Vol. 18 No. 1 Long Island Botanical Society The Quarterly Newsletter Winter 2008 Contributions to the Status and Morphoiogy of Platanthera pallida, Pale Fringed Orchis Robert T. McGrath, Department of science and Technology Education, Northport- East Northport Union Free School District, Northport, New York, 11768 Author’s Note; After reading the excellent book review prepared by Eric Lamont in the summer issue (vol. 17, 2007) of the LIBS newsletter on the IE/Z7 Orchids of the Northeast: New England, New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey by Paul Martin Brown, I immediately went on-line to pur- chase my own copy. When it arrived a few days later I too was extremely impressed with the attention to detail, wide range of supplementary material, photography, and beautiful illustrations. Of particular interest for me was Brown’s rec- ognition of two populations of Platanthera located in eastern Long Island as warranting endemic species status. These populations have long been considered to be Platanthera cristata, the yellow-crested orchid. Naturalists and botanists have long noted that the two eastern Long Island popula- tions, located at Napeague and the Walking Dunes at Mon- tauk differ from other populations of P. cristata because of their pale yellow coloration as opposed to the deeper orange normally found in the species. Brown first described these colonies as a valid species, Platanthera pallida in 1992 and he continues to describe them as endemic only to eastern Long Island from two sizable colonies in this latest pubhcation (2007). I was especially intrigued by this designation as I had stud- ied these populations during the summers of 1982 and 1983 and found morphological aberrations not previously re- ported in the literature at the time. Being a young under- graduate fuU of vim and vigor and jumping from one research project to the next, I never completed preparing my findings for publication. The paper presented here represents an original accounting of the observations that I made at that time. (Original MS) OBSERVATIONS ON AN AB- ERRANT POPULATION OF THE YELLOW- CRESTED ORCHID PLATANTHERA CRISTATA by Robert T. McGrath INTRODUCTION: During the first week of Au- gust, 1983 four populations of the crested yellow or- chid, Platanthera cristata (Michx.) Lindl., were located in Suffolk County, Long Island, New York. Each of the populations appeared to correspond morphologically to the description given by Correll (1950) for Pia- henarla cristata (Michx.) R. Br., and by Luer (1975) for Platanthera cristata, but contained, either partially or en- tirely, individuals that exhibited a hght cream-yeUow color similar to the variation noted by Carpenter (1959). A closer study of flowers collected from one of the populations revealed that it contained numerous individuals with supernumerary anthers and fusion of one or both of the lateral petals with the dorsal sepal (Fig- 1)- Teratological and floral abnormahties are seemingly rare in Platanthera. The only pubhshed report is that of an instance of carpellody, the transformation of a sta- men to a pistil, in Platanthera bifolia (Rytz, 1921). DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT: Platanthera cristata is a coastal plain species inhabiting moist pine woodland clearings from eastern Texas northeast to Massachusetts and south along the Atlantic Coast to Florida. The four Long Island populations were lo- cated in similar habitats. A description of each popula- tion and its habitat follows: Oakdale. — Approximately ten plants, first located on 9 August 1982 along a fire lane (these plants were mowed prior to blooming in 1983) in Pine Barrens habitat. These individuals were found growing in moist sandy loam in open sunhght, in association with Platanthera hlephariglottis (white fringed orchid), Drosera rotun difolia (roundleaf sundew), Carex sp. (sedge), and Clethra alnifolia (sweet pepper bush). AU of these orchid flowers exhibited a pale canary-yellow color. Sag Harbor . — Approximately 60 plants first seen on 5 August 1983. These plants were found growing in moist sandy loam along a roadside ditch in full sun, and under a dense tree canopy of Pinus rigida (pitch pine) in association with Rhexia virginica (meadow (cont. pg 3) LongJsland_Botanica^ Long Island Botanical Society Founded: 1986 Incorporated: 1989 The Long Island Botanical Society is dedi- cated to the promotion of field botany and a greater understanding of the plants that grow wild on Long Island, New York. Visit the Society’s Web site www.libotanical.orq Executive Board President Eric Lamont 631-722-5542 Vice President Andrew Greller 516-364-9377 Treasurer Carol Johnston 516-676-6648 Recording Secretary Barbara Conolly 516-922-5935 Corresponding Secretary John Potente 631-361-6756 Committee Chairpersons Local Flora Steven Clemants 718-623-7309 Field Trips David Laby 631-751-0366 Programs Rich KeUy 516-354-6506 Membership Lois Lindberg 516-022-0903 Conservation Bill Titus 516-671-7351 Education Mary Laura Lamont 631-722-5542 Hospitahty Kathleen Gaffney 516-742-4019 Zu Proly 516-676-4023 Dorothy Titus 516-671-7351 Newsletter Editor Margaret Conover 631-357-3065 Webmaster Donald House hbsweb@yahoo.com Society News Members are reminded to send in their 2008 dues as soon as possible. At the November meeting, Treasurer Carol Johnston announced that last year’s expenses exceeded income by a substantial amount. The design, printing, and postage for the newsletter cost nearly $3000 annually. In or- der help the society return to a balanced budget, we are making some changes to newsletter production. Skip and Jane Blanchard will help with editing and proofreading the newsletter and Margaret Conover will pro- duce the layout. The present issue is the first newsletter to reflect these changes. Readers’ comments are invited. The last few issues of the newsletter are presently available on our web- site as pdf files. We are in the process of scanning back issues so that they can also be made available. Special thanks to Barbara Conolly for locating copies of missing back issues. Graduate student Camilo Salazar is compil- ing an index to the plant species mentioned in back issues of the LIBS newsletter. This index will be pubhshed, along with an index of authors and titles, as a future issue of the newsletter. LIBS is planning a pubhcation entitled, “Tidal Marshes of Long Island, New York.” John Potente will serve as editor. Some excellent articles have akeady been submitted. The Executive Committee has authorized $1500 toward this pubhcation and additional funds are being sought. Announcements Carol Johnston announced that former LIBS president Bob Zaremba and his wife Danielle welcome visitors to their guest house and antique shop in Chatham on Cape Cod. Barbara Conolly recommended the guest house highly as she has stayed there. Vince Pughsi has offered to organize a ten-day trip to Costa Rica in Janu- ary or February of 2009. Those interested should contact him. Andy Greller stated that the inventories he had done of Alley Pond Park, Cunningham Park and Forest Park in Queens in 1977 need updating and seeks others who would hke to work on that project with him. The Northeast Natural History Conference will be held in Albany on April 17 and 18, 2008. Details at http:/ /www.nysm.nysed.gov/nhc/ Eric Lamont has a chapter in “A Natural History of New York City Parks and Great Gull Island” pubhshed by the Transactions of the Lin- naean Society in Sept. 2007. To order, send a check or money order for $25 payable to: The Linnaean Society of New York (attn: Tom Endrey) 15 West 77th St., New York, NY 10024. Requests for information Julie Simpson, of Brown University, seeks field observations of populations of water hyacinth [Eichhomia crassipes). Contact her at 401-863-1266 or juhet.simpson@gmail.com PoUy Weigand seeks anecdotal reports of your experience with successful (and unsuccessful) methods for eradicating invasive plant species. Contact her at (631) 727-2315x3 or PoUyW@suffolkcountyny.gov On behalf of the Smithsonian, Eric Lamont seeks information about Eine HeUstrom, a botanist who apparently collected on Long Island in 1928-29. Long Island Botanical Society Vol. 18 No. 1 Page 3 beauty), Bartonia virginica (yellow screwstem), Carex sp. (sedge), Poljgala polygama (racemed milkwort), and (un- der dense tree canopy) Kalmia angustifolia (sheep laurel), Comptonia peregrina (sweet fernj, Myrica pensylvanica (bay- berry), and Ilex glahra (inkberry). The perianths of the individuals in this population exhibited two distinct color variations, a deep yellow-orange and a hght cream-yellow. Both color variations existed along the road as well as under the dense tree canopy, with no distinguishable preference. Napeague . — Approximately 1000 plants first seen on 5 August 1983 and then re-visited on 12 August 1983. These individuals were found growing in damp sandy loam under a stand of Pinus rigida in association with Cypripedium acauk (pink lady's shpper). All individuals exhibited a hght cream-yellow color. Montauk . — Approximately 500 plants first seen on 12 August 1983. All of the plants were found growing in dry sandy loam under a stand of Pinus rigida and Qiier- cus alba (white oak), and in association with A.rctostaphy- los uva-ursi (bearberry), Cypripedium acauk, and Panicum sp. (panic grass). Flowers of all of the individuals were pale creamy-yellow in color. All four populations were previously known, and had been documented by earher collectors. Specimens de- posited at the New York Botanical Garden by Roy Latham and labeled P. cristata (Catham 6992, 6993) contain population descriptions and locahties very similar to the Napeague and Montauk populations de- scribed above. Another locahty documented by Latham (iMtham 7308, 7490 at NYBG) is described as follows: East Hampton, Long Island, colony of one hundred plants, in Pine Barrens Swamp. On 7 Aug 1888, Arthur K. Harrison collected P. cristata from "Sag Harbor" and noted, "1 plant with orange flowers, 2 plants with lemon flowers" (voucher specimen at Harvard Univ. Herbaria; Lamont, personal communi- cation, 2007). On 1 Aug 1951, Roy Latham, C.K. Brooks & H.F. Dunbar collected P. cristata from "dry barrens near Montauk Point", and noted "flowers lemon yellow; ? X H. hlephariglottis (which is not near)". On 10 Aug 1948, C.S. Bryan collected it from "Mon- tauk Point", and noted "abnormal in the flower color which is cream-color or hght sulphurous yellow" (V oucher specimens of both latter collections housed at Harv^ard Univ. Herbaria; Lamont, personal commu- nication, 2007). METHODS AND OBSERVATIONS: Flowers from the three populations obsen^ed blooming in Au- gust 1983 were collected by randomly walking through each colony and removhig flowers from various plants. Specimens were fixed in 45% ethyl alcohol, 45% distilled water, 5% glacial acetic acid, and 5% formahn. There was no attempt made to correlate plant characters and flowers during coUection. Meas- urements at 75X magnification were made of the spur length, dorsal and lateral sepal width and length, petal length and width, and hp length, and these were found to be compatible with the measurements reported by Correll (1950). These results are shown in Table 1. Table 1. Measurements (mm.) of floral characters in Long Island populations of Platanthera cristata. Characteristics Correll Range Sag i Harbor Napeague Montauk ; Lip width i 2 2 2 i Dorsal sepal length 3-5 4 4 4 Dorsal sepal width 2-3 2.5 4 2.4 Laterai petai length 2-4 3 3* 3 i Lateral petal width 2-4 3 2.5* 3 i : Lateral sepal length 3-4 3 3 4 ^ Lateral sepal width 2-3 3 2.75 2.5 i Spur length : 5-10 6 6 j i * when present j ! 1 \ As described by both Correll and Luer, the dorsal se- pal of P. cristata is characteristically eUiptic to subor- bicular, with a shght notch at the obtuse apex. During analysis of flowers collected from the Napeague col- ony, however, numerous individuals were noted which showed fringing on either the right, left, or both sides of the dorsal sepal (Fig. 1). OjaO 0j.0 0«0 0j»0 Figure 1. Diagrammatic line drawings of dissected flowers from the Napeague colony showing various forms of dorsal sepal fringing. In aU instances where fringing occurred, the lateral petal on the fringed side was absent. Furthermore, a thickened tissue region running the vertical length of the dorsal sepal, approximately 0.5 mm from the fringed edge was obsen^ed. Of the 72 flowers collected from the Napeague colony, 11 displayed sepal fringing on both sides and had no lateral petals; ten displayed sepal fringing on the right side and had no right lateral petal; eight displayed sepal fringing on the left side and had no left lateral petal; and 42 displayed a typical part arrangement for P. cristata. These observations lead to the conclusion that the aberrant fringing on the dorsal sepal is the result of the developmental fusion of the dorsal sepal with one or both of the lateral petals. In addition to aberrations on the dorsal sepal, at least four flowers were noted having supernumerary anthers arising on the column (Fig. 2). All anthers appeared to be sexually functional and polhnia were produced in aU the anther sacs. Examination of various poUinia re- vealed a club-shaped mass of mealy pollen, caudicle. LongJsland_Botanical^^ and viscidium typical for I^latanthera. Supernumerary anther sacs varied from four to eight per flower. DISCUSSION: The lack of data on measurements of non-floral characters, on the cytology of the aberrant floral parts, on polhnation success, and on the herita- bility of aberrant characters, prohibits determining the significance and nature of these findings. While the aberrations may have arisen through hybridization of P. cristata with another member of yellow orchid com- plex, this is not likely in the author’s opinion. The oc- currence in general of hybrids between P. cristata and either P. ciliaris (L.) Lindl. or P. hlephariglottis (Willd.) Lindl. is widely accepted (e.g. Folsom, 1979; Luer, 1975; Correll, 1950; Ames, 1908; Small,1903). Both of the latter species do occur on Long Island, but P. ciliaris is quite rare and is known from only a few lo- cahties, while P. hlephariglottis is widely scattered in small colonies of no more than 60 plants. The hybrid P. ciliaris X P. cristata was originally named as a species, Blephariglottis chapmanii Small (1903); was later treated as a hybrid Platanthera X chapmanii (Small) Luer (see Luer, 1975); and was most recently again treated as a species, Platanthera chapmanii (Small) Luer by Folsom (1979). Folsom revealed that the morphol- ogy of this cross is intermediate in most respects be- tween that of P. ciliaris and P. cristata. However, as noted previously, flowers collected from all three Long Island colonies correspond morphologically to the de- scription of P. cristata. Furthermore, the pollinating system for P. cristata would seem to be sufficiently dif- ferent from P. ciliaris to prohibit cross polhnation of the two species. As noted by Folsom (1979) and Smith and Snow (1976), poUination of P. ciliaris is effected primarily by butterflies of the famhy Paphionadae, the swallowtails, while bumble bees (Bombus sp.) are the primary polhnators of P. cristata. During my own in- vestigations, a bumble bee was obsen^ed visiting ap- proximately eight plants in the Napeague colony during a 30-second inter^H at approximately 7:00 PM on 12 August 1983. This individual was not captured, and wliile it can be considered only a potential pollina- tor, its role as a pollinator of P. cristata would seem likely given this obser\-ation and those made by Fol- som (1979). In summary, evidence from structural characteristics, from polhnation and from local scarcity ah lead to rejecting P. ciliaris as a hkely parent. Though the hybrid Platanthera blephariglottis X cristata is more plausible based on the greater availabihty of P. blephariglottis, it would have to be disregarded for the morphological and geographic reasons given previ- ously, and the fact that polhnation in P. blephariglottis is effected primarily by night flying moths (Smith and Snow, 1976). From my field obser^^ations, the Napeague colony does not appear to grow in a habitat that is drastically different from the other populations. Environmental factors such as soil acidity, nutrient content, and mois- ture were not recorded, however, and may play a role in the occurrence of these aberrations. In his study on abnormal flowers, Meyer (1966) noted the importance of the external environment in promoting metamor- phosis of floral organs. Wherry, in his exhaustive stud- ies on soil acidity and its effects on floral distribution (1918, 1920, 1927), suggested optimum soil acidity values for many orchids, but then: significance and ef- fect, if any, on plant morphology were not stated. That a relationship exists between aberrant dorsal se- pals and supernumerary anthers is unhkely, as all three variations of fringing, as well as the normal flower condition, were found on flowers with more than the ordinary number of anthers. Because of the random collection of the studied flowers, it is impossible to say whether the aberrations are genetic mutations, though Meyer (1966) concluded that non-heritable abnormah- ties are unlikely to be recorded unless they are pro- duced by a stable physiological or environmental manipulating factor. (2007 update) CONCLUSIONS, LITERATURE UPDATES AND PRESERVATION STATUS OF EXISTING POPULATIONS: Although clearly differing in color from populations occurring elsewhere on Long Island, the colonies stud- ied on eastern Long Island were considered to be Pla- tanthera cristata up to and including the time when I first studied them in the summers of 1982 and 1983 (Lamont et al., 1988). In his original pubhcation Brown (1992) concluded that the morphological dif- ferences, namely, the descending, recur^^ed Hps and very short spurs, that these individuals display war- ranted their being designated a separate species. The findings presented here, while not directly supporting Brown’s claims, do indeed support the evidence that the eastern populations of this orchid, now formally referred to as Platanthera pallida P. M. Br. (1992), do in fact demonstrate certain distinctly different features from other populations of Platanthera cristata. Just how distinct they are, however, continues to be a matter of speculation. Brown (2007) recognized that Sheviak (2002) considers P. pallida to be a chne of P. cristata, meaning that while the plants described as P. pallida demonstrate changes in characteristics of the typical P. cristata, these changes are part of a broader set of changes which occur over a geographic area. Sheviak specifically noted that, while plants described as P. pal- lida are not sufficiently distinct to warrant separate species status from P. cristata, they are also not merely hybrids. Sheviak based tliis conclusion on the fact that Long Island Botanical Society Vol. 18 No. 1 Page 5 many of the features upon which Brown based liis designation overlap both species (Sheviak, 2002). He further stated that he has obtained chromosome counts of P. pallida of 2;?= 42, the same as P. cristata and the other species in the group. This would rule out the possibility that the colonies are allopolyploids, i.e. polyploids with chromosomes derived from different species (Sheviak, personal communication, 2007). I beheve the fusion between floral parts and the pro- duction of supernumerary anthers described here lend credence to Sheviak’s claim. That is, that the colonies described by Brown as P. pallida are the product of a partially stabihzed introgression, meaning they are the backcrossing of hybrids of two separate plant popula- tions, the progeny of which are producing new genes into a wild population (Sheviak, 2002). This seems to be a far more plausible designation in my miud, espe- cially given the fact that the populations in question could not be isolated from other populations of P. cristata for more than 5000 to 8000 years given the geologic history of Long Island and especially the re- gion in which the colonies in question exist. Fig.4 Fig.5 Figure 2. Flower of P. cristata showing multiple (su- pernumerary) anther sacs. Pollinia were typical for P. cristata. Figure 3. Flower showing fringing on the left side of the dorsal sepal and the presence of the right lateral petal. Figure 4. Flower showing fringing on both the left and right side of the dorsal sepal and the absence of both lateral petals. Figure 5. Flower of P. cristata taken from population located along Cordwood Road in Oakdale. Of particular note is the distinctly separate lateral petal and longer lip. It is unfortunate that the flower samples that were col- lected in 1983 have almost all been destroyed. The specimen displayed in Fig. 2 is one of the few remain- ing samples still preserv^ed. In an attempt to learn whether or not the observ^ations made in 1983 could be documented in the current population I revisited the colony in Napeague, referred to now by many as the Lazy Point orchids, on 11 August 2007. Racemes were removed from approximately 25 plants and fixed in 45% ethyl alcohol, 45% distilled water, 5% glacial acetic acid, and 5% Bio-Gard. Figs. 3 and 4 demon- strate fringing on the left (Fig. 3) and both (Fig. 4) sides of the dorsal sepal with the corresponding lateral petal(s) absent. No instances of supernumerary anthers were obsen-ed in the samples collected in 2007. The population located in Oakdale was revisited on 12 Au- gust 2007, along a fire lane known locally as Cord- wood Road, in Connetquot River State Park. Four plants were found and all displayed a light creamy- yellow coloration. (Platanthera blephariglottis, wliich had been found in 1982 and 1983, could not be re-located during the 2007 visit.) Fig. 5 depicts a flower collected from this population, clearly showing a typical P. cristata with distinctly separate lateral petal and longer hp than those found in populations further east. Of critical importance to discussions of the evolution- ary status of the Long Island populations of Platanthera is the overall protection that each population so des- perately needs. Of particular concern is the severe de- nuding that the Lazy Point (Napeague) population is suffering because of deer browsing. During the visit made on 11 August 2007, the population was esti- mated at 2000 to 3000 plants. While this is quite large, it is estimated that 7 out of every 10 plants in some spots were browsed. This is much more than has ever been obser\^ed in previous years. What long-term im- pact deer browsing will have on the population is un- certain, but considering the potential that these plants have for evolutionary study it would be a shame if they were to be diminished in abundance or, even worse, exthpated because of the over-population of white- tailed deer that Long Island is experiencing. Acknowledgements — I want to thank Eric Lamont for encouraging me to revisit the work I began 24 years ago and for his constructive criticism of the manuscript; and Charles Sheviak for his manuscript review and for his data on the genetics of Platanthera Literature Cited Ames, O. 1908. Notes on Hahenaria. Rhodora 10: 70-71. Brown, P. M. 1992. Platanthera pallida (Orchidaceae), a new species of fringed orchis from Long Island, New York, U. S. A. Novon 2:308-311. . 2007. Wild Orchids of the Northeast: New England, New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey; with original artwork by S. Folsom. University Press of Florida, Gainesville. Page 6 LongJsland_Botanical^^ Carpenter, G. M. 1959. A Color variant of Hahenaria cristata. BuU. Torrey Bot. Club 86: 137-138. CorreU, D. S. 1950. Native Orchids of North America. A New Series of Plant Science Books vol. 26. Chronica Botanica Company, Waltham, Massachusetts. Folsom,}. P. 1979. The True Nature of the Putative Natural Hybrid Platanthera X chapmanii (Orchidaceae). M.S. Thesis, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. Lamont, E. E., J. M. Beitel & R. E. Zaremba. 1988. Current status of orchids on Long Island, New York. BuU. Torrey Bot. Club 115: 113-121. Luer, C. A. 1975. The Native Orchids of the United States and Canada excluding Florida. The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York. Meyer, V. G. 1966. Flower abnormaUties. Bot. Rev. (Lan- caster) 32: 165-218. Rytz, W. 1921. Bliitenanomahen. Sitzungsber. Bern. Bot. Ges. 7 Okt. In Mitth. Naturf. Ges. Bern 1921: xxv-xxvi. Plant Sightings and Field Notes On October 13, Peter Warny led a field trip to Clark Garden and Leeds Pond Preserv^e. In the upland part of the latter site was found invasive exotics including kudzu {Pmraria lobatd) on the north edge and a new re- port of mile-a-minute weed (Polygonpim perfoliaturn). An interesting find was a good stand of RavenePs stink- horn, (Phallus ravenelii) on wood chips under white pines. The salt water beach across the road gave us prickly pear {Opuntia humifusa), common saltwort {Sal- sola kali) and coast bhte {Chenopodium rubrum). Steve Young and Eric Lamont collected several speci- mens of Chenopodium this past August. Steve identified two of the coUections as city goosefoot {Chenopodium urhicum) a native of Europe, and desert goosefoot {Chenopodium pratericola) a native of the western United States. According to the draft LIBS atlas of Long Is- land plants, the C. urhicum collection is a record for Suffolk County and only the second time reported from Long Island. Guy Tudor reported 3 noteworthy plant species from the summer of 2007: 1) Cachnanthes caroliniana, Carohna redroot, from Calverton ponds on August 1 9th; this species is one of NYs rarest and is only known from two LI sites; 2) Ipomoea hederacea, ivy-leaved morning- glory, on Sept 17th from a farm field just off Hulse Landing Road (off Rte. 25A), between Sound Ave. and Rte. 25, east of Wading River; this report is a Suffolk Co. record and the first report east of Queens Co.; 3) Phjsalis heterophjlla, clammy ground cherry, in bloom on Oct 14th, in disturbed soil bordering RR parking area at the end of Webb Street in Greenport (possibly introduced from soil dumped on berm at parking lot?); this species is rare on eastern Long Island. Sheviak, C. J. 2002. Platanthera, pp. 511-571. In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (editors), Magnolio- phyta: LiUidae: LHales and Orchidales. Elora of North America, vol. 26. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Small,}. K. 1903. Flora of the Southeastern United States. Published by the author. New York. Smith, G. R. & G. E. Snow. 1976. Po lli nation ecology of Platanthera (Hahenaria) ciliaris and P. blephariglottis (Orchida- ceae). Bot. Gaz. 137: 133-140. Wherry, E. T. 1918. The reaction of the soils supporting the growth of certain native orchids. }. Washington Acad. Sci. 8: 589-598. . 1920. Soil acidity— its nature, measurement, and relationship to plant distribution. Rep. (Annual) Board Regents Smithsonian Inst. 2622: 247-268. . 1927. The soil reaction of saprophytic orchids. }. Washington Acad. Sci. 17: 35-38. LIBS Hosts Botanists from Niagara Area By Rich KeUy Ten members of the Niagara Frontier Botanical Soci- ety came to Long Island to botanize with members of the Long Island Botanical Society in late August, 2007. LIBS president, Eric Lamont, set up an agenda to in- clude local rarities and interesting habitats that would be different from those they were fa mili ar with from upstate. On Wednesday, August 29th Mary Laura Lamont, joined by Rich KeUy, led a trip to the Fire Island Na- tional Seashore. After a pleasant ferry crossing to Sailor's Haven, the group walked to the Sunken For- est, passed by a bay side habitat, then visited various dune and swale communities. Birders in the group were happy to see Northern Gannets plunge diving not far off the ocean beach. The Niagara group was very easy to please as new things popped up for them on a regular basis. Some of the coastal plain species wliich brought the most interest for them were saltmarsh fleabane {Pluchea odoratd), rose mallow {Hibis- cus moscheutos), purple gerardia {Agalinis purpurea), Mary- land golden-aster {Chrysopsis mariand), and beachgrass {Ammophila hreviligulatd). Of course, they were very im- pressed by the size of the American hoUy (Ilex opacd) at Sunken Forest. The Sunken Forest is classified as a maritime holly forest, which is a globally rare ecologi- cal community. On Thursday morning, August 30th Mary Laura led a trip to Orient Beach State Park. Rich also came out for the day. Highhghts here were a selection of beach spe- cies, topped by a couple of seabeach knotweed {Poly- gonum glaucufTp in bloom. Then we walked through the Long Island Botanical Society Vol. 18 No. 1 Page 7 coastal oak forest to see eastern prickly-pear (Opuntia humifusd), post oak {Quercus stellatd), blackjack oak {Q. marilandicd), and Q. X bushii, the hybrid of blackjack and black {O. velutind) oaks. The next stop was the salt marsh community, with its array of coastal grasses, and highhghted by the rare Salicornia higelovii. A road- side stop, while leaving the park, netted sickle- leaved golden-aster {Pitjopsis falcatd) and a simultaneous view of three hghthouses (five in total for the day). The morning session was finished off by a visit to the very tip of Orient Point, for a great view of The Race and Plum Island, then mile-a-minute weed (Pofygonum perfoliatiurn) back near the state park toll booth. It's ex- tremely unfortunate that this invader has taken hold near the very tip of the North Fork. In the afternoon, Eric Lamont spelled Mary Laura as tlie group headed back west. A quick stop at the beach near Dam Pond was made to see the leaves and bi- 2 arre fruits of horned poppy {Glaucium flavum). We tlien went to Moore's Woods in Greenport to search for cranefly orchid (pPipularia discolor) in fruit. Unfortunately, none could be found, but Eric pointed out green ash (Fraxinus pennsjjlvanicd). Next was the nearby power Hne cut by Chapel Road for the rare swamp cottonwood {Populus heterophjlld). Nice cardinal- flowers {lobelia cardinalid) were in bloom at this site. Cranberry Bog County Park was the closer for the day, with httle lady's tresses {Spiranthes tuberosd), arrow arum (Peltandra virginicd), and common juniper (Juniperus com- munis) seen here, as well as the state rare Atlantic white-cedar {Chamaecypans thyoides) swamp. On Friday, August 31st, Eric led a whirlwind trip to numerous hot spots. He was joined by Rich, plus Bar- bara Conolly and Andy Greller. The first stop was a roadside spot in Southport (Flanders) which had screw-stem (Bartonia paniculatd), the first of many state rare plants for the day. This was the beginning of what can only be called a mega day of botany on Long Island. Regular LIBS members who could have come out for the day missed a very special day of field work. Eric had scouted the next area a few days earher with Steve Young of the NY Natural Heritage Program, and we went to the "Coastal Plain Poor Fen" at North Hubbard Creek Marsh to clean up on his advance work. Here we quickly and easily had seaside gerardia {Agalinis maritimd)^ southern dodder {Cuscuta obtusiflora var. glandulosd), saltmarsh loosestrife (ly thrum lineare), southern seaside goldenrod {Solidago sempervirens var. mexicand), marsh fimbry (Fimbristylis castaned), seaside plantain {Plant ago maritima juncoides), and arrow- grass (Triglochin mantimum). Most of these are very local in New York, and the dodder and loosestrife are ex- tremely rare. Then Rich, Barbara, and Andy led a foray up nearby Red Creek Fen in search of bog aster {Aster nemoralid). Although we were pushing the date a httle, we were rewarded with 5 plants in bloom, plus the fo- hage of many others. Other highhghts at this location were tawny cottongrass (Eriophomm virginicum), cross- leaf milkwort {Polygala crudatd), Canadian burnet {San- guisorba canadensis), IJtricularia subulata, and the rare smooth withe-rod ({Viburnum nudum var. nudum). Some exploration was also done on the marsh opposite the outflow of Red Creek. We then made a couple of quick stops at the dwarf pine barrens to show off the stunted pitch pines {Pinus rigidd). The dwarf pine plains is yet another globally rare ecological community. Sheep's-bit (Jasione montand) was also noted here. Then we went on to the famous roadside bank on the south side of North Street in ManorvdUe where we had Polygala nuttallii and the leaves and fruits of cohcroot {Aletris farinosd). Futher down the street we saw Guy Tudor's famous hoary ven^ain (Verbena strictd), and the group got in some work on Desmodiums and Lespedezas at the railroad crossing. Next stop was Sandy Pond in Calverton for a variety of coastal plain pond specialties. These included pipe- wort (Eriocaulon aquaticum), round-pod water-wiUow (Eudwigia sphaerocarpa), hundreds of horned bladder- worts (IJtricularia cornutd), and thousands of purple bladderworts (Utriculana purpurea). Threadleaf sundew {Drosera filiformis) at this site was a very popular find for our guests. The last location visited was adjacent Block Pond which showed off broad-leaved arrowhead {Sag- ittaria latifolid), Engelmann's arrowhead {S. engelman- niand), and grass-leaved arrowhead (S. gramined). The weather was superb for all three days of their visit, and the Niagara botanists were enthusiastic and appre- ciative. It was easy and fun to host them. Lots of great plants were seen, along with tremendous scenery, hghthouses, birds, and insects. I'm sure that the very special habitats/botanical communities of Long Island made a lasting impression on the group. Join LIBS today! Annual Membership is $20 payable to: Long Island Botanical Society Mail your dues to: Lois Lindberg, Membership Chairperson 61 70 Northern Blvd. East Norwich, NY 11732-1614 Long Island Botanical Society PO Box 507 Aquebogue, NY 11931 Page 8 Long Island Botanical Society Vol. 18 No. 1 upcoming Programs Reminder: our schedule has changed, and there will be no meetings in January or February. January 2008 --No meeting. February 2008 -No meeting. March 11, 2008* Tuesday, 7:30 PM Members Night: Members are welcome to bring slides, stories, specimens, and tales of peculiar sightings of favorite plants. A great opportunity to show what you have found while exploring on Long Island or elsewhere. Please call Rich Kelly (516- 354-6506) in advance to advise as to the approxi- mate number of slides/images that you would like to show and preferred medium. Thanks. Location: Bill Paterson Nature Center, Muttontown Preserve, East Norwich Aprii 8, 2008* Tuesday, 7:30 PM Greg Edinger: "The Ecoiogicai Commu- nities of Long isiand." From the nearly extir- pated Hempstead Plains grassland, to the barrier dune ecosystem on Fire Island, to the globally rare dwarf pine plains, to the elusive sea level fen, to the maritime forests and bluffs at Montauk Point, this illustrated talk will show the diversity of natural communities of Long Island. Greg is the Chief Ecologist with the NY Natural Heritage Program. He is the lead editor of Ecological Com- munities of NY State, and wrote an article, that fo- cused on the ecological communities of Long Island, which appeared in the summer 2006 LIBS newslet- ter. Location: Bill Paterson Nature Center, Muttontown Preserve, East Norwich * Refreshments and informal talk begin at 7:30. Formal meeting starts at 8:00 PM. Directions to Muttontown: 516-571-8500