CBCN Newsletter
Incorporating Plant Collections Newsletter: Canada

Volume 3, Number 2, July, 1998

RENEW and Recovery of Plant Species at Risk

Lisa Twolan
Biologist, Endangered Species Division, Canadian Wildlife Service, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H3

Introduction

In 1988, almost a decade after COSEWIC (Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada) began listing Canada's species* at risk, a national recovery strategy was developed and established by the Wildlife Ministers' Council of Canada. The strategy was named RENEW (Recovery of Nationally Endangered Wildlife) and the concept behind it was to bring agencies, organizations and individuals interested in species recovery together to work towards common goals using a common process. The strategy led to the establishment of the RENEW Committee and associated national recovery program. RENEW oversees the creation of recovery teams and the development of recovery plans for the species that are most at risk, while each partner remains responsible for the management of species in its jurisdiction. Though the original RENEW strategy was intended for all extirpated, endangered and threatened species, RENEW has focused its efforts on terrestrial vertebrates over the past decade. Recovery planning is expanding into other taxonomic groups (e.g. beluga whale, Banff Springs snail, tallgrass prairie communities, Atlantic coastal plain flora) and there are presently three plant recovery teams that have used or are using the RENEW guidelines to develop national plant recovery plans.

RENEW's mandate has the following five national objectives:

• No endangered species will be allowed to become extirpated or extinct

• No new species will be allowed to become threatened or uplisted to endangered

• When and where possible, extirpated species will be reintroduced to Canada

• Recovery plans will be prepared for all threatened and endangered species

• Recovery programs will be initiated, where feasible, to work towards moving species from threatened, endangered, or extirpated status

The RENEW Committee consists of the provincial and territorial wildlife directors, and representatives from three national conservation organizations (Canadian Nature Federation, Canadian Wildlife Federation and World Wildlife Fund Canada). The RENEW Committee is chaired by the Director General of the Canadian Wildlife Service, David Brackett, and is supported by three subcommittees: the Priorities and Recovery Teams Subcommittee, the Recovery Plans Subcommittee and the Information Committee. A RENEW Secretariat, based at the Canadian Wildlife Service in Ottawa, serves as a link among the RENEW committees, the recovery teams and the public.

RENEW is closely tied to COSEWIC. Once a species is designated as extirpated, endangered or threatened by COSEWIC, the RENEW process begins. If the species in question warrants recovery efforts, a team is formed, and a plan is developed. Once the plan has been approved it is implemented in conjunction with responsible jurisdictions and interested organizations and individuals. After five years, the plan is re-evaluated and updated as required.

Recovery Teams represent the best technical expertise available for the species in question and are composed of experts from responsible jurisdictions, non governmental organizations, universities and non-government experts. The team is chaired by an individual whom team members agree is most appropriate. Often but not always the chair is a representative from one of the responsible jurisdictions. The core of RENEW is its network of recovery teams across Canada. Teams develop the plans, coordinate plan implementation and monitor recovery progress. They are also responsible for assessing the effectiveness of recovery plans and producing revised plans as required.

When the RENEW Strategy was written in 1988, it was agreed that RENEW would focus its efforts on terrestrial vertebrates with the intent that other taxonomic groups would be targeted through time. By March 1997, there were 46 terrestrial vertebrate species listed as extirpated, endangered and threatened by COSEWIC. Over the past decade, plans have been approved by RENEW for 19 species including such species as the swift fox, harlequin duck, peregrine falcon, northern cricket frog and Blanding's turtle (Nova Scotia population). Plans for seventeen other species are currently being prepared, plans are on hold for seven species and teams are required for five more species.

The primary objective of a recovery plan is to provide a course of action that, if implemented, will lead to an improvement in the status of the species. A plan should do more than provide background information on recovery; it should guide all research and management for the species in Canada. A specific recovery plan format is used by all teams as a guide in developing recovery plans. Each plan has three main sections. The first section provides species background and status information. It typically contains information such as the factors contributing to its threatened or endangered status, the species' role in the ecosystem and the recovery potential of the species. The second section includes the recovery goal, objectives, strategies, outline of recovery tasks and provides details and justification for the proposed tasks. Finally, the plan includes an Implementation Schedule. The schedule prioritizes the recovery tasks, associates a cost with each action and designates the agency, group and/or individual responsible for carrying out each action.

Plant Recovery Efforts

There are currently various plant recovery efforts underway in Canada, including the Tallgrass Prairie Communities Recovery Plan that was recently produced by World Wildlife Fund Canada and work in Nova Scotia to recover the Atlantic coastal plain flora. In addition, three recovery teams have contacted RENEW in the past year concerning recovery plan development for four plant species at risk in Canada. The RENEW guidelines have been given to the teams and the plans are at various stages of development. The remainder of this article will highlight these recovery efforts which target the wood poppy, red mulberry, Long's braya and Fernald's braya.

The wood poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum; Figure 1) is a perennial herb that is found in eastern North America in rich deciduous woodland habitat and boasts large yellow flowers in early spring. This species was listed as endangered by COSEWIC in 1993, due primarily to the fact that there are only a few hundred plants in two confirmed colonies in Ontario (Bowles and Oldham 1993). This species appears to be at the extreme limit of its northern range and its long term existence in Canada will depend on maintenance of the known population. The Wood Poppy team is chaired by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and is composed of representatives from the local Conservation Authority, the community, non-governmental groups and a non-government species expert. The draft plan was recently completed by Dr. Jane Bowles, species expert and team member, on behalf of the recovery team and submitted to RENEW in early 1998. It is currently out for review. The plan's draft goal is to conserve wood poppy populations in Canada by securing existing populations. This will be done by primarily protecting and improving the existing habitat but also by understanding more about aspects of the species such as dispersal and eco-physiology (Bowles et al. in prep).

The red mulberry (Morus rubra) is Canada's only native mulberry. It occurs in rich moist woods and grows to 20 meters in height. It was listed as threatened by COSEWIC in 1987. The listing decision was based on three primary factors: the tree occurred as extant populations in only 6 sites in the Carolinian Zone in Ontario, displayed low reproductive success and the species was subject to genetic swamping via hybridization with the introduced white mulberry tree (Ambrose 1987). More intensive searching efforts since the status report was produced leaves the number of populations still at only 8 sites in Canada (Ambrose et al. in draft). The recovery team is chaired by Dr. John Ambrose, a species expert with the Metro Toronto Zoo and its members include federal and provincial government representatives, university researchers and non-governmental experts. The plan is in development and outlines a draft goal to conserve and restore functioning metapopulations of Red Mulberry in the two regions of its occurrence in southern Ontario and thereby facilitate the down-listing of its COSEWIC status (Ambrose et al. in prep).

Recovery planning is underway for Long's braya (Braya longii) and Fernald's braya (Braya fernaldii), both of which are endemic to Canada and found only in Newfoundland. These species were listed as endangered and threatened respectively by COSEWIC in 1997. Long's braya is found only along the Strait of Belle Isle whereas Fernald's braya occurs at 15 known locations on the northern half of the Great Northern Peninsula (Meades 1997a, Meades 1997b). Both species occur in limestone barrens and are most threatened by gravel quarrying and the removal of gravel to build roads (Meades 1987a, Meades 1987b). Recovery efforts for these species are being led by Dr. Luise Hermanutz of Memorial University, who, along with colleagues, is conducting relevant field work this summer. A recovery plan that will outline the strategies to protect and recover both of these braya species is presently in development. Dr. Hernamutz and Dr. Henry Mann of Memorial University are co-chairs of the recovery team and team membership includes government representatives, species experts and members of the community. This summer researchers at Memorial are conducting research on species distribution and population dynamics.

Conclusion

Since RENEW was established in 1988, the program has significantly contributed to the larger-scaled effort of conserving and preserving Canada's wildlife and wild areas. In fostering partnerships with a wide range of agencies, groups, and individuals from both the public and private sectors, and by maintaining science as its basis, the benefits of Canada's national program for species at risk go far beyond the field of species recovery. RENEW and its associated subcommittees, teams and Secretariat have gained a wealth of information on national recovery planning over the past decade. This knowledge base will be used to adapt and improve the national recovery planning system as recovery needs change through time. RENEW has primarily focused on single species recovery planning and on terrestrial vertebrates. Through time, RENEW will likely include more plans that have multi-species and ecosystem approaches and more plans for species in additional taxonomic groups such as molluscs and insects.

* throughout this text, species is defined as any indigenous species, sub-species, variety or geographically defined population of wild fauna or flora

Literature Cited

Ambrose, J.D. 1987. Status Report on Red Mulberry (Morus rubra) in Canada. COSEWIC, Ottawa.

Ambrose, J.D et al. in prep. National Recovery Plan for Red Mulberry (Morus rubra L.).

Bowles, J.M. and M. Oldham. 1993. Status Report on the Wood Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllem) in Canada. COSEWIC, Canada.

Bowles, J.M et al. in prep. National Recovery Plan for the Wood Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllem).

Meades, S.J. 1997a. Status Report on Long's Braya (Braya longii) in Canada. COSEWIC, Ottawa.

Meades, S.J. 1997b. Status Report on Fernald's Braya (Braya fernaldii) in Canada. COSEWIC, Ottawa.

High-Tech Conservation Effort Begins In PEI

Paul Stewart
Abiogen Environmental Services
Charlottetown, PE

If all goes well, by 1999, some rare plants on Prince Edward Island will be a little less rare. A project to propagate ten of the rarest wild plants has been undertaken by the Island Nature Trust, a non-profit organization which acquire and manage natural areas for conservation purposes. With the help of the Trust, Abiogen Environmental Services will attempt to create hundreds of each species by plant tissue culture, to be hardened-off and planted out in appropriate protected areas.

"The goal of this project is not to turn rare plants into common ones," points out Kate MacQuarrie, director of the Nature Trust, "but rather to stabilize populations, so if some individuals or one of the population 'pockets' is lost because of human or natural causes, the plants will not be extirpated." In past years, MacQuarrie's group has successfully enhanced forest and sand dune areas, as well as transplanted many rare bog species from areas slated for development. So far as she knows, this is the first time tissue culture has been used for rare plant conservation in Canada.

The main advantage of tissue culture, or "micropropagation", is that only small amounts of tissue need be removed from the endangered plant, as compared to stripping the plant of seeds, transplanting whole plants, or removing whole stems for cuttings. As well, since tissue culture is done in a sterile environment, the plants produced are free from disease. The main concern, however, is to avoid "cloning" hundreds of identical plants, which would make the population weaker genetically, and more susceptible to disease. Instead, small amounts of meristem tissue (found at the end of growing shoots) will be removed from as many plants as possible, ensuring the maximum amount of genetic mix in each new population.

Among the plants selected for propagation are the St. Lawrence Aster (Aster laurentianus), the only PEI plant on the COSEWIC endangered species list, and two close relatives of the Provincial flower, the Yellow (Cypripedium calceolus) and Showy (C. reginae) Lady's Slippers. As well, two wetland species will be attempted: the bog birch (Betula pumila) and bog orchid (Arethusa bulbosa). Others include the wood anemone (Anemone canadensis), and Pinweed (Lechea maritima), reported as rare across Canada. Anyone with information about the natural history and growth requirements of these species is encouraged to contact one of the project partners:

Island Nature Trust
PO Box 265
Charlottetown, PEI C1A 7K4
tel: (902) 892-7513

Abiogen Environmental Services
Marshfield Manse
RR#3 Charlottetown
PEI C1A 7J7
tel: (902) 566-4078

Dr. Chris Lacroix
Department of Biology
University of PEI,
550 University Avenue,
Charlottetown, PE C1A 4P3
tel. (902)-566-0974

IUCN Releases 1997 Red List of Threatened Plants

At simultaneous press conferences in Washington, London, Cape Town and Canberra on 8 April, 1998, IUCN, the World Conservation Union, introduced the 1997 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants. Long awaited as the global reference list of plant species at risk, the IUCN Red List details known threats to the survival of nearly 34,000 vascular plants.

Compilation of the Red List was a 20-year effort involving a cooperative coalition of non-governmental organizations, museums, botanical gardens and scientists around the world, according to the IUCN press releases issued in April.

Among the conclusions reached by analysis of the distribution of threatened plant taxa:

• 33,798 of the roughly 270,000 known species of vascular plants are now at risk

• 91% of taxa at risk are each found within a single country only (i.e., 91% are endemic taxa)

• a large number of threatened plants are known to have medicinal uses. 75% of species in the yew family are threatened, for example.

• 14% of species in the rose family are threatened; 32% of the lily family and 32% of the iris family are also threatened

For more information contact Ricardo Bayon, IUCN, at tel. (202) 797-5454, FAX (202) 797-5461

Native Plant Gardening Ethics

Lorraine Johnson
President, Canadian Wildflower Society 

(Lorraine is also the author of five books, the most recent of which is Grow Wild! Native Plant Gardening in Canada and Northern United States, published by Random House)

There's no doubt that interest in native plant gardening has exploded over the past few years. Specialist nurseries are popping up, books are being published, gardening clubs and organizations are hosting talks and seminars--in short, the gardening public is receptive to gardening with nature and including indigenous species in their gardens.

But along with this newfound interest comes a profound and urgent responsibility. Organizations that promote a conservation ethic must be particularly vigilant that their efforts to "get the public on side" include education efforts focused on the ethics of native plant gardening.

As an organization dedicated to the "study, conservation, restoration and cultivation of North America's native flora," the Canadian Wildflower Society has developed a list of "Native Plant Gardener's Guidelines." The guidelines constitute the ethical foundation on which the CWS is based, and we ask that you circulate them widely. With all of the interest in native plant gardening, it's imperative that gardeners follow ethical practice when they garden with native plants. The health of wild plant populations depends on it.

Native Plant Gardener's Guidelines

1. Do not disrupt native plant communities.

2. Obtain native plants from seed, garden or nursery.

3. Buy only wildflowers and ferns certified by the vendors as "Nursery Propagated."

4. Use plants and seeds which have originated in your immediate bioregion. Such plants and seeds are best adapted to the local climate, soil, predators, pollinators and disease.

5. Give preference to bioregionally native plant species in your garden, rather than naturalized or exotic species. The latter group may escape to wild habitats and interfere with the growth and spread of native flora and fauna.

6. Promote the cultivation and propagation of bioregionally native plants as an educational and conservation measure to supplement the preservation of natural habitat.

7. Keep accurate records of any bioregionally rare flora which you are growing to increase our understanding of the biology of the species.

8. Transplant wild native flora only when the plants of a given area are officially slated for destruction (e.g., road construction, subdivisions, pipelines, golf courses, etc.). Obtain permission before transplanting.

9. Collect no more than 10% of a seed crop from the wild. Leave the rest for natural dispersal and as food for dependent organisms.

10. Use natural means of fertilizing, weed and predator control rather than synthetic chemical means.

11. Consider planting native species attractive to native fauna, especially birds, butterflies and moths uncommon to your bioregion.

12. Exercise extreme caution when studying and photographing wildflowers in order not to damage the surrounding flora and fauna.

13. Co-operate with institutions such as: arboreta, botanical gardens, museums and universities in the propagation and study of rare species.

14. Openly share your botanical knowledge with the public but ensure that native plant species or communities will not be damaged in the process. 

SOLEC 98:
Working toward development of Great Lakes indicators

The third State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference (SOLEC 98) will be held in Buffalo, New York, October 21-23, 1998. SOLEC participants are decision makers from: governments at all levels, private industry, environmental groups, First Nations/Tribes, health professionals, universities, agriculture etc. SOLEC is a working meeting where these decision makers gather to review draft material prepared for the conference. The input received at SOLEC is incorporated into the State of the Lakes report which the Parties to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (Canada and the United States) publish about 9 months after SOLEC.

What are we trying to achieve for SOLEC 98 and beyond?

The Parties have an obligation, pursuant to the Articles and Annexes of the Agreement, to report on the state of the Great Lakes and on progress toward the goals of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). The State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference was created to fulfill this obligation in part.

The first two SOLEC conferences reviewed the state of various components of the Great Lakes ecosystem through the use of indicators and a subjective assessment of "good," "fair," "improving," etc. These indicators were developed through the best judgment of the scientists involved, and some have been widely reported for several years. The Parties want to establish a consistent, easily understood suite of indicators that will objectively represent the state of major ecosystem components across all Great Lakes basins and which can be used to assess achievement of the purpose of the GLWQA. The acceptance and use of a core set of indicators will also drive data collection activities throughout the basin, so that progress under the GLWQA can be reported every two years.

The IJC has a responsibility to evaluate progress toward achieving the goals and objectives of the GLWQA. A set of indicators that is relevant to both the IJC and the Parties will prevent a dilution of monitoring effort for competing purposes, and will foster cooperation between the Parties and the IJC for the common good of the Great Lakes ecosystem. Data will be collected, commonly shared, and be made available on a timely basis. This system of a shared set of indicators will be flexible enough to expand to take into account new emerging issues.

Why is a SOLEC Indicators List important?

 The demand for high quality, relevant data concerning the health of various components of the Great Lakes ecosystem has been escalating rapidly for the past decade or so. The U.S. and Canada have spent billions of dollars and uncounted hours attempting to reverse the effects of cultural eutrophication, toxic chemical pollution, over-fishing, habitat destruction, introduced species, etc. Environmental management agencies are being asked to demonstrate that past programs have been successful and that the success of future or continuing programs will be commensurate with the resources expended (financial and personnel time). At the same time, in both countries, the amount of taxpayers dollars being devoted to Great Lakes environment issues is decreasing. The demand for high quality data, while operating with limited resources, is forcing environmental and natural resource agencies to be more selective and more efficient in the collection and analysis of data.

The most efficient data collection efforts will be those that are cost-effective and relevant to multiple users. An understanding by stakeholders about what information is necessary and sufficient to characterize the state of Great Lakes ecosystem health through the use of indicators, and to measure progress toward ecosystem goals, would facilitate efficient monitoring and reporting programs.

Other subjects to be discussed at SOLEC 98

In SOLEC 96, the idea of a Biodiversity Investment Area was first proposed in the Land by the Lakes paper. The idea there was to identify high quality areas in the terrestrial nearshore for protection. In a sense, these areas were at the other end of the spectrum from Areas of Concern. In SOLEC 98 we will be presenting papers on Biodiversity Investment Areas for the terrestrial nearshore, coastal wetlands, and open waters.

SOLEC 98 will also have an update on our gas gauges from SOLEC 94 and 96.

Although the invitation list for SOLEC 98 is limited, inquiries concerning participation may be directed to:

Harvey Shear - 416-739-4704

OR

Paul Horvatin - 312-353-3612

or by visiting our SOLEC web site  

http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/solec/

Invasive Plants Alert

1997-98 Report

 The 1997-98 annual report summarizing activities of the Invasive Plants Alert Program is now available at the Invasive Plants of Canada web site: http://infoweb.magi.com/~ehaber/ipcan.html.

The Alert Program was established through funding by the Biodiversity Convention Office, Environment Canada, to promote a better understanding of the impact of invasive plants on Canadian ecosystems and to promote local initiatives to monitor invasives and establish control projects. During the first year of its establishment, 25 naturalist groups and a number of unaffiliated individuals have responded to the call for participation in the Alert initiative, in large measure due to the promotional assistance of the Canadian Nature Federation. The primary emphasis to date has been in establishing contacts and gaining an understanding of the kinds of local and regional activities that are already under way and in promoting an interest in undertaking projects. The coordinator of the program welcomes brief information articles on local activities that are being undertaken to address the problem of the spread of invasive plants or of reports of exotics of particular concern. These are posted on the Alert Bulletin portion of the web site. It is through these examples and the promotion of activities to monitor and control exotic plants that we hope to encourage increased numbers of naturalist clubs and individuals to undertake activities to slow or stop the spread of major invasive species in natural areas.

Of particular importance in the fight against the spread of potentially harmful exotics is the identification of species that have just recently become introduced in an area. Through diligent monitoring such species can be apprehended and, hopefully, eradicated before they become firmly established. The 1997-98 annual report includes brief descriptions of two aquatics, hydrilla and water chestnut, that are of potential concern as invaders that presently occur just south of the US-Canada border. These have been placed on the Canadian Plant Invaders Alert List.

Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata), a rooted submersed aquatic with numerous whorls of small leaves, has become widely established and forms dense beds in the waters within the southeastern United States where it is considered to be a troublesome weed. It has already found its way northward to a disjunct site in Washington State and is also found in a pond in Connecticut. Since this species lives as far north as 50 degrees north latitude in its native habitats in Poland and the former Soviet Union, there is concern that it may be able to invade Canadian waters.

Water-chestnut (Trapa natans) is also a rooted aquatic but one that forms rosettes of floating leaves with inflated leafstalks. This is a plant native to warm temperate Europe, Africa and Asia. At present, this species occurs mainly in the northeastern United States where it produces prolific growths of floating plants that are having a considerable impact in some wetlands. It is a prohibited exotic plant in a number of states. This species is already close to Canadian waters due to its presence in the Lake Champlain drainage area of Vermont and is also found in Lake Ontario at Sodus Bay, New York, where it has been the subject of annual mechanical control since the 1960s.

Information on verified sightings of these species or other exotics that are spreading into various regions in Canada where they were not previously found should be reported to the coordinator of the Invasive Plants of Canada Project:

Auditor General's Office Releases Report Critical of Canada's Biodiversity Progress

Brian Emmett, Canada's Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, tabled his second annual report on 26 May, 1998 in the House of Commons.

 Quoted in a press release from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada, Mr Emmett said "Vision and leadership are the two essential ingredients for tackling environmental challenges that face a government. While Canada has demonstrated vision, it is failing in implementing it. What really concerns me is that far too often, the government is not keeping the promises it makes both to Canadians and to the world."

The report covers several critical areas of Canada's performance in international agreements, including climate change, biodiversity, environmental assessment and sustainable development. Chapter 4 of the larger report is entitled Canada's Biodiversity Clock is Ticking.

The report is critical of Canada's slow progress on making good the promise contained in the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy, Canada's Response to the Convention on Biological Diversity. However, the criticism is also highly constructive and lays out a clear set of objectives and steps needed to get on with the job.

The auditing team carried out broad-based consultations with several stakeholder-groups in addition to comparing the printed goals of the CBD and CBS. For example, the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity has issued lists of necessary actions for individual nations to bring their policies and practices in line with the CBD. The auditors compared Canada's performance to recommendations presented by the Conference of Parties, which includes schedules for achieving specific goals, and recommendations for creating explicit timetables and other objective measures of performance.

The full text of the report may be read on the World Wide Web site of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada:

  http://www.oag-bvg.gc.ca

Editor's Note: I asked Andrew Taylor for the following short note on his observations of variation in Trillium grandiflorum because of the implications this form of variation poses for the conservation of biological diversity. In the case of a naturally occurring infection (or is it a symbiosis?), how much attention should we be paying to the conservation of this non-genetic variation? An interesting problem for biodiversity conservation: when does an infection become an ecological relationship?

Unusual Forms of Trillium grandiflorum

Many spectacular floral aberrations are exhibited by a population of Trillium grandiflorum within the highland Creek valley of eastern Toronto. Most, if not all, of these apparent mutations appear to be the result of a common mycoplasm infection, and (in blatant disregard for the "ABC" rules of homeotic mutations) are not under genetic control. Similar 'mutations' are frequently encountered and have been described elsewhere (Case and Case 1997; Jim Pringle, Personal Communication).

A green stripe down the centre of the petals is the simplest aberration; however, in most flowers the petals are almost entirely green. In nearly all plants, the anthers are about twice their normal size. The petals may be undulate or adopt a sepal-like shape. In many, whorls of floral organs are repeated, variously transformed, or missing altogether. Distinct categories of mutations do not exist, but some of the more common forms encountered in the Highland Creek population include:

1. flowers containing additional whorls, i.e., double or multiple whorls of sepals, petals, anthers or carpels

2. flowers in which one ore more of the stamens or carpels of a single whorl have apparently undergone a developmental switch and been partially transformed to leaves or petals (many of these odd hybrid organs still manage to generate pollen or ovules)

3. flowers containing additional leaf-like organs interior to the carpels

4. flowers containing alternate whorls of stamens and green petals

5. flowers composed entirely of sepals (3 or more whorls)

6. plants in which the flower has been entirely replaced by several whorls of petiolate leaves, rather than a single whorl of sessile leaves (in one such plant the filament of a single stamen was replaced by a 6 cm long continuation of the stem, while the remaining stamens of the whorl aborted)

7. diminutive plants in which the flowers are entirely green but of normal morphology (encountered rarely)

8. 'flowers' comprised of 2 whorls of sepals and 3-5 whorls of greenish petals. The innermost whorl contains only two petals, and no stamens or carpels are present

9. variation in the number of stamens (3 or 4 instead of 6) or carpels (2 instead of 3) was common.

10. Variation in the number of petals, sepals or leaves was observed only rarely. One such plant consisted of 2 leaves, 2 petals, 2 sepals, 6 stamens and 3 carpels. A second plant was comprised of 3 leaves, 2 petals, 4 stamens and 2 carpels. Finally a third plant possessed 4 leaves, 4 sepals, 4 petals, 8 anthers and 4 carpels. In each of these plants, the morphology of the organs was normal and their position alternated between adjacent whorls. These forms likely result from damage to the meristem. However, the especially high frequency with which stamen number is reduced in green-petaled plants suggests that, at least in this case, the mycoplasm may play a role.

Despite the common occurrence of these 'mutations', little scholarly research has been undertaken to determine if these forms are stable. Case and Case (1997) suggest that while some forms may remain unchanged, others become progressively deformed each year, shrink in size and eventually die. Indeed, extreme deformities appear to have become more prevalent in the Highland Creek population over the past two years.

Kazakhstan Workshop Report: Information Technology in Botanic Gardens of the Former Soviet Union

The development of computer data bases as tools for managing botanic garden collection information is a significant improvement in the ability to monitor and utilize collections for conservation purposes. Developing new attitudes and acceptance of computer systems where none have been in use previously was one of the main themes of a series of three workshops presented by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) for botanic gardens in the former Soviet Union, and supported by the Darwin Initiative, the United Kingdom's fund for support to biodiversity projects.

I was invited to help in the presentation of the third workshop, which was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, between May 24 and 28, 1998. The most significant element of the workshop was the presentation of BGCI's own software for botanic gardens record keeping, "BG-RECORDER," which is now available in a Russian version. BG-RECORDER is a stand-alone program which was prepared using the "Advanced Revelations" relational data base program. It makes full use of the ITF, or International Transfer Format, for botanical gardens specimens records, and is able to work well on any IBM-PC-compatible class of microcomputer. BGCI is now preparing an enhanced Windows-95 compatible version of BG-RECORDER.

The workshop was hosted by the Main Botanic Garden of the Institute of Botany and Plant Introduction of the National Academy of Sciences of Kazakhstan, under the direction of Dr Sardarbek Abiev.

Attending the workshop were representatives of botanic gardens from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan, and Siberia. Previous workshops in the series have been held in Kiev, Ukraine and Petrozovodsk, Russia.

The difficulties of obtaining financial and computer resources for gardens in the former Soviet Union became an important theme of the workshop. It's one thing to be able to sing the praises of good software like BG-RECORDER - it's something else when the institutions involved might have few prospects of finding resources with which to enter the information age.

The withdrawal of the Soviet system has left many of the social and academic institutions in these countries under very stressful resourcing arrangements. In Kazakhstan, for example, a growing, cash-based market economy (largely based on prospecting for mineral resources) has not yet been engaged to support public institutions on a large scale. Several of the workshop sessions ended in discussions of how botanic gardens in western countries were seeking development and operating funding.

The workshop was organized by BGCI and it's Russian Regional Division. Coordinating the workshop and presenting most of the information on BG-RECORDER and the ITF was Peter Wyse Jackson, Director General of BGCI. Fiona Dennis, BGCI's Project Manager, made presentations on using HTML and Web pages for gardens. I gave presentations on the Internet and the Convention on Biological Diversity. Practical organization was handled largely by Igor Smironv, head of the Russian BGCI division. Translation was provided by Tatiana Kharkina of Petrozavodsk and Marshia Rabotnova of Moscow.

For more information on BGCI or BG-RECORDER, contact:

Dr Peter Wyse Jackson
Botanic Gardens Conservation International
Descanso House
199 Kew Road
Richmond, Surrey
United Kingdom

or visit the BGCI Web Site at:

http://www.kew.org/BGCI

An Introduction to the Medicinal Botanical Garden of the Second Military Medical University, China

Qin Luping
Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University,
Shanghai 200433, China

 There is a Medicinal Botanical Garden on the campus of the Second Military Medical University located in the northeast suburb of Shanghai, China. This garden was established in 1956 with its area about 3500 sq. metres.

 It prominently features traditional Chinese medicinal plants. More than 750 species of medicinal plants subordinating to 351 genera of 152 families have been cultivated. Following are exemplified some of the important plants: Ginkgo biloba, Polygonum multiflorum, Achyranthes bidentata, Aconitum carmichaeli, Epimedium sagittatum, Corydalis yanhusuo, Isatis indigotica, Sanguiscrba officinalis, Magnolia officinalis, Eucommia ulmoides, Cassia tora, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Astragalus membranaceus var. mongolicus, Phellodendron amurense, Zanthoxylum planispium, Euphorbia pekinensis, Tripterygium wildfordii, Acanthopanax spinosus, Bupleurum scorzonerifolium, Changium smyrnioides, Ligusticum chuanxiong, Cornus officinalis, Ligustrum lucidum, Rauvolfia verticillata, Prunella vulgaris, Mentha arvensis, Salvia militiorrhiza, Datura metel, Lycium chinense, Digitalis purpurea, Rehmannia glutinosa, Scrophularia ningpoensis, Lonicera japonica, Momordica cochinchinensis, Platycodon grandiflorum, Artemisia capillaris, Artemisia annual, Silybum marianum, Pinellia ternata, Stamina japonica, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Fritillaria thunbergii, Curculigo orchioides, Lycoris radiata, Bletilla striata, Dendrobium nobile. Many of those are rare and endangered plants in China.

All the plants in this medicinal botanical garden are arranged according to the A. Engler System, cultivated by genera and families, and they are signed by scientific name, family and medicinal usage. This garden mainly serves the teachers and students in the teaching of Pharmaceutical Botany and Pharmacognosy. Sufficient fresh experimental materials are supplied from it. In this garden students could learn the knowledge of taxonomy and identification of plants after class. This garden has also developed into an attractive scenery spot on the campus, offering teachers and students with great amenity.

 There is also a greenhouse in this garden with its area about 200 sq. m., where more than 150 species of tropical or subtropical plants are well cultivated, such as Monstera deliciosa, Michelia alba, Musa basjoo, Clivia miniata, Zantedeschia aethiopica, Epiphyllum oxypetalum, Murraya paniculata, Aglaia odorata and Datura arborea.

 A statue of "Li Shizheng" has been set in this garden in memory of the most famous ancient Chinese herbalist Li Shushing, the author of Compendium of Materia Medica (Herbal), who lived in 1518~1593 AD.

 This garden is combined with the Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy in this university, and molded as an integral institution. Applying multidisplinal and comprehensive research methods, various research projects have been carried on as follows:

 1. Conservation of germplasm resources, exploration and utilization, introduction and cultivation of important medicinal plants.

 2. Utilization and improvement of vegetation resources.

 3. Survival environment and conservation of rare and endangered species.

 4. Active constituents and potential uses of medicinal plants in pharmacy and health.

 5. The classification, identification, exploration and utilization of medicinal plants.

 6. Analytical chemistry in relation to plant classification for exploitation of plant resources and systematic taxonomy as well.

 In the department of Pharmacognosy there is a herbarium where more than 20000 species of medicinal plants and thousands of samples of Chinese crude drugs are well preserved, and some of them are on display for the visitors.

Since the 1980s, progress has also been made in strengthening the international exchanges and scientific cooperation. Exchanges of seeds, plants, herbarium specimens and publications with overseas scientists has been established and has been going on actively.

Scientists from more than 20 counties such as Canada, US, Japan, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia and Belgium have visited this garden. It is expected that more exchange and cooperation with overseas botanic gardens and arboreta could be established.

Qin Luping, Ph. D.
Deputy-director of Dept. of Pharmacognosy
College of Pharmacy
Second Military Medical University
325 Guohe Road
Shanghai 200433
China

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And More News from China...

The Chinese news agency Xinhua has recently released several news items on plant conservation. A press release on June 5, 1998, details an annual report on the state of biodiversity protection in China produced by the State Environmental Protection Administration.

The report cites the creation of new zoos, botanical gardens, nature reserves and other protected areas as proof that positive things are happening within the earth's most populous country. The report indicates that China now has built a total of 111 botanical gardens, 171 zoos, 870 forestry parks and about 920 nature reserves, plus more than 200 breeding centres for endangered animals.

Also released on June 5 by Xinhua was a story on the relocation of 53 endangered plant species within Guizhou Province to a new botanical garden in Longli County. According to the news release, technicians from the botanical garden travel into 26 nature preserves to collect seeds from endangered plants and propagate them in the garden.

In a similar story released on June 9, three farmers in China's northwestern Shaanxi Province are credited with establishing a 200 hectare botanical garden in the Maowusu Desert. Xu Dengtang, Zhang Qingyuan and Zhang Jingui are credited with starting the garden in 1995. According to the Xinhau story, 50 of China's 389 endangered plant species have been brought into the garden for cultivation. 

New Park in South Africa Protects Local Plant Biodiversity

 South African President Nelson Mandela announced on June 5, World environment Day, that the newly-created Cape Peninsula National Park will be designated as a "Gift to the World," according to press coverage on 9 June by ENN, the Environmental News Network. The "Gift to the World" concept is part of the "Living Planet Campaign of World Wildlife Fund. Cape Peninsula National Park protects habitats from the Table Mountain area to the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point. More than 2,285 plant species are found within the park, as well as important habitat associations and several threatened and endangered animal species.

Announcements

New Web Site for U of T Algae and Cyanobacteria Culture Collection

There is now a web site for the University of Toronto Culture Collection of Algae and Cyanobacteria at:

http://www.botany.utoronto.ca/utcc

for more information contact:

Judy Acreman, Department of Botany, University of Toronto Toronto, Ontario M5S 3B2 TEL: +1 416 978 3641 FAX: +1 416 978 5878