Botany Commons^™

Host Plant Use By Competing Acacia-Ants: Mutualists Monopolize While Parasites Share Hosts, Stefanie Kautz, Daniel J. Ballhorn, Johannes Kroiss, Steffen U. Pauls, Corrie S. Moreau, Sascha Eilmus, Erhard Strohm, Martin Heil

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Protective ant-plant mutualisms that are exploited by non-defending parasitic ants represent prominent model systems for ecology and evolutionary biology. The mutualist Pseudomyrmex ferrugineus is an obligate plant-ant and fully depends on acacias for nesting space and food. The parasite Pseudomyrmex gracilis facultatively nests on acacias and uses host-derived food rewards but also external food sources. Integrative analyses of genetic microsatellite data, cuticular hydrocarbons and behavioral assays showed that an individual acacia might be inhabited by the workers of several P. gracilis queens, whereas one P. ferrugineus colony monopolizes one or more host trees. Despite these differences in social organization, neither …

Weed Science Research Summaries 2011, K. L. Smith, J. A. Bullington, R. C. Doherty, J. R. Meier

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

No abstract provided.

Effect Of Water-Deficit Stress On Cotton During Reproductive Development, Dimitra Loka

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Water deficit is a major abiotic factor limiting plant growth and crop productivity around the world. Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is considered to be relatively tolerant to drought and the effects of water stress on leaf physiology and metabolism have been extensively documented. However, information is lacking on the effect of water-deficit stress on the cotton flower. It was hypothesized that water-deficit stress would impair gas exchange functions which consequently would result in perturbation of carbohydrates of cotton reproductive units. To investigate this hypothesis growth room studies and field studies were conducted with the objectives being to document the physiological …

Edaphic Adaptation Maintains The Coexistence Of Two Cryptic Species On Serpentine Soils, Jenn M. Yost, Teri Barry, Kathleen M. Kay, Nishanta Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

• Premise of the study: Divergent edaphic adaptation can contribute to reproductive isolation and coexistence between closely related species, yet we know little about how small-scale continuous edaphic gradients contribute to this phenomenon. We investigated edaphic adaptation between two cryptic species of California wildflower, Lasthenia californica and L. gracilis (Asteraceae), which grow in close parapatry on serpentine soil.

• Methods: We reciprocally transplanted both species into the center of each species’ habitat and the transition zone between species. We quantified multiple components of fitness and used aster models to predict fitness based on environmental variables. We sampled soil across the …

Herbaceous 2012 (April 21), Amy L. Myers, Julia I. Chapman, Ryan W. Mcewan

Data Files: Drew Woods Permanent Plots

Herbaceous vegetation data collected in 2012 at Drew Woods State Nature Preserve in Darke County, OH. Data key is provided in a supplemental file.

Traversing Swanton Road, 7th Ed., James A. West

Academic, Government & Associated Organizational Research Resources

Situated at the northwest end of Santa Cruz County and occupying circa 30 square miles of sharply contrasted terrain, the Scott Creek Watershed concentrates within its geomorphological boundaries, at least 10-12% of California's flora, both native and introduced. Paradoxically, the use/abuse that the watershed has sustained over the past 140+ years, has not necessarily diminished the biodiversity and perhaps parallels the naturally disruptive but biologically energizing processes (fire, flooding, landslides and erosion), which have also been historically documented for the area for +60 years. This is an early edition of an extensive document by James A. West. Please visit the …

Herbaceous 2012 (April 9), Amy L. Myers, Julia I. Chapman, Ryan W. Mcewan

Data Files: Drew Woods Permanent Plots

Herbaceous vegetation data collected in 2012 at Drew Woods State Nature Preserve in Darke County, OH. Data key is provided in a supplemental file.

Section Abstracts: Botany

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Botany Section for the 90th Annual Meeting of the Virginia Academy of Science, May 23-25, 2012, Norfolk State University, Norfolk Virginia.

Adaptation Of Annual Forage Legumes In The Southern Great Plains, John A. Guretzky, Twain J. Butler, Jim P. Muir

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Our objective was to evaluate adaptation and compatibility of cool-season annual legumes overseeded into perennial grasses in the southern Great Plains. Freeze damage, vigor, and standing crop of 14 annual legume species were evaluated during spring at three locations in Oklahoma and Texas from 2006 to 2008. Across locations and years, standing crop of hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth) and Austrian winter pea (Pisum sativum L. ssp. arvense (L.) Poir.] averaged 3,513 and 3,210 kg dry matter (DM) ha^-1, respectively. Standing crop of crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum L.) and arrowleaf clover (T. vesiculosum Savi) averaged …

Sfa Gardens Newsletter, Spring 2012, Sfa Gardens, Stephen F. Austin State University

SFA Gardens Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Arkansas Turfgrass Report 2010, Douglas Karcher, Aaron Patton, Michael Richardson

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

No abstract provided.

Herbaceous 2012 (March 25), Amy L. Myers, Julia I. Chapman, Ryan W. Mcewan

Data Files: Drew Woods Permanent Plots

Herbaceous vegetation data collected in 2012 at Drew Woods State Nature Preserve in Darke County, OH. Data key is provided in a supplemental file.

Partridge Berry: Simple Beauty Belies Complexity, W. John Hayden

Biology Faculty Publications

Superficially, plants seem so simple. Rooted in place, they do not move around. And while plant growth is a dynamic process, without time-lapse photography, growth events are so imperceptibly slow that, to us impatient humans, plants seem both immobile and static. Nevertheless, there is a lot going on inside the plant body, and this is especially true for the events of reproduction that play out inside flowers and fruits. As one of my students recently commented, “I used to think it was just a matter of pollen plus stigma and, presto-change-o, seeds happen.” That student, I hope, learned otherwise, as …

2011 Deer Creek Ranch Wetland Vegetation Survey, Robert F. Steinauer

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: White Papers, Conference Presentations, and Manuscripts

The approximately 75,000 acre Deer Creek Ranch (owned by Ted Turner) lies on the south side of the Niobrara River in northeastern Sheridan County, Nebraska (Figure 1). The majority of the ranch lies within the Sandhills, with Sandhill dune prairie being the predominant vegetation type. Two significant streams, Deer Creek and the Snake River, originate on the ranch. The primary purpose of the Deer Creek Ranch surveys was to document native wetland plant communities and rare plant species occurrences and to provide vegetation management recommendations for plant communities bordering these two stream. Also surveyed were Chokecherry and Hackberry Lakes in …

Diversification And Expression Of The Pin, Aux/Lax, And Abcb Families Of Putative Auxin Transporters In Populus, Nicola Carraro, Tracy Elizabeth Tisdale-Orr, Ronald Matthew Clouse, Anne Sophie Knöller, Rachel Spicer

Botany Faculty Publications

Intercellular transport of the plant hormone auxin is mediated by three families of membrane-bound protein carriers, with the PIN and ABCB families coding primarily for efflux proteins and the AUX/LAX family coding for influx proteins. In the last decade our understanding of gene and protein function for these transporters in Arabidopsis has expanded rapidly but very little is known about their role in woody plant development. Here we present a comprehensive account of all three families in the model woody species Populus, including chromosome distribution, protein structure, quantitative gene expression, and evolutionary relationships. The PIN and AUX/LAX gene families …

Arkansas Cotton Variety Test 2011, Fred M. Bourland, A. B. Beach, D. P. Roberts Jr.

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

The primary goal of the Arkansas Cotton Variety Test is to provide unbiased data regarding the agronomic performance of cotton varieties and advanced breeding lines in the major cotton-growing areas of Arkansas. This information helps seed companies establish marketing strategies and assists producers in choosing varieties to plant.

2011 Vadose Zone Nitrate Study At Hastings, Ne (Revised), Roy F. Spalding, Martin Toavs

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

In an effort to assist Hastings Utilities in the management of their well-head protection area (WHP A) and to protect the groundwater from the impact of nitrate loading from potential nonpoint and point sources, Hastings Utilities subcontracted with the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture at the University of Nebraska for deep vadose zone coring. Continuous 60-ft soil cores were obtained at 36 sites within the apparent WHP A (Figure 1). The sites were selected by Marty Stange on the basis of availability for sampling, management, landuse , cropping history, and location within the WHPA. Nitrogen analyses of these deep soil …

Genome-Wide Analysis Of Syntenic Gene Deletion In The Grasses, James C. Schnable, Michael Freeling, Eric Lyons

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The grasses, Poaceae, are one of the largest and most successful angiosperm families. Like many radiations of flowering plants, the divergence of the major grass lineages was preceded by a whole-genome duplication (WGD), although these events are not rare for flowering plants. By combining identification of syntenic gene blocks with measures of gene pair divergence and different frequencies of ancient gene loss, we have separated the two subgenomes present in modern grasses. Reciprocal loss of duplicated genes or genomic regions has been hypothesized to reproductively isolate populations and, thus, speciation. However, in contrast to previous studies in yeast and teleost …

Salve Regina University Tree Inventory And Management Plan 2012, Bartlett Tree Experts

Archives Books

The Bartlett Inventory Solutions Team from Bartlett Tree Experts conducted an inventory of trees on the campus of Salve Regina University in May 2012. The inventory included: identifying trees and attaching to each tree a tag with an assigned tag number; identifying the trees' condition, health, and vigor; recommending risk evaluations and removals of appropriate trees; recommending pruning, soil management, and pest management treatments to promote tree safety; health, appearance, and longevity; and mapping the trees using GPSr hardware and Geographic Information System (GIS) software.

This digital copy of the plan is redacted. Information about the estimated values of individual …

Understanding Floristic Diversity Though A Database Of Greene County Specimens, K. M. Harris, M. B. Foard, T. D. Marsico

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

We present a floristic list of Greene County, Arkansas, based on accessioned collections from the Arkansas State University Herbarium (STAR). Currently, there are 1569 specimens representing 540 taxa from Greene County in STAR. Using the USDA Plants Database, plant species were analyzed according to whether or not they are native to the state as well as whether or not they have been previously documented as species occurring in the county. Having analyzed all the Greene County collections from STAR, we found 225 previously undocumented species. The data suggest that most of the specimens in the STAR collection were found in …

Botanist In Death Valley, Stanley L. Welsh

Books by Faculty of the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum

Abstract

This book details the author’s trips to Death Valley, along with general ecological information about the region. Explorations by other natural historians are also recounted. Death Valley and its surrounding mountain ranges are stark and appear to lack vegetative cover, but that appearance is deceiving. The ranges and valley support a great diversity of living things, both plants and animals. Pages 10–17 contain photographs of various landscapes. Pages 18–20 list the plant species collected in Death Valley, 1970–1983. Voucher specimens are available for study at Stanley L. Welsh Herbarium, Brigham Young University.

Stanley L. Welsh Record Books: Botanical Collections, Stanley L. Welsh

Books by Faculty of the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum

Abstract

This work attempts to present data available previously only in a set of bound field books in which location data was recorded along with numbers assigned to plant collections taken at the places cited. The record begins in 1953 and has been added to in all subsequent years including 2012. The records give indication of the species collected and of the localities where they were taken. Nomenclature has been updated in some instances where changes in names allow interpretation of early collections wherein names were derived from publications then out of date, but not in all instances. Especially not …

Letter From The Dean, Michael Vayda

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Historical Legacy On Adaptation: Do Closely Related Species Respond To The Environment In The Same Way?, Rachel Prunier, Kent E. Holsinger, Jane E. Carlson

EEB Articles

The many documented examples of parallel and convergent evolution in similar environments are strong evidence for the role of natural selection in the evolution of trait variation. However, species may respond to selection in different ways; idiosyncrasies of their evolutionary history may affect how different species respond to the same selective pressure. To determine whether evolutionary history affects trait-environment associations in a recently diverged lineage, we investigated within-species trait-environment associations in the white proteas, a closely related monophyletic group. We first used MANOVAs to determine the relative importance of shared response to selection, evolutionary history, and unique responses to selection …

On The Importance Of Pollen Morphology In Classification Of Chenopodiaceae In Mongolia, Gaadan Punsalpaamuu, Frank Schluetz, Tserendorj Gegeensuvd, Davaadorj Saindovdon

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The pollen morphology of 18 species from 12 genera of Chenopodiaceae native to Mongolia was studied. Plants were collected during field courses and research projects on useful plants and are deposited in the Herbarium of the Mongolian State University of Education. Chemical preparation was carried out in the Palynological Laboratories at the School of Natural Sciences of the Mongolian State University of Education and the Department of Palynology and Climate Dynamics of the University of Göttingen in Germany. The results show, that all investigated species are distinguishable in terms of pollen morphology bases on their pollen grain sizes, exine thickness …

Osnabrück Botanical Expeditions To Mongolia, Barbara Neuffer, Nikolai Friesen, Batlai Oyuntsetseg, Tseden Jamsran, Herbert Hurka

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

Three botanical expeditions to Mongolia have been undertaken by the Botany Department of the University of Osnabrück in cooperation with the Botany Department of the National Mongolian University of Ulaanbaatar. The first expedition in 2000 took us to the Mongolian Altay, the second in 2001 to the Gobi and Gobi Altay, and the third in 2010 to East Mongolia including the Khingan Mts. (Numrug). In 2000, we were the first botanists being allowed to enter the border area between China and Russia in the Mongolian Altay since a long time, because this had been a prohibited area for decades. We …

Comparative Study Of Constituents Of Essential Oils Of Ocimum Basilicum L. Cultivated In The Mongolian Gobi, Shataryn Altantsetseg, Sandui Shatar, N. Javzmaa

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The essential oils of the herb Ocimum basilicum L., cultivated in the Mongolian Gobi, have been examined. Oils were isolated by hydro-distillation and analyzed by GC-MS. The principle components of Common Basil were methyl chavicol (52.1 %), linalool (23.9 %). In the oils of the different varieties of Basil were the following compounds found: Sweet Basil: linalool (24.5–27.4 %), methyl chavicol (19.8–20.0 %), bergamotene (10.0 %), 1.8-cineole (8.5 %); Purple Basil: linalool (52.8 %), 1.8-cineole (8.7 %); Cinnamon Basil: methyl chavicol (60.4 %), 1.8-cine-ole (6.3 %), linalool (3.3 %) and cadinol (3.2 %); Italian large leaf Basil …

Diploid Allium Ramosum From East Mongolia: A Missing Link For The Origin Of The Crop Species A. Tuberosum?, Batlai Oyuntsetseg, Frank R. Blattner, Nikolai Friesen

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

In eastern Mongolia, a diploid close relative of the tetraploid (4x) crop species Allium tuberosum and its closest wild relative A. ramosum (4x) was found and characterized by karyotype analysis and with molecular marker techniques. An earlier analyses revealed A. ramosum to be sister of the crop but excluded it as its progenitor. At that time a putative diploid cytotype of A. ramosum was hypothesized as a potential progenitor taxon of the tetraploids. New phylogenetic analyses of chloroplast and nuclear DNA sequences including the recently found cytotype (A. aff. tuberosum) together with A. tuberosum and A. ramosum accessions …

Biochemical Research On Mongolian Lichens, Bryophytes And Vascular Plants – In Memoriam, Dr. Siegfried Huneck (1928–2011), Hans D. Knapp

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

Dr. Siegfried Huneck, biochemist and lichenologist from the Institute for Biochemistry of Plants in Halle/Saale, died on September 9, 2011. He was a world wide leading expert on lichen substances. An obituary with curriculum vitae and a complete list of publications was published by Stordeur et al. (2011)

Indicators Of Pasture Digression In Steppe Ecosystems Of Mongolia, Elena V. Danzhalova, S. N. Bazha, P. D. Gunin, Yu. I. Drobyshev, T. I. Kazantseva, A. V. Prischepa, N. N. Slemnev, E. Ariunbold

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The research shows that widely used key measures of vegetation structure (species diversity, projected cover and above-ground phytomass) are not always suitable as indicators of pasture degradation. Based on an analysis above-ground phytomass composition, new quantitative indices are offered that give a more realistic picture of rangeland condition in Mongolia.