Paul,
Its certainly true with regard to where botanists live, work and holiday
etc., but in a small country with so many universities, very few of which are
involved with botany, I would think it would be difficult to see an effect of
university location.
But for botanists, it has to be true.
Active botanists are the only people who record plants. Plants in the most
difficult groups are recorded generally by the most competant and able
botanists who by implication are much fewer in number. If you look at the
distribution maps in some of the BSBI Handbooks, you will see the general areas where
the authors live.
Brian.
Hello,
The south-east of England has the greatest incidence of reported
tornadoes in the world. I put this down to the density of its
population.
Seashore life recording and even the choice of preferred sites has
less to do with ecology and special interest than convenience and
attractiveness of the location. The biological stations were built
where fishery interests were most important.
Proximity to English Nature offices also influence recording.
Shoreham is well botanised (says Betty Bishop) but that has got
nothing to do with Universities. Might have something to do with
botanist early in the 20th century?
University car parks probably record more rare species than other car
parks. Even when they want to build on them! Even when the "rare"
species were deliberately introduced!
Cheers
Andy Horton
glaucus@hotmail.com
Adur Valley (West Sussex VC13) Nature Notes
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Adur2006.html=20
Adur Valley Nature Notes: October 2006
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Oct2006.html
Adur Valley & Downs Gallery
http://www.flickr.com/groups/adur/pool/
View and upload your Sussex Wildlife Images to:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/sussexwildlife/
--- In UKBotany@yahoogroups.com, "paul_mabbott"
wrote:
Hi all,
Its certainly true for some of the more difficult to identify vascular
plants, even in the UK. The distribution of Carex spp. and
particularly Carex hybrids, is definitely related to the places where
"famous names" such as Arthur Chater etc. have visited.
I'd suggest to John (Hi John) that he is much more likely to find
"new" sites and species in Herefordshire, where there will be many
fewer botanists than the Bristol region (partly as a result of Bristol
University, and its long history of famous botanists).
cheers Darrel (presently in Bath, but from N.W. Herefordshire)
Original abstract below:
"Abstract
Aim To investigate the distribution of local flowering plant species
richness in areas surrounding American universities.
Methods Species richness in university counties was compared with
neighbouring counties. Data were derived from Synthesis of the North
American Flora (http://www.phylosystems.com/prepublication).
Probabilities of the resultant distribution were calculated, and the
results were also simulated.
Results In almost every case there were more species reported in the
university county than in its neighbours. Several possible
explanations were considered. We conclude that the key element is the
presence of botanists in these counties who have, apparently, paid
more attention to plants near at hand, and found more species of them
there.
Main conclusions Ecologists must be aware that numerical data that
appear very solid, collected over many decades, may represent not only
the qualities of 'nature' but also something of the collectors of the
data."
_____
From: UKBotany@yahoogroups.com [mailto:UKBotany@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf
Of Darrel Watts
Sent: 11 October 2006 12:52
To: UKBotany@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [UKBotany] Re: The botanist effect
.
Limonium procerum subsp. procerum is the one shown from this region in the
New Atlas of the british & Irish flora. Rodney
_____
From: UKBotany@yahoogroups.com [mailto:UKBotany@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf
Of JohnCrellin
Sent: 11 October 2006 13:13
To: UKBotany@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [UKBotany] Re: The botanist effect
> he is much more likely to find
"new" sites and species in Herefordshire
Thanks for the encouragement - that is what I hoped. As a relative newcomer
to serious botany I did tend to find around there that it's difficult to
find something new.
But funnily enough there is unfinished business that I got involved in - if
anyone can help pin down the species and subspecies of the Limonium
binervosum agg on the rocks in Sand Bay then I would love to hear from them.
I have quite a few relevant measurements and images but took no samples as
there are not a lot of them. The Bristol Region Flora left them at the agg.
Reply / forward from John Crellin
www.FloralWIKI.co.uk
ki.co.uk/> the new bit of
www.FloralImages.co.uk
_____
From: UKBotany@yahoogroup
[mailto:UKBotany@yahoogroup
Behalf
Of Darrel Watts
Sent: 11 October 2006 12:52
To: UKBotany@yahoogroup
Subject: [UKBotany] Re: The botanist effect
.
=4462/stime=1160567560/nc1=3848569/nc2=3848531/nc3=3>
Thanks Rodney (and Darrel).
Ian Green doesn't think the North Somerset ones have been determined
properly but "are thought to be procerum subsp procerum".
The colony I have looked at on Sand Point keys to L. procerum or parvum
(as I see it) in Stace. L. parvum can be eliminated though by looking
at the detailed description. But then the Stace keying breaks down for
the subspecies with no key description really fitting and as far as I
can see subsp. cambrense being the best fit from the detail.
I have tried contacting the family specialists but no response - maybe
because I didn't have any specimens to offer.
I started off just identifying them to binervosum in my old Rose, went
back after reading Stace to get measurements and then for various
boring personal reasons could not get back while still flowering.
See my pics of the plants at
http://www.floralimages.co.uk/plimonproce.htm and following pages...
--- In UKBotany@yahoogroups.com, "Rodney Burton"
wrote:
> Limonium procerum subsp. procerum is the one shown from this region
in the
