| BEN |
| BOTANICAL ELECTRONIC NEWS |
|---|
| ISSN 1188-603X |
| No. 546 March 12, 2020 | aceska@telus.net | Victoria, B.C. |
|---|
The USFWS Alaska Inventory and Monitoring program is seeking a volunteer to assist with summer fieldwork -- sampling a GLORIA site in the Waring Mountains on Selawik National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. GLORIA (Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine environments) is an international long-term monitoring program designed to assess climate change impacts on biological diversity in high mountain ecosystems. Fieldwork will be conducted out of a remote camp in bear country for approximately 3 weeks, accessed by helicopter. Basic duties will include helping to provide logistical support with guidance, assisting with setting up field camp, aiding in setting up sampling grids and quadrats, inventorying plant species, and aiding in assessing cover with a point intercept method. Candidates need not be an expert in plant identification, however, a general interest would be helpful. Ideal candidates will be comfortable with working in a remote location, and physically capable of walking and standing all day in a harsh exposed environment on rugged terrain. This opportunity requires a commitment from June through July. Airfare, housing, and food will be provided or reimbursed. Please contact Hunter Gravley at (907) 786-3872 or email hunter_gravley@fws.gov for more information and to request an application.
Dr. Karen Golinski will be the new Collections Curator for Bryophytes, Lichens and Fungi at the UBC Herbarium in the Beaty Biodiversity Museum (BBM), beginning on May 1st, taking on the role that Olivia Lee so ably played for more than 40 years.
Karen brings a wealth of curatorial skills and experience along with her expertise in peatland ecology and conservation biology of bryophytes. As a member of the Bryophyte and Lichen Specialist Subcommittee of COSEWIC, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, Karen provides an important voice in key decision making for these groups of species in Canada, including writing quite a few status reports for moss species over the several last years. Karen is committed to promoting our world-class collection of bryophytes for use in research and teaching, as well as in public education and outreach.
Abstract
Trans-Beringia taxa often present complex puzzles for taxonomists, a reflection of differing traditions and opinions, taxonomic approaches, and access to material from both sides of the Bering Strait. There is wide biological variation in perceived or circumscribed taxa whose populations are widespread within the regions and yet biogeographically isolated in Asia and/or America. The Claytonia arctica complex is one such example; it illustrates these issues well and has been dealt with by North American and Russian botanists in decidedly different ways. We reviewed specimens and examined the various taxonomic concepts of Claytonia arctica through time and source publications. The relationships (alignments) among taxonomic concepts are presented in a graphical format. We found that much of the confusion related to Claytonia arctica in Beringia stems from overlooking Claytonia scammaniana Hultén sensu Hultén (1939), and placing too much emphasis on the woody caudex and perennation structures, during the creation of two taxonomic concepts: Claytonia arctica Adams sensu Porsild (1974/1975) and Claytonia porsildii Jurtzev sensu Yurtsev (1981). The Claytonia arctica complex (in our current sense) is an evolutionary work in progress, resulting in partially differentiated races with much overlapping variability and intergradations of characters (particularly in Claytonia scammaniana according to our current sense) that have not reached the level of stability (i.e., individuals may still intergrade freely) usually associated with the concept of species in other arctic lineages.
PREMISE: Spore-bearing plants are capable of dispersing very long distances. However, it is not known if gene flow can prevent genetic divergence in widely distributed taxa. Here we address this issue, and examine systematic relationships at a global geographic scale for the fern genus Pteridium. METHODS: We sampled plants from 100 localities worldwide, and generated nucleotide data from four nuclear genes and two plastid regions. We also examined 2801 single nucleotide polymorphisms detected by a restriction site-associated DNA approach. RESULTS: We found evidence for two distinct diploid species and two allotetraploids between them. The "northern" species (Pteridium aquilinum) has distinct groups at the continental scale (Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America). The northern European Pteridium aquilinum subsp. pinetorum appears to involve admixture among all of these. A sample from the Hawaiian Islands contained elements of both North American and Asian Pteridium aquilinum. The "southern" species, Pteridium esculentum, shows little genetic differentiation between South American and Australian samples. Components of African genotypes are detected on all continents. CONCLUSIONS: We find evidence of distinct continental-scale genetic differentiation in Pteridium. However, on top of this is a clear signal of recent hybridization. Thus, spore-bearing plants are clearly capable of extensive long-distance gene flow; yet appear to have differentiated genetically at the continental scale. Either gene flow in the past was at a reduced level, or vicariance is possible even in the face of long-distance gene flow.
This is the second paper reporting major results from the Norwegian Entoloma project 20152017. The authors present species that are new to Norway or little known, from the following smaller clades: Caeruleopolitum, Claudopus, Entocybe, Leptonia, Prunuloides and Sphagneti. In addition, a few species taking a somewhat isolated position in our unpublished preliminary ITS tree are presented. The following species are here reported new to Norway: Entoloma cuboidoalbum, E. jahnii, E. percoelestinum, E. pseudoconferendum, E. ritae, and E. venustum. The synonymy of Entoloma mirum with the older Entoloma juniperinum, is also discussed. Entoloma porphyrocephalum, formerly described as a variety, is now raised to species level based on its phylogenetic position.
Subscriptions: http://victoria.tc.ca/mailman/listinfo/ben-l.
Send submissions to aceska@telus.net
BEN is archived at http://www.ou.edu/cas/botany-micro/ben/