LONG ISLAND
BOTANICAL SOCIETY
NEWSLETTER

Preliminary Atlas
of the Magnoliideae
on Long Island, N.Y., Part 1

The Flora Committee of the Long Island Botani-
cal Society has been working for the past year on
this third contribution to a preliminary atlas of the
flora of Long Island. The first contribution treated
the Ferns and Fern Allies and was printed in the
LIBS newsletter in 1994; the Gymnosperm atlas was
presented in 1995.

This contribution includes distribution dot maps
for all the families treated in Mitchell and Beal
(Magnoliaceae through Ceratophyllaceae of New
York State. N.Y. State Bulletin 435. 1979). The
Flora Committee plans to provide detailed discus-
sion of each species in the future.

Notes. Persea borbonia: we have no records
more detailed than to the county. Asarum
canadense: repons from Huntington may be con-
fused with A. shuttleworthii. Nuphar luteum as
recognized here includes several subspecies. Recent
evidence suggests that these should be recognized as
species which are not related to N. luteum. More
work will be needed to sort out the distributions of
these taxa on Long Island.

Submitted by the LIBS Flora Committee

Highlights

Atlas of the Magnoliideae on L.L 41

Distribution Maps 42

Botanical Find of the Year 44

Environmental Bond Acts 45

Programs 46

Key to Map Symbols

Closed circle [•] = there is a specimen for this area
collected after 1980.

Open circle [o] = there is a specimen for this area
collected before 1980.

Closed square [■] = there is a specimen from this
area collected before 1980 and a report
(based upon a visual sighting or published
literature report) from this area after 1980.

Closed triangle [a] = there is a report (based upon
a visual sighting or published literature
report) from this area after 1980.

Open triangle [a] = there is a repon (based upon a
visual sighting or published literature report)
from tnis area before 1980.

Botany Quiz

Identify the fruits shown below; all are from L. I.
species included in the Atlas of the Magnoliideae
(Ajiswers are on page 44)

LI. Botanical Society

Nov. - Dec. 1996

Page 41

MAGNOLIACEAE

ANNONACEAE

CALYCANTHACEAE

Magnolia acuminata (L.) L. -
Alien

CUCUMBER-TREE

<r-

'-y-'-cr ^ ^

Magnolia macrophylla Michx. -
Alien

Magnolia tripe tala L. -
Alien

UMBRELLA-TREE

yyt^ ^

/Ci'iU —

— 1 1 f|

Magnolia virginiana L. -
Native

SWEET-BAY

LL Botanical Society

Nov.

LAURACEAE

Page 42

LAURACEAE contM

SAURURACEAE

ARISTOLOCHIACEAE

Aristolochia macrophylla Lamarck -

Alien DUTCHMAN’ S-PIPE

Aristolochia serpetaria L. - VIRGINIA SNAKEROOT

Native

ARISTOLOCHIACEAE com d

Asarum canadense L. -
Native

WILD GINGER

Asarum sliuttlewortliii -
Alien

NYMPHAEACEAE

0^

Nuphar luteum (L.) Sibth. & Smith -

Native YELLOW POND-LILY

■ 1

0 -

Nymphaea odorata Ait. - WHITE WATER-LILY

Native

LI. Botanical Society

Nov. - Dec. 1996

Page 43

CABOMBACEAE

Botanical Find
of the Year

CERATOPHYLLACEAE

New York Ecologists
Rediscover an SX Plant

While conducting natural community inven-
tories in the pouring rain on Barcelona Neck on
eastern Long Island associate ecologist/botanist,
Greg Edinger and associate ecologist David
Hunt of the New York Natural Heritage Pro-
gram found a small population of Slender
Spikegrass {Chasmanthium laxum). Slender
Spike grass was previously collected from six
other locations in the state, the last of which was
in 1936. Bob Zaremba, director of science
programs with the New York Regional Office of
The Nature Conservancy, tenaciously searched
for this plant for more than ten years and found
no extant populations in the state. In 1994
botanists considered Chasmanthium laxum
extirpated in New York and listed it as SX.

This location is at the most northeastern extent
of its range. - Greg Edinger

Executive Board Meeting

A meeting of the Executive Board will be held
on 10 December 1996 at 6:15 pm (before the
monthly meeting and program) at the Museum
of Long Island Natural Sciences, Room 137,
SUNY at Stony Brook. All members are wel-
come.

Answers to Botany Quiz (from page 4i)

A. Pawpaw (Asimina triloba); B. Sweet-bay Magnolia
{Magnolia virginiana); C. Sweet- shrub {Galycanthus
floridus); D. Coontail {Ceratophyllum echinatum); E.
Virginia Snakeroot {Aristolochia serpentaria); F. Fragrant
Water-lily (Nympfiaea odorata).

LL Botanical Society

Nov, - Dec. 1996

Page 44

Several Environmental Bond
Acts to Appear on Ballot
this Election Day

Depending on where you live on Long Island
one, two, or three environmental Bond Acts will
appear on the ballot when you walk into the voting
booth this Election Day. Following is a synopsis of
the various proposals:

The Clean Water/Clean Air Environmen-
tal Bond Act (New York State) is a $1.75
Billion Bond Act, the centerpiece of which is $790
million for cleaning up degraded water bodies and
wetlands throughout the state. Long Island Sound is
targeted to receive $200 million in remediation
funds while the South Shore Bays and Peconic Bay
would receive $30 million for various clean up
projects. The Act also contains $150 million for
Land Acquisition Projects and the Long Island Pine
Barrens is one of the priority targeted areas for use
of these funds. Bond Act funds also will be avail-
able for wetland restoration.

Two measures to modify the Suffolk County
Clean Drinking Water Protection Program

will be on the ballot. One measure, the result of a
citizen led petition drive spearheaded by the Long
Island Pine Barrens Society, requires that all remain-
ing funds derived from the 1/4 cent sales tax be put
into a fund to be used for acquisition of key water-
shed parcels (estimated to be about $51 million).

The other, passed by the Suffolk County Legislature,
guarantees $40 million for this purpose.

In addition to the state and county measures, the
five east end towns have each proposed
Environmental Bond Act proposals of their
own which will appear on the ballot. Like the
County and State proposals, they will only take
effect if approved by the voters (please note that the
Town of Riverhead’s $2 million Farmland Preserva-
tion Bond Act was approved by the Town Board and
does not require the approval of voters in Riverhead
Town).

The Towns of Southampton and East Hampton
are each proposing $5 million Bond Acts to fund
acquisition of open space and farmland, the Town of
Southold is proposing to spend $2 million of Bond
Act proceeds for farmland preservation and, lastly,
the Town of Shelter Island is offering its residents
the opportunity to approve a $600,000 measure to
fund open space purchases.

On a related matter, the New York State Legisla-
ture approved a “fully-funded” Environmental
Protection Fund as part of the approved 1996-97
state budget. Of the $100 million in the fund, to be
used for a wide variety of environmental purposes,
$37.5 million is earmarked for parkland and open
space purchases statewide. A number of the parcels
that are targeted for protection are on Long Island,
including land in the Pine Barrens, on the South
Fork, and along the Great South Bay.

Also, the Legislature and governor approved
legislation which provides local municipalities with
a new and alternate means to finance open space
acquisitions. Called the “LIPO” legislation for
“Land Installment Purchase Obligations,” it allows
for local governments, with tlie cooperation of the
land owner, to defer payments on the principal of a
purchase until the end of the term instead of at the
beginning, as it is done now. Instead of interest
payments being made to bond holders, the payments
are made to the land owner. This new tool should
provide local governments with increased flexibility
in tailoring land acquisition settlements to meet the
specific financial needs of the land owner, with the
result of more land being protected.

The Long Island Botanical Society urges your
support of these significant environmental measures
to purchase important open spaces, thereby safe-
guarding the plant species and communities con-
tained therein.

John Turner, LIBS Conservation Chairperson

LI. Botanical Society

Nov. - Dec. 1 996

Page 45

LONG ISLAND BOTANICAL SOCIETY
Founded: 1986; Incorporated; 1989.

PROGRAMS

The Long Island Botanical Society is dedicated to the promotion of

field botany and a greater understanding of the plants that grow

wild on Long Island, New York.

President

Eric Lament

Vice President

Skip Blanchard

Treasurer

Carol Johnston

Rec'rd Secy

Barbara Conolly

Cor’sp Secy

Jane Blanchard

Local Flora

Steven Clemants

Field Trip

Glenn Richard
Allan Lindberg

Membership

Lois Lindberg

Conservation

John Turner
Louise Harrison

Education

Mary Laura Lament
Thomas Allen Stock

Hospitality

Betty Lotowycz

Program

Skip Blanchard
Steven Clemants

Editor

Eric Lament

Membership

Membership is open to all, and we welcome new members.
Annual dues are $ 10. For membership, make your check payable
to LONG ISLAND BOTANICAL SOCIETY and mail to: Lois
Lindberg, Membership Chairperson, 45 Sandy Hill Road, Oyster
Bay, NY 11771-3111

12 November 1996 - 7:30 pm*

Prof. Otto Heck, "Ferns of the Northeast"

A joint program with The Nature Conservancy
featuring one of L.I.'s most popular field natural-
ists. Uplands Farm Nature Center, Cold Spring
Harbor.

10 December 1996 - 7:30 pm*

Dr. John Potente, American Chestnut Founda-
tion Board Member & District #1 Director,
"The Blight and Plight
of the American Chestnut"

A brief natural history of Castanea dentata and
a review of approaches being taken to assist in
its survival, including hypovirulence, genetic
engineering, and plant breeding genetics.
Museum of L.I. Natural Sciences, Room 137,
SUNY at Stony Brook.

*Refreshments & informal talk begin at 7:30pm, the
meeting starts at 8pm. For directions to: 1) Uplands Farm
call 516/367-3225; 2) MOUNS, caU 516/632-8230.

LONG ISLAND BOTANICAL SOCIF'
c/o Muttontown Preserve
Muttontown Lane
East Norwich, New York 1173'^

LI. Botanical Society

Nov. - Dec. 1 996

Page 46