Volume 20, Numbers 1 and 2

January-December 2006

Luc Brouillet, FNA president,
Université de Montréal

The FNA board of directors met in October 2005 (and October 2006), and a meeting of the Executive Committee (EXC) was held in April 2006. Additionally, numerous e-mail votes were conducted by the EXC on diverse issues relating to management of the project. During that time, in collaboration with other members of the EXC, I have been active in recruiting candidates for the board (now elected), and in particular to fill the position of co-chair of the Information Technology Committee (ITC). The establishment of the ITC has become essential for the FNAA, given the number of organizations now wishing to link their databases with ours, or to use our information in various ways. Knowledge of IT issues and a presence in IT biodiversity networks has become essential for the association.

In June, I represented the FNAA at the Compositae International Alliance (TICA) Meeting in Barcelona, Spain, where the association offered a reception in celebration of the publication of the 3 volumes of the Asteraceae in 2006. The volumes were well received by the community. A copy of the volumes was given to our host, Dr. Alfonso Susanna of the Barcelona Botanic Institute. In August, I presented a brief overview of the Asteraceae volumes at the FNA Symposium, organized by Dr. Nancy Morin, during the Botany 2006 meeting in Chico, California.

Currently, progress in volume production is still two per year, slightly slower than expected. Yet the lead editors of all volumes have made tremendous efforts to ensure a regular output. In 2007, we are convinced that volume publication will match expectations. The establishment of the various lead centers will help push volumes along at a more regular rate. Nonetheless, the lack of editors and the slow delivery by authors, often overcommitted

Like any body, the FNA board and the EXC evolve over time. Firstly, I want to thank Rich Rabeler, whose term with the EXC is expired. He has been generous with his time and efforts and the whole EXC is thankful for his contribution.

Secondly, I wish to thank two members of the board for their long commitment to the project. John McNeill served the project in many capacities, notably as chair of the project before its recent transformation. Mary Barkworth has worked on the EXC and, more importantly, has been the tireless editor of the Grass volumes, 24 and 25, the former nearing publication at this moment. We wish them the best in their future pursuits.

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CHANTICLEER FOUNDATION RENEWS PARTNERSHIP WITH FLORA OF NORTH AMERICA ASSOCIATION FOR 2007 At its recent Board Meeting the Chanticleer Foundation, which has provided core support to FNA since 2000, approved a request for $300,000 for 2007. The Chanticleer Foundation primarily has responsibility for Chanticleer, an internationally renowned and extremely beautiful pleasure garden in Wayne, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia. It also partners with a very few, select, locally and regionally important horticultural endeavors; Flora of North America has been one of its few national and international partnerships. The current support will be critically important during a year of transition, as the FNAA endeavors to attract funding from other sources to complete the project.

President's Report, (continued from page 1)

Thirdly, I would like to welcome five new members to the board: Drs. Lynn Gillespie, Geoff Levin, James Macklin, Gordon C. Tucker, and Alan S. Weakley. They have all accepted great tasks in joining us. We will need more such committed individuals before the project is completed.

Finally, I would like to thank a formidable and committed body of people who are ensuring that the FNA volumes become a reality: the members of the board. The close collaboration I have enjoyed with them over the last three years has helped to make the project a success. I look forward to more years of collaboration with them.

FLORA OF NORTH AMERICA: 2006 IN REVIEW

Nancy Morin, FNA vice president
for business and development

The Flora of North America Association has made great progress on:

1. Working toward completion of two volumes for submission to the publisher in 2006
2. Working toward completion of two or more volumes for submission in 2007
3. Recruiting editors and authors for all remaining volumes

4. Developing partnerships to make Flora of North
       America more widely accessible via the internet

5. Promoting the project within the botanical
       community and to wider audiences

6. Pursuing fundraising opportunities, an ongoing
       effort

7. Finishing strong for 2006. (Summary)

1) Volume 24, the first volume on grasses, submitted to OUP, 23 Nov 2006.--Accounts of grasses are being published in two volumes; Volume 25 was published in 2003 and treated 733 species in 783 pages. Volume 24 treats 650 species in 113 genera and 14 tribes and will also contain keys to all the tribes of grasses. Completion of Poaceae-- the grass family--for Flora of North America is an enormous accomplishment and one that is extremely important for agriculture and range science.

Volume 27, the first volume on mosses and liverworts, in press.--FNA volumes 27, 28 and 29 concern nearly 1900 species of North American bryophytes: the mosses, liverworts, and hornworts, and together are called the Bryophyte Flora of North America. The first flora of mosses of North America was published in 1884 by Lesquereux and James. Since then, a number of excellent regional floras have been published, but there has been a real need for a comprehensive modern treatment of mosses for North America north of Mexico. It is an innovative step to include mosses in Flora of North America. Volume 27, acrocarpous mosses, contains 32 families, 128 genera, and 704 species; the accounts prepared by 35 different authors and will be published in early 2007.

Volumes 28-29. In addition to work on this first volume, the Bryophyte editorial team has been working on Volume 28, scheduled for publication in 2008, with about half of the 195 genera and 42% of the 665 species having been submitted and in the review and editing process--38% of the species are in final form. For Volume 29, due in 2010, 18% of the 120 genera and 20% of the 516 species are in hand.

Management, editing, and botanical illustration of the bryophyte volumes are undertaken at the Missouri Botanical Garden under the direction of Dr. Richard Zander. He coordinates and facilitates the work of more than 80 specialists worldwide. Of particular note are the illustrations, which are scientifically accurate and exquisite in both detail and beauty. Dr. Patricia Eckel, herself a bryologist, is preparing all of the illustrations.

2) Preparation of Volumes 6, 7, 8, and 9 planned for submission in 2007.--Volume 6 (including the pitcherplant and sundew families, mallows, peonies, and violets); Volume 7 (mustards, capers, and willows) brings

together the lifetime work on willows of Dr. George Argus, one of the founding editors of FNA; Volume 8 (including stonecrop, heather, hydrangea, primula, and saxifrage families); Volume 9 (including the rose family) contains many large and complex genera. Chanticleer funding has been used to allow authors to travel to herbaria and to meet with each other so they can work collaboratively. See pages 9-11 for updated information on these and other volumes.

3) Recruiting Authors and Editors for Future Volumes, Through Completion of the Project.--Flora of North America has been particularly concerned about the attrition of botanists who have the knowledge, skill, and time to contribute to the flora. Earlier this year the list of remaining

4) Developing Partnerships to Make FNA More Widely Available on the Internet.--The Flora of North America website contains information about the project, resources for authors and editors, and text, illustrations, and maps for all published volumes. The USDA PLANTS database, which is the main reference for plant information used by federal and state agencies and by NatureServe (the former scientific arm and heritage programs of The Nature Conservancy), links to Flora of North America treatments and receives millions of hits each month. During the past year the PLANTS website has developed a collaborative agreement with the lead editorial center at University of Kansas to integrate its data with Flora of North America data. NatureServe has indicated an interest in using FNA as a primary reference. The National Biological Information Infrastructure unit of U.S. Geological Survey has offered staff and computer facilities to make FNA data more widely available and more easily searched. And, several federal agencies and herbaria have indicated an interest in linking to FNA data. To facilitate these partnerships, FNA has established an Information Technology Committee (ITC) of experts in bioinformatics. The committee met during the FNA Board meeting in October 2006. Immediately after that Board meeting, the Taxonomic Databases Working Group (TDWG) had its annual meeting also in St. Louis, and FNA ITC members were able to learn about current developments in the field, see demonstrations of new software systems, and network with colleagues.

5) Promoting the Project within the Botanical Community and to a Wider Audience.--Publication of the three volumes of Asteraceae was a true milestone for Flora of North America. To celebrate and promote this accomplishment, FNA hosted receptions during the 2006 Botany meetings and at a meeting of the International Compositae Alliance. Press releases were sent to all authors so they could locally publicize their part in the project, and to science writers at major newspapers. Emily Green, who writes articles about plants for the Los Angeles Times did a long article on the sunflower family in which FNA was mentioned. A series of 12 note cards, each featuring the botanical illustration of a sunflower family species on the front and information about the artist, author, and species on the back, were produced for sale at the Botany meetings, annual Symposium at Missouri Botanical Garden, and to botanical garden and natural history museum shops (see page 4 for more information).

FNA organized a symposium “Flora of North America: Synergy within the botanical community” at the 2006 Botany meetings and conducted a

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A funding campaign to encourage botanical gardens, native plant societies, specialty plant societies and clubs, and garden clubs, to sponsor the botanical illustrations is about to be launched. In addition to helping support the artwork, this will bring Flora of North America to the attention of a wide audience and offers an opportunity for the societies, gardens, and museums to promote native plants and their own involvement. Nearly 500 illustrations are currently in preparation, and we have a list of about

6) Fundraising Efforts.--FNA continues to explore all possibilities for funding. We are grateful to the Chanticleer Foundation for their visionary support of the project. Letters of inquiry have been sent to 70 potential funders, and full proposals were submitted to the Compton Foundation, the George Gund Foundation, and the Jamee and Marshall Field Foundation. No positive responses have been received to any of these except from the Giles Mead Foundation, which is still considering our request.

To celebrate publication of the Asteraceae volumes, FNA created a set of 12 note cards (4 × 6”) featuring FNA plants, artists, and authors. Each card reproduces the botanical illustration of the taxon on the front, and a distribution map, taxonomic placement, and notes about the taxon, author, and artist on the back. This first set includes the following 12 different cards plus envelopes:

TAXON	AUTHOR	ARTIST
Arctanthemum arcticum subsp. polare	Luc Brouillet	Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey
Baccharis halimifolia	Scott Sundberg	Bee F. Gunn
Cirsium douglasii var. breweri	David Keil	John Myers
Dicranocarpus parviflorus	Justin Allison	Linny Heagy
Echinacea pallida	Lowell E. Urbatsch	John Myers
Helianthus maximiliani	Edward E. Schilling	Marjorie C. Leggitt
Madia elegans	Bruce Baldwin & John Strother	Barbara Alongi
Munzothamnus blairii	Leslie Gottleib	Bee F. Gunn
Pluchea odorata var. odorata	Guy Nesom	Barbara Alongi
Packera cymbalaria	Debra K. Trock	Linny Heagy
Senecio amplectens var. holmii	Ted Barkley	Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey
Townsendia florifer	John L. Strother	Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey

To order:  ___________________________________________________________________________________

Name:      ___________________________________________________________________________________

Address:  ___________________________________________________________________________________

Phone No. (in case of questions):  ________________________________________________________________

Number of sets of 12 _______x US$12/each: total enclosed (checks only)__________________ Send order form and payment to: Nancy Morin FNA Business Office P.O. Box 716 Point Arena, CA 95468 USA For non-US orders, or if you can suggest a botanical garden, museum, nursery, or other gift shop that might like to carry the cards, please email nancy.morin@nau.edu

7) Summary.--Flora of North America is in the strong position of having substantial work completed on the next four volumes to be published, solid editor and author assignments for most of the remaining families, a production schedule and productivity track-record that will encourage timely submission of manuscripts, and increased resolve by major data providers to use FNA as a major resource. The partnership with the Chanticleer Foundation has made this progress possible.

FLORA OF NORTH AMERICA ASSOCIATION OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE:

Luc Brouillet, President (2006-2009)
Craig C. Freeman, Secretary (2006-2009)
Barney Lipscomb, Treasurer (2006-2009)
James L. Zarucchi, Vice President and Editorial
  Director (2006-2009)
Nancy Morin, Vice President for Business and
  Development (2006-2009)
At large members of executive committee:
    Wayne J. Elisens (2004-2007)
    Bruce Ford (2006-2009)
    Robert W. Kiger (2006-2009)
    David F. Murray (2004-2007)

FNA WELCOMES NEW REGIONAL REVIEWERS

Christopher Sean Blaney is a botanist and Assistant Director of the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre in Sackville, New Brunswick. He is a member of the Vascular Plant Species Specialist Committee of COSEWIC (Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada) and is also a member of the Nova Scotia Atlantic Coastal Plain Flora Recovery Team. Chris works with other experts to determine the rarity of vascular plants, bryophytes, and lichens in each province, maintaining a GIS database of rare species occurrences, and conducting field research on rare species distribution. His expertise and activities are primarily in the vascular plants of the three Maritime provinces--NB, NS, and PEI. Through his fieldwork over the last seven years, he has discovered almost 4000 rare plant records,

Curtis R. Björk is a self-employed botanical contractor and is affiliated with the Stillinger Herbarium, University of Idaho. He has extensive floristic experience in the flora of Idaho and eastern Washington. Curtis has expertise in lichens, bryophytes, and vascular plants. He is author or coauthor of three new species and one new subspecies. His publication list demonstrates that he is an energetic and productive young scientist. --Recommended for the Rocky Mountain Region by Ron Hartman and Aaron Liston.

Lynn Gillespie is a research scientist at the National Museum in Canada with an extensive knowledge of the flora of the NWT and Nunavut. Her taxonomic expertise includes the Poaceae and Euphorbiaceae. She has also joined the Board of Directors of FNAA.--Recommended for Western Canada by Bruce Ford.

Carolyn Parker is a botanist and is associated with the University of Alaska herbarium. She has participated in expeditions throughout boreal and arctic Alaska and Yukon. Carolyn is a constant user of floras and monographs and that, combined with her knowledge of floristics, makes her an ideal regional reviewer for Alaska and Yukon.--Recommended for Alaska by Dave Murray.

Richard Carter is curator of the herbarium and professor at Valdosta State University in southern Georgia. His primary taxonomic interests lie in Cyperaceae. Richard is also a very knowledgeable and active general collector, particularly in the critical Southeastern Coastal Plain. Richard’s participation as a reviewer will be particularly valuable for the Deep South areas of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, north Florida, and South Carolina.--Recommended for the southeastern U.S. by Alan Weakley.

Jon Rebman, Curator of Botany at the San Diego Natural History Museum since 1996, is a specialist in the floristics of southern California and the peninsula of Baja California and is a key participant in the San Diego County Plant Atlas Project. He specializes in Cactaceae.-- Recommended for the southwestern U.S. by Nancy Morin.

Margriet Wetherwax has worked as a plant taxonomist in the Jepson Herbarium since 1988, specializing in plant identification throughout California but especially the central coast. She is the managing editor for the Jepson Flora Project and works on Scrophulariaceae, Plantaginaceae,

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FLORA OF NORTH AMERICA REGIONAL COORDINATORS AND REVIEWERS
AS OF 30 OCT 2006

Boufford, David (david_boufford@harvard.edu) --coordinator: Northeastern United States, including Conn., Ind., Maine, Mass., Mich., N.H., N.J., N.Y., Ohio, Pa., R.I., Vt.

Brouillet, Luc ( luc.brouillet@umontreal.ca) --coordinator: Eastern Canada, including Greenland; St.Pierre & Miquelon; N.B., Nfld. and Labr., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que.

Ford, Bruce (bford@ms.umanitoba.ca) --coordinator: Western Canada, including Alta., Man., N.W.T., Nunavut, Sask.

Freeman, Craig (ccfree@ku.edu)--coordinator: North Central United States, including Ill., Iowa, Kans.,Minn., Mo., Nebr., N.Dak., Okla., S.Dak., Wis.

Hartman, Ron (rhartman@uwyo.edu)--coordinator: Rocky Mountains, including Colo., Idaho, Mont., Utah, Wyo.

Liston, Aaron (listona@science.oregonstate.edu) --coordinator: Pacific Northwest, including B.C., Oreg., Wash.

Morin, Nancy (nancy.morin@nau.edu)-- coordinator: Southwestern United States, including Ariz., Calif., Nev.

Murray, Dave (ffdfm@uaf.edu)--coordinator: Yukon, Alaska

Poole, Jackie (jackie.poole@tpwd.state.tx.us) --coordinator: South-Central United States, including N.Mex., Tex.
     Lemke, David E.--reviewer: Tex.

Weakley, Alan (weakley@unc.edu)--coordinator: Southeastern United States, including Ala., Ark., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ky., La., Md., Miss., N.C., S.C., Tenn., Va., W.Va.
     Alford, Mac--reviewer: Ala.
     Carter, Richard--reviewer: Ga., Ala, Miss, n Fla., and
     S.C.
     Cranfill, Raymond --reviewer: Ky.
     Crook, Reed--reviewer: La.
     Nelson, John B.--reviewer: S.C.
     Sorrie, Bruce--reviewer: N.C.
     Urbatsch, Lowell E.--reviewer: La.
     Wieboldt, Tom--reviewer: Va.
     Wofford, B. Eugene--reviewer: Tenn.

Wunderlin, Richard (rwunder@chuma.cas.usf.edu) --coordinator: Fla.
     Hansen, Bruce--reviewer: Fla.

Twelve volumes out of a total of 30 have already been published, and publication of 3 or more volumes a year is anticipated for completion in 2011. Each volume is graced with exquisite and accurate botanical illustrations drawn by professional artists. Every genus and about 1 in 6 species are illustrated. These lovely drawings enhance the technical descriptions and give readers a better idea of the characteristics of each species. Taxa to be illustrated are selected by the author; artists work from herbarium specimens, photographs, and living plants whenever possible.

To help support the cost of the illustrations, the Flora of North America Association (FNAA) invites individuals and organizations to sponsor one or more drawing. Sponsorships will be acknowledged in a special section of the relevant Volume, and sponsors will be provided with a high-quality reproduction in the original size of 61/2 × 11”, suitable for framing and with permission to reuse the image.

FNAA hopes that individuals who love plants, and native plant societies, specialty plant groups and garden clubs will consider sponsoring illustrations, or that horticultural or other businesses will take advantage of this opportunity to promote their interest in our native and naturalized plants. We have developed slightly different levels of support for “not-for-profit” and “for profit” entities.

Generally, three species are represented on a full panel. The cost to sponsor a panel is $600 for not-for-profits and individuals, and $750 for businesses, plus the cost of additional details or insets. These rates may be negotiable under special circumstances or in cases where multiple plates are being funded.

Want to go all out? Sponsor a full-color frontispiece! Only one per volume, for the modest donation of $1000.

Contact Nancy Morin (nancy.morin@nau.edu, 707/882-2528) or any member of the FNAA Board of Directors (www.fna.org) to learn more about sponsorship of FNA's botanical illustrations.

FNA GUIDE FOR CONTRIBUTORS
UPDATED

The new revised and updated Guide for Contributors is available on the FNA website at http://hua.huh.harvard.edu/FNA/contributors.shtml. You will also find new information about microgrants and the updated FNA base maps. This new version is the result of discussions that began at the technical editors meeting March 2006 and continued with e-mail comments from numerous people. This version replaces the FNA Guide for Contributors dated March 2004.

FNA MAPPING AND
DISTRIBUTION STATEMENTS

Members of the Executive Committee recently discussed concerns about the mapping and distribution statements for taxa. For the distribution dot maps, FNA decided to continue using the single central dot to express distribution. This also holds for Canadian provinces, Alaska, and Greenland. Effectively immediately, authors or reviewers will no longer need to specify whether distribution is northern, central, or southern for these areas.

VOLUME 7 UPDATE (MUSTARDS,
CAPERS, AND WILLOWS)

Volume 7, treating Magnoliophyta: Dilleniidae, part 2, is now scheduled for publication in mid to late 2007. The volume is being processed at the Missouri Botanical Garden Editorial Center with Lead Editor Jim Zarucchi and Taxon Editors Dave Boufford (Harvard University Herbaria) and Leila Shultz (Utah State University). This volume will contain treatments of five families, 117 genera, and approximately 895 species. It is expected that at least 250 species in the volume will be illustrated, many with insets (especially in certain genera of Brassicaceae – Boechera, Drabaz, etc.) to show specific structures.

VOLUME 27-29 UPDATE
(BRYOPHYTES)

The bryophyte (mosses, liverworts, and hornworts) volumes of FNA are 27, 28 and 29, in practice referred to as the Bryophyte Flora of North America; nearly 1900 species will be treated in the three volumes. A PDF version of Volume 27 including completed treatments of all genera (mostly acrocarpous mosses) was submitted to Chanticleer Foundation at the end of 2006. We expect the hardcopy publication by OUP in April or May of 2007. Volume 28 is scheduled for 2008, and volume 29 for 2010.

Dr. Terry T. McIntosh has joined the bryophyte editorial group as Taxon Editor. He will specialize in parallelization of descriptions and construction of keys. This is one of FNA's most attractive aims, and with any multi-authored effort, close attention is necessary. Terry is associated with the University of British Columbia Herbarium, and is an environmental contractor specializing in bryophytes. We welcome him to the team.

Volume 27 of the FNA is the first volume of an up-to-date synopsis of the North American bryophyte flora north of Mexico, including Greenland. It will include introductory chapters on moss morphology and economic uses and treatments of most of the acrocarpous mosses. We especially appreciate the support, astonishing technical editing, and skilled composition of Jim Zarucchi, Kay Yatskievych, and Pat Harris. This work could not have been done without the endurance and vision of 35 authors and several past Taxon Editors who not only did not despair during the extended gestation of this work but devoted long hours of research towards making this a particularly thorough and detailed effort. The illustrator, P. M. Eckel, provides an especially attractive unity of style, and a valuable level of detail that does justice to the myriad anatomical details important in bryophyte taxonomy.

VOLUME 6 UPDATE (PITCHER-
PLANT AND SUNDEW FAMILIES,
MALLOWS, PEONIES, AND
VIOLETS)

Volume 6 (including the pitcher-plant and sundew families, mallows, peonies, and violets) will cover 24 families, 112 genera, 688 species, of which about 34% have been submitted and are in review and editing.

VOLUME 8 UPDATE (INCLUDING
STONECROP, HEATHER,
HYDRANGEA, PRIMULA,
AND SAXIFRAGE FAMILIES

Volume 8, which will go to press in 2007, will include approximately 730 species in 132 genera and 20 families. The largest families in the volume are Crassulaceae, Ericaceae, and Saxifragaceae. Craig C. Freeman (University of Kansas) and Richard K. Rabeler (University of Michigan) are co-lead editors. Mary Ann Schmidt (Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation) is the technical editor, helping to coordinate the efforts of seven taxon editors and 50 contributing authors.

Treatments for 15 families (75%), 108 genera (82%), and 596 species (82%) have been submitted as of January 20, 2007. Partial draft treatments for five more genera have been reviewed by the lead editors. The large, outstanding genera Philadelphus (Hydrangeaceae) and Sedum (Crassulaceae) contain 54% of the species not yet submitted for review.

Manuscript review is proceeding apace; 86% of all submitted manuscripts have been formatted by the technical editor, with most of those having gone through regional review. The editors are grateful to all of the regional reviewers in Canada and the U.S. for their careful reviews and insightful comments on Volume 8 manuscripts.

With four volumes expected to go to press in 2007, the lead editors hope to begin pre-press production on Volume 8 in early 2007.

VOLUME 9 UPDATE
(MAGNOLIOPHYTA: ROSIDAE,
PART 2) (INCLUDING THE ROSE FAMILY)

Volume 9 will include some 631 species (number subject to change with submission of Rosaceae manuscripts) in 74 genera (possibly 75 if Photinia is segregated from Aronia) and 4 families. The largest family is Rosaceae with 620 species and 68 (or 69) genera. Luc Brouillet is lead editor for the volume. Helen Jeude is technical editor. Jim Phipps is taxon editor for Rosaceae, the sole taxon editor for the volume, all smaller families being handled by the lead editor. Marj Leggitt was assigned as lead artist for the volume; only Rosa and Crossossomataceae illustrations will be done in St. Louis.

The volume 9 editorial team met in Montreal on August 24–25, 2006. At that meeting, all manuscript processing procedures were reviewed to ensure a smooth flow between the lead, taxon, and technical editors, and preservation of top copies. A review was also made of progress and of generic assignment, and adjustments made where needed. In order to ensure that production would not be held by late manuscript reviews and corrections, the number of starting points was increased to about 20 (4 families + Rosaceae tribes), using the tribes as defined in Potter et al. (submitted) as a basis. A generic template for Rosaceae was developed using the 32 draft generic descriptions received from Rosaceae authors and distributed to all authors. This template is being used to harmonize manuscripts and has served already for all manuscripts returned to the author.

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(Volume 9 Update, continued from page 9)

The lead editor has worked with Craig Freeman and Rich Rabeler (vol. 8 lead editors) to develop a family description template for Rosales families. This gave rise to a proposed Dicot family template that is being circulated to the BoD for use in subsequent volumes of the FNA project.

As of January 2007, the Canada Center has received all 6 manuscripts for the three small families (100%), and within Rosaceae, 28 of 68 genera (41%), representing 107 of 623 species (17%). Meanwhile, 32 illustrations were drafted on a total of 141 (22%), of which more than half have been inked. Manuscript delivery should increase soon with several large genera promised in early 2007.

VOLUMES 10 and 11 UPDATE
(MAGNOLIOPHYTA: ROSIDAE,
PARTS 3 & 4)

Volumes 10 and 11, treating Magnoliophyta: Rosidae, parts 3 and 4, are scheduled for completion and delivery for publication in late 2008. Various components of the volumes will be processed at Miami University in Ohio and at the Missouri Botanical Garden Editorial Center with Lead Editor Jim Zarucchi. Taxon Editors assigned to these two volumes include: for legumes Mike Vincent and Jay Raveill (University of Central Missouri), and for nonlegume families Leila Shultz (Utah State University) [Elaeagnaceae, Proteaceae, Podostemaceae, Haloragaceae, and Gunneraceae] and Dave Boufford (Harvard University Herbaria) [Lythraceae, Thymeleaceae, Trapaceae, Myrtaceae, Punicaceae, Onagraceae, Melastomataceae, Combretacese, Rhizophoraceae]. The volumes will contain treatments of 14 families (Caesalpiniaceae and Mimosaceae will be treated as part of a larger Fabaceae), 207 genera, and approximately 1850 species.

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINET).—SEINET (http://seinet.asu.edu/) the Southwest Environmental Information Network, created by a National Science Foundation Grant (DBI- 9983132) to Peter McCartney, Corinna Gries, and collaborators at the Global Institute of Sustainability (GIOS) at Arizona State University, is a series of linked databases and accompanying web software that helps one use those databases. These databases include ecological and taxonomic information about various groups of organisms; of special interest to botanists in general are specimen databases from the vascular plant herbaria of Arizona

Who knows what the potential uses of SEINET might be? You may be able to invent some of your own. In the future, we will be developing new web tools that will make SEINET even more useful.

For more information contact L.R. Landrum ( les.landrum@asu.edu), E.E. Gilbert, R.T. Schroeder, and E. Makings at Arizona State University.

Celebrating Wildflowers...USDA Forest Service Website.--The USDA Forest Service website Celebrating Wildflowers is active and available at the url: http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers. Celebrating Wildflowers is dedicated to the enjoyment of the thousands of wildflowers growing on our national forests and grasslands and to educating the public about the many values of native plants.

Contributors from every area of the Forest Service assisted in the development of sections emphasizing area content such as Pollinators, Beauty of it All, Native Gardening, Just for Kids, and Teacher Resources. This new web site is the gateway to an enormous amount of botanical information provided by our partners, the majority of whom are reciprocating with links to our new web site. This will dramatically increase the traffic to our site and will also emphasize our close working relationship with our public and private partners. Our partners will soon be disseminating information about our new site to their audiences.

A number of other modules such as rare plants, native plant materials, ethnobotany, lichens, ferns, and other botany subject areas are currently

Under "Wildflower Links," a link to the FNA website can be found by scrolling down the page and looking under the section "Other Botanical Resources."

TAXACOM Celebrates 20 Year Anniversary.--Taxacom subscribers have been through a lot the last 20 years. This bubbling backchannel of news, announcements, and debates celebrated its 20^th anniversary on January 12, 2007!

Brought to life by Dr. Richard Zander, Taxacom began its existence on the dark and snowy night of January 12, 1987 as a dial-up BBS at the Buffalo Museum of Science (Buffalo, New York).

In case you have not seen the report, Taxacom has been examined sociologically by Dr. Christine Hine, University of Surrey (UK), although its participants assuredly defy analysis. Hine's research summary is at: http://joni.soc.surrey.ac.uk/~scs1ch/taxacom.htm

Congratulations Richard, on planting a seed that just keeps on growing!-- Contributed by James H. Beach, Biodiversity Research Center, University of Kansas, 1345 Jayhawk Boulevard, Lawrence, KS 66045.

HERBARIUM NEWS

University of Kansas (KANU).--With funding from the USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center (NPDC), a new project will be carried out by the University of Kansas, R.L. McGregor Herbarium (KANU). The project, "Taxonomic Concept Mapping and Associated Data Maintenance," will be conducted in collaboration with the Flora of North America Association. The 12-month project will be conducted under KU's Cooperative Ecosystems Study Unit (CESU) Agreement with USDA--one of three ongoing or completed CESU projects at KU.

Briefly, KANU will help NPDC update the nomenclatural and taxon attribute data in the PLANTS database. These data eventually will be integrated into the PLANTS Web site to provide natural resource management assistance to the NRCS field offices, cooperators, and the public.

An exciting part of the project is that KANU will use $50,000 of funding from NPDC to establish a small grant program to support the work of taxon specialists, who will be identified with assistance from FNAA. Taxon specialists will verify and populate data fields for the family/families for which s/he is responsible (excluding Asteraceae and Poaceae, where other efforts are ongoing), including families in FNA volumes not yet published. The size of individual subcontracts will depend on the number of species involved.

We think this project supports efforts to promote integration of FNA data into PLANTS, to establish a long-term relationship expanding collaboration between NRCS and the botanical taxonomic community, and to establish groundwork for families that will be treated in future FNA volumes.--Submitted by Craig C. Freeman and Scott Peterson.

University of Montreal (MT).--Anne Bruneau has obtained a Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) grant to establish a Biodiversity Consortium. This is 8M$ of 19 M$ (8M$ or so coming from provinces, the rest from universities, mainly University of Montreal). The funding will provide the MT herbarium with new space and a database network with a web portal for all Canadian collections. This is good news for systematics in Canada. More information (in French) is available at: http://www.fas.umontreal.ca/infofas/vol4_no4/FCI.html.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Steyermark's Flora of Missouri, Volume 2 (Dicots, Acanthaceae through Fabaceae, first part), by George Yatskievych. Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Hardcover, 1180 pp., 193 full page plates of b/w illustrations. ISBN-10: 2930723490. $48.00.

Steyermark's Flora of Missouri is an account of Missouri's vascular flora, including the pteridophytes, gymnosperms, and flowering plants growing spontaneously in the state.

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  (Recent Publications, continued from page 11)

The second of three volumes of the revised edition of Steyermark's Flora of Missouri contains treatments of the first half of the dicots, comprising 906 species in 45 plant families. It includes 193 full page plates of black and white drawings illustrating nearly all of the plants and a distributional map for each species. Among the plants featured in the book is the sunflower family, Asteraceae, the largest family in the flora, with 104 genera and 329 species. Also included are treatments of other large and economically important groups, such as the carrots (Apiaceae), mustards (Brassicaceae), and pinks (Caryophyllaceae). Each species is described in detail, and there are lengthy notes on taxonomy, distribution, plant uses, and conservation concerns. The Flora of Missouri Project is a collaboration between the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Missouri Department of Conservation. One of its main goals has been a revision of the late Julian Steyermark’s exemplary manual, Flora of Missouri. It is available from Missouri Botanical Garden Press at http://www.mbgpress.info/.

Illustrated Flora of East Texas, Volume 1 (Gymnosperms, Ferns, and Monocts), by George M. Diggs, Jr., Barney L. Lipscomb, Monique D. Reed, and Robert J. O'Kennon. Botanical Research Institute of Texas Press. Hardcover, 1614 pp, 1,200+ b/w figures, 1,000+ country distribution maps. ISBN 1-889878-12-X.

Volume 1 of the Illustrated Flora of East Texas is the first fully illustrated flora for East Texas, a species rich area that contains more than two-thirds of all the plant species known for Texas. The book covers all the native and/or naturalized ferns and similar plants, gymnosperms, and monocotyledons known to occur in East Texas, a total of 1,060 species. It is the only up-to-date compre-hensive guide to these groups of plants of this economically important region, which is approximately the size of Georgia. It presents information on the plant life of the area to meet the needs of students, teachers, wildflower enthusiasts, gardeners, ranchers, farmers, naturalists, conservationists, environmental consultants, researchers, and the general public. Of particular note for non-botanists are the illustrations and other visual materials. Line drawing illustrations are provided for all species, county distribution maps for almost all species, and a color section

Volumes 2 and 3 (dicots) are forthcoming; no price has been set at this time. Volume 1 is available from BRIT Press at http://www.brit.org/brit-press/brit-books/sbm-26/.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE

Graduate Study in Floristics, Rocky Mountain Herbarium.--The Rocky Mountain Herbarium (RM) seeks students interested in pursuing a M.S. degree in broad-scale floristics. The successful applicants are expected to be highly motivated individuals capable of working with limited supervision (following a period of training). The RM has completed 46 inventories (>500,000 numbered collections) in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming over the past 29 years with the goal of producing a critical flora of the Rocky Mountain region. The RM/RMS contains >800,000 accessions, a backlog >300,000 collections; the database is populated by >700,000 specimen records.

Recent floristic inventories include: Arapaho NF, e. San Juans, CO; Carson NF, Santa Fe NF, NM; e. Wind River Range, Grand Teton NP, WY, Buffalo Gap/Oglala NG, SD/NE; new projects: the Cimarron/Comanche NG, KS/CO and the Gallatin/w. Custer NFs (inc. Beartooth Plateau), MT/WY.

Documents describing the floristics program, the flora of the Rocky Mountains project, checklists for Wyoming and for Colorado, and the Atlas of the Vascular Plants of Wyoming are at http://www.rmh.uwyo.edu

Graduate Student Herbarium Assistantship.--The University of Northern Colorado Herbarium (http://www.unco.edu/nhs/biology/environment/
herbarium/) has a graduate student assistantship available beginning August 2007. The assistantship is a 40% appointment and is equivalent to a teaching assistantship available to a fully enrolled graduate student in the School of Biological Sciences. Tasks associated with the position include assisting the Curator with all aspects of herbarium curation.

Students must apply and qualify for admission to a graduate degree program in the School of Biological Sciences. Please submit your application electronically. Details on how to apply for admission to the graduate program at UNC can be found at: https://www.unco.edu/applications/graduate/
index.aspx. For additional information contact: Dr. Neil Snow, Curator of the Herbarium, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO 80639, Email: neil.snow@unco.edu.

Assistant Professor-Taxonomic Botanist.--Nominations and applications are invited for a fulltime, 9-month, tenure-track position of Assistant Professor-Taxonomic Botanist to begin August 2007. Salary is competitive and commensurate with academic preparation and experience.

Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to the following: teach undergraduate and graduate courses from among the areas of Introductory Biology (majors and nonmajors), Botanical Diversity, Plant Taxonomy, and Field Botany; serve as curator for the APSU Herbarium; and develop an externally funded Masters-level research program involving students.

Required Qualifications: A Ph.D. in botany, botanical ecology, or plant taxonomy is required, and college teaching experience is preferred. Candidate must have a record of scholarly achievement. Experience in the use of innovative, inquiry-based methods of instruction and current molecular research techniques are beneficial. Teaching assignments may involve travel to regional sites and/or distance learning venues. Experience with the taxonomy, ecology, and distribution of southeastern flora is required.

Application Procedure: Please submit letter of interest, curriculum vitae, graduate and undergraduate transcripts, statement of research interests and teaching philosophy, and three letters of recommendation to: Office of

For questions pertaining to this position you may contact Dr. Don Dailey, Chair, Department of Biology at daileyd@apsu.edu or phone 931-221-7781

Review of applications will continue until position is filled. Minorities, women, and members of other protected groups are encouraged to apply. Austin Peay State University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

Botanist in the Department of Natural Sciences.--The Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii is seeking candidates for the position of botanist in the Department of Natural Sciences.

Description: Conducts original research related to Museum collections; seeks financial support through grants, contracts, and professional contacts to further research and/or support museum programs. Maintains an active scholarly publication record. Conducts field work to improve and enhance the collections; assists with collection management procedures (loan processing, accessions, cataloging, etc.); analyzes and provides identifications of specimens. Participates in general departmental operational planning, which includes planning and development of immediate and long term goals and objectives. Reports to the Chairman of Natural Sciences.

Qualifications: Ph.D in systematic botany with some experience. Individuals interested in employment are encouraged to apply and to submit resumes. (Interviews by appointment only.) It is our policy to consider all qualified applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, or the presence of a nonjob-related medical condition or disability.

Excellent benefits and free parking. Submit resume and cover letter with names of three references by either. E-mail: judim@bishopmuseum.org; fax: Human Resources Department at 1-808.848.4151; or Mail: Bishop Museum, Human Resources Department, 1525 Bernice Street, Honolulu, HI 96817, USA.

Postdoctoral Position in Solanum Systematics.--A postdoctoral position at the University of Utah is available on an internationally collaborative project to produce a global monograph of the genus Solanum (Solanaceae).

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Silene uralensis subsp. uralensis drawn by Yevonn Wilson-Ramsey Flora of North America Volume 5, page 203

Electronic submission of applications is encouraged.

Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until a suitable candidate is chosen. Applicants should submit a statement of interest and description of past experience, a curriculum vitae, and contact information (names, email addresses, and phone numbers) of three references to:

Lynn Bohs, Department of Biology, 257 South 1400 East, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112 USA; E-mail: bohs@biology.utah.edu; Phone: (801) 585-0380.

Information on the Biology Department at the University of Utah is available at www.biology.utah.edu. The University of Utah is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Editorial Assistant on the Flora of China.--Based in the Research Division and supervised by the Flora of China Co-Director, the job involves editing botanical text for the Flora of China (plant names and associated bibliographic references, identification keys, lists of synonyms, plant descriptions, habitat data, geographic distributions, discussions, and indexes).

• Editing the text to make it conform to high standards of logic, syntax, grammar, spelling, and internal consistency, as detailed in the Flora of China Guidelines
• Identifying errors and correcting them where possible
• Finding and photocopying/scanning literature in the Missouri Botanical Garden library
• Inputting corrections received from coauthors, reviewers, editors, and proofreaders
• Inputting and editing index fields and generating indices
• Proofreading
• Working with other editors and the team members responsible for page make-up and publication

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree with a major in a science subject
• Experience in editing scientific texts
• Excellent written English skills
• Ability to pay meticulous attention to detail
• Computer experience including a thorough knowledge of Microsoft Word
• Good inter-personal and communication skills

Preferred qualifications:

• Higher degree in a science subject, or equivalent experience
• Knowledge of botanical terminology
• Experience with floras or botanical monographs

Please apply online at http://www.mobot.org, under "Opportunities" and reference job number G014. Please direct any questions to Charlene Watson (ph: 314-577-9583 or charlene.watson@mobot.org).

MEETINGS

Botany and Plant Biology 2007 Joint Conference will be held at Hilton Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, 7-11 July 2007. For more information on Botany 2007, visit http://www.botanyconference.org/.

Each volume $95.00. Consider having a standing order—they get 25% off cost of every volume.

Prices vary outside the U.S. For Canadian orders go to: http://www.oup.com/ca; for other countries go to http://www.oup.com.

Volume 1: Introduction(including climate, soils, paleontology, vegetation, phytogeography, Humankind and the Flora, and Classifications and Classification Systems 1993 ISBN 0-19-505713-9

Volume 2: Pteridophytes and Gymnosperms 1993 ISBN 0-19-508242-7

Volume 3: Magnoliidae and Hamamelidae(32 families including Fagaceae, Magnoliaceae, Ranunculaceae, and Papaveraceae) 1997 ISBN 0-19-511246-6

Eriogonum umbellatum var. nevadense drawn by John Myers Flora of North America Volume 5, page 341

Volume 4: Caryophyllidae, (10 families including Chenopodiaceae, Cactaceae, and Nyctaginaceae) 2004 ISBN 0-19-517389-9

Volume 5: Caryophyllidae (Caryophyllaceae, Plumbaginaceae, and Polygonaceae) 2005 ISBN 0-19-522211-3

Volume 6: Magnoliophyta: Dilleniidae, part 1 Forthcoming Volume 7: Magnoliophyta: Dilleniidae, part 2 (including Salicaceae and Brassicaceae) Late 2007 ISBN 0-19-531822-7

Volume 8: Magnoliophyta: Dilleniidae, part 3 and Rosidae, part 1 Late 2007

Volume 9: Magnoliophyta: Rosidae, part 2 Forthcoming Volume 19: Asteridae (10 tribes including Cynareae, Chichoreae, Gnaphalieae, and Anthemideae) 2006 ISBN 0-19-530563-9

Volume 20: Asteridae (Astereae and Senecioneae) 2006 ISBN 0-19-530564-7

Volume 21: Asteridae (Heliantheae and Eupatorieae) 2006 ISBN 0-19-530565-5

Volume 22: Alismatidae, Arecidae, Commelinidae (in part), and Zingiberidae (30 families, most of the aquatic monocots) 2000 ISBN 0-19-513729-9

Volume 23: Commelinidae:Cyperaceae 2003 ISBN 0-19-515207-7

Volume 24: Commelinidae: Poaceae, Part 1 2007 ISBN 0-19-531071-9

Volume 25: Magnoliophyta: Commelinidae (in part): Poaceae, Part 2 2003 ISBN 0-19-515208-5

Volume 26: Magnoliophyta: Liliidae: Liliales and Orchidales (11 families including Iridaceae, Liliaceae, and Orchidaceae) 2003 ISBN 0-19-515-208-5

Volume 27: Bryophytes part 1 Early 2007 ISBN 0-19-531-823-4

For information about the Flora project go to www.fna.org. For more information about the books go to www.oup.com/us/fnaseries.

Puccinellia bruggemannii drawn by Cindy T. Roché Flora of North America Volume 24, page 470

Poaceae now complete! Oxford University Press sent an advance copy to Mary Barkworth at the end of January and is now filling the orders that they have on hand. Together, volumes 24 and 25 (published in 2003) provide descriptions, keys, and illustrations for more than 1370 grass species, of which about 900 are native to or established in the Flora area. Distribution maps are provided for the native and established species.

The layout of the two volumes is a compromise between that of A.S. Hitchcock’s Manual of Grasses of the United States and that used by other volumes of FNA. We tried to select the best of each. Most of the illustrations are completely original, not redrawn from those in the Manual. All are designed to complement the keys. The illustrations and the distribution maps for both volumes are already available at http://herbarium.usu.edu/webmanual/. We are working at making the text material available on line.