Department of Botany & the U.S. National Herbarium The Plant Press

New Series - Vol. 18 - No. 1 January-March 2015 Symposium Spotlight Special Agents Seek Change By Gary A. Krupnick he National Tropical Botanical and five preserves are all in the Hawaiian the Missouri Botanical Garden, offered Garden and the Department of Islands, while its fifth garden is located in opening remarks, explaining that the TBotany at Smithsonian’s National South Florida. Field exploration expands first biodiversity symposium (the word Museum of Natural History presented a its work beyond Hawaii into the greater “biodiversity” was coined in proceedings one-day symposium titled, “Agents of Pacific Islands region. from that forum) occurred at the Smith- Change: Botanic Gardens in the 21st Cen- Kirk Johnson, Sant Director at NMNH, sonian Institution in 1987. In a rapid-fire tury” on October 7, 2014, in Washington, kicked off the day with a welcome to the delivery, Raven than walked the audi- DC. The symposium brought together museum. As a paleobotanist, Johnson said ence through a history of tropical botany the world’s leading scientists, research- he felt a strong connection with botani- and conservation: the 1964 charter to ers, and garden leaders to share the most cal gardens and spoke fondly of botanists establish the Pacific Tropical Botani- pressing issues, trends, and solutions at whom mentored him during his college cal Garden (PTBG); Mildred Mathias botanical gardens, to the challenges faced years. as a key figure in the establishment of by the natural environment, the struggles A second welcome was given by the Organization for Tropical Studies to feed the hungry, and the losses of Chipper Wichman, Director and CEO in 1963; Norman Myers witnessing the cultural diversity. of NTBG. “Is it enough?” was a phrase state of destruction of the tropics in the The symposium was structured Wichman used in his 1970s; Terry Erwin around four over-arching topics: (1) introduction. Is it enough “The world needs estimating tens of Extinction or survival: conserving plants that botanical gardens millions of species in in a changing world; (2) Feast or fam- have cutting-edge research botanists to be the tropics; Senator ine: how we can and will feed 9 billion facilities; that they house the agents of Inouye in 1988 enact- people; (3) Biocultural conservation: the best collections of ing a name change interpreting the richness of the human specimens; that they are change and to for the garden, from experience; and (4) Operational sustain- exploring remote islands push the limits” PTBG to NTBG. ability: are botanic gardens an endan- in the world; that they are Raven went on to gered species? Each topic featured three reaching the last plants -Chipper Wichman explain that an early to four guest speakers and was followed and protecting them from focus of conserva- by an expert panel with five leaders in extinction? tion was about the botany. Pointing out the challenging times that desire for prosperity of forests. Rachel The event, held in Baird Auditorium we live in, Wichman explained that the Carson’s Silent Spring and the forma- at the National Museum of Natural role of botanical gardens has evolved since tion of the Sierra Club brought a new History (NMNH), was convened to World War II. The world population is put- vision of conservation, and with that, help celebrate the 50th anniversary of ting too much stress on the planet, which NTBG developed stronger conservation the National Tropical Botanical Garden is threatening food security, cultural secu- views to complement a strong collection (NTBG). Chartered by Congress to serve rity, energy security, and biosecurity. We of botanical specimens. Endorsing the a great public need, NTBG is a nonprofit are facing one of the greatest extinction positive work of NTBG over the past 50 institution dedicated to tropical plant crises, and what we are doing, Wichman years, Raven now looks forward to the research, conservation, and education, argued, is not enough. The world needs next 50 years of the garden’s work. with an emphasis on species at risk. botanists to be the agents of change and to The first topic of the symposium was NTBG’s headquarters, primary science push the limits. “Extinction or Survival: Conserving­ and conservation facilities, four gardens, Peter H. Raven, President Emeritus of Continued on page 15 Travel Pedro Acevedo traveled to Salvador, era; and to Paris, France (11/29 – 12/13) ferns from Mount Halimun Salak and Bahia, Brazil (10/17 – 10/24) to attend the with Laurence Dorr to study herbarium Mount Gede Pangrango National Parks; XI Latin American Botanical Congress, specimens and to locate type specimens of and to Wilmington, North Carolina (12/1 where he presented a one-and-a-half-day grasses and other plants collected by S.B. – 12/2) to attend a thesis defense at the course entitled “Generic Diversity of Buckley. University of North Carolina Wilmington. Neotropical Lianas & Climbing Plants,” Ashley Egan traveled to Salvador, Alain Touwaide and Emanuela and led the first organizational meeting of Bahia, Brazil (10/20 – 11/2) to speak at the Appetiti traveled to San Antonio, Texas the Neotropical Lianas Working Group XI Latin American Botanical Congress, (10/17 – 10/21) to visit the local botanic whose goal is to produce a Field Guide to attend the first official meeting of the gardens and the Department of Classics to the Lianas and Climbing Plants of the Legume Morphology Working Group, of Trinity University; to Florence, Italy Neotropics; and to Puebla, Mexico (10/31 to collect legumes in Bahia State, and to (10/28 – 11/4) to attend the opening of – 11/13) to collect specimens and data on discuss collaborative research. the Academic Year of the University of members of Sapindaceae and climbing Vicki Funk traveled to Salvador, Florence; to Cordoba, Spain (11/13 – plants at several localities in Sierra Madre Bahia, Brazil (10/17 – 11/1) to speak at 11/23) to attend the 2014 International Oriental. the XI Latin American Botanical Congress Congress of Ethnobotany, where they Barrett Brooks traveled to Colon, and to collect plants in the field; to Bronx, co-organized a 1-day session on historical Panama (11/10 – 11/26) to participate in a New York (11/18 – 11/21) to work in the ethnobotany; to Leuven, Belgium (11/30 Rapid Algal Assessment of the mangroves herbarium at the New York Botanical – 12/8) to participate in the international and reef areas in the vicinity of Galeta Garden; to Raleigh, North Carolina (11/21 conference “Towards the Authority of Marine Lab and to present a talk entitled – 11/23) to attend a NESCent meeting; and Vesalius: Representations of the Human “Plantas Marinas de Galeta: La historia to Sweden (11/29 – 12/10) to receive the Body in Antiquity, the Middle Ages and del mundo según las algas.” Rolf Dahlgren Prize in Botany from the the Renaissance”; and to Athens, Greece Robert Soreng traveled to Berlin, Royal Physiographic Society in Lund. (12/15 – 1/15) to do research at the Germany (11/22 – 11/29) to study herbar- Paul Peterson traveled to Sierra National Library of Athens and to work ium specimens of Poa and related gen- Nororiental de Puebla, Mexico (11/9 – at the National Hellenic Research Foun- 11/25) to collect grasses and participate dation with an interdisciplinary team on The Plant Press in an ethnobotanical study (A Biological Byzantine and Ottoman alchemy. Approach to Documenting Traditional Jun Wen traveled to Delaware Water New Series - Vol. 18 - No. 1 Ecological Knowledge in Synchronic and Gap, Pennsylvania (10/8) to collect moss Chair of Botany Diachronic Perspectives) funded by the and sumac gall aphids; to St. Louis, Mis- Warren L. Wagner National Science Foundation (NSF) and souri (12/15 – 12/19) to conduct her- ([email protected]) Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento barium studies of Vitaceae at the Missouri y Uso de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO). Botanical Garden; and to Beijing, China EDITORIAL STAFF Eric Schuettpelz traveled to West (12/26 – 1/8) to conduct collaborative Editor Java, Indonesia (11/1 – 11/21) to collect research. Gary Krupnick ([email protected]) Visitors

Copy Editors Ning Zhang, Pennsylvania State Univer- David Lorence, National Tropical Robin Everly, Bernadette Gibbons, and sity; Vitaceae (1/7/13-6/30/15). Botanical Garden; Flora of Marquesas and Rose Gulledge Samoa (10/2-10/10). Yongli Fan, Xishuangbana Tropical News Contacts Botanical Garden, China; Pollination stud- Ghillean Prance, Royal Botanic Gar- MaryAnn Apicelli, Rusty Russell, Alice ies (1/13/14-1/12/15). dens Kew, United Kingdom; Neotropical Tangerini, and Elizabeth Zimmer Rhizophoraceae and Anisophylleaceae The Plant Press is a quarterly publication pro- Eduardo Pasini, Universidade Federal (10/3-10/8). vided free of charge. To receive notification of do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Compositae when new pdf issues are posted to the web, please subscribe to the listserve by sending a message (8/18/14-4/30/15). Noel and Pat Holmgren, New York to [email protected] containing only the Botanical Garden; Penstemon (Scrophula- following in the body of the text: SUBSCRIBE Carolina Diller, University of Maryland, riaceae) (10/7). PLANTPRESS-NEWS Firstname Lastname. College Park; Angiosperm pollination Replace “Firstname Lastname” with your name. (9/2/14-1/31/15). Deirdre Larkin, Metropolitan Museum If you would like to be added to the hard-copy of Art Cloisters Gardens; Mediterranean mailing list, please contact Dr. Gary Krupnick at: John Clark, National Tropical Botanical Department of Botany, Smithsonian Institution, medicinal plants (10/8). PO Box 37012, NMNH MRC-166, Washington, Garden; PacificCyrtandra (9/29-10/10). DC 20013-7012, or by E-mail: krupnickg@ Elizabeth Rhoads, U.S. Botanic Garden; si.edu. Garrett Louie, George Washington Mediterranean medicinal plants (10/10). University; Population genetics internship Web site: http://botany.si.edu/ (10/1-12/5). Continued on page 7 Page 2 Valuing Collections Chair his year brought dismal news about the world’s analyses of a few grams of bone from a historical birds: They are vanishing at an alarming rate. specimen of an endangered Pacific seabird, the Across 25 European countries, about 420 mil- Hawaiian petrel, has illuminated aspects of the T bird’s diet, past population demographics, food lion fewer birds are present today than in 1980, a 20% With decrease, especially in the 36 most common species. chain dynamics, and the deleterious impacts of In North America, The State of the Birds Report 2014 industrial fishing on this oceanic predator. Muse- indicates that over the past 40 years, the numbers of ums are becoming an unparalleled resource of individuals across 33 species are also down by hun- tissue samples for large-scale genomic studies of A dreds of millions. Such assessments highlight the animals and plants. urgency of determining the precise causes of these Yet contributions to genomic studies are but declines. The knowledge gleaned from the Avian one use of museum collections. Extinctions due View Phylogenomics Project, coupled with ecological and to human impacts are also readily studied through population analyses, should provide new insights into historical records preserved in scientific collec- the factors that influence bird declines and extinctions. tions. These records reveal former patterns of geo- As the project progresses over the next few years, over graphic distributions and population abundances 60% of tissue samples for the avian analyses will be of species that today are threatened or extinct. Warren derived from archived Museum collections L. museum collections. In equally contribute this era of deteriorating to the discovery of Wagner natural environments, a previously unknown pressing challenge is to species, such as the continue to build scien- olinguito, a carnivo- tific collections for future rous mammal from needs. South America. Museum collections, Most museum and the species they rep- specimens were resent, provide windows not collected for into the past, inform about the purposes for the present, and help pre- which they are now dict the future of natural used. Innovation in habitats and human-altered technologies will environments. They are the common language of the continue to reveal new information previously biological sciences. An antiquated view of collections unanticipated in scientific specimens. Therefore, suggests drawers of bird skins, empty shells, and dried the most pressing challenge is to build collections plants. However, current collections also include liv- for future needs that maximize access and benefit- ing specimens, spirit-preserved samples, deep-frozen sharing for all. Collections must be sustained tissues, and DNA. These irreplaceable biomaterials are for the long term, which will require increased invaluable representatives of Earth’s biodiversity, and funding for their physical and scientific curation. together with their associated metadata are archived A formidable task that has only just begun is the ex situ for long-term documentation, public education computerized inventory and digitization of the and exhibition, and scientific and applied research. wealth of information that collections represent. Although the exact number of collections maintained At present, most of these data are not accessible in museums, botanic gardens, and universities is electronically or online. unknown, estimates as high as three billion specimens The worldwide decline of birds is just one part suggest the magnitude of this storehouse of information of a large and grim picture; the number of indi- about the natural world. viduals of all wild animals on Earth has decreased Many scientists continue to use collections to dis- by 50% since the 1970s. This drastic decline cover, describe, and document plants and animals with underscores the vital inherent value of museum time-proven methods. At the same time, the application collections today, tomorrow, and into the future. of new and multiple technologies to study specimens is -W. John Kress blossoming. For example, much of our current under- Interim Under Secretary for Science at the Smithsonian standing of some recently extinct species, such as the Institution and Distinguished Scientist and Curator of Tasmanian tiger, the Caribbean monk seal, and the Botany passenger pigeon, has directly resulted from genomic information extracted from museum collections. And This editorial originally appeared in the December 12, 2014 issue of combining DNA-, amino acid– and isotope-based Science (346: 1310). Reprinted with permission from AAAS.

Page 3 University of Adelaide and James Cook inherited from their parent species. Staff University in Cairns where he stayed on Mohammad Vatanparast joined the for a two-year post doc. There Costion Botany Department as a Postdoctoral Research & built a DNA barcode based super-tree of Fellow in November 2014 working with Activities the northeast Queensland rain forest biore- Ashley N. Egan. Vatanparast completed gion, continued research on the Flora of his Ph.D. at Chiba University, Japan, Micronesia, and did climate modeling of under Tadashi Kajita, studying legume On 7 November, Alain Touwaide and mountain-top endemic plants. He was then systematics and population genetics of Emanuela Appetiti participated in a hired as a private consultant to manage Canavalia and other sea-dispersed plant workshop on the Voynich Manuscript, the establishment of a Smithsonian Center species. At the Smithsonian he will be organized by the Folger Library, in col- for Tropical Forest Science (CTFS) plot in working on resolving the relationships laboration with the Beinecke Rare Book & Palau. After living abroad and working on within the Phaseoloid and Milletioid Manuscript Library of Yale University. tropical botany for 12 years, Costion has legume clades to produce a strong sup- now just recently joined the Smithsonian ported phylogenetic hypothesis of these Alain Touwaide has been elected a Fellow team as a post-doctoral fellow under W. taxa based on hundreds of genes from both of the International Academy of History of John Kress. His work will be focused on the chloroplast and nuclear genomes using Science. DNA barcoding of four CTFS plots from a targeted-enrichment approach and next- In November, Elizabeth Zimmer pre- Hawaii, Palau, and Australia. generation sequencing methods. sented a talk “Whose Isoetes DNA Is It? Erin Sigel joined the Botany Depart- How Molecules Aid Morphology,” to the ment as a Peter Buck Postdoctoral Fellow Peer Recognition Botanical Society of Washington. in September 2014, under the supervi- sion of Eric Schuettpelz and Ashley N. Awards New Faces Egan. Sigel is a recent graduate of Duke The National Museum of Natural University, where her doctoral dissertation History presented the 2014 Peer Recogni- Craig Costion completed his under- research focused on gene expression in tion Award on December 9, 2014. Award graduate training at the University of polyploid ferns and the systematics of the recipients are individuals who have given Vermont with a major in Ethnobotany in reticulate Polypodium vulgare complex. their time and talent to the museum above 2003. He went straight from UVM into the At the Smithsonian she is combining her and beyond what their job calls for and Peace Corps in Palau (Micronesia) where knowledge of systematics, high through- to those who have done something that he served one year, then was hired as the put sequencing technologies, and bioin- makes a difference in the outside com- manager of the Natural History Section formatics to study the phenotypic, genetic, munity, for the museum, or for the larger of Palau’s National Museum. There he and genomic consequences of polyploidy Smithsonian community. The Peer Rec- established a national herbarium, and and hybridization in ferns. Specifically, ognition Award Committee is composed led a floristic inventory of the island. He she has adopted Polypodium hesperium as of 11 NMNH staff members representing then went on to complete a M.Sc. in Plant a focal organism for investigating how a cross-section of the entire museum com- Taxonomy at the Royal Botanic Gardens allopolyploid plants (i.e., those with mul- munity. Edinburgh with distinction. A full scholar- tiple sets of chromosomes resulting from Ingrid Lin and Sylvia Orli from the ship offer then took him to Australia for interspecific hybridization) preferentially Department of Botany received the Bee’s his doctoral training jointly between the express and retain duplicate gene copies Knees Team Award, a team which also

News faces in the Department of Botany: Craig Cosrion, Erin Sigel, and Mohammad Vatanparast. Page 4 Award winners are Pedro Acevedo- Rodríguez and Mark Strong for their publication “Catalogue of Seed Plants of the West Indies” (Smithson. Contrib. Bot. 98: 1-1192; 2012). Among the 2013 Science Achievement Award winners are Walter Adey and Wil- liam Fitzhugh (Department of Anthropol- ogy) for their co-authored paper “Arctic sea-ice decline archived by multicentury annual-resolution record from crustose coralline algal proxy” (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA 110(49): 19737-19741; 2013); and W. John Kress for his co-authored book The Ornaments of Life: Coevolution and Conservation in the Tropics (Univer- sity of Chicago Press. 616 p.; 2013).

Representing the Department of Botany, Sylvia Orli (left) and Ingrid Lin (third Funk Receives Rolf from left) are presented with the “Bee’s Knees Team Award” by Kirk Johnson, Sant Director of the National Museum of Natural History (fourth from left). (photo Dahlgren Prize by the Smithsonian Institution) In December, Vicki Funk traveled to included Erin Bilyeu, Ali Brooks, Brian tory. A maximum of five awards are made Sweden to receive the Rolf Dahlgren Prize Harris, Julie Hoskin, Hailey Hultquist, in any one calendar year. On December 9, from the Royal Physiographic Society in Amanda Lawrence, Jennifer Strot- 2014, in close consultation with the Senate Lund, Academy for the Natural Sciences, man, Ben Sullivan, Laura Tancredi, and of Scientists, an interdisciplinary review Medicine and Technology. The Society Catherine Winn from the Departments of committee recognized the outstanding was founded on December 2, 1772, and Entomology and Paleobiology and the work of five teams of scientists for papers his Majesty, the King of Sweden, is its Collections Program. This hard-working published in 2012 and another five for patron. The goal of the Society is to pro- group undertook the detailed task of pre- papers published in 2013. vide researchers and scholars from differ- paring tens of thousands of specimens for Among the 2012 Science ­Achievement Continued on page 6 the Bumble Rapid Capture Pilot Project, and accomplished it with flying colors. Through their careful, efficient work, they were able to digitally capture 44,047 bumble bee specimens in eight weeks (the original goal was 14,400 which was sur- passed in three and a half weeks). Through their diligent and dedicated work, this project has garnered attention from the worldwide museum community and vari- ous news outlets for its efficient preserva- tion of specimens and their data. Science Achievement Awards In 2003, the National Museum of Natural History began awarding Science Vicki Funk with Professor Ib Friis, University of Copenhagen, at the event on Achievement Awards, recognizing excep- December 2, 2014. Friis read the citation at the annual award ceremony. (photo by tional scientific publications in natural his- Jim Nix) Page 5 Dahlgren Prize Continued from page 5 ent disciplines the opportunity to meet and hear presentations of new research results, to exchange thoughts and ideas, and to assist in the publication of those results. The Society is the trustee of several large donations and foundations, and some donations are specified to provide funds for prizes and medals. In these cases it is a question of rewarding outstanding and prestigious research, and, for obvious rea- sons, it is mostly well-established scholars whose work is considered. The Rolf M.T. Dahlgren Prize (Inter- national award in Botany) is given every three years. Funk, the 2014 recipient of the prize, was cited for her outstanding and pioneering work in phylogenetic systemat- ics, her commitment to collections based research, and her use of molecular phy- logenetics in understanding the flowering National Museum of Natural History Director Kirk Johnson (center) thanks plant family Compositae. The Prize was Harold Robinson and Vicki Funk for a gift establishing an endowment toward presented at the annual dinner and ball on research awards to people studying the Compositae collection. (photo by the December 2 (the anniversary of the found- Smithsonian Institution) ing of the Society) at the Grand Hotel in Roland von Bothmer (1999); Pamela endowment grow to a sufficient amount, Lund. and Douglas Soltis (2002); Else Marie it could be used to support a postdoctoral “For Vicki to be selected for this prize Friis (2005); Paula J. Rudall (2008); and fellow or even a curator focused on Com- is a great honor,” says Botany Chair War- Michael J. Donoghue (2011). positae research. ren Wagner. “It shows the international The U.S. National Herbarium has a recognition and esteem that her research rich collection of plant specimens from has garnered and her leadership in the the Compositae family (currently ca. community of Compositae workers that 500,000)—one of the best in the world. brought about the fine book summariz- This is due in large part to the long history ing the current knowledge across this, of research fostered by the Smithsonian the largest of plant families. It also, once (over 150 years). In fact, since its incep- again, demonstrates the quality of science tion, the U.S. National Herbarium has that the Department is known for around Robinson consistently hosted a scientist that studied the world.” this family and as a result, an enormous The Prize was instituted in 1988 in Endowment Fund amount of research has been published memory of Rolf Dahlgren (1932–1987), Announced (over 1,500 papers and books), including a Swedish-Danish botanist and professor papers by Asa Gray, Benjamin L. Robin- at the University of Copenhagen from The Department of Botany is pleased son, Sidney F. Blake, and José Cuatreca- 1973 until his death in a car accident. He to announce a generous gift in 2014 in the sas. However, due to the large size of the studied South African plants and family amount of $25,000 each from two of its family (ca. 25,000 species), there is still circumscription in the Monocotyledons. former and current departmental members, much to be done. He is perhaps best known for his system of Harold Robinson and Vicki A. Funk. This $50,000 gift established an Angiosperm classification based on many The gift will create an award fund to sup- endowment known as the Harold Rob- characters that had not been used previ- port and sustain the work of early career inson Endowment Fund (to be changed ously including ‘chemotaxonomy’. The research fellows conducting research to the Harold Robinson & Vicki Funk monetary value of the Prize is 180,000 involving Compositae (Asteraceae) collec- Endowment Fund upon Funk’s retirement) SEK (ca. $22,000) and Funk has requested tions in the U.S. National Herbarium. The in honor of the combined 80+ years of that the funds be placed in the Botany Department of Botany will make awards study of the family these two scientists Department account so she can use them from the fund that target studies focus- have given the Institution. for research. ing on taxonomy, phylogeny, or anatomy. Anyone wishing to donate to this fund Previous recipients of the Dahlgren Robinson and Funk have asked that the should contact the Chair of the Botany Prize include Peter Endress (1990); Peter fund be managed for future growth to Department, Warren L. Wagner (wag- Goldblatt (1993); Mark W. Chase (1996); increase the payout and that should the [email protected]).

Page 6 Notes from Plant our collection. The gift brings the naming and grow exotic orchids. More recently, of this species to fruition. Dorr recog- we have developed labs to grow these Mounting nized the need to update the naming of an flowers on a massive scale (though some artificial hybrid, now known as Chi× - labs concentrate on learning about wild By Melinda Peters ranthomontodendron, which is a cross orchids). Our relatively recent aware- I have been here over two years now between two parent plants: Chiranthoden- ness of the need to protect wild orchids and 2014 proved to be a challenging and dron (male parent) and Fremontodendron has spurred conservation efforts, both in exciting year for the plant mounting pro- (female parent), completed in 1981. The nature reserves and in labs. gram at the U.S. National Herbarium. We updated species name, ×Chiranthomon- The future of orchids is full of pos- will be recruiting volunteer plant mount- todendron lenzii was published in 2009 sibility. Today we use DNA technologies ers in the coming months. If you know (Taxon 58: 1357-1358), and the type speci- to create new orchid hybrids, and identify of anyone interested in working with a men is housed at the Rancho Santa Ana wild species and their symbiotic fungi. talented, skillful, and spunky crew, please Botanic Garden (RSA). Meanwhile, imaging technologies reveal let me know. Last year, volunteer plant The acquired specimen is a voucher new facets of these fascinating flowers. mounters contributed 5,000 new speci- from the residential home of Rudolf Kenneth Wurdack, along with mem- mens, while staff plant mounters contrib- Schmid in Kensington, California. Evi- bers from Smithsonian Gardens and the uted 6,200 specimens to the collection. We dently, in February 2014, the tree was Office of Exhibits, were part of the exhibi- have been working on “cleaning up” and topped by a neighbor to get a better view tion development team. For many years, getting older accessions prepared and into of the San Francisco Bay. Department of Botany staff members have the permanent collection. Stay tuned for Dorr asked Schmid to salvage a speci- participated on the development team for highlights from these specimens. men because we did not have any material the annual orchid show. A few plant mounters have been in the U.S. National Herbarium. It is now working in the Department of Botany for properly vouchered and preserved for more than 20 years. Gwen Petitjean is a future researchers. Visitors Continued from page 2 Monday volunteer and has been coming in since April 1987. Margaret Schweitzer is Boris Domenech, Université de Montréal, a Wednesday volunteer and has been com- th Canada; Crudia (Fabaceae) (10/20-10/24). ing since November 1992. Thanks to these 20 Annual two wonderful women for their continued Orchid Exhibition: Raymund Chan, Independent researcher, work in the Department. Singapore; Compositae (11/3-11/20). New acquisitions this year consisted of Interlocking Science Elizabeth Cochachin, Museo de Historia many specimens for specialists or spe- and Beauty Natural, Peru; Peruvian Composite (11/3- cific geographic regions.Laurence Dorr 11/27). received an interesting gift in the fall that Smithsonian Gardens and the United adds the only specimen of this species to States Botanic Garden opened the 20th Gabriel Ferreira, Instituto Nacional de annual orchid exhibition, “Orchids: Pesquisas da Amazônia, Brazil; Gesneri- Interlocking Science and Beauty,” at the aceae (11/3-11/28). Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natu- ral History, Saturday, January 24, 2015 Craig Costion, University of Adelaide, (closes April 26, 2015). On any given day, Australia; DNA barcoding (11/3/2014- the exhibition will display more than 300 10/31/2015). orchids. Change-outs occur often; dur- Rene Zandbergen, European Spatial ing the course of the exhibit thousands of Agency, Germany; Medieval manuscripts orchids will be on view. (11/6). “Orchids: Interlocking Science and Beauty” will explore the rich crossroads Paul Manos, Duke University; Fagaceae where orchid botany, horticulture, and (11/7-11/8). technology connect. Featuring orchids Julian Campbell, University of Ken- from the Smithsonian Gardens Orchid tucky; Fraxinus (Oleaceae) (11/24-11/26). Collection and the United States Botanic Garden Orchid Collection, the exhibit Verene Kutter, Independent researcher, looks at how new ideas, technologies, and Switzerland; Anemone (Ranunculaceae) inventions change the way we study, pro- (11/24). tect, and enjoy orchids. Each new innova- tion is like a puzzle piece: it fills in gaps Shelley James, Bishop Museum; New in our knowledge and creates a larger and Guinea collections (12/16-12/17). Specimen US 3639592 is a hybrid more complex picture of orchids. Joo-Hwan Kim, Gachon University, ×Chiranthomontodendron lenzii from At first, Victorian explorers and South Korea; Burmanniaceae, Thismi- California. horticulturists found ways to transport aceae, Corsiaceae (12/29). Page 7 Aaron Goldberg (1917-2014): Parasitologist turned Plant Phylogenist On December 13, 2014, Aaron Gold- Byttnerioideae), which was published in berg passed away in Holy Cross Hospital 1967. in Silver Spring, Maryland. He was 97 During his USDA career Goldberg years old. A fixture in the Department of engaged in research that led to at least Botany, Goldberg was also familiar to 19 publications on parasites of wild and many in the National Museum of Natu- domestic mammals in the Maryland area. ral History because in recent years he He collected nearly 100 specimen lots of probably attended more scientific lectures parasites from livestock (cattle, goats, and and presentations than any other person. sheep) as well as wildlife (Canada geese, One could not help but notice the elderly groundhogs, mice, opossums, and skunks) gentleman who would carefully posi- between 1947 and 1960. These parasite tion himself in the front row of a talk to specimens were donated to the U.S. compensate for his diminishing hearing National Parasite Collection, which coin- and sight and who often peered through cidentally is currently being relocated to binoculars to see images projected on the the National Museum of Natural History. screen behind a speaker. After Goldberg retired from the USDA Goldberg was born in Brooklyn, New in late 1972 he became a Research Associ- York on November 4, 1917. Although ate in the Department of Botany in order he did not speak much about his child- to pursue his true scientific passion, the Aaron Goldberg (photo by the Don hood, he fondly remembered being a Boy taxonomy, evolution, and phylogeny of Hurlbert) Scout. He joined the Scouts at the age of angiosperms at the family level and above. 13 and his five-year membership was an His research culminated in three major or fruits and record characters until he experience that he cherished because as publications: “Classification, evolution, came up with the correct name. Often he he related once, “it took me off the streets and phylogeny of the families of dicoty- would disarmingly approach the person and into the countryside, allowing me to ledons” (1986); “Classification, evolu- who had requested his help while holding follow my interest in nature. It developed tion, and phylogeny of the families of the “unknown” and another specimen for my character.” Those of us who knew him monocotyledons” (1989); and “Character comparison from the U.S. National Her- during his 42 years as a Research Associ- variation in angiosperm families” (2003). barium and simply say “I think it is this.” ate in the Department of Botany will attest His classification of angiosperms did not Invariably he was correct. He provided to his good character … and also admit receive the critical acclaim or attention this help until he was well into his 90s and that he was something of a character. that competing contemporary systems his eyesight deteriorated and he could no Goldberg received a B.A. (1939) from proposed by Arthur Cronquist and Armand longer see dissections through his binocu- Brooklyn College. Several years later Takhtajan did. Part of this may have been lar microscope. His work on an especially when the United States entered W.W.II he personality; Goldberg was unassuming difficult “unknown” with unique floral fea- enlisted in the U.S. Army. After training, and did not have the large public persona tures led to the description of the mono- he was sent to Europe and he spent the that these other two botanists did. In typic genus Haptanthus (Goldberg and duration of the war working as an X-ray any case, all three systems were mostly Nelson, 1989). Initially known from only technician in an evacuation hospital. After elaborated without the benefit of molecu- a single herbarium specimen collected in the war, he was employed by the United lar data and have been supplanted by that Honduras, its affinities remained unclear States Department of Agriculture as a of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. and subject to speculation for many years parasitologist in the Zoological Division Although Goldberg closely followed new until the taxon was rediscovered in the of the Bureau of Animal Industry (later developments in angiosperm phylogeny, wild. Ironically, it was molecular data Animal Parasitology Unit of the Agri- he was resistant to hypotheses founded on that settled its placement with Buxaceae cultural Research Service) stationed in molecular data when they challenged ideas (Shipunov and Shipunova, Am. J. Bot. 98: Beltsville, Maryland. In his spare time, he based on his own observations. 761-763. 2011). pursued his graduate education and came One of the practical benefits to Gold- One of Goldberg’s principal pastimes to favor flowering plants over helminths. berg from developing his morphological- was walking and observing plants. He He received a M.S. (1954) from DeP- ly-based classification of angiosperms was spent a great deal of time at the U.S. aul University and a Ph.D. (1962) from a broad knowledge of flowering plant fam- National Arboretum and was familiar with George Washington University, the latter ily characters. For many years he was the most of our native and cultivated species under the guidance of Lyman B. Smith, person to whom staff in the Department of and when they first came into flower. His who also had a long association with the Botany would give our “unknowns” – her- observations enabled him to become the Department of Botany as a Curator. Gold- barium specimens that no one else could most active contributor to a 40-year long berg’s doctoral dissertation was a mono- identify. He used an old “punched card” project to record first flowering dates of graph of the genus Melochia (Malvaceae: key and would patiently dissect flowers plant species in the Washington, D.C. area. He began contributing spring flower dates Page 8 when the project began in 1970 and from nigra. Proc. Helm. Soc. Wash. 16(1): istered simultaneously to calves. Proc. the mid-1980s onward he made almost 9-11. Helm. Soc. Wash. 40(1): 169-170. 75 percent of the recorded observations. Goldberg, A. 1951. Life history of ----- 1973. Interaction of gastrointestinal These data were used in a published analy- Oesophagostomum venulosum, a nema- nematodes established in calves by two sis (Abu-Asab et al., Biodivers. Conserv. tode parasite of sheep and goats. Proc. spaced inoculations. Proc. Helm. Soc. 10: 597-612. 2001) that established that Helm. Soc. Wash. 18(1): 36-47. Wash. 40(2): 259-264. a significant number of local species are ----- 1952. Effects of the nematode ----- 1973. Relationship of spaced admin- flowering earlier now than before and Oesophagostomum venulosum on sheep istration of larvae to worm burden in that this change is likely due to warmer and goats. J. Parasitol. 38(1): 35-47. calves. Proc. Helm. Soc. Wash. 40(2): temperatures. ----- 1952. Experimental infection of sheep 288-291. In 2013 Goldberg proudly received a and goats with the nematode lung------1973. Relationship of dose and period Career Contributions to Science award at worm, Dictyocaulus filaria. Am. J. Vet. of administration of larvae to gastroin- the Museum’s Peer Recognition awards Res. 13(49): 531-536. testinal nematode burden in calves. Am. ceremony. One of his last visits to the ----- 1954. Parasites of skunks in the Belts- J. Vet. Res. 34(3): 345-352. Museum was about a month before he ville, Maryland, area. Proc. Helm. Soc. ----- 1974. Management to control helm- died when the Department of Botany Wash. 21(1): 29-34. inth parasitism: Infectiousness of pas- hosted a 97th birthday party in his honor. ----- & R. Rubin. 1956. Survival on tures that have been rested or grazed by – L.J. Dorr (Botany) and pasture of larvae of gastrointestinal resistant cattle. Proc. Helm. Soc. Wash. A.J. Phillips (Invertebrate Zoology) nematodes of cattle. Proc. Helm. Soc. 41(1): 109-110. Wash. 23(1): 65-68. ----- 1974. [Review of]: Hutchinson’s Botanical Eponymy ----- 1959. The relationship of diet to families: Third edition. Taxon 23(4): Agonandra goldbergiana Hiepko gastrointestinal helminth parasitism in 627-629. (­Opiliaceae) cattle. Am. J. Vet. Res. 20: 806-814. ----- & L. B. Smith. 1975. Chave para as Melochia goldbergii Cristóbal ----- & J. T. Lucker. 1959. Survival on familias espermatofiticas do Brasil. (­Malvaceae) pasture of larvae of gastrointestinal In: R.P. Reitz (ed.), Flora ilustrada nematodes of cattle. II. Spring contami- catarinense, Part I. Herbario “Barboso Scientific Publications nation. Proc. Helm. Soc. Wash. 26(1): Rodrigues,” Itaji, Santa Catarina. 204 Dikmans, G. & A. Goldberg. 1949. A note 37-42. pp., 69 pls. on Arthrocephalus lotoris (Schwartz, ----- & J. T. Lucker. 1963. Survival on ----- 1982. [Review of]: Cronquist, A., An 1925) Chandler, 1942 and other round- pasture of larvae of gastrointestinal integrated system of classification of worm parasites of the skunk, Mephitis nematodes of cattle. III. Fall contami- flowering plants. Taxon 31(3): 599-600. nation. J. Parasitol. 49(3): 435-442. ----- 1986. Classification, evolution and ----- 1965. Relation of feeding level to phylogeny of the families of dicoty- gastrointestinal nematode parasitism in ledons. Smithson. Contrib. Bot. 58: cattle. J. Parasitol. 51(6): 948-953. 1-314. ----- 1967. The genus Melochia L. (Ster------1989. Classification, evolution and culiaceae). Contrib. U.S. Natl. Herb. phylogeny of the families of mono- 34(5): 191-363. cotyledons. Smithson. Contrib. Bot. 71: ----- 1968. Development and survival on 1-73. pasture of gastrointestinal nematode ----- & C. Nelson S. 1989. Haptanthus, a parasites of cattle. J. Parasitol. 54(5): new dicotyledonous genus from Hon- 856-862. duras. Syst. Bot. 14(1): 16-19. ----- & J. T. Lucker. 1969. Relationship ----- 2003. Character variation in angio- of rotational grazing to gastrointestinal sperm families. Contrib. U.S. Natl. nematode infection in cattle. Am. J. Vet. Herb. 47: 1-185. Res. 30(12): 2137-2144. ----- & H. A. Alden. 2005. Taxonomy of ----- 1970. Development, migration, and Haptanthus Goldberg & C. Nelson. survival on pasture of gastrointestinal Syst. Bot. 30(4): 773-778. nematodes of cattle: Summer contami------In press. Melochia (Malvaceae). In: nation. Proc. Helm. Soc. Wash. 37(2): Flora of North America Editorial Com- 166-169. mittee, Flora of North America 6. ----- 1972. Development and survival on pasture of gastrointestinal nematode Botany Chair Warren Wagner and Kirk parasites of cattle, pp. 147-153. In: R. Johnson, Sant Director of the National Behme, Biology of Nematodes: Current Museum of Natural History, present Studies. MSS Information Corporation, Aaron Goldberg with the 2013 Career New York. Contributions to Science Award. (photo ----- 1973. Interaction of Trichostrongylus by the Smithsonian Institution) axei and Haemonchus contortus admin- Page 9 A New Revision of (Poaceae in Las Monocotiledóneas Mexi- canas, 2000) recognized 25 and 26 spe- the Grass Genus cies, respectively. We recently published a revised taxonomic treatment for Bromus Bromus in Mexico in México and Central America (Phyto- and Central America taxa 185: 1-147). We accept 22 species in the flora, of which twelve are native and By Jeffery M. Saarela and Paul Peterson ten introduced. We include a key to the species in English and Spanish, descrip- The grass genus Bromus includes tions, synonymies, complete illustrations about 160 species distributed in temperate of all species, distribution maps, images of regions around the world. In North Amer- representative herbarium specimens, and ica, the bromes of Canada and the United lists of all specimens examined. States are well known, but the taxonomy Our revision is based on examination of the group has been much less clear in of over 2000 herbarium specimens, includ- adjacent Mexico and Central America. ing over 400 numbers of Bromus collected Eugène Fournier (Mexicanas Plantas, in Mexico by Paul Peterson on numer- 1886) recognized three species of Bromus ous trips. Many of these collections have in México, including one with eight variet- provided important new knowledge on the ies. In an early twentieth century revision distribution of Bromus species in Mex- of Mexican grasses, Albert S. Hitchcock ico, serving as a reminder of the critical Summit of Sierra Zapaliname above (Mexican Grasses, 1913) recognized importance of new fieldwork as part of Saltillo, Coahuila, September 2007. seven Bromus species in México, and he revisionary work. Searching for species (photo by Jeffery M. Saarela) later recognized two of these in Central of Bromus in Mexico was one of the main America (The Grasses of Central America, species concepts applied to this variation. focuses of our expeditions to Mexico in 1930). Thomas R. Soderstrom and John H. Based on careful study of this variation in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Studying the plants Beaman (The Genus Bromus in México & the herbarium, we concluded that only a in the field proved critical for understand- Central America, 1968) produced the first single, variable taxon could be recognized. ing, clarifying and developing species con- revision of Bromus in México and Central Highlights of these trips included cepts for some taxa. For example, plants America recognizing 16 species. The dif- searching for two rare species (Bromus that we now recognize in a single species, ferent names and, in some instances, taxon densus and B. attenuatus) endemic to the B. richardsonii, are morphologically concepts in these previous revisions have Sierra Madre Oriental in northeastern variable in Mexico, and we experienced resulted in considerable confusion. Alan Mexico. Both of these distinctive species considerable difficulty understanding A. Beetle (Las Gramíneas de México, were described by former Smithsonian their variation in the context of previous 1988) and Adolfo Espejo-Serna et al. agrostologist Jason Swallen in 1950. Find- ing B. densus (known from some 18 col- lections, of which nearly half are Peterson numbers) and B. attenuatus (known from nine collections, of which seven are Peter- son numbers), which both grow at high elevations, often required travel through remote mountainous areas along trails that barely pass as roads (Sierra Las Cautivas, Tamaulipas), and long, arduous hikes to mountaintops. The best known sites of B. densus are Cerro Potosí in Nuevo León, a mountain top to which one can drive because there is a radio tower there, and Sierra Zapalinamé, a range just outside of the city Saltillo, Coahuila. Finding the plants in the latter area requires walking up-hill for several hours. Our collections of B. densus and B. attenuatus from Cerro de la Luz, San Luis Potosi in 2010, turned out to be the first records of both species for that state. The mountain hike on which S.G. Goméz, J. Valdes-Reyna and P.M. Peterson sorting collections in the we made these collections is memorable Universidad Autónoma Agraria Antonio Narro Herbarium, September 2007. A set because it rained for several hours as we of all the collections from northeastern Mexico are deposited in this herbarium descended to our camp down a slippery, (ANSM). (photo by Jeffery M. Saarela) flowing drainage that was dry just hours Page 10 earlier. knowledge of the diversity and distribu- on Environmental Quality helps Federal In addition to being rare and poorly tion of species, and may even yield as-yet- agencies incorporate pollinator-friendly known, Bromus densus, B. attenuatus and unknown species of Bromus. This kind of practices in new construction, building the more widespread species B. dolicho- knowledge can only be gained by studying renovations, landscaping improvements, carpus, distributed from Central Mexico and collecting plant diversity in the field and in facility leasing agreements at Fed- to Guatemala, are interesting because and preserving specimens in herbaria, eral facilities and on Federal lands. Facil- together they represent a unique lineage where they become part of the permanent ity managers can use the updated guidance (clade) that is the sister group of the rest scientific record documenting the distribu- to actively examine their current buildings, of the genus. We found this in a phylogen- tions of species in time and space. grounds, and practices for opportunities to etic study of Bromus published in 2007. transition to a richer diversity of pollina- Given their evolutionary affinities, we tor-friendly plant species. now recognize these three species in their By integrating pollinator-friendly own section, Mexibromus, a new taxon strategies into everyday design, opera- proposed in our revision. tions, and maintenance activities, Federal A few native species whose primary agencies can have a big impact. Every day, distributions are in the southwestern agency managers make routine decisions United States are known in Mexico from that could affect pollinator populations. just one or a few collections. Bromus The easy-to-use guide will help ensure the lanatipes, a species characterized by best possible decisions are made, sup- densely woolly lower leaf sheaths, is porting pollinator health and habitat on distributed primarily in the southwestern millions of acres of Federal land. Addi- U.S., but barely extends into México in tionally, the guide will serve as a valuable Maderas del Carmen (part of the Sierra resource for further research on pollinators del Carmen) in northern Coahuila, just and the plant species that support them. south of the Texas border, where it grows The inter-agency working group that in high-elevation pine-oak forests. Five of Guidance on served as advisors for the revised guid- the seven known collections of this species Pollinator-Friendly ance included Gary Krupnick (National from this region were made by Peterson Museum of Natural History), and Graham on four different visits, and the other two Practices on Federal Davis, William Donnelly, James Gagliardi, made by a different collector in the early Property Jonathan Kavalier, and Jeffrey Schneider 1970s. Maderas del Carmen is a biosphere (Smithsonian Gardens). The Smithsonian reserve, and in addition to its interesting In June 2014, a Presidential Memo- Gardens NMNH Butterfly Habitat Garden plant diversity, one of the only places in randum entitled, “Creating a Federal and Urban Bird Habitat serve as exem- Mexico where black bears are still present Strategy to Promote the Health of Honey plary models for pollinator-friendly habitat (we saw one). Bromus pseudolaevipes, Bees and Other Pollinators,” called for a at Federal facilities. distributed primarily in the Coastal Ranges revision of the Sustainable Practices for The guidance is available online at of California, is known from a single site Designed Landscapes guidance on Federal http://www.whitehouse.gov/administra- in Mexico in northern Baja California properties. The revised guidance issued in tion/eop/ceq/sustainability/landscaping- (Sierra San Pedro Martír), based on a October 2014 by the White House Council guidance. Peterson collection made in 2000. The most poorly understood Bro- mus species in Mexico is B. pinetorum, another species described by Swallen in 1950, which is now known from only four collections from the central mountains of Coahuila. Additional field work and collections are needed to better understand the circumscription of the taxon and to collect material for molecular analyses. Like any taxonomic revision, mono- graph or flora, our new treatment ofBro - mus in Mexico and Central America serves as an up-to-date baseline of information for further exploration of the diversity of this group of grasses in these regions, and contributes to broader understanding of this grass genus from a global perspective. Continued exploration will certainly yield The Smithsonian Butterfly Habitat Garden outside the National Museum of new collections that add to our current Natural History. (photo courtesy of Smithsonian Gardens) Page 11 A Rapid Assessment of the Marine Plant Ecosystems at the Caribbean Entrance of the Panama Canal On November 10-26, Barrett Brooks led a team of scientists conducting a rapid algal assessment in the vicinity of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s (STRI) Galeta Point Marine Laboratory in Panama. The lab is located near a collec- tion of coral reef and mangrove habitats between Margarita Bay near Colon and Maria Chiquita, northeast of the Panama Canal mouth on the Caribbean side. The Galeta is the type locality for several species, including the rare Augophyllum study covered about 7 miles of coastline. wysorii. (photo by Hector Ruiz) Gloria Batista de Vega (University of The team collected over 300 specimens brain corals were encountered, although Panama/STRI) and Hector Ruiz (Univer- of marine plants, representing an estimated they had been reported as common in sity of Puerto Rico in Mayaguez) collabo- 100 species during 13 snorkeling transects surveys conducted 40 years ago. The fast rated with Brooks on the project. and 11 scuba dives in the study area. In growing coral of Acropora, typical of The Panama Canal is in the final stages situ photographs were taken of many many Caribbean reefs, were scarce. The of a huge expansion project which will species by Ruiz. Portions of all specimens reefs appear to be holding up even though allow the Canal Authority to accommodate collected were preserved in formalin. Tis- they are continually subjected to a heavy today’s larger ships. Many of the natural sues samples were obtained of each, and burden of siltation from mainland run- habitats near Punta Galeta are in danger dried in silica gel for future DNA barcod- off, and they endure heavy wave action of being destroyed due to the shipping ing. Herbarium mounts were also prepared seasonally. Coralline algae and other industries efforts to develop areas for ship- for most of the specimens collected. crust forming algae (e.g., Peyssonnelia) ping container storage. It was the intention Reefs were found to be surviving along accounted for a large percentage of reef of the research team to document much the study area, dominated by the coral surface area. of the submerged mangrove and reef flora genera Agaricia and Porites, with some Seagrass beds appear to be remark- prior to any future development. Siderastrias present. Very few Caribbean ably healthy. There are especially robust seagrass beds along the inland sides of Naranjo Arriba and Naranjo Abajo, where some individual blades of Thallasia testudinum and Syringodium filiforme were estimated to reach nearly one meter in length. Some portions of exposed seagrass appeared to have been grazed recently, most likely by manatees. One large manatee approached the team and escorted them for about 10 minutes while snorkeling just north of the Punta Galeta reef crest (manatee sightings around Galeta are extremely rare). Four species of seagrass were observed: Thallasia testu- dium, Syringodium filiforme, Halophila decipiens, and Halodule wrightii. Coralline algae and other crust-forming algae are very prominent on the reef, as well as many species of or closely related to Gracilaria. The inshore lagoons exhibit typical abundances of calcifying green One of the many abundant crustose coralline algae (Mesophyllum sp.) around algae (Halimeda, Penicillus, and Udotea). Galeta. (photo by Hector Ruiz) Page 12 Large beds of algae typical of coastal Henry W. Henshaw, William Hunter, Ward also visited other locales in waters with abundant nutrient runoff are Charles Louis Pollard, Joseph Nelson Alexandria, including the “vast quantities” also present (i.e., Dictyota, Acanthophora, Rose, Edward C. Steele, George B. of Cameron Valley sand (“Rappahannock Cladophora, and Chaetomorpha). The Sudworth, David LeRoy Topping, George Series”) that extended westward in the genus Bryothamnion was prominent in a Vasey, and Lester F. Ward. deltaic hills and valley on the north side of variety of habitats, turning up on the 30 ft. Lester Frank Ward (1841-1913), pri- Cameron Run (lower Holmes Run), and deep sea floor, attached to the sides of the marily known as a sociologist, was also a “Chinkapin Hollow” (Taylor Run ravine fore reef, and even in the shallows along prolific collector of local flora during his at Chinquapin Park) where he collected the mangrove fringe. years in Washington, D.C., as a botanist a freshwater mollusk fossil (Unio sp.). The red mangrove, Rhizophora and paleontologist with the U.S. Geologi- He also surveyed the extensive sand and mangle, is thriving in the study area, miti- cal Survey and Smithsonian Institution gravel pits in the Franconia region of gating the detrimental effects of storms from 1882 to 1905. Of all the earliest Springfield, Virginia, in the 1890s with and inland nutrient runoff. It grows along botanical explorers of Alexandria, Ward William M. Fontaine and documented the channel where the hydrothermal power concentrated mainly on the Cameron Run the exposed paleoflora of the Potomac plant discharges its cooling waste water, watershed. Formation (Ward, L.F. 1895. The Poto- and where there are mid-channel water Ward’s specimens, largely the earliest mac Formation. USGS Annual Report for temperatures of 42°C. Red mangrove collected in the Washington, D.C. region, 1893-1894). appears to be nearly the only species, plant form the foundation of the DC Herbarium After nearly a hundred years since or animal, surviving along that stretch of of the U.S. National Herbarium (US) at Ward’s excursions in the Cameron Run hot water. the Smithsonian Institution, as well as the watershed, a surprising diversity of native City of Alexandria Flora. In 1881, he pub- plants were discovered in remnant natural Last Surviving lished the landmark “Guide to the Flora of areas of the watershed (Cameron Run Washington and Vicinity” (Bull. U.S. Natl. Regional Park, Clermont Swamp Forest, Flora of the Lower Mus. 22: 1-264; 1881), which included and Tarleton Park), during extensive flo- Holmes Run Stream many of his collections from the Cameron ristic and geologic surveys conducted by Run watershed: the City of Alexandria’s Natural Resources Valley: In the “Passing next to the Lower Potomac, Division. A number of these plants are rare Footsteps of Lester the localities of special interest are…4. in Alexandria (and regionally); represent Hunting Creek, a large estuary below the sole occurrence in Alexandria; or still Frank Ward Alexandria, including Cameron Run, the persist at the same locations where L.F. stream which debouches into it with its Ward documented them in the late 1800s. By Rod Simmons, City of Alexandria Dept. tributaries, Backlick Run and Holmes Perhaps the single greatest collection RPCA, Natural Resources Division Run, which unite to form it. Here have of remnant flora occurs in a several-acre Drawn to the largely pristine and been found at various points Clematis expanse of rich, alluvial floodplain for- exceptionally diverse stream valleys ochroleuca, [Matelea carolinensis], Itea est along the old Cameron Run channel of Four Mile Run and Hunting Creek, virginica…Micranthemum [micran- at Cameron Run Regional Park. This numerous botanists and collectors came themoides], [Platanthera flava], Quercus tract, which has come to be known as to Alexandria, Virginia, in the late 19th [bicolor], Carex gracillima, Geum [lacin- “Ward’s Woods,” is also the sole remain- century from the Smithsonian Institution, iatum var. laciniatum], Galium asprellum, ing representative in the City of a natural U.S. Department of Agriculture, Galludet and very many other rare plants.” Continued on page 14 College, University of Maryland, U.S. National Arboretum, and others. Trans- portation was readily available from these places via the well-established railroad lines and, later in the early 1890s, when electric trolley cars began operating in Alexandria. Exploration during this time occurred mainly along the Potomac River and its tidal estuaries and lower stream valleys, largely because transportation routes were well developed to these areas, but also because much of the land to the west was heavily forested, fenced off, or generally inaccessible. Early significant botanical explorers and collectors in Alexandria include John W. Chickering, Jr., Frank M. Comstock, L.F. Ward and Miss Moorehead in his office at the Smithsonian Institution in 1886. Frederick V. Coville, Edward Foreman, Photo courtesy Chicago Botanic Garden. Page 13 Lower Holmes Run • Field Thistle (Cirsium discolor) – one Continued from page 13 of three City stations • Virgin’s-bower (Clematis virginiana) – ­community type that was once much more one of three City stations widespread throughout the lower water- • Bottlebrush Grass (Elymus hystrix var. shed. hystrix) – one of three City stations Uncommon to rare plants in Alexandria • Canada Moonseed (Menispermum at Cameron Run Regional Park include: canadense) – one of three City stations • Green Dragon (Arisaema dracontium) • Foxglove Beard-tongue (Penstemon – sole occurrence in City digitalis) – one of three City stations • Dutchman’s Breeches (Dicentra cucul- • Bartram’s Oak (Quercus x hetero- laria) – sole occurrence in City phylla) – one of three City stations • Beadle’s Oak (Quercus x beadlei) – • Carolina Sedge (Carex caroliniana) – sole occurrence in City one of four City stations • Swamp Chestnut Oak (Quercus • Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) – michauxii) – sole occurrence in City one of five City stations • Flat-spiked Sedge (Carex planispicata) • Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) – – one of two City stations natural populations are rare in Alexan- • Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis flavula) – dria one of two City stations • Red Mulberry (Morus rubra) – uncom- • Potato Dandelion (Krigia dandelion) – mon to rare in Alexandria one of two City stations • Common Tall Meadow-rue (Thalic- • Violet Wood-sorrel (Oxalis violacea) – trum pubescens) - uncommon to rare in Eastern Figwort (Scrophularia one of two City stations Alexandria marilandica). (photo by Tony Reznicek) • Autumn Bluegrass (Poa autumnalis) – one of two City stations Today, a third century of natural heri- channel swamp forest. Extensive geologic • Early Bluegrass (Poa cuspidata) – one tage inventories and research are under- field surveys and research are also being of two City stations way with efforts to refine our understand- conducted throughout the City, including • Eastern Figwort (Scrophularia mari- ing of local vegetation types as part of the the lower Holmes Run stream valley, to landica) – one of two City stations U.S. National Vegetation Classification revise and update the Geologic Atlas of • Slender Wedgegrass (Sphenopholis (USNVC) – National Capital Region proj- the City of Alexandria. obtusata var. major) – one of two City ect through quantitative compositional and Considering what little of the natural stations environmental data collected at a 400 m² world remains in the Cameron Valley • Bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia) – one forested plot in “Ward’s Woods,” as well watershed – “probably the most intensely of two City stations as a similar plot at the old Cameron Run altered geologic terrain in the City” (pers. comm., Tony Fleming) – Lester Ward’s comments from 1881 on urbaniza- tion, habitat loss, and extinction in the Washington, D.C. region are even more applicable today: “There were doubtless large areas of primeval forest then within our limits which are now under cultiva- tion, and a much greater variety of soil and woodland was then open to the researches of the botanist. As a consequence, we ought to expect that it would sustain a much richer flora...the botanist takes no delight in the ‘march of civilization’, the ax and plow are to him symbols of bar- barism, and the reclaiming of waste lands and opening up of his favorite haunts to cultivation he instinctively denounces as acts of vandalism.” Geologist Tony Fleming examining a massive lithified outcrop of Cameron Valley Rod Simmons is a Research Collaborator sand along the only natural remaining stretch of Backlick Run in Alexandria at with the National Museum of Natural His- Ben Brenman Park, just west of its confluence with Holmes Run. At that point, tory, Smithsonian Institution; a member the stream becomes Cameron Run and flows southeastward to the confluence of of the Virginia Botanical Associates; and Hooff’s Run, where it becomes Hunting Creek and continues to the mouth of the Natural Resource Manager and plant Potomac River. (photo by R.H. Simmons) ecologist with the City of Alexandria. Page 14 Agents Continued from page 1 plants in a changing world.” John R. Clark, Co-Director of Science and Conservation at NTBG, spoke about how his research on Cyrtandra allowed him to travel around the Pacific to learn about species, endemism, evolution and conservation. He has been struck by the large number of localities where species were once found no longer exist due to deforestation and the threat of invasive species. His early focus on biogeography and systematics was about solving a large puzzle about species relationships. Now, as he sees that these missing pieces of the puzzle are being thrown away, he has turned his research to a focus on conserva- tion biology. Kayri Havens, the Medard and Eliza- beth Welch Director of Plant Science and Speakers of the symposium “Agents of Change: Botanic Gardens in the 21st Conservation at the Chicago Botanic Century”: John Rashford, Warren Wagner, Michael Maunder, Kawika Winter, Garden, stressed that the environmen- Will McClatchey, John Clark, David Rae, Andy Jasper, Alain Touwaide, Sir Tim tal grand challenges that we face today Smit, Sir Ghillean Prance, Gaynor Coley, Peter Raven, Lucinda McDade, Chipper require expert botanical knowledge. She Wichman, Kayri Havens, David Lorence, and Sophia Shaw. Image courtesy of the argued that the Global Strategy for Plant National Tropical Botanical Garden. Conservation is a wonderful roadmap. and vulnerable). She asked if we should by discussing a paradigm shift—that we Botanical gardens are serving an important change seed sourcing practices in light of are not restoring ecosystems to the way role in ex situ conservation as a low cost climate change. To make the appropriate they once were, but looking at today’s methods to conserve a large numbers of decisions about seed sourcing in areas challenges in a changing world. She con- species. Collecting and banking of seeds with large seed zones, such as in the east- cluded her talk by proclaiming, “We are in the US is making good progress, Haven ern US, will not be as difficult as those in the agents of change.” said, but we are only at 40 percent of the areas with fine-grained seed zones found Lucinda McDade, the Executive Direc- G1-G3 species (NatureServe conserva- in the western US. She concluded her talk tor of the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Gar- tion status critically imperiled, imperiled, den, began her presentation talking about “green blindness”—how people view plants as just the green background for animals. Botanical gardens are essential to battle this affliction. She dared botani- cal gardens with a series of challenges: to embrace all land plants, including lycophytes and ferns; to grow plants with recalcitrant seeds and to grow parasitic plants, hemiparasites, and obligate mutual- ists; and to embrace modern methods in plant breeding and next-generation sequencing. McDade noted that big data approaches can enhance research, and networks and collaborations are essential going forward. The second topic of the day was “Feast or Famine: How we can and will feed 9 billion people.” Diane Ragone, Direc- tor of the Breadfruit Institute at NTBG, explained that gender and population Kayri Havens, John Clark, and Lucinda McDade answer questions from the issues cannot be pulled out from food audience while discussing “Extinction or Survival: Conserving plants in a changing security issues. Her research focus is on world.” Image courtesy of the National Tropical Botanical Garden. Continued on page 16 Page 15 Agents botanists to help the World Bank on these ing, population growth, and water conser- Continued from page 15 issues. vation being such hot topics lately, it was Danielle Nierenberg, President of Food an appropriate focus for the magazine. the traditional uses of breadfruit in the Tank, spoke about two ways to build a The editors of the magazine wanted to Pacific, with an emphasis on biocultural food system that eliminates hunger, mal- start a conversation about the agricultural preservation, conservation and sustainabil- nutrition, and obesity. The first is to sup- footprint and to discuss ways in which ity. The Breadfruit Institute manages 120 port family farmers who play an important resources could be used more wisely. The varieties of breadfruit and breadnut, with role as teachers, business people, stewards striking photographs and images in the a purpose not on academics, but on how of land, and fosterers of equality. About article are a way to reconnect eaters with to use this diversity and understand it. A 500 million family farmers worldwide the farmers and the landscape. The New current focus of the institute is on identify- contribute to the food system for 2 bil- Food Revolution looks at biotechnology, ing nutrient-rich varieties of breadfruit that lion people. The current challenge is to GMOs, and challenges in how to feed a can help vitamin A and iron deficiency. make small farming careers intellectually growing population. Examples included Eija Pehu, the advisor on Science and stimulating and economically viable for drought tolerant rice and ways to trans- Technology in the Agriculture and Rural young people. The second approach is to form and improve the photosynthesis of Development Department of The World recognize the importance of indigenous food plants. Bank, focused on food security. She crops. Nierenberg explained that food The third themed topic of the sym- began with the dire statistic that one in selection has become narrower and less posium was “Biocultural Conservation: eight people suffer from chronic hunger nutritious—with an unhealthy emphasis Interpreting the richness of the human and that more than a billion people are on starchy staples and a lack of investment experience.” Ethnobotanist Kawika Win- malnourished. Agriculture is vulnerable in fruits and vegetables. A challenge is to ter, the Director of the Limahuli Garden to climate change. Global cereal yields teach those working on indigenous crops and Preserve at NTBG, briefly spoke are decreasing by one-fifth in productivity to not just grow the food we eat, but to about the agricultural terraces at the gar- and African farmer yields are decreasing teach them how to process, cook, eat, and den as footprints of our ancestors. These by 50 percent. Pehu described Climate- market the food better. terraces are relevant in the community as Smart Agriculture (CSA) as an approach Dennis Dimick, the Executive Editor they serve as a preservation of tradition. that improves techniques in crop rotation, of the Environment for National Geo- Further, tourists who visit Hawaii often water management, and the use of drought graphic magazine, closed out this session have a high interest in Hawaiian culture, tolerant crops. CSA enhances carbon with a presentation about the New Food and the terraces can serve as a focal point sequestration in soils and forests while Revolution, a cover story featured in the for interpretation. reducing pressure in forests. She presented May 2014 issue of the magazine. Food and Alain Touwaide, a Visiting Researcher a case study about the Loess Plateau agriculture isn’t a new topic to National in Smithsonian’s Department of Botany at Watershed in China and how an integrated Geographic; soil conservation was a cover NMNH, gave a quick 10-minute overview landscape approach has seen benefits in issue in 2008. But with global climate of 2,000 years of ethnobotany and history. sustainability and reductions in poverty. change, fossil- and bio-fuel issues, frack- He explained that images of plants in his- Pehu stressed the importance and need of toric books were more than just a collec- tion of species but an explanation of how plants were grown and used. He provided examples from the Roman Empire in 1st century A.D., and he demonstrated a link between frescos and gardens. Images of pineapples in Mediterranean paintings tell us about introductions of New World plants into Old World culture. Touwaide explained that the first description of a banana tree was in 1562, and that the writings from botanic gardens serve as a history of plants. Will McClatchey, the Vice President and Director of Research at Botanical Research Institute of Texas, concluded the morning session with a talk about how botanical gardens are cultural artifacts. When one enters a Japanese garden, one gets a certain feeling. “Why is that?” asked McClatchey. He explained that one Danielle Nierenberg, Diane Ragone, and Eija Pehu tackle the subject “Feast or cannot separate the physical environment Famine: How we can and will feed 9 billion people.” Image courtesy of the National from the cultural environment. When Tropical Botanical Garden. entering a garden, one feels like they are Page 16 and challenges of our time. She said that CBG’s success has depended on fulfilling the needs of its customers. She argued that botanical gardens mostly serve affluent white people, and that their customers should reflect the local diversity. She highlighted 10 changes that have made a difference at CBG: (1) developing a mis- sion statement that inspires, “We cultivate the power of plants to sustain and enrich life;” (2) staying open during a recent Chi- cago power outage, which attracted youth camps and elderly from senior citizen centers; (3) training staff to speak Spanish; (4) participating in Chicago’s annual gay pride parade; (5) staying open on Christ- mas to attract Jewish families; (6) build- ing a large urban farm that included jobs training, and inviting community outreach participants into the garden; (7) creating a Sir Tim Smit, KBE, challenges the audience with his audacious ideas during his supplier diversity policy in which every- talk, “Fiddling While Rome Burns: The Case for Punk Science,” as Chipper one at work participates; (8) building a Wichman looks on. Image courtesy of the National Tropical Botanical Garden. training, therapy, and hospitality program for veterans; (9) conducting a language either home or in someone else’s home. what comes out of botanical gardens in study and discovering that on average 24 He gave an example about the Hamilton the digital world is too dull and too full different languages were spoken each day Gardens of New Zealand where a large of facts. The art of storytelling can make at CBG; and (10) providing free admis- section is managed by the Maori commu- plants cool to kids. Smit said that with sion. By increasing attendance, CBG’s nity. New Zealand’s first and only tradi- serious leadership, botanical gardens can capital campaign and annual membership tional Maori garden, it has an active center become cultural icons, full of soul with a has increased as well. where people gather—where they think of sense of direction. Gaynor Coley, the Director of Public it as home. At these centers, the elders can The final topic of the symposium Programs at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, teach young Maori about botanical knowl- was “Operational Sustainability: Are concluded the final topic of the day with a edge and how to use plants. McClatchey Botanic Gardens an endangered species?” talk on sustainability in botanical gardens parted with a message to botanical gardens David Rae, the Director of Horticulture and messages about the environment, to create environments where locals feel and Learning at Royal Botanic Garden finance and society. Coley was recruited to like they are a part of the community. Edinburgh, explained that with 3,000 transform the Eden Project into a botani- After a lunch break, the talk, “Fid- botanical gardens throughout the world, cally and economically successful garden. dling While Rome Burns: The Case for the one thing that they have in common She spoke about recruiting people on their Punk Science,” was given by keynote is horticulture. Most have an education ability to connect with an audience. She speaker Sir Tim Smit, KBE, the Executive component, and some have a research said that access and inclusion makes busi- Chairman of Eden Regeneration Ltd and component. Rae explained that no other ness sense. She urged those in the audi- co-founder of the award-winning Eden type of institution in the world does all ence to work together to invite people into Project in Cornwall, England. Smit chal- three of these things (horticulture, educa- the gardens and to impel all people to love lenged those in the audience to rediscover tion, and research) together in one place. plants. Like the Eden Project, which was awe in the face of nature. He explained He explained that new botanical gardens built in an area of high poverty, gardens that cultivation started civilization, and are getting started more frequently now need to tell a story of hope. that botanists need the courage to stand than in any other time in history, but they The symposium also featured a panel up for plants. “How come politicians are also being hit financially. He notes this of four experts to discuss a path for- don’t see our importance?” asked Smit. significance in the light of climate change ward. The panel was chaired by Michael Botanical gardens do not need more stuff, and sustainability. Maunder, the Associate Dean of Research he argued, but they do need a compel- Sophia Shaw, the President and CEO Engagement at Florida International ling story. He urged the audience to be of Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG), con- University and the Interim Director of The aggressively positive with messaging. tended that botanical gardens are not an Kampong of NTBG. Before opening the There is much that Smit would change endangered species. Attendance at CBG floor to questions, he asked each speaker about botanical gardens. He could not has increased 44 percent since 2005 with- for introductory remarks. Paul Alan Cox, understand why conservation is such a out any major new exhibits. She stressed the Director of the Institute for Ethnomed- difficult sell, considering that people hate that botanical gardens need to hone their icine, opened the panel with a discussion change. He also complained that most of focus and services to address the issues Continued on page 18 Page 17 Agents Continued from page 17 on how to properly staff botanical gardens. He recommended that gardens invest in training. David Lorence, the Co-Director of Sci- ence and Conservation at NTBG, provided a vision of what gardens will be like in 50 years—meeting new challenges of global climate change, adopting new technolo- gies, and supporting a living collection of endangered plant species. He stressed that botanical exploration is still a key part of conservation. What other organisms await discovery? Can they eliminate disease and hunger? John H. Rashford, Professor of Anthropology at College of Charleston, gave insight into how botanical gardens can help stem the loss of biodiversity. He urged botanical gardens to step up to the Thomas Friedman gives a speech in honor of the NTBG’s 50th anniversary at the front line in contributing to sustainable gala dinner. Image courtesy of the National Tropical Botanical Garden. agriculture. to not drift too far from their agricultural his riveting talk to draw comparisons to Warren Wagner, NTBG’s McBryde roots. The fifth challenge is ethnobotany, the natural world and to highlight trends Chair of Hawaiian Plant Studies and where the wisdom of elders may help on geopolitics in the Middle East. Chair of Botany at NMNH, discussed reduce poverty and the food crisis. He talked in depth about the role of how botanical gardens can slow down Prance discussed the importance of invasive species and the conditions under the current rate of extinction. He urged education at botanical gardens. Education which they are able to disrupt native eco- botanical gardens to integrate new tech- works at many levels in the community. systems. He then compared that to the rise nology in novel ways. He emphasized He indicated that there will be no new bot- of ISIS and how they are “invading” the the importance of herbarium specimens, anists unless we train them. He recounted diverse native “poly-cultural ecosystems” which serves as a record of morphology, an occasion from when he gave a tour of of Iraq and Syria with the goal of reduc- but urged that botanical gardens to also Eden Project’s rain forest to a group of ing diversity and turning them into bleak address what pollinates the plant, how the urban poor kids. While pointing out that “monocultures” of Jihadist fundamental- plant grows, and the habitat requirements rosy periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) has ism. of the plant. He suggested that citizen provided a cure for childhood leukemia, a It was a fascinating talk coming on the science, which brings the public into sci- boy spoke up discussing that his brother heels of the Agents of Change Sympo- ence, can help attain scientific goals. One was afflicted and treated for the disease. sium where the participants and audience example he gave was crowd-sourcing of Prance described how after that exchange were challenged to consider if botanical specimen label transcription. the boy become engaged and enthused for gardens are doing enough to conserve The day-long symposium ended with the rest of the tour. biodiversity and mitigate the spread of closing remarks by Sir Ghillean Prance, Prance’s final message was that botani- invasive species that undermine diverse FRS, former Director of Royal Botanic cal gardens should not continue as is, but ecosystems. Freidman subsequently used Gardens, Kew, and Trustee of the Eden enter a new age and become more active. his speech for one of his columns in The Project. He began by highlighting five He proclaimed that botanical gardens can New York Times. current challenges that botanical gardens show the world that plants are the basis of Videos of the symposium presentations face. The first is population growth, which life. and Thomas Friedman’s talk are avail- can be addressed through the education The gala dinner was well attended and able on NTBG’s YouTube channel . gardens around the world. The second is speech by Thomas Friedman. Friedman, climate change, a challenge for the con- a political analyst and author who writes servation of plant species. One solution extensively in his twice-weekly column may be restoration and assisted migra- for The New York Times about foreign tion, which he described as an enormous affairs, the Middle East, and environmen- challenge. The third is species extinction, tal issues, put together a unique speech which Prance hopes that botanical gardens in honor of the NTBG’s 50th anniversary. can help reduce the rate. The fourth is food Acknowledging the work of NTBG in security, which he urged botanical gardens conserving tropical plant diversity, he used

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Page 19 Art by Alice Tangerini

Dryopteris sweetiorum Lorence & W.L. Wagner Dryopteris sweetiorum is a terrestrial fern known from collections made by Ken Wood on Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas Islands and published as a new species by David Lorence and Warren Wagner in 2011 in PhytoKeys (4: 5-51). The endangered species is only known from one small area (Teavapuhiau ridge to Mt. Touaouoho) on the small island of Fatu Hiva. The epithet sweetiorum was given in honor to Barbara K. and Cyrus B. Sweet III, who have generously supported scientific research at the National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG) and particularly the Vascular Flora of the Marquesas Islands project. The drawing by Tangerini was made from five herbarium specimens representing portions of the stipe, rhizome and frond. The specimens were photocopied and duplicated to make an entire frond with stipe and rhizome to a full height of 180 cm. Tangerini assembled the copies on a large table, taped them together, had the resulting collage photographed by Don Hurlbert (NMNH Photographic Services Unit), and reduced to 60 cm in print form. Tangerini traced the print in ink, added details of the pinnae and sporangia, and scanned the drawings into a publishable size image. A large framed print of Dryopteris sweetiorum was presented as a gift to Barbara and Cyrus Sweet in appreciation of their support given to the NTBG.

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