Roy Latham 
and the Liverworts of Long Island 
Liverworts are bryophytes that range 
morphologically from fist., thallus form s to those having 
bilateral leaves reaching several centimeters long. 
Generally confined to living prostrate on the substratum : ■'* 
to avoid desiccation, they are often overlooked by' the 
casual observer.. 
Such was not the case with Roy Latham. In his 
constant searching for lichens, "[they are] my first 
interest" (in a letter from Latham to Biechele, 1975), 
Roy added an impressive collection of sixty-three 
liverwort taxa from eastern Long Island. These 
specimens are now deposited in the Bryophyte 
Herbarium of the New York State Museum in Albany. 
The discovery of Cladopodiella franscisi (Hook.) 
Joerg., the first record from New York State, came 
about while searching the cranberry bogs around Great 
Pond near Southold (Latham, 1917). In his letter to me 
(1975) Roy continues, "[around 1910] I used to spend a 
lot of time around the dunes ... leaving home before 
dawn and tramping the dunes till dark. One night I 
found my bike broken and walked away from the dunes 
to Orient after dark" 
With the completion of the FLORA OF THE 
TOWN OF SOUTHOLD. LONG ISLAND (Burnham 
& Latham, 1925), Latham had described 40 species of 
liverworts from the region. (Unfortunately, two taxa, ; . 
Calypogeia sphagnicola (Am. et Perss.) Wamst. et 
Loeske and Pellia fabroniana Raddi (now a synonym of 
P. endiviifolia (Dicks.) Dum.) were initially incorrectly 
annotated). Many of Latham’s collections were 
determined by Andrews, Conklin, Evans and Fulford 
and some duplicate material was sent to the Sullivant 
Moss Society now located in the ABSH at Southern 
Il li nois University. 
No longer restricted to the geography of his 
manuscript, Latham was able to explore the fascinating 
flora of the sandy pine barrens and beach dunes along 
the south fork of the island. Along with more frequent 
trips to Gardiner's Island. Roy added such rarities as 
Barbilophozia barbata (Schmid, ex Schreb.) Loeske; 
Geocalyx graveolens (Schrad.) Nees; Marsupella 
sphacelata (Gieske) Dum. and Trichoc olea tomentella 
(Ehrh.) Dum. all associated with a more northern, 
mountainous topography. Here, then, were possible 
relics of the last glacial epoch that found refuge in the 
hepatic communities of eastern Suffolk County. . , 
In 1974, when he was 93 years old, Roy was very 
interested in my collection of the NY rarity Jubula 
pennsylvanica (Steph.) Evans (determined by Mulford , 
Martin at the New York Botanical Garden) near Trout 
Pond in Noyac. In a letter on December 7th of that 
year, he writes: "Thank you for the fine specimen of the 
rare Jubula pennsylvanica. So far as I know now, it is 
the First for Long Island under this name. It is the first 
for the east end." 
Roy Latham had an amazing ability to instantly 
recognize a new or different species when there were, in 
those days, few, references and field guides. He was 
truly a naturalist of the 'old school' who always seemed 
to find time to answer almost any question and would 
generously contribute his knowledge of the subject. His 
legacy is forever forged within the natural history of 
Long Island.-Lance T. Biechele. Princess Anne, 
Maryland 
' Literature cited 
Bumham, S. H„ & R. A. Latham. 1914-1925. The flora of h e Town 
of Southold, Long Island and Gardiner’s Island (wiJth live 
supplementary lists). Toneya 14: 201-225.229-254; 17: 
111-122; 21: 1-11, 28-33: 23: 3-9,25-31: 24: 22-32: 25:71-83. 
Latham, R. A. 1917. Habitat of Cephalozia francisci on Long Island, 
N. Y. Bryologist 20: 63-64. 
Roy Latham Letterhead 
Above is a copy of the famous Roy Latham 
Letterhead depicting an Osprey nest in a windmill. 
Tong I sland March " April 1993 Page T5 
Botanical Society 
