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BEN # 171
BBBBB EEEEEE NN N ISSN 1188-603X
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BBBBB EEEEE NN N N BOTANICAL
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No. 171 July 30, 1997
aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca Victoria, B.C.
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Dr. A. Ceska, P.O.Box 8546, Victoria, B.C. Canada V8W 3S2
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PACIFIC NORTHWEST CARNIVOROUS PLANT SHOW - AUGUST 10, 1997
From: david.wong@hortus.bc.ca
The Pacific Northwest Carnivorous Plant Society (Canadian
Chapter) 1997 Show and Sale
will take place on Sunday, August 10, 1997
Richmond Nature Park (main pavilion)
11851 Westminster Highway, Richmond B.C.
(approx. 1/2 block west of No. 5 Road)
time: 11:00 am to 4:00 pm
admission: by donation
See different representatives of the many carnivorous plants
from around the world - including, Nepenthes from S.E. Asia,
Sarracenia from N. America, Pinguicula, Drosera from the tropics
to our backyard. Learn how to grow these plants.
For further info, please email: david.wong@hortus.bc.ca
FIELD KEY TO PIPERIA (ORCHIDACEAE) OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
From: Randall Morgan, 3500 North Main Street, Soquel,
California 95073
Two genera of rein-orchids occur in the Pacific Northwest
(Piperia Rydb. and Platanthera L.C. Rich.), both of which have
been subsumed by some authors under the genus Habenaria Willd.
Plants of the genus Piperia can be distinguished from these in
Platanthera by the following characters: 1) terrestrial rather
than semi-aquatic habitat; 2) stem leaves reduced to bracts; 3)
basal leaves usually withering before or during anthesis; 4)
stem arising from an ovoid tuber rather than fusiform roots; 5)
lip with median ridge rather than flat; 6) perianth parts one-
nerved; 7) anther cells opening laterally rather than apically;
8) flowers protandrous by movement of the lip.
Field key to Piperia of Oregon, Washington, British Columbia
1. Spur 2-6 mm, more or less shorter than lip
2. Flowers white, blade of lip becoming curved downward and
back toward spur
............................ P. candida Morgan & Ackerman
2. Flowers green to translucent, blade of lip straight or
curving slightly upward at tip
......................... P. unalascensis (Spreng.) Rydb.
1. Spur 7-15 mm, longer than lip
3. Perianth green or partially translucent; viscidia oval,
not much longer than wide; plant generally tall, slender
....................................... P. elongata Rydb.
3. Perianth parts white with green or yellow-green midvein,
viscidia oblong, about twice as long as wide; plants
robust to delicate
4. Plants relatively delicate (stem 1-3 mm diam.); spur
straight, held horizontally; lip projecting forward;
floral fragrance clovelike, nocturnal
............................... P. transversa Suksdorf
4. Plants relatively robust (stem usually more than 3 mm
diam.); spur usually more or less curved, often held
concealed against stem; lip curving downward in age;
floral fragrance often strong, but not clovelike
............................ P. elegans (Lindl.) Rydb.
(syn.: P. maritima [Greene] Rydb.)
[Viscidium (pl. viscidia) - a sticky structure usually connected
to the stipe that carry pollen masses, thus aiding in the
attachment of the pollen to pollinators.]
Literature
Ackerman, J.D. 1977. Biosystematics of the genus Piperia Rydb.
Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 75: 245-270.
Coleman, R.A. 1995. The wild orchids of California. Cornell
University Press, New York. 201 p.
Morgan, R. & J. Ackerman. 1990. Two new Piperias (Orchidaceae)
from western North America. Lindleyana 5(4): 205-211.
Morgan, R. & L. Glicenstein. 1993. Additional California taxa in
Piperia (Orchidaceae). Lindleyana 8: 89-95.
NEW SPECIES FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA: CLARKIA VIMINEA (ONAGRACEAE)
From: Adolf & Oluna Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
On July 20, 1997 we found a population of about 50 plants of
Clarkia viminea in Mt. Tzuhalem Ecological Reserve, near Duncan
on Vancouver Island (AC 31,134). The plants grew with Clarkia
amoena susbp. lindleyi on the warmest grassy slope dominated by
Stipa lemmonii.
Clarkia viminea (Dougl. ex Hook.) A. Nels. & J.F. Macbr. has
been recently treated as a subspecies of C. purpurea (W. Curtis)
A. Nels. & J.F. Macbr. (subsp. viminea [Dougl. ex Hook.] H.F. &
M.E. Lewis). The plants are erect either simple or with erect
branches, slightly puberulent. The leaves are linear to lanceo-
late with short petioles or sessile. Flower buds are erect and
flowers are sessile with reflexed sepals and purplish or crimson
petals.
From the phytogeographical point of view this species belong to
an interesting group of species that occur from coastal Califor-
nia to coastal northern Oregon and are rare or entirely absent
in Washington. This group include species such as Allium amplec-
tens, Crassula erecta (= C. connata), Dryopteris arguta, Isoetes
nuttallii, Juncus kelloggii, Minuartia pusilla, Microseris
bigelovii, Montia howellii, Myrica californica, Ranunculus
californicus, Trifolium depauperatum, Triphysaria versicolor,
Vulpia pacifica, Woodwardia fimbriata, etc.
MYRIOPHYLLUM PINNATUM, A NEW SPECIES FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: Adolf & Oluna Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca>
& Frank Lomer <ubc@unixg.ubc.ca>
In the fall 1996, Frank Lomer found a large population of
flowering water-milfoil that we identified as Myriophyllum
pinnatum (Walt.) B.S.P. (syn.: M. scabratum Michx., family
Haloragaceae). The locality was a shallow artificial lake in
Minnekhada Park in Coquitlam, east of Vancouver, B.C.
Myriophyllum pinnatum belongs to the section Tessaronia. This
section is characterized by having male flowers with four an-
thers (instead of eight in the other species) and having leaves
arranged in the "pseudowhorls" (= you can find single scattered
leaves besides those that are in whorls). M. pinnatum differs
from all other species of Tessaronia by having ridges of the
fruit covered with sessile glands.
Sterile specimens are difficult to identify since they can be
confused with M. hippuroides which is quite frequent in the
lower Fraser River Valley. Chromatographic analysis of
flavonoids that proved to be a reliable identification tool in
sterile specimens of some Myriophyllum species, however, does
not work in the subgenus Tessaronia, since all British Columbia
members of this group have an identical flavonoid pattern
(Ceska, 1977; Ceska & Ceska 1986). Herbarium specimens of M.
pinnatum have "wiry" stems that turn darker after drying com-
pared with thick-stemmed deep green specimens of M. hippuroides,
but for reliable identification, fertile specimens are needed.
In nearby Pitt Lake, we collected strange specimens with wiry
stems in 1979, but we were unable to identify them since we
could not find fertile specimens. In a 1996 trip we stopped at
Pitt Lake and got fruiting material that we identified as M.
pinnatum. Later we found several fertile collections from Pitt
Lake made by T.C. Brayshaw that we also identified as M. pin-
natum.
Myriophyllum pinnatum is a species of eastern North America. It
is difficult to conjecture whether it was introduced to British
Columbia. It may well belong to the interesting group of aquatic
vascular plants indigenous to the Pacific Northwest that occur
both in eastern and western North America with a gap in the
prairie provinces. Les (1986) gave a list of species with
similar distribution and discussed the phytogeography of these
species. In the Herbarium of the Royal British Columbia Museum
(V) there is a fragment of a sterile plant collected in Pitt
Lake by J.K. Henry in October 1916 (V 41,820b) that is most
probably M. pinnatum. This may indicate that M. pinnatum has
been well established in the Pitt Lake area for a long time.
Attention palynologists and palaeobotanists!
There are interesting projects related to the genus Myriophyllum
or to the aquatic plants in British Columbia that should be
investigated:
1. The palynological study of Myriophyllum in British Columbia
by Mathews (1978) should be extended by those species of
milfoil that have been added to the flora of British Colum-
bia since the 1970's (Ceska & Warrington, 1976; Ceska et
al., 1986): Myriophyllum farwellii, M. quitense, M. pinnatum
and M. ussuriense.
2. An attempt should be made to trace the history of distribu-
tion of the group of aquatic plants native to eastern North
America and occurring in British Columbia and the Pacific
Northwest.
Literature cited
Ceska, A. and P.D. Warrington. 1976. Myriophyllum farwellii
(Haloragaceae) in British Columbia. Rhodora 78: 75-77.
Ceska, O. 1977. Studies on aquatic macrophytes, part XVII:
Phytochemical differentiation of Myriophyllum taxa collected
in British Columbia. Water Investigation Branch, Victoria.
33 p.
Ceska, O. & A. Ceska. 1986. Myriophyllum (Haloragaceae) in
British Columbia: problems with identification. Pp. 39-50.
In: Lars W. Anderson, editor. Proceedings of the First Sym-
posium on watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) and related
Haloragaceae species. Aquatic Plant Management Society Vick-
sburgh, Mississippi.
Ceska, O., A. Ceska & P.D. Warrington. 1986. Myriophyllum
quitense and Myriophyllum ussuriense (Haloragaceae) in
British Columbia, Canada. Brittonia 38: 73-81.
Les, D.H. 1986. The phytogeography of Ceratophyllum demersum and
C. echinatum (Ceratophyllaceae) in glaciated North America.
Can. J. Bot. 64: 498-509.
Mathews, R.W. 1978. Pollen morphology of some western Canadian
Myriophyllum species in relation to taxonomy. Can. J. Bot.
56: 1372-1380.
REQUEST FOR SEEDS OF NORTH AMERICAN AMELANCHIER SPECIES
From: Campbell Davidson <CDavidson@EM.AGR.CA>
I have a graduate student that is searching for seed from North
American Amelanchier species. The focus of the research at least
initially will be disease resistance. There is considered inter-
est in commercial production of saskatoons as a fruit crop,
however, when grown in large blocks, disease pressures build as
might be expected in a perennial crop.
The quantity of seed required is minimal at least at the start.
If you are able to help out please drop me note.
Campbell G. Davidson
Morden Arboretum
Unit 100-101 Route 100
Morden MB R6M 1Y5
phone 204-822-4471
fax 204-822-6841
FOREST ECOLOGY IN INDONESIA - UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
From: Larry Dill <ldill@sfu.ca>
I am working with the Eastern Indonesia Universities Development
Project here at the Simon Fraser University, trying to encourage
junior faculty members (called "dosen") in several Indonesian
Universities to get more involved in biodiversity research. In
October, as part of this program, I conducted a grant writing
workshop in Manado, N Sulawesi for 10 dosen, each of whom
prepared a short research proposal. I am now trying to find
collaborators for a few of these dosen, with the idea that they
may be able to apply jointly for research funds to actually do
the work.
One of the participants is interested in the effect of tropical
forest fragmentation (through natural disturbances, as well as
shifting cultivation practices) on plant species diversity. I am
attempting to find him a Canadian collaborator/mentor who has
tropical experience, a good record of grants and publications,
and the time and willingness to develop a long term collabora-
tive research program in Indonesia. I am able to support the
initial phase with funds allowing travel to Indonesia to meet
the Indonesian colleague, work on a more detailed proposal, and
perhaps collect some preliminary data.
Lawrence M. Dill, Professor and Director,
Behavioural Ecology Research Group,
Department of Biological Sciences,
Simon Fraser University
Burnaby, B.C. V5A 1S6
CANADA
Phone: 604-291-3664
FAX: 604-291-3496
BROUSSEAU PROJECT: NATIVE WILDFLOWERS OF CALIFORNIA
From: Brother Eric Vogel <evogel@stmarys-ca.edu>
This is to announce the completion of the (second phase) Brous-
seau Project through the scanning of Brother Alfred Brousseau's
total collection of 11,300 color slides of native wildflowers of
California and the placing of these on Internet at the address:
http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/flowers/. An excellent search engine
has been built by Ginger Ogle and this site does a marvelous job
of displaying the pictures (in three different sizes, if you
wish.) Also a grad student at Berkeley built a search system so
that one can find "flowers with lots of yellow, some purple and
black" if one wishes. This alone is worth the visit to the site.
I have been responsible for the scanning and indexing of this
great collection of slides. The project continues with the
scanning--and eventual putting on internet--of Brother Alfred's
slide collection of Native (pine) trees of California, as well
as a fairly extensive collection of slides of mushrooms.
As an incidental to this project, there is in production a 1988
calendar featuring twelve beautiful pictures of some of these
slides. This calendar is in the 8" by 11" format, consisting of
a full page picture for each month. It will become available
about mid-september 1997. A donation to the Brousseau Project of
$7.50 is requested.
Brother Eric Vogel F.S.C.
Saint Mary's College of California
1928 St. Mary's Road
Moraga, CA, 94575
(510)-631-4296
RE: MOSSES IN POETRY (BEN # 168)
The national anthem of Japan is a song entitled 'Kimigayo'. It
was formally designated the national anthem in 1893, during the
reign of the Meiji Emperor. The song was composed by an Imperial
Court Musician of the Meiji era. The lyrics are from a poem that
was written over 1000 years ago. The words mean
'May your reign continue for a thousand, nay, eight
thousand generations and for the eternity that it takes
for small pebbles to grow into a great rock and become
covered with moss.'
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