Ten County Records for Texas Trip! Update -- no, eleven! no twelve!

The plants from our Texas trip are out of the freezer (to kill pests) and what'ya know?  At least ten of them are county records -- including some I found.  A county record means that species has never been collected in that county before.  Daniel is preparing an article about these discoveries for publication in the Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas.  The list of plants and a link to the article will follow soon.

Just in on July 2.  The count is now eleven new county records.  The latest a crowfoot sedge.

And later in the day another came in, number twelve is a cretan weed.

Countdown to July 5

We are heading out on another collecting trip on July 5.  Cross country and will be gone 2-3 weeks.  Getting ready for a big collecting trip is no big deal for Daniel.  He takes two pairs of pants, two shirts, two pairs of socks and does laundry along the way.   He's got it down and it works for him.  Me, I am just learning how to do this.  My entire wardrobe is designed for one of two things:  city life or rowing.  That's it.  It's virtually all black.  For the past trips I have dug deep into my wardrobe to find "country" clothes.  White jeans, linen shirts etc.  And none of it worked.  I was trying to wear light clothes since one day in the field I pulled no fewer than 8 ticks off of me!  But collecting, white and light don't work -- I mean we trudge around swamps for goodness sake.  My white jeans are permanently grungy from the knees to the ankles.  And jeans are so hot and heavy.  So I listened to Daniel and here is what I am packing for our cross country trip.  This is my list, drawn from my city/rowing wardrobe:

Two pairs of black pants, both synthetic or blends, with pockets (Chico's, HardWear)
Two black sleeveless/shortsleeve tops (Wolford, Theory)
Two black tank tops (J Crew, Wolford)
One little black dress  (Three Dots, you can take the girl out of the city but...)
One grey cashmere sweater (Banana Republic)
One black athletic jacket (Lucy)
One black skirt (Lucy)
One pair of slate quick dry shorts (Lucy)
One gray and black flannel shirt (Levis)
One black swimsuit (Speedo)
One YELLOW rain jacket (Marmot)
Five pairs socks
Lots of quick-dry thong panties
One pair of brown waterproof heavy soled boots (Rockport)
One pair black sneakers (Nike)
One pair of black water shoes (Vibram)
One pair of deerskin gloves
One loupe
One cap

That's it.  It is all in this photo (no kidding) and will all fit in a small duffle.  Actually I will wear some of it when we leave...that leaves room for toiletries YAY!

Here is what won't fit in the duffle:

The kayak, paddle and life jacket
The frame backpack
All my electronics

They paved paradise and put up a parking lot

A few weeks ago we collected at a site in Poughkeepsie along the Hudson on our way upstate.  This gate and weed grown parking lot are situated right on the river.  No access.  Seemed to be an abandoned industrial site.  Sad.

Funky motels - many more to come

The way we travel there is no way to plan where we stay in advance.  Our trips are meandering affairs.  Daniel has his Android in a windshield mount and follows the satellite view of the terrain searching for interesting ecosystems.  So we follow that, not a plan.  Thus we don't know where we will end up at night.  Usually, in the late afternoon or even early evening, I will start doing a Google search for nearby motels.  And we take what we can get.  In this case, Daniel had spotted this place early in the day and knew we could circle back.  It was a real throwback.  Un-renovated and spartan.  But spacious and clean (enough).  And in a lovely setting with mountain views.  We both loved this sign.  We will post more of these as we go along.  The thing about off-the- interstate travel is that the motels are seldom national chains.  More character.  And more surprises too.

Swamp Fox

What I love about traveling with Daniel is that we go to so many places I would NEVER visit on my own.  Like this swamp in Riparius NY.  A place where if you step into the mud you could disappear -- literally.

Gamely, and slathered with DEET,  I trudged around searching for pretty little things.  I stepped from fallen log to sedge hummock to make sure I did not go into the mud.

I saw some wild iris (too common, we had it already), lots of cattail (not in bloom) and grasses and sedges by the score.

We did find native forget-me-not (Myosotis laxa).  What we usually see is the invasive European species which is more of a straggling vine and has larger flowers (>5mm diam), while our native is an upright herb with tiny flowers (<5mm diam).  Here is our wild native version:

At the edge of the swamp, in the woods, was this dear little oxalis (Oxalis acetosella).  Lots of them glowing in the shade.

As we left the swamp and walked back to the truck, we admired butterflies dancing in the air and settling on the wildflowers that blanketed the power line right of way that was adjacent to the swamp.  That's a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) sipping nectar from a European clover (Trifolium pratense). 

Hudson NY

On Thursday, June 16, heading up to Albany we stopped in Hudson NY.  We collected about 30 specimens near an old abandoned mill.  Right on the river, this wonderful old mill is about to collapse. 

There was a lovely large patch of sedum (Sedum sarmentosum).  Common and exotic, I know, but what a feast for the eyes and feet.  And based on the preliminary identification, it's a new record for Columbia County.

And here is a sight from one of the small businesses in town.  An old burro's tail (Sedum morganianum) with quite a pedigree.

We visited the reclaimed waterfront.  We admired the view of the lighthouse and cursed the lack of vision that placed the power lines in the viewshed.

Then we visited the lovely downtown.  We had dinner at a place called the Wunderbar.  Not joking.  The menu was nearly all things pork.  And you know what?  Best pork schnitzel ever.  Wish I had the foresight to take a photo.  You would drool.  Settle for this of downtown Hudson instead.

And this.  My friend Rick almost bought this building before the RE crash.  Now it's a restaurant.  At the time, the interior renovation was a quick and dirty mess.

Did you know that Hudson was one vote short of being named capitol of NY?  We didn't either.  But boy did they dodge a bullet.  Nelson Rockefeller turned the center of Albany into an architectural homage to himself that showed he was a kindred spirit of Saddam Hussein and other tasteless ideologues who care more about self-aggrandizement than the needs of the people they serve.  We have no pictures of the Empire Plaza from our Albany visit.  Too horrible.  And Albany thanks us for our discretion.  To pass time as we drove home, and to learn about Albany and what has become of it, I read this web essay aloud to Daniel as he drove.  Long, but highly recommended.  Worth a click if just for the photos:

http://www.lofaber.com/albany/essaymaking.html

Where the Hudson reaches a critical mass.

After the Lake Tear in the Clouds and various creeks, the water of the Hudson River forms this, the Hudson River Gorge.  Hudson River Gorgeous is more like it.

Museum of the Adirondacks

On Sunday afternoon we came upon the Museum of the Adirondacks.  It was 45 min before closing but what the heck?  After viewing an exhibit on logging, we sought out some of the exhibits on vernacular architecture, boats and lifestyles of the rich and famous.

Here is a typical lean to.  These were allowed in the Park as long as those who put them up did not claim ownership and made them accessible to all.  Kind of a cool place to crash on a hot day.

And here is a cute tent.  Nothing but the basics.  And a small oriental rug.  Nice touch, huh?

And here is luxury of the first order.  A private Pullman car.  Really, this is the way to go. 

And my personal favorite, an all wood racing shell.  As we passed so many lakes with long stretches of flat water I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to scull across a pristine blue lake -- a far cry from the Harlem River I row on.

Except for the boats being made of carbon fiber, the design hasn't changed all that much.  But the aesthetics sure have.

And this was Daniel's favorite.  And I have to admit, it looks like so much fun.  A canoe for two with sails.  They knew how to recreate in those days.  Today, as you drive around the area you see lots of tacky plastic inflatable toys for sale.  Even the famous Adirondack chairs are made of (gasp) plastic.  Maybe there are grace notes like this, but surely they are from a bygone era.  How gorgeous...

And some things haven't changed.  Rich men like to go fast and do it in style.  This is an historic boat that won many races.  Top speed on the water exceeded 70mph!

For contrast there is this...the piece de resistance...Daniels's soon to be realized dream of a roving botany RV.  He hopes to get a used moving truck, the size shown, and totally kick out the interior for specimen prep, kayak etc. storage and sleeping, even a solar shower.  Marie wants to pretty up the exterior.  See glam Marie -- she is totally on board.  It's a great idea and bypasses the need to always inspect mattresses for BB's!  Forget about a private Pullman car -- Pimp my truck!

Maiden voyage a success!

A few weeks ago on a trip to the Catskills we found a really cool inflatable kayak on sale at an outfitter where we stopped so I could get some boots. Sunday June 19th was the maiden voyage.  We were driving along at about 40 or 50 mph, passing Sacandaga Lake, when Daniel quickly pulled over and said he thought he saw some persicaria amphibia, a plant he studies and loves.  Well, I was pretty impressed that he could ID a water weed at that speed and distance (not even in bloom!)  A closer look required the kayak and thus the maiden voyage took place.  We figured that inflating the kayak for the first time and each of us taking a spin around the lake took less than 1:45.  Not bad.  It was fun and Daniel got some nice specimens.  Here you see the view from the road.  See the persecaria?

...and here is the happy man before and after.  See the specimens on the hull?

I gave it a try too.  While Daniel was pressing the persicaria I took a spin around.  The boat handled well.  I liked it enough that when I got home I ordered one for me.  The brand name is Advanced Elements.  Compared to other inflatables it seems very durable and well designed.  It folds smallish and is light enough for me to haul.  It will be great for us to each have a kayak on our travels and adventures.  We will be able to access terrain and plants that would be off limits otherwise.  Daniel has already broached the idea of an overnighter by canoe.  I take it that means camping.  I'm game.  He thinks I'm a fancy girl, but I'm not (well, not always).   

A quick roadside arrangement in the Adirondacks

We stopped by the river so Daniel could collect a tree specimen he had been wanting and I took a minute to clip some roadside flowers.  I threw it together so quickly I didn't distribute the colors very well, but still, it made the truck interior brighter. 

A primer on preserving specimens.

Most of us never meet a botanist in real life.  There aren't that many of them.  My friend Daniel is a full time botanist at The New York Botanical Garden.  He collects samples of plants that are flowering or have fruit or seeds.  Specimens without reproductive structures are sterile and sometimes very difficult or impossible to pin down definitively.  He makes a preliminary identification in the field.  Back at the Garden, the specimens are labeled, identified, mounted and archived in perpetuity in the NYBG herbarium.   The Garden's herbarium is the third largest in the World and contains over 7 million specimens-- even some collected by Charles Darwin!  Every specimen is recorded in the NYBG database and searchable online.  These form a permanent record of the Earth's flora and is invaluable for scientists from many disciplines. 


The process is fairly simple and hasn't changed much in hundreds of years.  They're collected, pressed, and dried on the fly.

A typical specimen includes the entire plant, roots and all, when it's possible and makes sense.  For samples of trees, shurbs and large herbs, a twig with leaves and flowers is taken.

-First, Daniel records the GPS coordinates of the location where the sample was taken in his fieldbook.  He may also photograph the plant and a close up of the flower.

-The sample is laid flat between tabloid-size sheets of newspaper.  He writes the specimen number on the paper.  Botanists keep life lists of the plants they collect.  Every specimen gets a new number.  Daniel has just over 10,000 so far.  In the field book he records the specimen number, location, a description of the environment (e.g. swamp) the plant's Latin name, its approximate size, co-collector (sometimes me) and any other pertinent details that won't be obvious from the preserved specimen. 

-Throughout the day the samples are laid into in a field press which is essentially two slabs of plywood held tightly closed with webbing straps. The specimens stay in the field press overnight to flatten out. 


- In the morning, the specimens from the previous day are prepared for drying.  They are examined, the leaves are arranged so they look natural and aren't all bunched up.  A DNA sample (some leaves) is put in a small plastic bag containing silica gel with the specimen number on it.  A sheet of corrugated cardboard is placed between each specimen (still in the newspaper it was pressed in).   The package of specimens--there are usually 50 or so--are then bound between two oak latices with straps and placed on a wire rack.  Daniel uses a small wire bookcase.  A space heater is placed below the cardboard package.  The channels in the cardboard are aligned vertically so the water vapor leaving the plant passes through the newspaper and cardboard and is quickly evacuated--like a chimney.  The sides of the rack are wrapped in a canvas drop cloth so the heat is retained.  The top is left open to allow the vapor to escape and keep the press from overheating.  The plants then dry all day while more fieldwork is being done.  After eight to ten hours they're dry and the process of "depressing" is executed.  The cardboard is removed and the specimens are stored in a box that when full will be shipped to the NYBG.  Daniel came up with this process after reading the notes of a botanist in Belize in the 1930s who rigged up something similar, although he used kerosene lamps instead of a space-heater.  I'm not sure what the maid makes of all this in the various motels, but sometimes the room fairly reeks of plant life.  

- The DNA samples, which will be sent to a lab for analysis, are dried in silica gel in numbered plastic envelopes.

- When the specimens are ready for mounting they are removed from the newspaper and placed on acid free paper.  The mounted specimen will be labeled with all pertinent information.  Here is an unlabeled Jack in the Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum):

- Botanists have been creating specimens like this for a long time.  Here is a specimen of Persicaria (smartweed) from the herbarium at the New York State Museum in Albany.  Daniel is the North American expert on smartweeds so we visited the collection and photographed many of the specimens.  This one is significant in that it is a "type" specimen.  That means this very specimen was the one used by the publishing author as the voucher for his or her name.  It was named for the collector Samuel Hart Wright by famed 19th century Harvard botanist Asa Gray.  The herbarium staff was very happy to add another type specimen to their collection and Daniel added a note updating the nomenclature to reflect current science (Note the white slip of paper in the lower right).

Ice Meadow on the Hudson River near Warrensburg

This past weekend we had the chance to visit the ice meadows along the Hudson.  They are so named because in the winter the rock ledges accumulate great depths of ice, especially frazil, a slushy type of ice.  This creates a unique eco-system and a home for many rare or unusual plant species.  It's a beautiful site and thankfully is protected. 

This purple pitcher plant (Sarracenia purpurea) isn't rare,
but so beautiful. 

This smooth carrion flower (Smilax herbacea) doesn't smell quite so bad as its name suggests...still, it's pretty bad.

And this anemone (Anemone sp.) is simple but sweet.  There are several closely related species in the northeast.  We won't know which one till the specimen can be checked in the herbarium (prob. sometime in November).

Daniel and local naturalist Evelyn Greene search for the dwarf sand cherry (Prunus pumila) which is so fussy it only grows in ice meadows.  Evelyn is very knowledgeable about the ice meadow and about frazil ice.  She shared this link to a video about frazil ice in Yosemite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=9V9p4mFEYXc&vq=medium#t