Wunderlin, Richard P. and Bruce F. Hansen. 2015. Flora of Florida, Volume II: Dicotyledons, Cabombaceae through Geraniaceae. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, 383 p.
Hardcover, $69.95. ISBN: 978-0-8130-6066-8.
Available from www.upf.com.
Apomixis as an evolutionary phenomenon evokes different responses from plant biologists depending on the lens through which it is viewed. For plant breeders, it is seen as the ‘‘holy grail’’ of modern plant breeding for its potential as a tool to stabilize and perpetuate hybrid genotypes indefinitely (Hofmann 2010). In contrast, for plant taxonomists, apomixis can create problems because it leads to difficulties in classification for groups in which it occurs, where species boundaries may become blurred and decisions must be made about how many and which groups to recognize (Eriksen 1999). In either case, additional knowledge of apomixis is needed.
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Eupatorium sessilifolium L./Eupatorium pilosum Walt.–derived hybrid apomict (ASTERACEAE). Unicoi County: along old forest service road marked Proffitt Ln. on Google Maps, ca ¼– ½ mile from junction with Scioto Rd., 36812.9870N, 82816.8580W, elev. 790 m., 12 September 2007, E. E. Schilling & D. E. Schilling 07-CF13 (TENN).
ABSTRACT Two species of the genus Asimina (Annonaceae), A. triloba and A. parviflora, are well known to occur in South Carolina. Recent work investigating variation in leaf size, flower morphology, and habitat of Asimina in the state shows that a hybrid between the two species exists. The differences in the three taxa are best related to growth form, peduncle length, and outer petal length and width. This new hybrid, Asimina3piedmontana, is hereby described and distinguished from both parents.
ABSTRACT The Red Slough Wildlife Management Area (7,800 ha) is located on the West Gulf Coastal Plain in southeastern Oklahoma. The inventory was motivated by land acquisitions and is intended to augment a 1999 inventory. We report an additional 202 taxa of vascular plants, with 186 species, 16 infraspecific taxa, 158 genera, and 68 families. This is a 62% increase in the number of taxa previously listed for the site. The largest families were the Poaceae (with 35 taxa), Asteraceae (20 taxa), and Fabaceae (18 taxa). Thirty-one nonnative taxa and 19 taxa tracked by the Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory were encountered.
A demographic census and disease assessment was conducted in 2007 and 2015 in three Tennessee populations of the dioecious shrub, Buckleya distichophylla (Santalaceae). Population sizes were relatively stable over time and plant heights and numbers of stems per clump were similar among populations. Seedlings were present in all populations, where they represented 14–19% of individuals. Two populations had an equal male:female sex ratio, but a third population was male-biased. Nonflowering individuals comprised 33–41% of individuals in a population. The majority of plants in all populations had high vigor. Spatial analyses revealed clusters of seedlings in two populations and a cluster of low-vigor plants in one population. Cronartium appalachianum, a rust fungus dependent upon Pinus virginiana and B. distichophylla as primary and alternate hosts, respectively, was present in all populations with prevalences on B. distichophylla of 19–29%, but there was no spatial clustering of disease in populations. The tree species nearest to B. distichophylla varied among populations with Tsuga canadensis predominant in one population, T. caroliniana in another, and P. virginiana in the third. Buckleya distichophylla in proximity to P. virginiana had a higher than expected prevalence of C. appalachianum infection.
ABSTRACT Herbivory is common on the federally endangered Clematis morefieldii (Ranunculaceae), but little is known about its effect on reproductive output. Over 3 yr, we applied the insecticide Sevin (0.26% carbaryl) or water (as a control) to 40 plants (20 per treatment) every 3 wk during the growing season. Herbivores destroyed fewer flower buds on insecticide-treated plants (18.4% fewer in 2010, 45.6% fewer in 2011, 39.7% fewer in 2012), but fruit production increased 3.7- fold on insecticide-treated plants only in 2011. High rainfall during peak flowering/fruiting (April– June) influenced the effectiveness of treatments by boosting achene production in 2011. We compared the amounts of vegetative herbivory (vertebrate browse damage, invertebrate browse damage, piercing-sucking herbivore damage, or leaf miner damage) within each year. Both vertebrate and invertebrate browse damage were significantly greater (1.2- to 2.2-fold) on control plants for all three years. Piercing-sucking herbivory was greater (25–40% more) on control plants during most of the growing season for all three years. Vertebrate damage was more frequent on insecticide-treated plants (25–40% greater) during 2012. During high rainfall years, invertebrate herbivory reduced reproductive output, either directly by attacking flower buds/flowers or indirectly by vegetative herbivory that reduces resources available for reproduction. Insecticide use during years of high insect infestation could be a viable option for managers seeking to increase seed output by this rare plant.
Systematics—Sabrina Y.S. Sewell and Wendy B. Zomlefer
Ecology—Katherine E. Culatta and Jonathan L. Horton
The Richard and Minnie Windler Award recognizes the authors of the best systematic botany paper published in Castanea during the previous year. For 2014, authors of two papers were selected as winners: Sabrina Y.S. Sewell and Wendy B. Zomlefer (Figure 1) for their work entitled ‘‘Floristics of Piedmont Gabbro Upland Depression Forests in Jasper County, Georgia’’ (Castanea 79:195–220) and Katherine E. Culatta (Figure 2) and Jonathan L. Horton (Figure 3) for their work entitled ‘‘Physiological Response of Southern Appalachian High-Elevation Rock Outcrop Herbs to Reduced Cloud Immersion’’ (Castanea 79:182–194).
Sewell and Zomlefer investigated the floristic diversity of a distinctive plant community known as the Piedmont Gabbro Upland Depression Forest. Over the course of this project, they did floristic studies on three study sites and documented 541 vascular plant species, including five species considered rare in the state of Georgia.
Sabrina Y.S. Sewell finished her M.S. in Biology at the University of Georgia in 2013. Wendy B. Zomlefer is an Associate Professor and Curator of the Herbarium at the University of Georgia. Her research focus includes plant systematics and taxonomy in the Melanthiaceae and floristic surveys in Georgia and neighboring states.
Culatta and Horton investigated physiological responses of rock outcrop specialists to changes in cloud immersion. In their experiment, they discovered some ability of their test species, cliff saxifrage and granite dome goldenrod, to adapt to changing climatic conditions, including less cloud immersion, a condition these plants may actually face in the future.
Katherine E. Culatta finished her B.S. in Biology at University of North Carolina Asheville in 2013. Jonathan L. Horton is an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of North Carolina Asheville where his research focuses on plant physiological ecology.
—Brian R. Keener,
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
University of West Alabama,
Chair, Windler Award Committee 2015.