sam Champine-Tocher, Lyon Arbore- (6/5). 6/12). tum; Pteridophytes (6/3). Cameron Heyder, T.C. Williams High Joel Nitta, Harvard University; Pterido- Michael Kessler, University of Zurich, School; Herbarium tour (6/5). phytes (6/10-6/12). Switzerland; Pteridophytes (6/3). Li-Yuang Kuo, National Taiwan Univer- Stephen Talbot, U.S. Fish and Natural Samuli Lehtonen, University of Turku, sity, Taiwan; Pteridophytes (6/5). Resources Services, Alaska; Aleutian Finland; Pteridophytes (6/3). Island mosses (6/25). Marcus Lehnert, Nees Institute for Plant Melanie Link-Perez, Armstrong State Biodiversity, Germany; Pteridophytes Sara Pineda, Universidad Nacional University; Pteridophytes (6/3). (6/5). Autónoma de México; Herbarium curation internship (6/29-7/24). Yeachen Liu, National Chiayi University, Fernando Matos, New York Botanical Taiwan; Pteridophytes (6/3-6/4). Garden; Pteridophytes (6/5). Ngan Thi Lu, Vietnam National Museum Alison Paul, Natural History Museum,
Page 5 Preserving Plant Genomic Diversity By Vicki Funk -Adapted from Natural History Unearthed Did you know that half of the families of flowering plants, conifers, and ferns can be found in the Washington D.C., area? Did you know that you can see plants that are from an African desert environment, the hardened surface of a cooled Hawai- ian lava flow, and a tropical rain forest, all within a few feet of each other in the nation’s capital? It’s true and it is all free for you to enjoy right now at the U.S. Botanic Garden. We’re working with our partners at the Botanic Garden to gather a diverse array of plants. This summer marks the beginning of a collecting program called Vicki Funk (right) leads a team of collectors, including two Smithsonian under- Global Genome Initiative-Gardens. It is graduate interns from the University of Delaware, Kristen Van Neste (second from part of the National Museum of Natural left) and Sarah Gabler, for the Global Genome Initiative-Gardens project. (photo History’s Global Genome Initiative. The by U.S. Botanic Garden) goal of this new collecting program is ways: a pressed specimen to serve as a to make Hawaiian leis and have been said to sample the global genomic diversity permanent voucher that will be stored in to have been favored by Queen Emma. of plants for preservation in the world’s the museum’s U.S. National Herbarium; Aloe rauhii Reynolds (snowflake aloe) biorepositories. Through partnerships with tissue dried in silica gel; and liquid nitro- is a rare succulent from Madagascar. It is Smithsonian Gardens, the U.S. Botanic gen preserved at the Smithsonian’s biore- a beautiful desert plant with striped leaves Garden and the U.S. National Arboretum, pository at the Museum Support Center and coral colored flowers, and is important we will preserve samples of half the fami- (MSC) in Suitland, Maryland. in the horticultural industry where it has lies of living plants around the world by Some recent collections from the U.S. been used to make many cultivated plants. the end of summer 2015. Botanic Garden include: This species—and the diverse plant life Over the next two years, through Sida fallax Walp. (‘Ilima) from the of Madagascar, more generally—is under growing partnerships with other botanical hibiscus family is known only from threat and becoming increasingly hard to gardens, we hope to preserve samples of Hawaii. This plant grows on volcanic rock find. half the genera of living plants! and is an important colonizer, meaning Theobroma cacao L. (chocolate or Each day, our team travels to one of that it helps establish an environment for cacao) is a small tree native to Central and the partner gardens or their production other plants and life forms to thrive in. Its South America. While pollinated in the facilities and collects 20-30 plants in three flowers are so beautiful that they are used wild by tiny flies, the tree in the Botanic Garden is pollinated by hand. This tropi- cal plant was long used by indigenous people throughout its range and was later exported to Europe by the Spaniards. Chocolate is now one of our favorite foods! Because of its economic impor- tance, the whole genome of this species has been sequenced, but a voucher sample to pair with that sequence was never saved. Vouchers are important because they document what the sequenced genome actually did in life on Earth at one point in time. Genomes may be the “blueprint of Life,” but if you only save the blueprint but not the “Life,” you are clearly missing part of the story. Sabatia kennedyuana Fernald (Plym- Vicki Funk preparing the pressed specimen of Aloe rauhii Reynolds (snowflake outh rose gentian), is a bog plant that is aloe) at the U.S. Botanic Garden. (photo by Hilary-Morgan Watt) Page 6 native to the east coast of North America Melinda Peters to learn about plant iden- Food for Thought: but is only found in two widely separated tification using herbarium specimens col- areas: in the northeast in Massachusetts lected in the western United States. Peters DNA Metabarcoding and Rhode Island and again in the south in began with a description of the important North Carolina. In all locations it is endan- features to notice about a plant in order to Illustrates Dietary gered, threatened, or of special concern. make an identification. She explained leaf Niche Partitioning The northern populations are adapted to structure, how to recognize a compound bogs that were once under glaciers and the leaf, and floral shapes and structures. in Large Herbivores southern population live in fire adapted Interns then had the opportunity to identify Herbivores can coexist even in the communities. Some scientists are consid- the mounted specimens in front of them, face of limited resources by consuming ering recognizing these as two different leafing through stacks of books—what different plants than their neighbors. This species. Here we found the North Carolina Peters described as the plant equivalent of dietary niche partitioning eases competi- population growing with pitcher plants “Choose your own Adventure” books. tion between large herbivores that share a (carnivorous). Peters pointed out some of the difficul- geographical space. Previous hypotheses Gardens such as this one are excellent ties in making plant identifications based for dietary niche partitioning proposed a places to see rare, beautiful and important only on pressed specimens. Collected “grazer-browser continuum,” suggesting a plants that have their own story to share. specimens capture merely a snapshot of separation of plant types consumed. Addi- We hope to help preserve part of that story the plant’s life cycle through the year, tional hypotheses pointed to body size, through the preservation of the world’s and therefore can only give information morphology, digestive strategy (whether plant genomes in biorepositories world- about a certain time and place. Mounted a species is ruminant or non-ruminant), wide. Stay tuned and follow along with specimens lose some of their original or spatiotemporal partitioning to explain #SmithsonianGGI. color, and so may not appear as they do in the coexistence. In a recent publication life. Finally, the pressed specimens cannot for Proceedings of the National Academy capture the three-dimensionality of the Interns Get a of Sciences, David Erickson, W. John plant. Peters described how some speci- Kress, and Maria Kuzmina with col- Glimpse of the Plant mens, such as orchids, are often preserved leagues from Princeton University and in alcohol to overcome this difficulty. the Mpala Research Center in Kenya ID Process By the end of the session, interns had used DNA metabarcoding to explore the a much clearer idea of the effort that must In early June, as part of a National breadth, composition, and overlap of large go into species identification, and how it Museum of Natural History Intern event mammalian herbivore (LMH) diet at the feels to work with herbarium specimens. with the Office of Academic Services, plant species level. interns from across the Smithsonian joined The group analyzed fecal samples from seven African species ranging from grazers to browsers, including a range of body sizes and digestion types. They found that dietary overlap was greatest in herbivores of similar body size and position on the grazer-browser spectrum, but that actual diet composition differed between all species—grazers were eating similar total amounts of grass but differ- ent grass species. These results support previous explanations, but also suggest a greater link between plant diversity and LMH diversity than has been recognized. DNA metabarcoding had not previously been applied to this type of study. Even so, it proved to be more effective than traditional methods of direct observation or microhistology (identifying plant parts visually from feces samples), offering a non-invasive but comprehensive technique to identify and quantify diet.
Interns from throughout the Smithsonian listen as Melinda Peters explains how to use a guide to identify a plant based on a specimen. The interns then had a chance to try out the techniques themselves. (photo by Rusty Russell)
Page 7 A Celebration of Pollinators and Plants National Pollinator Week 2015 was celebrated June 15-21 in an effort to raise awareness of the decline in important pol- linator populations. The National Museum of Natural History held a number of events throughout the week, including a Pollina- tion Party in the Butterfly Habitat Garden, “Expert is In!” programs throughout the museum, and a Bumble Bee Blitz in Q?rius to transcribe bumble bee records. Many of the events moved beyond simply raising awareness, giving participants opportunities to contribute towards pol- linator protection. Gary Krupnick and intern Elizabeth Jacobsen speak to the public about The Pollination Party, held on June 16 carnivorous plants and their pollinators. (photo by Lauren Tuzzolino) in the Butterfly Habitat Garden, brought tors. On June 18, Ida Lopez illustrated men records. The events were successful attention to native bees and butterflies. the way male and female hummingbirds in spreading the word about pollinators Partnering with the PollinaTerps from the of the same species pollinate two differ- and pollinator week to a large number of University of Maryland, university stu- ent Heliconia species because of their visitors. dents hosted a variety of activities, includ- unique beak shapes. This separation in National Pollinator Week follows the ing quizzes, crafts, and the chance to take form plays a large part in the birds’ mating May 2015 release of the federal inter- home seeds to start local urban butterfly behavior and territoriality. Esther Lan- agency Pollinator Health Task Force’s habitats. The party also offered a history gan (Department of Vertebrate Zoology) National Strategy to Promote Pollinator of beekeeping by graduate students from described the role of mammal pollinators Health and the science-based Pollina- American University, posters featuring such as bats and lemurs, and the kids who tor Research Action Plan which outlines fun facts about pollinators, and meet and were listening were intrigued that a bat’s the needs and priority actions to better greet with a tobacco hornworm caterpil- tongue could be as long as its body! In the understand pollinator losses and improve lar from the Smithsonian Insect Zoo. insect zoo, Sam Droege (U.S. Geological pollinator health. The reports and plans are The PollinaTerps current project focuses Survey) stood behind a dazzling display in response to the June 2014 Presidential on restoring habitat for the imperiled of bee specimens from across the world. Memorandum directing an interagency Baltimore checkerspot butterfly, Euphy- He reminded visitors that the specificity of Task Force to create a Strategy to Promote dryas phaeton, the official state insect of native bees is often better for plants than the Health of Honey Bees and Other Pol- Maryland. generalist pollinators like the introduced linators. The Strategy has three overarch- On June 18, 19, and 21, Smithsonian honey bee. ing goals: (1) reduce honey bee colony experts came out to talk about unique On June 19, two more experts spoke losses to economically sustainable levels; pollinators in the museum galleries. Visi- about unique plant-pollinator relation- (2) increase monarch butterfly numbers tors of all ages swarmed their tables to ships. Gary Krupnick and Botany intern to protect the annual migration; and (3) learn about the behavior of plant pollina- Elizabeth Jacobsen told visitors about restore or enhance millions of acres of how carnivorous plants avoid eating land for pollinators through combined their pollinators and displayed specimens public and private action. of carnivorous plant species from the Krupnick, who represented the Smith- herbarium. Jonathan Mawdsley (Depart- sonian Institution on the Task Force, says ment of Entomology) spoke about beetle that the Smithsonian is well-represented in pollinators of the African savannah and the Strategy, in terms of research, educa- how they are linked to large, charismatic tion, and landscapes, and the Strategy herbivores. highlights the efforts at the National On June 21, the focus was on bees. Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Seán Brady (Department of Entomology) Conservation Biology Institute, National described the importance of bee diversity Zoological Park, Smithsonian Environ- in food production. At the same time, the mental Research Center, Smithsonian Bumble Bee Blitz attracted a number of Tropical Research Institute, Smithsonian’s Smithsonian Gardens volunteer Loretta participants armed with their own laptops Forest Global Earth Observatories, and showing a tobacco hornworm to a to work on transcribing bumble bee speci- Smithsonian Gardens. visitor. (photo by James Gagliardi) Page 8 A Fresh Look at Incongruence between the plastid and nuclear phylogenies suggest at least two Forage Grasses ancient hybridizations which will require further study. Reveals New Based on the new phylogeny and Discoveries unique morphological characteristics, Peterson’s group described a new species: In a recent publication in the Jour- Bouteloua herrera-arrietae. The new spe- nal of Systematics and Evolution, Paul cies is known only from the Sierra Madre Peterson, Konstantin Romaschenko, and Oriental in Mexico where it occurs on Yolanda Herrera Arrieta revealed a new calcareous rocky hills. It is named for Dr. phylogenetic tree for Bouteloua (Poaceae: Yolanda Herrera Arrieta, a coauthor who Chloridoideae: Cynodonteae; Bouteloui- has completed a revision of Bouteloua and nae), a genus of forage grasses found in floristic studies on grasses in Chihuahua, the Americas. Bouteloua is made up of Durango, Mexico, and Zacatecas. 60 species with a center of diversity in northern Mexico. New Bellardiochloa The new phylogenetic tree was constructed via genetic analysis of 209 Species Discovered samples, including 59 species (206 indi- in Turkey viduals) in Bouteloua. Using a combina- Bellardiochloa doganiana tion of two plastid spacers and nuclear ITS A new species of Bellardiochloa (ribosomal internal transcribed spacer), its short, rigid, sharply tipped basal leaf- (Poaceae) was first discovered not on the blades, and sparsely flowered panicles. the researchers were able to produce a tree rocky steppes of Turkey where it grows, that supported a previous phylogeny but The discovery was published in April in but in a forgotten herbarium mount. Phytotaxa 205(2): 123-128. is better resolved with strong support for Before the discovery, Bellardiochloa 11 clades. The resultant new subgeneric featured four alpine species, all occurring Leafsnap App Adds classification of the species ofBouteloua in Turkey, including two endemic species. includes 10 sections and two subsections. Bellardiochloa doganiana, the newest More Species, member of this genus, was first recognized as distinct by Robert Soreng on a sheet at Places Herbarium Turcicum (ANK) at the Ankara A new, updated version of the Leaf- University in 1991. The two flowering snap app was made available beginning shoots, mounted along with an Eremopoa in June. The app now has 220 species of persica ([Trin.] Roshev. in Komarov 1934: common trees of the Northeastern United 756) (=Poa persica Trin.), was annotated States and Canada. The app now gives the as “Bellardiochloa”. In 2014, Soreng user location options which include: New returned to Turkey, and with Evren Cabi York, Washington, DC, Northeast US and (Namık Kemal University), and Burçin Canada. Çingay (Nezahat Gökyiğit Botanic Gar- Leafsnap is an electronic field guide den), revisited ANK and established that being developed by researchers from the the specimen was indeed a new species. Smithsonian Institution, Columbia Univer- To support the discovery, they traveled sity and the University of Maryland. This to the Palaz Dağları to collect additional free app uses visual recognition to identify samples to check for variation and collect a species of trees from photographs of its a suitable type. Ersin Karabacak (Çanak- leaves. The Leafsnap app contains beauti- kale Onsekiz Mart University) illustrated ful, high-resolution images of leaves, the new species. flowers, fruits, petioles, seeds and bark Bellardiochloa doganiana Cabi & created by the not-for-profit organization, Soreng was named in honor of Prof. Dr. Finding Species. Musa Doğan, a Turkish botanist respon- The Leafsnap webpage
Page 10 illustrations in the storeroom—including Kuhn, A.W., M. Tedesco, H.D. Laugh- and A. Baer. 2015. The structure and func- Mary Eaton’s illustrations from the early inghouse, F.C. Flores, C.B. da Silva, T.S. tion of xylem in seed-free vascular plants: 1900s for Britton & Rose Cactaceae, Vol. Canto-Dorow and S.B. Tedesco. 2015. An evolutionary perspective, pp.1-37. 3—have both scientific and historic value. Mutagenic and antimutagenic effects of In U. Hacke. Functional and Ecological Eugenia uniflora L. by the Allium cepa Xylem Anatomy. Springer International L. test. Caryologia 68(1): 25-30. http:// Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978- dx.doi.org/10.1080/00087114.2014.9985 3-319-15783-2_1 25 Publications Queiroz, L.P., J.F.B. Pastore, D. Cardoso, Laity, T., S.W. Laffan, C.E. González- C. Snak, A.L.C. Lima, E. Gagnon, M. Adey, W., J. Halfar, A. Humphreys, T. Orozco, D.P. Faith, D.F. Rosauer, M. Vatanparast, A.E. Holland and A.N. Suskiewicz, D. Belanger, P. Gagnon and Byrne, J.T. Miller, D. Crayn, C. Cos- Egan. 2015. A multilocus phylogenetic M. Fox. 2015. Subarctic rhodolith beds tion, C.C. Moritz and K. Newport. 2015. analysis reveals the monophyly of a promote longevity of crustose coralline Phylodiversity to inform conservation recircumscribed papilionoid legume tribe algal buildups and their climate archiving policy: An Australian example. Sci. Total Diocleae with well-supported generic potential. Palaios 30(4): 281-293. http:// Environ. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. relationships. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. dx.doi.org/10.2110/palo.2014.075 scitotenv.2015.04.113 90:1-19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. ympev.2015.04.016 Bougeois, L., B. Williams, J. Halfar, B. Lemoine, N.P., J. Shue, B. Verrico, D.L. Konar, W.H. Adey, A. Kronz and U.G. Erickson, W.J. Kress and J.D. Parker. Rabeler, R. and W. Wagner. 2015. Wortmann. 2015. Does the coralline alga 2015. Phylogenetic relatedness and leaf Eremogone (Caryophyllaceae): new com- Leptophytum foecundum (Kjellman) functional traits, not introduced status, binations for Old World species. Phytok- capture paleoenvironmental variability in influence community assembly. Ecology eys 50: 35-42. http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/ the Arctic Ocean? Arct. Antarc. Alp. Res. http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/14-1883.1 phytokeys.50.4736 47(2): 375-387. http://dx.doi.org/10.1657/ AAAR0014-061 Lorence, D.H. and W.L. Wagner. 2015. Robinson, H. 2015. Notes on the genus Heliotropium (Boraginaceae) in the Chionolaena in Colombia with a new spe- Cabi, E., R.J. Soreng, B. Çıngay and E. Marquesas Islands (French Polynesia) cies Chionolaena barclayae (Asteraceae, Karabacak. 2015. A new species of Bel- with description of a new species. Phytok- Gnaphalieae). Phytokeys 46: 67-71. http:// lardiochloa, B. doganiana (Poaceae), from eys 47: 49-57. http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/ dx.doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.46.8976 the Taurus Mountains of Turkey. Phy- phytokeys.47.8767 totaxa 205(2): 123-128. http://dx.doi. Robinson, H. and S.C. Keeley. 2015. org/10.11646/phytotaxa.205.2.6 Miller, A.J., A. Novy, J. Glover, E.A. Kel- A refined concept of theCritoniopsis logg, J.E. Maul, P. Raven and P.W. Jack- bogotana species group in Colombia with Dorr, L.J. 2015. Book Review: Flowering son. 2015. Expanding the role of botanical two new species (Vernonieae, Aster- plants of the Western Ghats. J. Syst. Evol. gardens in the future of food. Nat. Plants aceae). Phytokeys 48: 85-95. http://dx.doi. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jse.12163 1: 15078. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ org/10.3897/phytokeys.48.8810 nplants.2015.78 Duan, L., J. Wen, X. Yang, P.L. Liu, Saarela, J.M., W.P. Wysocki, C.F. Bar- E. Arslan, K. Ertuğrul and Z.Y. Chang. Ochyra, R., H. Bednarek-Ochyra and rett, R.J. Soreng, J.I. Davis, L.G. Clark, 2015. Phylogeny of Hedysarum and R.R. Ireland. 2015. Valid publication and S.A. Kelchner, J.C. Pires, P.P. Edger, D.R. tribe Hedysareae (Leguminosae: Pap- typification ofTaxiphyllum deplanatum Mayfield and M.R. Duvall. 2015. Plastid ilionoideae) inferred from sequence (Hypnaceae) and other new names of phylogenomics of the cool-season grass data of ITS, matK, trnL-F and psbA- moss taxa distributed in Sullivant’s Musci subfamily: Clarification of relationships trnH. Taxon 64(1): 49-64. http://dx.doi. Alleghanienses. J. Bryol. http://dx.doi.org/ among early-diverging tribes. AoB Plants org/10.12705/641.26 10.1179/1743282015Y.0000000008 7: plv046. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/aob- pla/plv046 Huang, Y.J., Y.S. Liu, J. Wen and Peterson, P.M., K. Romaschenko and C. Quan. 2015. First fossil record of Y. Herrera Arrieta. 2015. Phylogeny and Staphylea L. (Staphyleaceae) from North subgeneric classification ofBouteloua America, and its biogeographic impli- with a new species, B. herrera-arrietae cations. Plant Syst. Evol. http://dx.doi. (Poaceae: Chloridoideae: Cynodonteae: org/10.1007/s00606-015-1224-z Boutelouinae). J. Syst. Evol. http://dx.doi. Kartzinel, T.R., P.A. Chen, T.C. Cover- org/10.1111/jse.12159 dale, D.L. Erickson, W.J. Kress, M.L. Peterson, P.M., J.M. Saarela and K. Kuzmina, D.I. Rubenstein, W. Wang and Romaschenko. 2015. New combinations R.M. Pringle. 2015. DNA metabarcoding in Sporobolus (Poaceae: Chloridoideae). illuminates dietary niche partitioning by Phytoneuron 2015: 1-2. African large herbivores. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 112(26): 8019-8024. http://dx.doi. Pittermann, J, J.E. Watkins, K.L. Cary, E. org/10.1073/pnas.1503283112 Schuettpelz, C. Brodersen, A.R. Smith
Page 11 Windisch Receives 13th Cuatrecasas Medal he Department of Botany and the and date of presentation on the back. from university teaching, Paulo continues United States National Herbarium Highlights from past presentations to the to publish on tropical American ferns. Tpresent this award to a botanist and recipients are available at
Robbin C. Moran New York Botanical Garden, USA “An Overview of Ferns and Lyco- Opening keynote speaker Robbin C. Moran, New York Botanical Garden, phytes” presenting an overview of ferns and lycophytes. (photo by Ken Wurdack) During the Renaissance, people believed that ferns reproduced by invis- the rice paddies of southeastern Asia as considered as basal euphyllophytes and ible seeds. It was not until 1794 that it was a fertilizer. Research on ferns and lyco- pertinent to evolution of ferns. Major demonstrated that the “dust” produced phytes has been transformed over the phases of diversification can be recog- on the back of a fern leaf developed into past 20 years by the introduction of DNA nized in the Early and Middle (Givetian) small green “cotyledons.” This obser- methods. We now have the ability to Devonian altering conceptions of vegeta- vation initiated the study of fern and generate hypotheses of relationships, or tion types. While most Early Devonian lycophyte life cycles. The importance of “family trees,” using DNA and morpho- plants are centimeter-to-decimeters tall understanding this life cycle cannot be logical datasets. With these trees, we can and fairly simple, some trimerophyte- overemphasized: it generates and explains analyze such things as character evolution, grade euphyllophytes were larger (1-2 much of the distinctive biology of ferns biogeography, and evolutionary rates. meters) and more complex, with cryptic and lycophytes. Worldwide, there are Given recent advances, there has never variation, in the late Early Devonian. about 13,600 species of ferns and lyco- been a more exciting time to study ferns Recently described “forests” (Stein et phytes. This contrasts with about 450,000 and lycophytes. al. 2012) comprising small to very large species of angiosperms. Why fewer spe- cladoxyls or lycopods as dominant plants, cies of ferns and lycophytes? One idea Patricia G. Gensel some intermixed with either lycopsids or is that, compared to angiosperms, ferns University of North Carolina Chapel rhizomatous progymnosperms, have been and lycophytes present fewer barriers Hill, USA documented in the Middle Devonian. This new information alters our conception of to gene flow. Thus, their populations do “Silurian-Devonian Fossil Plants Pro- growth architecture and landscapes at that not become readily isolated genetically, vide Some Insights into the Evolutionary time and whole plant reconstructions may a condition considered a prerequisite for History of Ferns and Lycophytes” divergent speciation. Compared to angio- influence character analyses for phyloge- sperms, ferns and lycophytes are more Studies of both spores and macrofossils netic reconstruction. It remains difficult widely distributed. As a percentage of over the past few decades clearly indicate to trace the phylogenetic relationships of the total vascular-plant flora on far-flung that land plants existed much earlier in early plants with extant lineages, includ- oceanic islands, ferns and lycophytes are time than previously realized (late Ordovi- ing horsetails and ferns. Among likely over-represented. This is best explained by cian for embryophytes, late Silurian for progenitors of ferns and/or horsetails the ease with which these plants disperse zosterophylls, lycophytes, cooksonioids), are trimerophyte-grade euphyllophytes, by tiny dust-like spores. Some species and current work may suggest even earlier. but recent descriptions of several small exhibit remarkable adaptations such as This realization influences our thinking Psilophyton-like plants exhibiting an early iridescent leaves, modified stems harbor- about the timing of both originations and type of wood, suggest some may represent ing ants, and water-absorbing scales that diversification rates of various lineages precursors of lignophytes (seed plants). quickly rehydrate dried leaves. Ferns and and of evolutionary innovations. New data Cladoxyls, iridopterids, rhacophytaleans, lycophytes are also used by people: the are available on the major events in the groups that have been allied tentatively fiddleheads of some ferns are eaten, and evolution of both the lycophytes s.l., and with early ferns, are now known as sepa- Azolla has been used since 1100 AD in those Devonian plants that are generally Continued on page 14 Page 13 Abstracts the first nuclear genome map of a homo- tributed data to this debate, but have failed Continued from page 13 sporous fern, heralding a resurgent interest to concur on the origin of leaves or even rate extinct lineages and undoubted ferns in comparative nuclear genomics. Using how many times leaves have evolved in appear later. New data and re-evaluation nucleotide sequences of expressed genes vascular plants. More recently, molecular of existing Devonian euphyllophyte mor- (transcriptomes), Barker (2009) demon- genetic studies have provided insight into phology and anatomy may address these strated that homosporous ferns are indeed leaf evolution and development mainly phylogenetic questions and demonstrate polyploid, but probably no more so than within angiosperms and, to a lesser extent, even greater diversity in that group. seed plants. Unlike homosporous lineages, lycophytes. Ferns and lycophytes possess heterosporous plants may be capable of a vast amount of leaf diversity, and molec- losing extra chromosomes between cycles ular genetic studies of leaf evo-devo in Paul G. Wolf of polyploidy. This intriguing result sug- these taxa are beginning to fill the gap that Utah State University, USA gests that homosporous ferns might indeed exists in our understanding of the evolu- “Fern Genomics: Progress and Pros- have unique patterns of genome evolution tion and origin of leaves. These evo-devo pects” compared to the heterosporous seed plants. studies, integrated with traditional data, Here I review the history, current prog- More recently, the reduced cost of DNA are helping us to develop more robust and ress, and hopeful future of studies of fern sequencing has enabled the first attempts broadly hypotheses of leaf evolution and genomes. The earliest insights came from at assembling ferns genomes. Initial development in vascular plants. Irene Manton’s (1950) observations of genome scans have revealed possible dif- high chromosome numbers in ferns. Later, ferences between ferns and seed plants in Tony Avent Klekowski and Baker (1966) noted higher terms of relative genome content. In addi- Juniper Level Botanic Garden & chromosome numbers in homosporous tion, two large-scale collaborative projects Plant Delights Nursery, USA are underway to assemble the complete lineages relative to heterosporous ones. “Exploration to Exploitation—the nuclear genomes of the heterosporous fern The underlying explanation involved poly- Road from Discovery to Market” ploidy as an adaptation to the unique pat- Azolla and the homosporous fern Ceratop- terns of mating in homosporous lineages, teris. These studies should enable us to Got ferns? Our mission at Juniper which are theoretically capable of gameto- make more categorical statements about Level Botanic Garden and Plant Delights phytic selfing. Several decades of research how the homosporous and heterosporous Nursery is to bring together the worlds of testing for polyploid-type inheritance lineages differ at the genome level. botany, taxonomy, horticulture, and con- patterns and mating systems refuted these Whether this will explain how the differ- servation by discovering, documenting, ideas. Meanwhile, plant systematics pro- ences evolved remains to be seen. propagating, and then sharing ferns ex-situ gressed with DNA sequencing protocols with gardeners, collectors, and researchers focused on chloroplast genes and complete Alejandra Vasco worldwide. I’ll share our travels, discover- chloroplast genomes of ferns, both of Universidad Nacional Autónoma de ies, and successes, and why we all benefit which revealed phylogenetic relationships México, Mexico from the sharing of germplasm. among fern lineages. This provided the “Evolution and Development in Lyco- evolutionary back drop for determining phytes and Ferns” patterns of chromosome number changes in ferns. In 2006, Nakazato published Evolutionary developmental biology (informally evo-devo) is a combination of two disciplines: evolutionary biology Sponsors of the and developmental biology. It basically 13th Smithsonian addresses two fundamental questions: how do biological forms develop and what is Botanical Symposium the basis for their diversity. In vascular plants, most studies in evo-devo have • American Fern Society been focused on seed plants. However, • Cuatrecasas Family Foundation lycophytes and ferns are two lineages that • Department of Botany, Smithsonian occupy key phylogenetic positions within Institution the land plants, and thus provide a fasci- • International Association of Plant nating comparison for evolutionary devel- Taxonomy opmental studies. For example, for over a • International Organization of Plant century there has been an intense debate Biosystematists about the origin and evolution of leaves in • Journal of Systematics and Evolu- vascular plants. Leaves have been the cen- tion ter of many evolutionary and developmen- • Office of the Associate Director tal studies, because they are the dominant, for Science, National Museum of most conspicuous organs of most plants. Natural History Tony Avent, Plant Delights Nursery, Historically, morphologists, anatomists, • United States Botanic Garden discussing the latest in fern horticulture. paleobotanists, and systematists have con- (photo by Ken Wurdack) Page 14 Hanna Tuomisto such as phototropism, cell division, cell specific. Several growth measures were University of Turku, Finland bulging and chloroplast movement in Adi- higher with ATF than hapu‘u litter, espe- “How Ferns Help to Unravel the Mys- antum capillus-veneris gametophyte cells, cially in fast-growing species. Our results teries of Amazonian Biodiversity” in view of intracellular photoreceptive show that ATF can alter nutrient cycling in sites, signaling of photoreceptors, micro- Hawaiian plants, sometimes with positive Amazonian rain forests are famous for tubule and microfilament involvement in effects on growth. However, under natural their spectacularly high species diversity. these responses. Our techniques employed conditions, native plants must compete for Most of the species are difficult to identify for the analytical studies will be shown. At these additional nutrients with ATF and or even completely unknown to science. the last part of my talk, the merits of fern other invasive species, underscoring the Together with the sheer size of the wilder- gametophytes as experimental materials importance of understanding ecology in ness area, this makes it challenging to will be discussed. order to manage conservation. figure out how Amazonian biodiversity is structured. We have approached this problem by focusing on just a small part Marian M. Chau James E. Watkins Jr. of the flora. Ferns and lycophytes form a University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA Colgate University, USA nice group for this purpose: they are easy “From Endangered to Invasive: the “Ecology and Ecophysiology of the to spot among the greenery, they are rela- Role of Fern Ecology in Conservation of Fern Life Cycle: Making the Best of a tively common in the forest understory, Hawaiian Ecosystems” Double Life” and the number of species is manageable Conservation of endangered plants is Ferns play important roles in forests (about 600 in lowland Amazonia, com- critical to maintaining global biodiversity, across the world. In the temperate north- pared to perhaps 20,000 tree species). and management efforts are more likely east, ferns control seedling ecology of Extensive field sampling in different parts to be successful if decisions are based overstory trees; in the tropical rainforest of Amazonia is revealing intriguing pat- on ecological research. Marsilea vil- canopy, ferns regulate microclimate and terns. It is now clear that ferns are good losa (‘ihi‘ihi) is an endangered, endemic nutrient cycling; in secondary tropical habitat indicators, so they can be used to Hawaiian fern with only seven remain- forests, ferns can act as important filters predict both soil properties and general ing populations on two islands, restricted that influence both the direction and rate floristic patterns in the forest. There is to ephemerally flooding lowlands. We of regeneration. In short, ferns are major considerable floristic variation in Amazo- conducted a restoration experiment and a players in regional and global ecology, yet nia, and sometimes the species composi- three-year field study to examine ecologi- our understanding of the ecophysiology tion of the forest changes almost com- cal factors that influenced ‘ihi‘ihi growth. of this lineage is limited. Such limitation pletely within a few meters. Often such Both found that shade and flooding have is partially generated by the complex fern changes are not obvious unless one rec- positive synergistic effects, while the life cycle. Unlike seed plants, ferns rely on ognizes some indicator species, because negative effects of non-native species a free-living gametophyte that is function- the forests can look structurally similar on differ by type. In a genetic study, most Continued on page 16 both sides of the boundary. Local spe- variation was at the subpopulation level, cies diversity in Amazonia can also vary but there was also structure that showed considerably, and we have found ferns to some differentiation among populations Acknowledgements be most diverse on the most nutrient-rich and between islands. This research pro- The success of the Symposium was soils. Such observations help to interpret vides management recommendations that due to the significant time and efforts of biodiversity patterns both locally and at will increase the likelihood of success in the following people: the continental scale. conservation of ‘ihi‘ihi, and a model upon which to base restoration of more resilient Organizers Support Masamitsu Wada endangered species in Hawai‘i and world- • Amanda Grusz • Laura Anthony Kyushu University, Japan & Tokyo wide. Another important consideration • Gary Krupnick • Mary Ann Apicelli Metropolitan University, Japan is that invasive species that alter ecosys- • Greg McKee • Victor David tems are often successful competitors • Ari Novy • Larry Dorr “Photomorphogenesis of Adiantum • Susan Pell • Bernadette Gibbons capillus-veneris Gametophytes” due to their effects on nutrient cycling. Sphaeropteris cooperi (Australian tree • Eric Schuettpelz • Nancy Khan Developmental processes of fern fern, ATF) has been invading Hawaiian • Erin Sigel • Sue Lutz gametophytes from spore germination to forests for decades, displacing the domi- • Judy Skog • Victoria Meyers antheridium formation are controlled by nant native tree fern Cibotium glaucum • Carl Taylor • Ray Mims light. For example, phototropic response is (hapu‘u). ATF produces leaves that grow • Warren Wagner • Sylvia Orli mediated by blue light receptor, phototro- faster, contain more nutrients, and decom- • Jun Wen • Melinda Peters pins, and also by red and blue light recep- pose faster than hapu‘u. We tested effects • Elizabeth Zimmer • Rusty Russell tor, neochrome, which is a chimeric pho- of leaf litter additions from both tree ferns • Ed Schaefer toreceptor composed of a chromophore- Photographer • Milt Sigel on the growth of four native understory • Kenneth Wurdack biding domain of phytochrome and a full species in two types of soils. Both litter • Meghann Toner length of phototropin. In this symposium, treatments inhibited growth initially, • Lauren Tuzzolino I will talk on the light-induced responses but subsequent responses were species- • Carol Youmans
Page 15 Abstracts Continued from page 15 ally different from the fern sporophyte. The marked functional disparities between these life stages sets up a system of dual ecology where selective pressures can act in different strengths and directions on gametophytes and sporophytes. This talk will present the current state of our knowledge of fern ecophysiology from a lifecycle perspective. I will first explore the challenges and unique opportunities that gametophytes present by examina- tion of stress physiology and reproductive ecology. I will then explore sporophyte physiology paying special attention to the role that light and hydraulics play in con- trolling species establishment and distribu- tion. Finally the talk will examine how the fern life-cycle influences evolution and radiation into novel habitats. Robbin C. Moran giving with a quick demonstration of the high fat content of Lycopodium spores by lighting them on fire. (photo by Ken Wurdack) Kathleen M. Pryer Duke University, USA Symposium and upright lycopods (roots at one end Continued from page 1 and branches at the other end) as seen in “Communicating Science in Social Longostachys from the Middle Devonian. Settings…Yes, It Matters” “flash powder” in early magic acts, and he Gensel also discussed branching patterns gave with a quick demonstration by light- Government research funding has flat- in the fossil record and how architecture ing the spores on fire and taking every- lined across the globe. Anti-science rheto- can be used to distinguish among taxa. body in the audience by surprise. ric is on the rise. Traditional news infra- Paul G. Wolf from Utah State Univer- Patricia G. Gensel from the University structures are eroding, while the social sity spoke on “Fern Genomics: Progress of North Carolina at Chapel Hill gave media landscape is exploding, fundamen- and Prospects.” Wolf explained that since a talk entitled “Silurian-Devonian Fos- tally altering how we communicate. At the ferns are the sister group to seed plants, sil Plants Provide Some Insights into the same time, our research on ferns and lyco- they can play an important role in compar- Evolutionary History of Ferns and Lyco- phytes has become increasingly technical ative genomics. He noted that the mecha- phytes.” Gensel began her talk by present- and complex. The choice is ours: do we nisms of gene and genome duplication are ing the fossil candidates for the origin of wring our hands over the decline in scien- well studied, but processes that occur after pteridophytes. The earliest occurrence tific literacy, or do we improve our ability genome duplication are not so well under- of trilete spores is found in the Mid-Late to communicate through an audience’s stood. He said that it remains unknown Ordovician (450-470 million years ago). preferred medium? Good science com- why homosporous ferns have so many These spores are produced by a very few munication not only empowers citizens, it chromosomes—flowering plants have living bryophytes but mostly seed-free enriches the lives and careers of scientists. an average base chromosome number of vascular plants. The Silurian-Devonian Here, I draw from my own research and approximately 16 chromosomes whereas (425-370 million years ago) fossil record teaching experiences focused on ferns homosporous ferns have an average base shows evidence of the first occurrences of (and other plants of the seed-free genre) chromosome number of approximately 57 major plant structures: leaves, tracheids, to show how I have come to embrace the chromosomes. and rooting structures. Several waves of call to communicate one’s science more One hypothesis to explain the high vascular plant diversification occurred broadly. To effectively get our message chromosome numbers is that homosporous during the late Early Devonian: diverse across, it is important to understand the ferns undergo cycles of polyploidy and zosterophyllophytes, leaves of early lyco- existing knowledge base of one’s intended gene silencing more often than seed plants, phytes, early barinophyte-like plants, and audience, and to be versatile with modes but current research reveals that ferns are the diversification of basal euphyllophytes. of communication. Continued progress no more polyploid than seed plants, sug- Gensel explained that the fossil evi- in our field will require more creativity to gesting that ferns have different genome dence of plants bearing strobili provides remain competitive for traditional forms dynamics. When looking at repetitive confirmation that heterospory arose in of research funding, while simultaneously DNA of ferns compared to seed plants, a lycopsids by the Middle Devonian. Other identifying and targeting new resources. higher proportion of simple repeats can major events seen in fossils include a clear be found in ferns. Wolf concluded his talk rooting structure in zosterophylls, leaves by appealing to the research community in early lycopsids starting in the Silurian,
Page 16 to complete the first genome sequence of a fern, suggesting two candidates for this endeavor—Azolla, an economically valuable group with a small genome, or Ceratopteris, a model experimental sys- tem with a large genome. Alejandra Vasco from the Univer- sidad Nacional Autónoma de México spoke on “Evolution and Development in Lycophytes and Ferns.” Lycophytes and ferns occupy key phylogenetic positions within land plants and thus provide a fascinating comparison (to seed plants) for evolutionary developmental studies. Vasco highlighted some innovations in the ancestral vascular plant lineage: naked and dichotomously branched axes, tracheids, terminal sporangia, and homospory. Some lineages of lycophytes and ferns contain other morphological novelties, such as ligules and the rhizophores in lycophytes Masamitsu Wada, Kyushu University and Tokyo Metropolitan University, and the abaxial position of the sporangia discussing the photomorphogenesis of Adiantum capillus-veneris gametophytes. in leptosporangiate ferns. Vasco also spoke (photo by Ken Wurdack) about the origin of leaves in vascular plants and how many times leaves have Delights Nursery at Juniper Level Botanic that we have entered a new Victorian era evolved. By studying morphology and Garden in North Carolina discussed fern for ferns. the fossil record, she showed that the horticulture in his talk “Exploration to Hanna Tuomisto from the University two main types of leaves, microphylls Exploitation—the Road from Discovery to of Turku, Finland presented “How Ferns and megaphylls, have different origins. Market.” Avent presented a slideshow of Help to Unravel the Mysteries of Amazo- Paleobotanists have hypothesized that fern species from the wild and in cultiva- nian Biodiversity.” Tuomisto’s research megaphylls in ferns and seed plants may tion, which covered his experiences from focuses on species diversity patterns in be homologous (as lateral branches), but more than 80 expeditions. The goals of the state of Amazonas in Brazil, an area that the processes of flattening into one these trips included finding unusual spe- under-collected compared to other tropical plane (planation) and the formation of a cies and varieties, bringing back viable areas like Ecuador and Costa Rica. High lamina (webbing) may have developed spores, and ultimately bringing the taxa in species richness for hummingbirds independently in two lineages. Experimen- into cultivation. His slideshow included and beetles, a 1-hectare plot of forest in tal analyses of fern leaf development show images of ferns from Argentina, Bosnia, Amazonas may have 30 fern species and that fern leaf primordia, like those of seed China, Crete, Croatia, Korea, Mexico, over 1,000 species of vascular plants. plants, arose from one or a group of cells Slovenia, South Africa, Taiwan, and the Her fieldwork has shown that geological on the flank of the shoot apical meristem United States. formations are highly relevant for the ecol- in a distinct phyllotaxy. In his quest, Avent prefers to find hardy ogy of ferns. Vasco continued by discussing the individuals—those growing at high eleva- In testing the predictability of species evidence from systematics and molecu- tion, in deserts, or in the deep shade and composition patterns and environmental lar biology of leaf evolution. She argued standing water of swamps. Sometimes he gradients in Amazonia, Tuomisto carefully that dated phylogenies suggest that fern will find a desired species but is unable studied the distribution patterns of several leaves evolved multiple times. Molecular to collect spores. Such was the case for fern species: Lindsaea lancea, L. phassa, genetics has identified some genes that Dipteris conjugata from Taiwan, what Danaea nigrescens, and D. cartilaginea. play key roles in the processes that define he calls “the coolest fern in the world.” She found that soil cation concentra- a leaf. Various modern techniques such as In Crete he searched for a heat tolerant tion marks a clear separation in the fern transgenic tools, gene expression tools, species and found Dryopteris pallida, flora on different sides of an Amazonian and expression analyses are filling in “an elegant fern that can have a wonder- river. Estimating soil properties from fern gaps. She summarized some current find- ful place in people’s gardens.” During his distribution data can help explain why ings: ferns and seed plants co-opted the presentation, Avent received some help hunters bring back different amounts of same developmental mechanism for leaf from the audience—after noting some dif- meat from different parts of the rain forest. development (deep homology), and the ficulty identifying a puzzling species from Extrapolating for the whole area can assist sporangial developmental program was Taiwan, an attending pteridologist shouted in estimating prey abundance for hunters. co-opted independently for the develop- out “Plagiogyria”! Avent concluded his Tuomisto explained that species richness ment of leaves. talk by saying that the fern cultivation shows positive trends with environmental After lunch, Tony Avent from Plant potential in modern times is incredible and Continued on page 18 Page 17 Symposium tree fern has on Hawaiian soil and nutri- Continued from page 17 ent dynamics. Hawaii has four endemic Cibotium tree fern species, called hapu‘u, variables such as altitude, annual rainfall, which act as keystone species by serving and soil cation concentration. as hosts for epiphytes and sequestering Masamitsu Wada from Kyushu more nitrogen and phosphorous than most University and Tokyo Metropolitan other native vascular species. One of the University, Japan discussed “Photomor- worst invaders in Haleakala National Park phogenesis of Adiantum capillus-veneris is the Australian tree fern, Sphaeropteris Gametophytes.” Wada began his talk by cooperi, which is displacing Cibotium explaining that Adiantum gametophyte with its faster growth rate, higher pho- cells provide a model system for his stud- tosynthetic rate, faster leaf turnover, and ies because cell division is controlled by higher drought-tolerance. Chau studied light. By applying various light treatments, how leaf litter of the two taxa affected Wada is capable of studying phototropic native angiosperm growth. In an experi- responses in cell biology. Wada presented mental study, she found that invasive leaf his experiments on the timing of cell divi- litter increased the growth of Carex and sion and the movement of chloroplasts. Hibiscus but not the slow-growing, domi- Since the timing of cell division is light nant canopy tree Metrosideros. She con- dependent, Wada demonstrated that blue cluded that even though the invasive tree Kathleen Pryer, Duke University, who light induces very fast division by shorten- fern’s altered nutrient cycling appears to spoke about science communication, ing the G1 phase of cell division while red have a positive effect on plant growth, the posted a selfie of herself with the light slows it down. long-lasting effects may lead to an altered audience on Twitter during her Wada shared videos of chloroplast forest structure if it favors fast-growing presentation. (photo by Kathleen Pryer) movement under different light conditions. native species over slow-growing spe- If a plant receives light levels higher than cies. She stressed that understanding fern are fast growing with simple morphology, those required for photosynthesis, a pro- ecology—both native and invasive—is and epiphytes are slow-growing with more tective mechanism includes moving chlo- critical to informed conservation practice. complex morphology. He concluded that roplasts from the cell surface to the sides James E. Watkins Jr. from Colgate our understanding of fern physiology will of the cell to reduce photodamage. This University, and the current president of the provide informative knowledge as ferns chloroplast avoidance movement has been American Fern Society, presented the talk, respond to climate change and allow for found in algae, mosses, ferns, and many “Ecology and Ecophysiology of the Fern predictive models in the management of seed plants. Wada obtained Arabidopsis Life Cycle: Making the Best of a Double endangered fern species. cell mutants deficient in this movement Life.” Watkins began his presentation The closing keynote presentation was to understand the molecular mechanism with a look at the functional differences by Kathleen M. Pryer from Duke Uni- behind the movement and found that actin between gametophytes and sporophytes: versity who presented “Communicating filaments are predominantly utilized for gametophytes are relatively simple, with Science in Social Settings…Yes, It Mat- chloroplast movement. no vascular tissue or stomata, whereas ters.” Speaking on the powers of social Marian M. Chau from the University sporophytes are more complex. Thus the media for science, Pryer began her talk by of Hawaii at Manoa spoke on fern con- two unique ecologies provide an inter- taking a selfie of herself with the audience servation in her talk, “From Endangered esting study system where the selective and immediately posting it on Twitter. She to Invasive: the Role of Fern Ecology in pressures acting on gametophytes are very argued that a current anti-science rhetoric Conservation of Hawaiian Ecosystems.” different from those on the sporophytes. is on the rise and that disbelief of evolu- For the first half of her talk, Chau dis- Watkins studies fern epiphytism, a tion is too common in the US. She praised cussed the experimental ecology of the trait that has evolved multiple times in the advances in fern science—from under- endangered ‘ihi‘ihi fern, Marsilea villosa. the ferns, and he explained how epi- standings of the fossil record to techno- She conducted vegetation surveys and phytic ferns function relative to terrestrial logical breakthroughs in DNA sequencing. measured soil characteristics, canopy species. He spoke about the remarkable Yet fern biology has fierce competition cover, and flooding levels to determine the variation in gametophyte morphology and when it comes to funding, especially best growing conditions and to provide explained that epiphytic gametophytes can when ferns are considered “lower plants.” management recommendations for this be longer-lived, have a higher desiccation- Thinking of seed-free plants as “lower” narrowly endemic species. Based on her tolerance, and are more capable of intrag- is an old way of thinking. This has results, she recommends that restoration ametophytic selfing than their terrestrial hampered her ability to fund her research projects occur in areas with consistent counterparts. He also spoke about sporo- on Azolla, a group of ferns with “massive flooding and with native tree species, and phyte water relations in which epiphytes green potential.” Bucking tradition, she that non-native grasses should be con- have smaller tracheid (conduit) diameters crowdfunded an Azolla genome sequenc- trolled. and are thus less likely to dry out. Wat- ing project. Crowdfunding not only raised The second half of Chau’s talk focused kins then presented two strategies in fern enough seed money for the exploratory on the effects that an invasive Australian ecophysiology, in which terrestrial species research, but also allowed the public to
Page 18 participate, support, and witness advance- ments in science. Pryer also spoke about the public response when her research team named a new genus of ferns Gaga. The name honors the pop music star Lady Gaga, and was chosen because many fern gameto- phytes have a striking resemblance to one of Gaga’s famous costumes, they have a somewhat fluid definition of gender, they bear a distinct DNA sequence synapomor- phy spelling GAGA, and the sporophytic fiddleheads look like her fans’ “claw greeting.” Not intended as a publicity stunt, Pryer said that the result of the naming episode allowed her to connect with a part of society she normally does not encounter. She enjoys making science connections with individuals who do not normally visit natural history museums or watch nature programs. She stated, “When scientists communicate effectively, science thrives.” She urges the scientific com- The International Conference on Lycophyte & Fern Research included a field trip munity to share their passion and to make to Great Falls Park and Scott’s Run Nature Preserve to see native ferns growing in science more accessible to a variety of the DC region. The participants are gathered here at Overlook #3 on the Virginia communities. side of Great Falls Park. (photo credit unknown) Monday concluded with an evening poster session at the Conservatory of the loquia and four contributed presentation of ferns and lycophytes; (4) Evolution United States Botanic Garden. An inter- sessions. The colloquia were titled (1) and development in ferns and lycophytes: national group of 30 presenters displayed Biogeographic patterns and processes of case studies and perspectives; and (5) The their posters and spoke about their speciation and hybridization in spore-bear- integration of ecological and phylogenetic research on ferns and lycophytes ranging ing plants; (2) Future challenges of fern approaches in pteridology. in topics from taxonomy and phylogeny to and lycophyte ecology: a call for conser- Thursday night featured a reception biogeography and physiology. vation and collaboration in the next gen- and symposium dinner in the Rotunda The next three days featured five col- eration; (3) Genomics and transcriptomics of NMNH. On Friday, three concur- rent workshops were presented: (1) An introduction to next-generation sequenc- ing and bioinformatics; (2) Digital species identification tools; and (3) Field ecology of ferns: a call for new standard methods and opportunities for collaboration among pteridologists. The final event of the con- ference was a field trip to Great Falls Park and Scott’s Run Nature Preserve, where guests were treated to seeing native ferns growing in the DC region. Participants saw 22 fern species, a highlight among which was Homalosorus pycnocarpus (the glade fern), the only member of a mono- typic genus and one of only two genera belonging to the otherwise Old World family, Diplaziopsidaceae. Next year’s 14th Smithsonian Botani- cal Symposium will take place on Friday, May 20, 2016, with a theme still to be determined. Be sure to check the sympo- Guests gather in the Rotunda of the National Museum of Natural History for the sium website at
Equisetum arvense L. At the 13th Smithsonian Botanical Symposium, “Next Generation Pteridology: An International Conference on Lycophyte & Fern Research,” opening speaker Robbin Moran gave an overview of ferns, horsetails, and lycophytes and displayed Alice Tangerini’s illustration of the horsetail, Equisetum arvense. Tangerini’s 1977 drawing originally served as the title page for the chapter, ”On Names and Naming,” in Humanistic Botany by Oswald Tippo and William Louis Stern. Knowing Tangerini’s predilection for drawing horses, Stern suggested the theme of the chapter illustration to Tangerini and gave her full rein on how to depict the subject. Tangerini consulted images in the Botany Library’s collection and likely some herbarium specimens for the drawing. The caption below the illustration reads, “The bushy form of the horsetail plant (Equisetum) has suggested both its English vernacular name and its botanical name.” In 2001, Stern donated this drawing and others in the book to the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation.
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