Herbarium Essentials The Southern African Herbarium User Manual Herbarium Essentials The Southern African Herbarium User Manual by Janine E. Victor Marinda Koekemoer Lyn Fish Shirley J. Smithies Marthina Mössmer Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 25 ❖ 2004 Recommended citation format Victor, J.E., Koekemoer, M., Fish, L., Smithies, S.J., & Mössmer, M. 2004. Herbarium essentials: the southern African herbarium user manual. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 25. SABONET, Pretoria. Published by The Project Coordinator Southern African Botanical Diversity Network c/o National Botanical Institute Private Bag X101 Pretoria 0001 SOUTH AFRICA Tel.: (27) 12 804 3200 Fax: (27) 12 804 5979 E-mail: [email protected] from whom copies of reports in this series are available on request. ISBN 1-919976-01-9 © 2004 SABONET. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the permission of the copyright holder. The SABONET Project Coordinator (address above) would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this report as a source. Cover: Erythrina lysistemon (Photo: L. Fish); Gathering plant specimens (Photo: J. Burrows); Mounting specimens, Identifying specimens in herbarium (Photos: R. Burkhardt). Cover design: Antoinette Burkhardt, Vanilla Design Studio, Pretoria, South Africa (27) 82 9090109. Text design and layout: Vanilla Design Studio, Pretoria, South Africa (27) 82 9090109. Printed in 2004 in the Republic of South Africa by Capture Press (27) 12 349-1802. Series editor: Marthina Mössmer Subeditors: Lidia Gibson and Hanlie van Heerden Photographs: All photographs by Rolf Burkhardt © 2003 SABONET, except where otherwise noted. For a complete list of photograph and line drawing credits, see page 84. SABONET web site: www.sabonet.org NBI web site: www.nbi.ac.za This report is a joint product of the National Botanical Institute of South Africa and the Southern African Botanical Diversity Network (SABONET) and was made possible through support provided by the Global Environment Facility (GEF)/United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/World Conservation Union—Regional Office for southern Africa (IUCN ROSA) (Plot no. 14818 Lebatlane Road, Gaborone West, Extension 6 Gaborone, Botswana), under the terms of Grant No. 690-0283-A-00-5950. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the GEF/UNDP, the SABONET Steering Committee or SABONET National Working Groups. Contents at a Glance Acknowledgements x Introduction 1 CHAPTER 1 Herbarium Collections 5 CHAPTER 2 Collecting Plants 9 CHAPTER 3 Pressing and Drying 19 CHAPTER 4 Mounting Specimens 31 CHAPTER 5 Physical Curation 39 CHAPTER 6 Herbarium Pests 61 CHAPTER 7 Scientific Curation 65 CHAPTER 8 Starting a New Herbarium 73 APPENDIX 1 Herbarium Supplies 81 APPENDIX 11 Field Label 82 References and further reading 83 Index 85 Contents Acknowledgements x Introduction 1 Herbaria of the world 2 Functions of herbaria 2 Different types of herbaria 3 Specialised collections within herbaria 3 How this book is arranged 4 CHAPTER 1 Herbarium Collections 5 Types of collections 6 Main collection 6 Carpological collection 6 Bulky specimens 6 Xylarium 6 Bryophytes and lichens 7 Macrofungi 7 Fossils 7 Spirit collection 7 Illustrations, photographs, and copies of specimens 7 Microscope slides 8 Expanding the collections 8 Plant collecting 8 Gifts 8 Deposits 8 Exchanges 8 CHAPTER 2 Collecting Plants 9 Collectors 10 Professionals 10 Amateur collectors and parataxonomists 10 Students 10 Types of collecting 10 Research or specialised collecting 10 Floristic collecting 10 What you need 10 Collecting equipment 12 Collecting permits 14 Special permits 14 Vehicle maintenance 14 Emergency supplies 14 Maps and map reading 15 Global Positioning Systems 15 What to collect 16 Dealing with collected material in the field 17 Bryophytes and lichens 17 How to collect bryophytes and lichens 17 Recording information 18 Basic label information 18 CHAPTER 3 Pressing and Drying 19 Main aims 20 The plant press 20 Components of a plant press 20 How to pack a plant press step by step 21 Standard pressing methods 21 Special pressing methods 23 Succulent and fleshy plants 23 Graminoids 23 Fleshy underground organs 23 Spiny plants 24 Fragile flowers 24 Fixatives and preservatives 26 Fungi 28 Aquatic plants 28 Submerged plants 28 Drying specimens 30 CHAPTER 4 Mounting Specimens 31 Main aims 32 Material and equipment 32 Mounting procedures 32 Arranging the specimen 32 Envelopes 33 Glueing 33 Strapping 36 Stitching 36 Mounting labels 36 Preparing bryophytes and lichens for storage 38 CHAPTER 5 Physical Curation 39 Storing specimens 40 Species covers 40 Type covers 40 Genus covers 40 Guidelines for handling specimens 41 Labelling specimens 42 Producing labels 43 Accession numbers 43 Filing specimens 43 Alphabetical arrangement 43 Systematic arrangement 43 Further subdivisions 43 Indexes and cupboard lists 43 How to arrange specimens 44 Quick Guides 45 How to compile a Quick Guide 45 Computerisation 45 Advantages 45 Disadvantages 46 The precis system 46 Geographical Information Systems 46 Data input 47 Data output 48 System maintenance 48 Loans 49 Selecting specimens to send out on loan 49 Handling requests for loans 49 Requesting loans 49 How to re-file returned loans 59 Removing samples from specimens 59 Remounting and repairing specimens 60 Duplicates 60 CHAPTER 6 Herbarium Pests 61 Preventing insect damage 62 Freezing 62 Microwaving 62 Living plants 62 Monitoring 62 Humidity control 63 How to prevent insect infestations 63 Treating infestations 63 Fumigation 63 Localised treatment 63 Methods not recommended 64 CHAPTER 7 Scientific Curation 65 Taxonomy and nomenclature 66 Rules for naming plants 66 Plant names 66 Authors 66 Type specimens 68 Descriptions 68 Taxonomic publications 68 Identifying specimens 68 Equipment and materials 68 How to identify a specimen using a key 69 How to identify a specimen by matching 70 Library and literature 70 Recommended herbarium literature 70 Incorporating new research 72 How to evaluate taxonomic revisions 72 How to incorporate a taxonomic revision 72 CHAPTER 8 Starting a New Herbarium 73 Purpose 74 Collecting, preserving and storing specimens 74 Identification 74 Nomenclature 74 Comprehensive data-bank 74 Determining basic needs 74 Registering in Index Herbariorum 74 Infrastructure and functional areas 74 Buildings 74 Working areas, storage space, and offices 75 Cupboards 75 Lighting 75 Ventilation 75 Telecommunications 75 Library 76 Laboratory 76 Reception 76 Equipment and supplies 76 Decontamination equipment 76 Plant dryers 76 Magnifying instruments 76 Maps 77 Camera 77 Other equipment 78 Herbarium services 78 Information service 78 Visitors 78 Plant identifications 78 Loans 79 Environmental Impact Assessments 79 Herbarium management 79 Staff management 79 Herbarium staff 79 Financial management 80 APPENDIX 1 Herbarium Supplies 81 Local suppliers 81 International suppliers 81 APPENDIX 2 Field Label 82 References and further reading 83 Photo Credits 84 Index 85 Acknowledgements any of the notes used to compile this guide are not new. We would like to acknowledge all MNBI staff members who have been involved in some way or another in developing notes on herbarium practice and techniques. We are grateful, in particular, to René Glen for the valuable information on collecting aquatic plants, Jacques van Rooy for information on collecting and caring for bryophytes, and Priscilla Burgoyne for demonstrating the gummed card method of preserving fragile flowers. Braam van Wyk of the H.W.G.J. Schweickerdt Herbarium at the University of Pretoria assisted with taxonomic definitions. The artists, photographers, and models are thanked for their time and willingness to participate. We also thank Lidia Gibson and Hanlie van Heerden for spending many hours editing and polishing the text, Antoinette Burkhardt and Vanilla Design Studio for their input in creating this user-friendly book, and SABONET for affording us the opportunity to publish this manual. Collections made during an expedition in the field. introduction …from Africa—for Africa Frithia pulchra (Mesembryanthemaceae). Herbarium Essentials 1 INTRODUCTION any plant species are threatened with extinction through taxonomic research. Herbaria are centres where plant taxa are Mhuman activity. Southern Africa has over 30,000 species studied. This includes identification (how they are recognised), of flowering plants and ferns, but is poorly equipped to monitor nomenclature (the naming of specimens to avoid the problem and evaluate this heritage. We believe that establishing, expand- of ambiguity), classification (grouping of plants with similar ing, and improving herbaria is the first and most important step properties), distribution (where it grows), ecology (the kind of towards achieving this objective. habitat), and use (useful properties). They are funded by na- Herbarium Essentials is an illustrated, Afrocentric manual for tional or local governments, universities, private institutions, herbarium workers, supplying the basic information about a research organisations, scientific societies, or individuals, and functional herbarium. It provides a theoretical background, as differ vastly in size and main function. well as comprehensive methods for running a herbarium, tak- ing its different aspects into account. These aspects