Department of Botany and the U.S. National Herbarium The Plant Press National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution New Series - Vol. 1 - No. 6 November - December 1998 Department Profile A New Victorian Age For Biodiversity By Robert DeFilipps amount of the research conducted under the Guianas Program have yielded species the umbrella of the Guianas Program is new to science, including a diminuitive er laboratory is laden with the performed mainly in Guyana. To the epiphytic species of Hecistopteris fern tools of her trade, including sets general public, the most familiar symbols (Vittariaceae) from the Kaieteur Falls Hof the heavy buckled belts and of Guyana are perhaps the indigenous which is being published by Carol Kelloff iron tree-climbing spikes usually associ- cannonball tree (Couroupita guianensis); and Greg McKee, and a new member of ated with mountaineers and lumberjacks. the royal water lily (Victoria amazonica); the Lauraceae from montane southern Originally from Owensboro, Kentucky, majestic Kaieteur Falls which is three times Guyana assigned to the genus Vicki Funk, Curator of Botany, has been the height of Niagara Falls; and the Rhodostemonodaphne. directing the National Museum of Natural asphyxiating curare poisons made by In addition to Funk, the Guianas bio- History’s (NMNH) Biological Diversity Indians such as the Wai Wai. The term diversity program is staffed by Carol of the Guianas Program for eleven years. “Guiana” recalls as well the legendary Kelloff (assistant director) and Tom Funk, a specialist in evolutionary biology, exploits of Sir Walter Raleigh in search Hollowell (data manager for collections cladistics, biogeography, and the study of (1595, 1617) of El Dorado in Spanish and georeferences). The program has unusual Asteraceae adapted for surviving Guiana (now Venezuela), and in fact, produced major breakthroughs in our in temperate climates at tropical latitudes, geographers now believe that the elusive knowledge of the Guianas, often in arrived in the department in 1981. city of gold he sought near “Lake Parima” tandem with the Centre for the Study of In the course of fieldwork in numerous is actually Lake Amuku, a “wet weather Biological Diversity, created in 1992 with Latin American and other countries, lake” in the savannas north of the Kanuku a building located at, but independent of, Funk’s botanical rewards have sometimes Mountains in Guyana. the University of Guyana in Georgetown, been gained in the face of adversity, oday, the natural treasures of the and originally funded mainly by the Royal including an erupting volcano in Costa Guianas under investigation by Bank of Canada. For the Centre’s Rica, and clouds of tiny, combat-style Tbiologists are not often intangible, development, Funk was, and still is, a “T90” mosquitoes on the white sand but they are sometimes as elusive as the central dynamic of leadership values, savannas of Guyana. Now, slowly but ones which haunted the dreams of Raleigh inspired self-sufficiency, and advice. surely, an understanding of the complex centuries ago. In today’s terms, the biotic With the cooperation of more than 90 biological mysteries of the Guianas’ treasures are felt to comprise the vast institutions, the overall NMNH program undisturbed interior forests is emerging ecological and evolutionary interrelation- has yielded products such as 30 publica- under her tutelage. ships and vital phytochemical diversity tions under the auspices of the Centre in The three Guianas demonstrate inherent to the region. Guyana; many thousands of Guianan approximately 30 different vegetation Everything in the rainforest has conse- plant specimens obtained by 12 years of types in an area high in the sweltering quence and signficance, e.g., when resident collectors appointed by NMNH; equatorial shoulder of northeastern South pollinators such as bats and other mammals a Vegetation Map of Guyana (1995) America. The three nations are, from are interfered with for any reason, such as utilizing satellite imagery; two editions of west to east, Guyana (the erstwhile hunting them for food, the many un- a highly useful Checklist of the Plants of British Guiana); Suriname (formerly serviced flowers and would-be fruits are the Guianas, now on-line; and a Prelimi- Dutch Guiana); and French Guiana, an lost to the immediate reproductive output nary Checklist of the Plants of Kaieteur integral part of France. While its scope of the host trees. Over the past several National Park (1998) which is available embraces all three countries, a substantial years, plant collecting expeditions under Continued on page 6 Page 1 New Faces New Species Gery Allan, a Post-doctoral Fellow, will rare and endangered Pittosporum taxa. Discovered be working with Liz Zimmer,Warren Molly Nepokroeff, a Post-doctoral A dilleniaceous vine with stems Wagner and Chrissen Gemmill (University Fellow, is working with Warren Wagner containing potable water, collected by of Waikato, New Zealand) at the Labora- and Liz Zimmer on the systematics of John Pruski in 1987 along the Rio tory of Molecular Systematics. His project Pacific and Hawaiian Psychotria Falsino in Amapa, Brazil, has recently will focus on breeding system evolution in (Rubiaceae), focusing on intensive been described as representing a new South Pacific and Hawaiian Pittosporum sampling of the Pacific Psychotria in order species, Doliocarpus pruskii Aymard, (Pittosporaceae), and will involve develop- to better resolve sister group relationships Kew Bull. 53: 719 (1998). ing molecular markers, or “micro- and the evolution of floral dimorphism in satellites,” for resolving evolutionary the Hawaiian lineage. She will be utilizing relationships among the Hawaiian species. molecular and morphological data for The study of variation in floral phenology phylogeny reconstruction, and also highly of the Hawaiian species, in order to better polymorphic molecular markers, AFLPs, understand temporal differences in sexual to look at species relationships. Addition- expression, will provide information on the ally, she plans to revise the taxonomy of reproductive function of different floral the Hawaiian species. phenotypes in remote insular floras. A clearer understanding of taxonomic Ellen Murphy is a new volunteer at the relationships can lead to a more accurate department’s research greenhouse. She is a floristic inventory of the Hawaiian Islands, senior in International Studies at George and help in deciding conservation manage- Washington University, Washington, D.C. ment issues that pertain to a number of Visitors Jefferson Prado, Univ. of São Paulo, Cristina Rolleri, Museo de la Plata, The Plant Press Brazil; Brazilian ferns (Sept. 1-30). Argentina (LP); Ferns (Oct. 7-10). New Series - Vol. 1 - No. 6 Michael Kessler, Albrech-von-Haller- Fernando Bretos, Center for Marine Chairman, Department of Botany Institut (GOET); Bolivian flora (Sept. 3- Conservation, Washington, DC; Tech- W. John Kress 30). niques (Oct. 8-Dec. 20). ([email protected]) Sadao Sakamoto, Ryukoku Univ., Japan; Mu Mu Aung, Forestry Research EDITORIAL STAFF Amaranthaceae (Sept. 5-10). Institute, Yezin, Myanmar (Burma); Co-Editors Myanmar Checklist (Oct. 19-Nov. 13). Jane Villa-Lobos Lena Struwe, New York Botanical ([email protected]) Garden (NY); Gentianaceae (Sept. 21-23). Yin Yin Kyi, Forestry Research Institute, Robert DeFilipps Yezin, Myanmar; Myanmar Checklist (Oct. ([email protected]) Cintia Kameyana, Univ. of São Paulo, 19-Nov. 13). Brazil; Brazilian Acanthaceae (Sept. 28- Consulting Editor Deborah Hinrichs Oct. 18). Ann Sakai, Univ. of California, Irvine, CA; Hawaiian rarities (Oct. 26-28). Circulation Manager Teuvo Ahti, Univ. of Helsinki, Finland Shirley Maina (H); Cladoniaceae (Sept. 30-Nov. 30). Paulo Windisch, São Jose do Rio Preto, ([email protected]) Brazil (SJRP); Brazilian ferns (Oct. 26- News Contacts Humberto Mendoza C., Instituto 30). Amanda Boone, Robert Faden, Ellen Humboldt, Colombia; Melastomataceae Farr, George Russell, Alice Tangerini, (Oct. 1-7). George Taylor, George Mason Univ., and Elizabeth Zimmer Fairfax, VA (GMUF); Lepidium Paul Manos, Duke Univ. (DUKE); (Brassicaceae) (Nov. 5). The Plant Press is a bi-monthly publication provided free of charge. If you would like to be Quercus (Oct. 3). added to the mailing list, contact Shirley Maina at: Donald Windler, Towson Univ., Towson, National Musem of Natural History, Smithsonian Brent Mishler, Univ. of California- MD; Mucuna (Fabaceae) (Nov. 24). Institution, Department of Botany, NHB 166, Berkeley (UC); Bryophytes (Oct. 3-8). Washington, DC 20560, or by e-mail: [email protected]. Delores Piperno, Smithsonian Tropical Fabian Michelangeli, Bailey Hortorium, Research Institute (STRI/SCZ); Web site: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/botany/html. Cornell Univ. (BH); Rubiaceae (Oct. 6-8). Cucurbitaceae phytoliths (Dec. 7-8). Page 2 The Organizing Biological Principles in Natural History Science Chair s we continually evaluate our scientific direc- we share similar scientific questions, scientific methods . tions and mission as a natural history museum, it and basic scientific principles, our governing doctrine Ais important that we maintain a broad perspec- being Darwinian evolution. The taxonomists and tive on how we can best contribute to society and the systematists in the Museum employ a wide spectrum With planet. Recent discussions among the Chairs of the of evidence for reconstructing phylogeny, both various departments at NMNH resulted in the following traditional and experimental,