MODULE 9 Flashcards
parts of specimen preservation
- Herbarium specimens
- Selecting the plant material
- Collection
- Labeling
- __________: collection of plant specimens preserved, labeled, and stored in an organized manner that facilitates access.
“Library of dried plant specimens used for both education and research”
- Herbarium
_____________: a pressed, dried specimen of a plant that is attached to a sheet of paper.
A label is also attached to the paper to identify the plant and to explain where, when and by whom the specimen was collected.
The sheet is commonly _____ inches wide and _____ inches long.
- herbarium voucher
- 11.5
- 16.5
*Different herbaria use different methods for mounting plant specimens.
*Dried, pressed plants are glued, taped and stitched to supportive mounting boards, so they are robust enough to withstand withstand repeated handling.
Part 1: Herbarium Specimens
Herbarium specimens or voucher specimens
Herbarium specimens are used for a variety of purposes
- Allow and support accurate identification of plants, algae, lichens, and fungi
- Provide a permanent record of a species occurring at a particular time and place
- Form the basis of reliable distribution, habit, and habitat information
- Document the introduction and spread of invasive plants over time
- Are the reference point for the application of the scientific names
- Provide biological material & information for taxonomists, ecologists & researchers
- Serve as scientific vouchers for seed collections, toxicological cases, biochemical analyses, and biodiscovery
Some herbarium specimens are known as __________________.
- serve as a basis of scientific study
- collected from ______ that are the subject of research or investigation, generally resulting in a publication in a scientific journal or report
- If lodged in a recognized herbarium, they will endure in the collection for many years.
Their identity can be checked and verified later by linking it with the voucher reference in the publication.
voucher specimens
- taxa
This means that research and survey data will remain useful many years after publication, even though names and classifications may change.
The advent of genetic techniques in plant taxonomy has increased the need for well-annotated, correctly identified specimens to be stored as vouchers for published sequences, ensuring scientific accuracy and reducing the need to resample at a later time.
Other voucher specimens serve as a reference for verifying the identity of photographs.
Part Two: Selecting the plant material
- Size of the specimen
- Features of the plant
- Select vigorous, typical specimens.
- Avoid insect-damaged plants.
- Choose individuals that show the variation in leaf, flower, and fruit size.
- It is important to show ______________ involving the collection of individuals of different sizes or ages.
- Collect at least ___ sets of specimens (duplicates) and number each set.
- Keep one set for your reference and send the duplicate numbered set to the Herbarium for identification or as a voucher if required.
- morphological variation
- 2
The plant material should be fertile i.e. in ________ or ________ (both if possible), as these characteristics are often vital for identification.
This might entail returning to the site when the plant is in flower/fruit.
Spend time looking at a number of individuals, and choosing one with a number of flowers or more mature fruits.
- flower or fruit
A good specimen includes _______, _______, _______, ________.
Basal parts of _______, _______, _______, ________ plants are essential for identification.
Underground parts (_______, ________) are important for some plant groups.
- stems, leaves, flowers and fruits
- grasses, sedges, ferns and bulbous
- tubers, rhizomes
SIZE OF THE SPECIMENT
- specimen should ideally be ________ and up to ________,
- allowing it to fit on a standard ____________, which measures ________. This is also the approximate size of tabloid newspapers.
- Plant parts that are too large for a single sheet may be cut into sections pressed on a series of sheets, for example a ________ or _________.
- For very small plants, a number of individuals may be placed on each sheet.
- Long and narrow specimens such as ________ and ________can be folded once, twice, or even three times when pressing. In this way, a plant up to __________ may be pressed onto a single sheet.
- 25-40 cm long
- 26 cm wide
- herbarium mounting sheet
- 42 x 27 cm
- palm or cycad frond
- grasses and sedges
- 1.6 meters high
FEATURES OF THE PLANT
- When collecting from trees or large shrubs, distinctive or notable features should be recorded (__________, __________, ___________)
- You may need to collect ____________ specimen to show the range of variation present (_________, _________, ________)
If the plant is _________, with male and female flowers on different plants, collect a specimen from each sex and label the specimens A & B.
- branching habit, height and width of the plant, and details of the bark
- more than one
- mature and immature parts, juvenile and adult leaves, and coppice shoots
- dioecious
Part 3: Collection
- Handling plants during collection
- Data to be recorded in the field
- A preliminary descriptive locality
- GPS location
- Habitat (site) data
- Information about the individual plants collected at the site - Drying specimens
- Drying when based in a powered building
HANDLING PLANTS DURING COLLECTION
- best results: specimens should be pressed within a few minutes of being removed from the plant
- ___________: convenient for short trips taken from the vehicle.
- If specimens cannot be pressed at the point of collection, they may be stored in large plastic bags.
- The bags should be kept ______, and the specimens not jammed in too tightly. Make sure each bag is correctly labeled, using one bag per collection site.
- However, storing specimens
in plastic bags is _____________ because it is easy for specimens to become damaged or mixed, and they are more likely to go moldy.
- A day press
- moist
- not recommended