Mobilizing Floristic Data in Multi-access Keys. Harry C. Stradley August 19th, 2016 Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment for the MSc in the Biodiversity and Taxonomy of Plants. Acknowledgements “Begin Anywhere” - John Cage - Brian K. Bourque Special Thanks to the Following Colin Pendry Lorna Mitchell Martin Pullan Graham Hardy Louis Ronse De Craene Debbie Vaile Jenny Farrar Elspeth Haston Table of Contents List of Figures Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Identification Keys – Historic and Modern Perspectives .......................................................... 1 Origin of the Dichotomous Key as a Standard for Modern Botany ........................................... 1 Single-access Identification Keys ........................................................................................... 2 Multi-access Identification Keys ............................................................................................ 4 Circumscription of the Vascular Plant Families of the Floras of Nepal and Bhutan ............. 6 Pre-molecular Classification ....................................................................................................... 7 Bentham and Hooker – Genra Plantarum, and The Flora of British India ............................ 7 The Systematics of Engler and Prantl – The Flora of Bhutan, and Nepal .............................. 8 The Flora of Bhutan................................................................................................................ 9 The Flora of Nepal................................................................................................................ 10 Post-molecular Classification ................................................................................................... 11 Angiosperm Phylogeny Group - An Ordinal Classification for the Families of Flowering Plants ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Transitioning from a Modified Englerian System to the APG III System ............................ 12 Converting the Flora of Bhutan, and the Flora of Nepal to APG II/III.................................... 13 Circumscriptions of Selected Families ..................................................................................... 13 Development of a Character Matrix Based on the APG Families.......................................... 15 Family Descriptions .................................................................................................................. 15 Consideration of Characters ...................................................................................................... 16 Consistency of Taxonomic Data in Multiple Sources .............................................................. 17 Digital Extraction of Floristic Data ........................................................................................... 19 Legacy Data at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Library ............................................. 20 Discussion..................................................................................................................................... 20 Mobilizing Legacy Data from the Flora of Bhutan/Nepal ....................................................... 20 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 22 Appendix I ................................................................................................................................... 26 Appendix II .................................................................................................................................. 35 List of Figures Figure 1 - Example of a single-access (dichotomous) key for the genera of Annonaceae Juss. presented in parallel formatting for the Flora of Nepal. (Watson et al., 2011) ............................... 2 Figure 2 - Excerpt from the Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas illustrating a yoked key. (Radford et al., 1968) .............................................................................................................. 3 Stradley 1 Introduction Understanding and classifying the natural world, especially flora is more important now than ever before. Aside from the pure inherent curiosity of identifying flora, it is often a necessity for larger goals to have a list of extant flora, particularly flora native to particular geographical, or political regions. Conservation work in particular has need for identifying specimens, as it is impossible to conserve what is not known. Dichotomous identification keys are widely available, and are common place in many works. Typically, these are keys to genra and species, while less commonly a work might include a key to families. These keys were often produced purely in print form, limiting them to users with physical access to the flora/field guide. Modern digital resources make it available to have a wider range of identification resources, both with traditional dichotomous keys, but also more recent multi-access keys. Digital interactive keys require the creation and maintenance of a database to support them. Databases can be tedious to create, but can be aided by smart software that can extract data from electronic sources. In order to use historic print based information, the data either needs to be hand entered by a live user, or converted into electronic format to be read by software. This project discusses the feasibility of creating an online multi-access identification key for the woody plant families of Nepal and Bhutan based off the respective floras for those regions. Identification Keys – Historic and Modern Perspectives Origin of the Dichotomous Key as a Standard for Modern Botany Dichotomous keys are probably one of the most well-known tools for identification used universally across almost all branches of biological science. In botanical sciences they are almost a mandatory element, particularly in any sort of taxonomic work e.g. floras, monographs, or any sort of revision. Several authors can be credited with developing tools that would fall under the scheme of modern dichotomous keys, but Jean-Baptiste Lamarck is generally credited as the who brought it into mainstream use in its modern format. He published a version of a dichotomous key in his 1778 Flore Française, and while it is far from the modern form its purpose is evident as a dichotomous identification key. The predecessors to the Lamarck key go Stradley 2 back an estimated one to two hundred years, beginning with the dialectic works of Ramus who presented dichotomously organized information designed as a teaching tool for his students. Also preceding Lamarck were dichotomous arrangements used as tools for presenting classification systems, e.g. John Ray’s scheme for his 1868 Historia Plantarum. (Griffing, 2011) Since then modern identification keys have diversified into several forms aside from the classic dichotomous key. Modern identification keys can fall into one of two categories, either being single-access or multi-access in style. Dichotomous keys remain relatively unchanged in their presentation since their introduction in 1778, and fall under the heading of single-access keys as they proceed from a single starting point. Within the last century though many modern forms of biological identification have presented themselves with varying degrees of success. Theses fall under what are commonly referred to as multi-access keys. They allow the user to enter the key from a variety of starting points based on available data. While dichotomous keys are probably the more well-known of the two types, multi-access keys are not without merit. Single-access Identification Keys Typically, when discussing identification keys, it is implied that the key in question is a dichotomous key as presented in Figure 2. These keys progress logically from an initial starting point using discriminating couplets to guide the user through until an identification is made. The Figure 1 - Example of a single-access (dichotomous) key for the genera of Annonaceae Juss. presented in parallel formatting for the Flora of Nepal. (Watson et al., 2011) Stradley 3 majority dichotomous keys will be found in any number of taxonomic works, typically floras, monographs, and field guides and are used to identify genra and species. Higher level keys to family level identification are also found, but with a lower frequency than keys to genra and species. The basic principles behind keys are relatively simple and has probably been the main reason for their success. The main selling point being that well-constructed keys are compact, effective methods for identification, and can be incorporated into any number of botanical writings or resources. Once educated on how to use a key, any dichotomous key can be read and understood in short order. The only variation between keys is usually in how the couplets are ordered, either being parallel as in figure 2, or yoked as seen in figure 3. With parallel keys the choices in a couplet are presented jointly as a whole unit. In the key presented in figure 2 the first couplet presents us with two options. If option A describes your specimen, then you have reached a determination for your taxa, but if option A does not describe your specimen, then you proceed to the next