202 



Plains — Our Ln'iiig Resources 



Bouteloua gracilis, a inemher of 

 the grass family, Poaceae 

 (Gramineae). 



The fem PoNstichiim lonchitis. 



The fem Pityrogramma trifoliata. 



are in progress. In addition, the Bishop 

 Museum, the National Tropical Botanical 

 Garden, and the National Museum of Natural 

 History. Smithsonian Institution, are collabora- 

 tively creating a data base for their flowering 

 plant specimens from Hawaii, a project to be 

 completed by 1996. The Bishop Museum has a 

 checklist data base of native and cultivated 

 plants in Hawaii, but additional collecting is 

 needed to document native plants, particularly 

 on Molokai and Kauai. Collecting is needed 

 throughout the islands to document the intro- 

 duction and spread of alien plants. Scientists at 

 the National Tropical Botanical Garden have 

 discovered 20 new taxa from Kauai alone since 

 1990, and some 200 species of naturalized 

 plants have been discovered in Hawaii in the 

 past 5 years. 



Alaska 



Alaska has such a huge area of wilderness 

 that basic botanical exploration is essential; 

 Flora of Alaska and Neighborinii Territories 

 (Hulten 1968) is a useful work. In addition, a 

 data base for Alaskan plants is maintained at the 

 University of Alaska Museum in Fairbanks. 

 Rare plants are tracked by the University of 

 Alaska, the Alaska Natural Heritage Program, 

 and the Alaska Rare Plant Working Group (an 

 ad hoc group of botanists from state and feder- 

 al agencies, the university, and nongovernmen- 

 tal organizations). 



The West 



The western region of the continental United 

 States is probably the least known. Some areas 

 (mostly near cities with universities, along high- 

 ways, and popular camping sites) are relatively 

 well known, but in less populated areas not near 

 paved roads, much remains to be explored. 



Three excellent floras treat the plants of the 

 west coast: Vascular Plants of the Pacific 

 Northwest (Hitchcock et al. 1955-69): 

 Intermountain Flora (Cronquist et al. 1972-94); 

 and The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of 

 California (Hickman 1993). State floras for 

 Oregon (Peck 1961), Washington (Piper 1906), 

 and Idaho (Davis 1952) are out of date and need 

 to be revised. A revised checklist for Oregon is 

 in preparation (A. Liston, Oregon State 

 University, personal communication). 

 Specimen data bases are being developed for 

 California, Oregon, and Idaho. California 

 herbaria have developed a model project 

 (Specimen Management System for California 

 Herbaria, SMASCH) to computerize data from 

 all their California specimens. Specimens 

 (including lichens and fungi) in Oregon 

 herbaria are being put into a data base. 



The Klamath-Siskiyou area of California 

 and Oregon, mid-elevation Sierra, and the inter- 



mountain portion of California are the most 

 poorly known regions. For instance, a showy 

 new species of the genus Neviusia. the 

 snow-wreath, previously known from only one 

 species in the southeastern United States, was 

 recently discovered in 1992 in an accessible 

 area of northern CalifoiTiia (Shevock et al. 

 1992). In addition, the rich flora of southwest- 

 em Oregon is poorly represented in herbaria, as 

 are several counties in north-central Oregon (A. 

 Liston, personal communication). 



Intermountain Area 



The number of collections from the 

 Intemiountain region has doubled in the past 20 

 years. The Intermountain Flora (Cronquist et al. 

 1972-94). which treats Utah, most of Nevada, 

 southeastern Oregon, southern Idaho, and east- 

 em Califomia, is comprehensive; five of seven 

 volumes have been published. An unpublished 

 flora of Nevada exists (Kartesz 1987). 



Nevada is one of the most poorly explored 

 and documented states. Recent collectors have 

 concentrated activity in the Great Basin moun- 

 tains of Nevada and the Colorado Plateau of 

 Utah. Even in areas seemingly well-collected, 

 such as Zion National Park in southwestem 

 Utah, a number of new species have been dis- 

 covered and described since 1975 (Hartman 

 1990). A Utah Flora (Welsh 1993) and Atlas of 

 the Vascular Plants of Utah (Albee et al. 1988) 

 are modern and thorough treatments. 



The Southwest 



Although many local floras have been pre- 

 pared for the Rocky Mountain areas, few have 

 been published. Data bases on distribution of 

 species are also being developed for individual 

 states at the University of New Mexico, Utah 

 State University, Colorado State University, the 

 University of Colorado, and the University of 

 Wyoming, A computerized checklist is being 

 prepared for New Mexico at New Mexico State 

 University in Las Cruces. Most of Arizona and 

 New Mexico have been poorly collected, but 

 these two states are thought to be the tloristical- 

 ly richest areas in the United States, and new 

 and surprising species are being discovered 

 yearly. References for New Mexico (Martin and 

 Hutchins 1980-81 ) are outdated or poor. In New 

 Mexico, for instance, even frequently visited 

 sites like the Chiricahuas still reveal treasures, 

 such as Apacheria. a new genus discovered in 

 1973 (Mason 1975). 



Northern Arizona University maintains a 

 data base on conifers and grasses of the state; 

 the remainder of its Arizona holdings are also 

 being entered. In addition, the University of 

 Arizona has a major data-base project. Areas 

 needing more collection in Arizona include 

 north of the Colorado River and parts of the 



