| Abstract Detail
Systematics Section / ASPT Monfils, Anna K. [1], Rabeler, Richard K. [2], Berry, Paul E. [3], Prather, L. Alan [4]. Centralizing Great Lakes Botanical Resources: Initiating a Michigan Consortium of Botanists. In 2004, a group of botanists from throughout the Great Lakes region met to discuss a potential collaboration centralizing botanical resources. There is continued interest in consortium of Great Lakes botanical resources among several Michigan herbarium curators. We met to discuss the potential for a centralized web-based resource of Michigan plants, a Michigan Flora Website. This website could be used to integrate data from throughout the state; a centralized portal of herbarium specimen databases, an image database, a potential key to Great Lakes species, and an “official state list” of Michigan Threatened and Endangered plants. This could also be a potential site to share educational resources including techniques for proper herbarium curation and web based laboratory exercises. We saw a consortium as a great opportunity for community building within Michigan. On January 7th, 2007 an online survey was sent to 47 Michigan botanists. Botanists contacted were faculty and staff from Universities and Colleges throughout Michigan, as well as botanists from the Department of Natural Resources, the Michigan Natural Features Inventory and the U.S. Forest Service. Twenty-six of the 47 (55%) botanists contacted participated in the survey. Twenty four respondents indicated interest in a botanical consortium. Respondents were most strongly interested in a centralized Michigan data portal, access to herbarium data, and community building among Michigan botanists. Respondents were clearly interested in networking (in Michigan and eventually throughout the Great Lakes region) both directly through meetings and through a centralized Michigan Flora Website. The response was very encouraging! Our next move is a community meeting to discuss the logistics (including funding) of centralizing resources, developing a website and developing research/teaching ideas, etc. A Michigan Consortium is a likely first step in forming and operating a larger Great Lakes group, which is the ultimate goal.
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1 - Central Michigan University Herbarium, Department of Biology, 103 Brooks Hall, Mt. Pleasant, MI, 48859, USA
2 - University of Michigan Herbarium, 3600 Varsity Drive, Ann Arbor, MI, 48108-2287, USA
3 - University of Michigan Herbarium, 3600 Varsity Dr., Ann Arbor, MI, 48108-2287, USA
4 - Michigan State University Herbarium, Department of Plant Biology, 166 Plant Biology Building, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1312, USA
Keywords:
Botanical Consortium
Michigan
Great Lakes.
Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Sections
Session: P
Location: Exhibit Hall (Northeast, Southwest & Southeast)/Hilton
Date: Sunday, July 8th, 2007
Time: 8:00 AM
Number: P59074
Abstract ID:1619 |
