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CONTENTS
ARTICLES
Continuing Decline in the Freshwater Unionid (Bivalvia: Unionidae) Fau-
na in the Cumberland River Downstream from Cumberland Falls, Ken-
tucky. Ronald R. Cicerello and Ellis L. Laudermilk ........................ 55
Characterization of Tall Fescue Plantlets Regenerated from Cultured
Panicle Segments/Anthers for Meiotic, Isozyme, and DNA Changes.
Georgia C. Eizenga and Timothy D. Phillips ............0....0c.ccccceseseeeee 60
Caddisflies (Insecta: Trichoptera) of the Mainstem of the Kentucky River,
Kentucky. Ronald E. Houp and Guenter A. Schuster ....................+- 67
Noteworthy Vascular Plant Discoveries from Kentucky. Gary W. Libby,
Randy L. Mears, and C. Tom BIOOm ..............0..cccccccccceccecccccccesconss 74
Effects of Acidic Minesoil on Nodulation of the Legume Sericea Lespe-
deza (Lespedeza cuneata; Fabaceae) by Bradyrhizobium Nitrogen-fix-
ing Bacteria. Gary R. Cline and Anthony F. Silvernail .................... 80
Structure and Composition of Three Swamp Forests on the Mississippi
Alluvial Plain of Kentucky’s Jackson Purchase Region. William S. Bry-
IE ee Aas LOTION SEUNG 0 SI OS SM Lek IL a) AUR UTA CE CU GROG OR 85
Planning a Trip. John S. Spraker, Daniel C. Biles, and Mark P. Rob-
PN SOM Eee ees IS Ua aU a SRR LS Cis aC LIN ae ea ec ONC BM 92
NOTES
Blue Catfish (Ictalurus furcatus; Ictaluridae) Predation on the Zebra
Mussel in the Ohio River near Paducah, Kentucky. Jeffrey J. Herod,
Tricia L. Frye, and James B. Sickel .................cccccccccccccccscceccccecccoes 96
Rare and Extirpated Plants and Animals of Kentucky: 1997 Update.
Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission .................ecececeeceeess 96
Epilobium brachycarpum (Onagraceae) in Kentucky. John T. Kartesz, —
Peter Allen, and John W. Thieret ...............cccccccccccccccccccccccccecccesces 99
Horned-Pondweed, Zannichellia palustris (Zannichelliaceae) from
Northern and Central Kentucky. Les Meade, Brian Binion, Peggy Mea-
sel, Brenda Hamm, and Patricia Dalton Haragan ..................+.++0++- 99
List of Reviewers for Volume 58) 302.) ON GG SUN US Nae 101
Index: to Volume 58) (00055 05 SONGS BEA ane Je aise aah FU eed ER gO ra 103
Pret.
KHAaXx
A JOURNAL
ll OF THE
KENTUCKY
ACADEMY OF
SCIENCE
Official Publication of the Academy
Volume 59
Number 1
Spring 1998
The Kentucky Academy of Science
Founded 8 May 1914
GoveERNING Boarp FoR 1998
Executive COMMITTEE
President: Patricia K. Doolin, Research, Applications and Development, Ashland Petroleum Company,
P.O. Box 391, Ashland, KY 41114
President Elect: Gordon K. Weddle, Department of Biology, Campbellsville University, Campbellsville, KY
42718
Vice President: Blaine Ferrell, Department of Biology, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY
42101
Past President: Marcus T. McEllistrem, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kentucky,
Lexington, KY 40506-0055
Secretary: Joseph W. Wilson, Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506-
0055
Treasurer: William E. Houston, 161 Morningstar Court, Bowling Green, KY 42103
Executive Secretary (ex officio): Donald Frazier, Science Outreach Center, University of Kentucky, Lex-
ington, KY 40536-0078
Editor, JOURNAL (ex officio): John W. Thieret, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky
University, Highland Heights, KY 41099; (606) 572-6390
Editor, NEWSLETTER (ex officio): Maria K. Falbo-Kenkel, Department of Physics and Geology, Northern
Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY 41099
Director, Junior Academy of Science (ex officio): Vincent A. DiNoto Jr., Department of Physics, Jefferson
Community College SW, 1000 Community College
Drive, Louisville, KY 40272
Program Coordinator (ex officio): Robert O. Creek, Department of Biological Sciences, Eastern Kentucky
University, Richmond, KY 40475
MEMBERS, GOVERNING BOARD
Robert J. Barney 1999 Barbara L. Rafaill 1999
Charles N. Boehms 2001 J.G. Rodriguez 1998
James F. Hopgood 1998 AAAS/NAAS Representative
Bruce A. Mattingly 2000 Lee A. Roecker 2000
James Ross 2001
COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATIONS
Editor and John W. Thieret, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University,
Chair: Highland Heights, KY 41099
Associate Editor: James O. Luken, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University,
Highland Heights, KY 41099
Index Editor: Varley Wiedeman, Department of Biology, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY
40292
Editorial Board: Patricia K. Doolin, Research, Applications and Development, Ashland Petroleum
Company, Ashland, KY 41114
John P. Harley, Department of Biological Sciences, Eastern Kentucky University,
Richmond, KY 40475
Marcus T. McEllistrem, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of
Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506-0055
J.G. Rodriguez, Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40546-0091
John D. Sedlacek, Community Research Service, Kentucky State University,
Frankfort, KY 40601. ;
All manuscripts and correspondence concerning manuscripts should be addressed to the Editor.
The JOURNAL is indexed in BIOSIS and in State Academies of Science Abstracts.
. Membership in the Academy is open to interested persons upon nomination, payment of dues, and election. Application
forms for membership may be obtained from the Secretary. The JOURNAL is sent free to all members in good standing.
Annual dues are $25.00 for Active Members; $15.00 for Student Members; $35.00 for Family; $350.00 for Life Mem-
bers. Subscription rates for nonmembers are: $45.00 domestic; $50.00 foreign. Back issues are $30.00 per volume.
The JOURNAL is issued semiannually in Spring and Fall. Two numbers comprise a volume.
Correspondence concerning memberships or subscriptions should be addressed to the Secretary.
© This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).
INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATES
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JOURNAL OF THE KENTUCKY ACADEMY OF SCIENCE
ISSN 1098-7096
Continuation of
Transactions of the Kentucky Academy of Science
Volume 59
Spring 1998
Number 1
J]. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):1. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Introduction
Undergraduate education in the biological
sciences has changed dramatically during the
last 20 years. With the call for greater linkages
between teaching and research (National Re-
search Council 1996) and the need for im-
proved teaching of science process, colleges
and universities in Kentucky responded with a
variety of approaches and courses all designed
to get students doing biology rather than sim-
ply learning about the discipline. Indeed, what
was once considered to be solely within the
domain of graduate education is now rapidly
becoming a standard component of the un-
dergraduate experience.
Granted, undergraduate research has long
been a tradition in the small liberal arts col-
leges. Only recently have the state colleges
and universities come to the conclusion that
yes, undergraduate students are capable of
conducting innovative research, and yes, this
research is of value in the educational process.
Not surprisingly though, the means whereby
small colleges, regional universities, and re-
search universities achieve more undergradu-
ate research are many and varied.
It is the purpose of this special section of
the Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Sci-
ence to examine the various approaches that
have been taken to facilitate undergraduate
research in Kentucky, to cite difficulties in-
volved in this curricular transition, and to
point out synergisms that might develop in the
future among various educational institutions.
Getting undergraduates to appreciate the en-
terprise of science, to think as scientists, and
to work like scientists is not easy. I hope,
though, that the different programmatic fea-
tures described in this series of articles will be
of some value as teachers in Kentucky colleges
and universities strive to bring more research
opportunities to their students.
Sixteen Kentucky colleges and universities
were invited to contribute to this special issue:
Asbury College, Berea College, Campbellsville
College, Centre College, Cumberland Col-
lege, Eastern Kentucky University, George-
town College, Kentucky State University, Ken-
tucky Wesleyan College, Morehead State Uni-
versity, Murray State University, Northern
Kentucky University, Thomas More. College,
University of Kentucky, University of Louis-
ville, and Western Kentucky University. Some
of these were unable to participate.
James O. Luken
Department of Biological Sciences
Northern Kentucky University
Highland Heights, KY 41099
LITERATURE CITED
National Research Council. 1996. From analysis to ac-
tion: undergraduate education in science, mathematics,
engineering, and technology—report of a convocation
National Research Council/National Science Founda-
tion Convocation, April 9-11, 1996, Washington, DC.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):2-5. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
A Program for Facilitating Undergraduate Research in Biology
Jerry W. Warner
Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Kentucky 41099-0400
ABSTRACT
During the year-long introductory course for biology majors at Northern Kentucky University, students
are exposed to research interests of faculty and are required to conduct a series of laboratories of an
investigative nature. A sophomore course in information resources helps them develop the skills they need
for conducting literature research. As juniors they are encouraged to take courses in biological techniques
that they can then apply to directed research projects. As seniors they must present two seminars that can
be based on their research. They are also encouraged to present their research results at meetings of the
Kentucky Academy of Science, Beta Beta Beta, or other appropriate organizations.
INTRODUCTION
The Department of Biological Sciences at
Northern Kentucky University (NKU) has
about 425 undergraduate majors. About half
begin as declared majors in general biology or
teacher education in biology. The others, at
least initially, are pre-professionals of one type
or another. Because the professional programs
they are working toward are very selective,
many will not be successful in getting into the
program of their choice and will remain at
NKU to finish a degree in biology. Others,
once they gain some insight into career op-
portunities available to biologists, will change
their major to general biology early in their
first year. Still others will change to a major
not related to the biological sciences.
The faculty of the department consists of 14
full-timers plus myself. Although the primary
mission of NKU has always been undergrad-
uate instruction, members of the faculty are
encouraged to remain active scholars. Over
the years, many of the faculty have maintained
ongoing research programs and most of these
have a history of involving students in their
research.
When I became department chair in 1990,
there was evidence of a division in the faculty
along the lines of those who were involved in
research and those who were not. One of my
first endeavors was to look for ways to over-
come this problem and bring the faculty to-
gether to work toward common goals that
would benefit students and make us a much
stronger department. This was accomplished
in part by encouraging and making it possible
for all faculty to participate in some sort of
scholarly activity. In addition to this new em-
phasis, we began to explore curricular changes
that were affordable and that would make re-
search an integral part of each major’s degree
program.
STEPS FOR ASSURING SUCCESS
The process that ensued has been of an evo-
lutionary nature. We recognized from the start
that we already had some basic components in
place that would be useful in this transition.
We also realized that these components might
require some alterations and that we would
need to add other important parts. We knew
that if we were to be successful in having un-
dergraduate students do meaningful research,
we would need to introduce them to scientific
research and the research process early during
their first year of college and that we would
need to build on that foundation each suc-
ceeding year.
The components, already in place were as
follows:
BIO 150 & BIO 151 Introduction to Biol-
ogy I & I (10 semester hours; required cours-
es)
BIO 240 Library Resources in Biological
Sciences (1 semester hour; required course)
BIO 401 Seminar (1 semester hour; re-
quired course)
BIO 496 Independent Study (1—3 semester
hours each, up to a total of 6 semester hours;
elective course)
Northern Kentucky University—Warner 3
BIO 497 Techniques of the Biological Sci-
ences (1-2 semester hours each, up to a total
of 4 semester hours; elective course)
Although we had these basic components in
place we did not have a clear plan of how to
best use them to assure a meaningful research
experience for our students. We realized that
the sequence of courses was important and
that, while the sequence was appropriate for
some students, much was being left to chance.
Therefore, we set about to restructure our
curriculum in a logical way that would stimu-
late interest in undergraduate research.
Over a period of several years we made
changes that we believe have made notable
improvements. These changes are designed to
introduce biology majors to research. Students
are led step-by-step to the point where they
are doing research, making presentations, and,
by the time they graduate, publishing scientific
papers (with a faculty member).
The first thing we did was to reevaluate the
way we deliver our introductory courses (BIO
150 & BIO 151). After meticulous examina-
tion we changed the way lecture instruction is
provided, thoroughly revised the laboratory
experience, and added a new component. The
details are as follows.
Lecture
For almost 20 years a single instructor had
sole responsibility for two sections of lecture
per semester. BIO 150 & BIO 151 had be-
come identified as his course rather than the
department's course. In the early 1990s we
changed this by having another instructor
work with the established professor. Teaching
responsibility was divided so that each taught
about one-half of the course. In following se-
mesters more faculty members became in-
volved. The original professor was relieved of
having to teach these courses on a continual
basis and, instead, became one of several
course instructors. We now have six faculty
members who have taught BIO 150 & BIO
151 in various team combinations. This re-
structuring has brought a variety of faculty
into contact with our majors during their crit-
ical first year, and it has resulted in faculty
working closely with one another in the class-
room.
Laboratory
Prior to this revision, we used a commer-
cially available laboratory manual that was de-
signed to have students learn a lot of factual
material about biology. While much of it was
good-to-know information, students were not
required to use the scientific process or to de-
velop critical thinking skills. In preparation for
this new approach, laboratory time was re-
structured from two 2-hour sessions per week
to one, 3-hour session per week. This larger
block of time better accommodates the inves-
tigative approach that was installed. Faculty
teaching the laboratories wrote new exercises
that require students to collect data, to analyze
it using computers, and to draw conclusions
about their findings. This process enables us
to achieve our goal of having new majors learn
about the research process by doing research.
Recitation
This new course component is designed to
provide beginning biology majors an orienta-
tion to the discipline. It meets once a week
for 1 hour. Departmental faculty come as
guests to talk about the upper-level courses
they teach and the research they do. Students
are provided an opportunity to get to know
faculty at an early stage. One requirement of
recitation is that students are assigned scien-
tific papers to read and respond to. They be-
come familiar with different types of publica-
tions (i.e., review articles, primary articles,
popular articles, etc.) and the appropriate use
of each.
Following completion of BIO 150 & BIO
151, biology majors must take BIO 240 Infor-
mation Resources in Biological Sciences as
soon as possible. This course, formerly called
Library Resources in Biological Sciences, has
changed as the Steely Library has incorporat-
ed new methods of information retrieval such
as on-line searches, use of the internet, etc.
Successful completion of this course provides
students with the basic skills they require to
perform a search of the literature.
One of the important additions that we
made to our curriculum was the establishment
of a new, required course, BIO 390 Principles
of Research. This course was added as a ve-
hicle for teaching modern scientific method-
ology including problem selection, experimen-
4 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
tal design, survey of scientific literature, and
development of a research proposal. Students
are to take BIO 390 as soon as they complete
BIO 240, that is, in the spring semester of
their sophomore year or in the junior year.
One immediate outcome of this course is that
some students use their proposals, with some
elaboration, to successfully apply for research
grants from sources such as Beta Beta Beta
and Sigma Xi as well as for summer research
grants available from NKU.
Following completion of BIO 390 (and
sometimes concurrent with it) majors are en-
couraged to register for BIO 397 Techniques
of the Biological Sciences. Students in BIO
397 work directly with a faculty member to
learn basic techniques necessary for conduct-
ing research in a specific area. This is not a
required course and it may not be necessary
for all students who want to do research.
The next step is to actually get involved in
a research project with a faculty member. Stu-
dents can do this by registering for BIO 496
Directed Research (an optional course). This
involves the student working with a faculty
member on some aspect of that faculty mem-
ber’s ongoing research. Students are encour-
aged to present the results of their research
effort at a scientific meeting such as that of
the Kentucky Academy of Science, national or
regional meetings of Beta Beta Beta, or others
as appropriate. This research will often result
in a publication with the student as co-author
with the faculty member.
All biology majors are required to take BIO
401 Seminar usually in their senior year. If
they have followed the route as above de-
scribed, seminar is rather anticlimactic. They
may base their presentations on the research
they have done. Those who do not follow this
route must select topics, do thorough litera-
ture searches, and give presentations based on
the literature rather than on their original re-
search.
RESULTS
At the 1996 annual meetings of the Ken-
tucky Academy of Science 69 undergraduate
students from throughout the state entered
the undergraduate research competition. Of
these the NKU Department of Biological Sci-
ences had 10 students who made presenta-
tions and four others who jointly presented a
poster. Five of these students were recipients
of awards as follows: Botany and Microbiology
section, 2nd and 3rd place winners; Cellular
and Molecular Biology section, 1st place win-
ner (co-winner); Zoology and Entomology sec-
tion, 2nd place winner; and Undergraduate
Poster Competition, 1st place winner; This is
an impressive showing especially when you
consider that undergraduate presenters from
our Department of Biological Sciences won
recognition in every section in which they par-
ticipated. No other single department in the
state did as well.
In December 1996 three of our students
were awarded research grants totaling $1999
from the Beta Beta Beta Research Foundation
(national biology honor society).
A fourth student received a $600 Grant-in-
Aid of Research from Sigma Xi to support re-
search in Costa Rica on a hybrid of the genus
Heliconia. As a result of work in summer 1996
he was invited to spend three weeks in sum-
mer 1997 at the National Museum of Natural
History of the Smithsonian Institution in
Washington, DC.
The 6 February 1997 issue of USA Today
listed the results of its annual Academic AIll-
Stars competition. One of the honorable men-
tion winners was a biology major from North-
ern Kentucky University who was selected as
a result of his work on cancer research. This
student was the only undergraduate selected
from Kentucky at any level. As an Honorable
Mention Winner, he was in good company
with students from such schools as Brandeis,
Harvard, Notre Dame, and Princeton.
In April 1997 two of our students attended
the annual meetings of the National Confer-
ence on Undergraduate Research in Austin,
Texas, where they gave presentations based on
their research. During this same time, five
other students traveled to Furman University
to make presentations on their research at the
regional meetings of Beta Beta Beta.
Three of our majors received Greaves Un-
dergraduate Summer Research Stipends of
$2500 plus $500 for supplies for summer
1997. Five such awards, based on competitive
research proposals submitted by the students,
were made by NKU.
FUNDING STRATEGIES
Funding for the support of these activities
came from several sources as follows: (1) small
Northern Kentucky University—Warner 5
amount from the operating budget of the De-
partment of Biological Sciences; (2) Small
amount from faculty grants of mentors; (3)
grants awarded to students from sources such
as Sigma Xi and Beta Beta Beta; (4) Greaves
Summer Research Stipends provided by NKU
from an endowment for support of the sci-
ences; and (5) considerable sum from alumni
donations (amounting to several thousand dol-
lars per year that goes to a departmental foun-
dation account used for supplies, travel ex-
penses of students to meetings, etc.).
CONCLUSIONS
Although Northern Kentucky University is
primarily an undergraduate institution, the
faculty of the Department of Biological Sci-
ences strongly believes that research should be
an integral part of the curriculum. To develop
an environment in which our students wel-
come research activity as a basic component
of their education, we begin during the fresh-
man year to expose them to research and its
importance. The plan outlined here has al-
ready resulted in impressive accomplishments.
We fully expect that student interest in re-
search will continue to grow and that the ben-
efits to our students will be significant. Al-
though the number of majors in relation to the
number of faculty and the available facilities
currently prevents us from requiring research
participation as a graduation requirement, we
hope to move in that direction. It is important
to note that these successes have been possi-
ble because of dedicated, enthusiastic faculty
members being willing to put in many extra
hours.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):6-11. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Using Water Quality Monitoring as a University-Level Teaching Tool
Brian C. Reeder
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
ABSTRACT
Juniors and seniors at Morehead State University gathered water quality data for a variety of monitoring
projects from 1994 to 1997. This research experience indicated that intermediate-level students benefitted
most. These students were more attentive to detail in lab than normal, and the majority of the data collected
was reliable and accurate, as long as the analysis techniques were simple. Most students were less reliable
at gathering data that required more complex procedures, such as measuring total phosphorus and nitrogen.
Although student involvement increases the supply costs, the educational benefits suggest government/uni-
versity collaborations of this type can be beneficial for all participants.
INTRODUCTION
Students learn more about the scientific
method by being actively engaged in research
than they do by reading about it. Undergrad-
uate students gain confidence, skill, and an ap-
preciation of the scientific method by being
involved in research projects (Lanza and
Smith 1988; Lord 1989). Although the virtues
of student involvement in scientific research
are well known, most projects rely on academ-
ically exceptional students, usually working
one-on-one with a researcher.
Over the last 3 years I have engaged in the
experiment of using large (20 to 40 students)
undergraduate laboratory classes to monitor
water quality for various government agencies.
These projects encouraged students to think
critically (i.e., gather information, process in-
formation, Evaluate evidence, draw conclu-
sions) in an active learning environment. My
goal was to use the ideals of scientific inquiry
ase on logic and the evaluation of evi-
dence) to increase student appreciation and
understanding of water analysis, which they
had previously thought was complicated, bor-
ing, and sometimes even dangerous. An ad-
ebual goal was for students cs gain an un-
derstanding and appreciation of how new
knowledge | is obtained.
Students were asked to learn both content
and process. Although most professors agree
that learning the scenaee process is impor-
tant, few integrate class research, which is one
of the best ways to teach how knowledge is
gained (Foster 1989; Janners 1988; Postleth-
wait 1980). My definitions of active learning
and critical thinking are more traditional than
some current education experts espouse. Iron-
ically, many contemporary proponents of “crit-
ical thinking” fail to use the scientific method
when making claims of success (Morgan
1995). Similarly, “active learning” is not un-
known to those of us who have been im-
mersed in laboratory experiences throughout
our educational careers.
Field activities are not prevalent at the post-
secondary level, despite the evidence that stu-
dents find field biology exciting and engaging
(Hall 1996). Research suggests that field ex-
periences allow students to concentrate on
process skills in a non-distractive environment
and encourages camaraderie among students
as well as student-professor interactions (Hall
1996; Wheater 1989). It has been suggested
that student participation in monitoring pro-
jects enhances student interest and learning
(Zaimi et al. 1994)
Unlike a pre-prepared laboratory exercise,
the projects used in this study enabled the stu-
dents to engage in research that could have
consequences on how water resources in the
region would be managed. The merging of
learning and performance goals should moti-
vate students and enhance learning success
(Dweck 1986). Additionally, since the stu-
dents’ water analyses could have important
consequences (beyond performing for a
grade), material retention should increase (Ca-
rey 1986). Based upon the theory that a field
research experience would increase learning,
Morehead State University—Reeder 7
this study endeavors to use a large number of
undergraduate students for environmental
monitoring projects and to discover benefits
and pitfalls of the educational experience.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Participants included all the students taking
four ecology courses (required of all biology
majors, including pre-professional students
and environmental science majors) and two
limnology courses (required of all environ-
mental science majors; an elective for biology
majors). Over 120 undergraduate students,
with various interests and abilities, participat-
ed in the projects. The average ACT compos-
ite score for the students involved was 23.2—
better than the average MSU student (1992 to
96 mean composite ACT = 19.8); and the na-
tional mean for undergraduates (1992-1996
composite national norm = 21.4). The mini-
mum prerequisites for the courses were junior
or greater rank, college algebra, and eight se-
mester hours of college chemistry, botany, and
zoology; therefore all the students were fa-
miliar with the chemical and biological equip-
ment that would be used for their research.
Three water quality monitoring projects in-
volved students: (1) appraising local streams
for the Health Department during 1994-1995
to make recommendation on sewage up-
grades; (2) assessing the trophic status and wa-
ter quality of Grayson Lake during the 1995—-
1997 growing seasons to determine the effects
of different management schemes; and (3)
monitoring the effects of different types of
fertilizer on ponds at the Minor Clark Fish
Hatchery during spring 1997.
Before working on the research project, stu-
dents had two or three 2-hour lab periods dur-
ing which they practiced field sampling and
the chemical analysis of soluble reactive phos-
phate (SRP), nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia.
Limnology students also learned how to mea-
sure total phosphorus (TP), total Kjeldahl ni-
trogen (TKN), total suspended solids, and
chlorophyll a. Students used standard methods
(APHA 1985) or the simplified Hach equiva-
lents (Hach Company 1994). All students were
required to take field water samples and be-
come familiar with operation and calibration
of field instruments to measure dissolved ox-
ygen, pH, conductivity, and Secchi depth. Stu-
dents always worked in groups of two to five.
After all the samples were analyzed by the stu-
dent groups, I or a graduate student repeated
the analyses to check for reliability.
After the project, each student was required
to write a report (including results and statis-
tical analysis) using a scientific format (i.e., in-
troduction, materials and methods, results,
recommendations, amd literature cited) that
was suitable for submission to the funding
agency. Students knew their reports would not
only be graded but possibly given to the agen-
cy to aid in decision-making. Reports were
generally worth about 20% of their lab grade;
lab grades were worth about 1/3 of their final
grade for the course.
Student outputs were analyzed to see if
there was any learning enhancement for a par-
ticular group. I compared their overall ACT
score to their scores on both the laboratory
project and their final score in the class. Data
included all the students involved in the pro-
ject for which all scores were available (ACTs
were not on file for some transfer students).
Since more than 30 students took both ecol-
ogy and limnology, I included their scores
from only the first time they did the project
so there would be no bias toward those re-
peating the assignments and activities. Grad-
uate students, too, were removed from the
data set.
RESULTS
As most people who have taught or taken
laboratory courses know, one of the common
problems creating poor results is that many
students try to “cookbook” their way through
procedures in the fastest possible manner.
This also usually results in students not un-
derstanding the underlying assumptions be-
hind much of what they did or how the results
apply to the hypothesis tested. In contrast, the
laboratory atmosphere during most of our pro-
jects was extraordinarily dynamic.
Compared with other labs, students tended
to be much more attentive to details and much
more concerned with doing procedures cor-
rectly. For example, it was not uncommon for
a student to question if or how they may have
done something wrong and to repeat proce-
dures until they were satisfied with the out-
comes. Students recognized the lab proce-
dures when questioned about them on exams
and were able to interpret results with relative
8 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
=2.203 +4.
R“2 = 336
O
O
70
Course
Score 60
50
40
30
Oo
8
oO
944 * X
-11.799 + 6.483
R*2 .229
b)
12 14 16 418
Figure 1.
20
22 2:6 50. eS2
Overall
24 26
Relationship between overall ACT scores and student performance in water monitoring projects at More-
head State University. Best-fit of second-order regressions between ACT and (a) final score in the course and (b) score
on a research report based upon the research activity.
accuracy in reports. I assumed this attention
to detail was because the students knew that
their data were going to be used for a man-
agement decision in the region.
A comparison of ACT scores to their per-
formance on their research reports showed
that students with high ACT scores tended to
perform better than those with low ACT
scores (Figure 1). It is interesting to look at
the performance by mid-range and high-per-
forming students (arbitrarily chosen as stu-
dents with a composite ACT > 19). Mid-level
students (abitrarily chosen as students with
ACT scores 20 to 26) achieved scores just as
high or higher than the ‘A’ students when giv-
en a problem-solving activity. A linear regres-
sion slope of ACT vs. lab score for students
with ACT composite scores greater than 19 is
only 0.72 (correlation r = 0.22; n = 65). The
slope for these same students vs. their final
score in the course is 1.28 (correlation r =
0.41; n 65), showing that mid-range stu-
dents performed better on the research pro-
ject than on other course projects and exams.
Morehead State University—Reeder 9
pg/L
SRP
ug/L
Figure 2.
Site
Results from water monitoring projects at Morehead State University. Student measurements of dissolved
oxygen (D.O.), total phosphorus (TP), soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), and total inorganic nitrogen (TIN) concen-
trations in 13 sites along Triplett Creek and its tributaries from Sep 1994 to Aug 1995. Error bane represent one
standard deviation.
A concern when using students for moni-
toring and research is whether the data they
collect are reliable and accurate. Most stu-
dents were able to perform well on simple
tasks, and data from different lab groups usu-
ally agreed fairly well (Figure 2). Measure-
ments that required the use of electronic me-
ters (e.g., Hydrolab, YSI D.O., conductivity
meters, and pH meters) or a Secchi disk in
the field were always accurate. In the lab, stu-
dents were equally competent with spectro-
photometric measurements using Hach Ac-
cuvac ampules or 1-2 step Chemical proce-
dures.
On more complex analyses, such at TP and
TKN digestions, or nitrate using cadmium re-
duction columns, students were much less ef-
fective at obtaining accurate information.
When the data were incorrect, values often
deviated from standards by an order of mag-
nitude; these problems could usually be traced
to contamination, errors during sampling, or
errors in specific procedures.
Not all classes were able to perform even
the simple tasks effectively; the limnology
class from spring semester 1997 had a greater
than 40% failure rate in lab work. This class
was less attentive to detail and more cavalier
in attitudes toward the project than previous
classes.
DISCUSSION
Lanza and Smith (1988) suggested that the
success of undergraduate research projects
should be gauged by the quality of the re-
search and the amount of student growth. Our
projects were usually successful at increasing
both. More importantly, the data suggest that
middle-range students gained more from this
experience than other students did. Poor stu-
dents did not increase in performance; no
harm was done to successful students. This
could be an important area to explore with a
more controlled study.
From the standpoint of the instructor, run-
ning a laboratory as part of a monitoring pro-
10 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
ject increases the time commitment, since
quality must be ensured. However, college
professors of ecology and limnology routinely
gather vast amounts of field data in teaching
students the techniques of collecting and an-
alyzing ecological information. It only takes a
bit more effort to make this data gathering
Srealee
The obvious educational advantage of this
approach is that students will tend to be much
more attentive and motivated than when they
are performing less consequential analyses.
Cheating should most likely be reduced since
the emphasis is on solving a relevant problem
rather than simply getting a number to put in
a box. Lord (1989) even suggested that pro-
fessors who have lost their love of exploration
as a result of teaching the same course for
many years may rediscover the excitement of
learning when they get undergraduate stu-
dents involved in research.
There are important considerations for tak-
ing on a project like this. To do the checks,
train the students, and allow for multiple
groups to analyze the same samples, we per-
formed at least four times as many tests as we
would have if monitoring under normal con-
ditions. Consequently our material and supply
costs increased about four-fold. To some ex-
tent these financial costs were offset (i.e., I
would have run some of these tests as part of
the labs for teaching purposes under normal
circumstances). Since water analysis labs are
included in all the major limnology ad ecology
laboratory manuals, I assume many other pro-
fessors would be in a similar situation. It could
be assumed that I simply took money that
would be “wasted” and put it to a more prac-
tical use (Zaimi et al. 1994).
This study also has implications for the use
of citizens in water quality monitoring. Like
our students, citizens and school children are
often highly motivated to monitor lakes and
streams. It should be noted that our students
sometimes failed at relatively simple tasks, al-
though their training in chemistry and using
instrumentation was far in excess of average
persons. Furthermore, some of my students’
errors occurred due to contamination of sam-
ple containers in the field. Citizen volunteers
usually limit the water analysis they perform
to fairly simple techniques and measurements,
and they send water and chlorophyll filters off
to a lab to be analyzed (Ely 1997; Simpson
1991). Our study suggests that complex chem-
ical analyses would be difficult for citizens to
perform.
Although the main tenet of “active learn-
ing,” which many of us in the sciences call
“lab,” is to foster understanding and compre-
hension of material by using problem-solving
activities, this type of attentiveness is not com-
mon for the majority of students in most tra-
ditional labs. Although it is a subjective obser-
vation, I feel that when students are given the
opportunity to confront a real problem in their
geographic area, combined with knowing that
their results are important (and may be sub-
mitted to a government agency), it greatly en-
hances the learning experience. Additionally,
our environmental science majors, many of
whom may eventually be employed in the
Commonwealth, gain the type of “real world”
experience they need to understand their cho-
sen field. Involving students in solving com-
munity problems has been beneficial for the
students, the agency, and the community.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I thank all the students involved, especially
graduate students John Cox, Stephen Davis
and Chris Goshorn. Funding was provided by
the Kentucky Division of Fish and Wildlife,
the Morehead State University Research and
Creative Productions Committee, and the
USEPA through the Kentucky Environmental
Protection Cabinet, Division of Water and
Gateway Regional Health Department.
LITERATURE CITED
[APHA] American Public Health Association, American
Water Works Associate, and Water Pollution Control
Federation. 1985. Standard methods for the examina-
tion of water and wastewater. American Public Health
Association, Washington, DC.
Carey, S. 1986. Cognitive science and science education.
Am. Psychol. 41:1123-1130.
Dweck, C.S. 1986. Motivation processes affecting learn-
ing. Am. Psychol. 41:1040—1048.
Ely, E. 1997. Volunteer lake monitoring. Lakeline 17:12,
13, 60, 61.
Foster, J.M. 1989. Teaching experimental science: en-
zymes and the laboratory. Pages 39-46 in F.R. Weaver
(ed). Promoting inquiry in undergraduate learning.
New directions in teaching and learning no. 38. Jossey-
Bass, San Francisco, CA.
Morehead State University—Reeder 11
Hach Company. 1994. DR/2000 spectrophotometer
handbook. Hach Company, Loveland, CO.
Hall, D.W. 1996. Bringing hands-on experience to teach-
ing insect field biology. J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 24:195-200.
Janners, M.Y. 1988. Inquiry, investigation, and commu-
nication in the student-directed laboratory. J. Coll. Sci.
Teach. 17:32-35.
Lanza, J.. and G.C. Smith. 1988. Undergraduate re-
search: a little experience goes a long way. J. Coll. Sci.
Teach. 17:118-121.
Lord, T.R. 1989. Promoting student research at the two
year college. J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 18:174-177.
Morgan, W.R. 1995. ‘Critical Thinking—What does that
mean? J. Coll. Sci. Teach. 24:336-340.
Postlethwait, S.N. 1980. Improvement of science teach-
ing. Bioscience 30:601-604.
Simpson, J.T. 1991. Volunteer lake monitoring: a meth-
ods manual. EPA 440/4-91-002.
Wheater, C.P. 1989. A comparison of two formats for
terrestrial behavioural ecology field courses. J. Biol.
Educ. 23:223-229.
Zaimi, O., A.C. Blizzard, and G.J. Sorger. 1994. Teaching
water quality analysis with community collaboration. J.
Coll. Sci. Teach. 23:105-110.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):12-14. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
A Summary of 25 Years of Undergraduate Research at the Thomas
More College Biology Field Station: What Became of the Students?
William S. Bryant and John W. Ferner
Department of Biology, Thomas More College, Crestview Hills, Kentucky 41017
ABSTRACT
A total of 101 of the 116 students who worked as undergraduate researchers at the Thomas More College
Biology Field Station from 1971 through 1996 received their bachelor’s degrees. The other 15 students were
still in school in 1996. This paper summarizes the post-bachelor’s choices of the 101 graduates and discusses
some of the reasons that over 85% of them attended graduate or professional schools.
INTRODUCTION
Carter et al. (1990) wrote that, ‘Students
must participate in the doing of science in
both the laboratory and field.’ That was the
view at the center of the Thomas More Col-
lege (TMC) Department of Biology’s initial
grant application to study microbial popula-
tions in the Ohio River (Budde et al. 1971).
The grant was funded by the Cincinnati Gas
and Electric Company; the base or control site
for that research was the TMC Ohio River Bi-
ology Field Station near California, Campbell
County, Kentucky. The station was the former
Lock 35 property and was acquired by the
College in 1967; it has been upgraded over the
years. The Department of Biology has re-
ceived grants for various research projects at
the station from 1971 to the present (exclud-
ing 1993). A major stipulation of the first re-
search grant was that undergraduate students
would be involved in all areas of data collec-
tion and analysis.
Over the years, research projects at the sta-
tion have focused on various aspects of the
Ohio River including bacteria, phytoplankton,
zooplankton, benthos, fishes, zebra mussels,
water chemistry, ash drainage, thermal pollu-
tion, and impingement. The Cincinnati Gas
and Electric Company has never dictated what
aspects to consider for research; however, pro-
ject selection generally has centered around
the impact of electric power plants on the
Ohio River.
A total of 116 undergraduate students have
participated on the 25 projects from 1971 to
1996 (excluding 1993). Of that total, 101 stu-
12
dents had graduated from Thomas More Col-
lege by the end of summer 1996. This paper
reports on the post-bachelor’s career choices
of those 101 graduates and discusses the role
that their undergraduate research experience
at the station may have played in their choices.
STUDENT SELECTION PROCESS
The selection of undergraduates for partic-
ipation in the summer research projects at the
station involves a number of steps. Beginning
in January of each year, applications are made
available to interested students. After appli-
cations have been returned by the specified
date, all biology faculty members, not just
those who will be involved with the research
project, review the applications. The recom-
mendation from each faculty member is con-
sidered in student selection. Students are cho-
sen not just on the basis of academics (e.g.,
high grade-point average). Other factors con-
sidered are previous experience, ability to
swim or handle a motor boat, courses taken,
interests, personality, and grade level. We seek
a mix of ye
seniors—and a mix of those with previous ex-
perience to those without experience. The stu-
dents selected, generally four to 10 per sum-
mer, are notified immediately. They receive a
stipend plus room and board for the period of
research. The base of operations is the TMC
Ohio River Biology Field Station.
RESULTS
Of the 101 TMC graduates who worked as
undergraduate researchers on grant-supported
projects at the station between 1971 and 1996,
Thomas More College—Bryant and Ferner I}
Table 1. A summary of the post-baccalaureate educational choices of the 101 undergraduate researchers at the
Thomas More College Biology Field Station from 1971-1996.
Graduate school (M.S. and/or Ph.D. programs)
47.5%
Medical school and related (M.D., D.O., D.P.M., D.V.M., D.D.S., D.C.,
Pharmacy, Nursing, Med. Tech)
Law (J.D.)
Other (M.B.A., Theology)
None (Have not pursued a formal educational program at this time)
34.7%
3.0%
4.0%
10.9%
58 were male and 43 were female. Of the 101,
eighty-six (85.5%) continued their education
beyond the bachelor’s degree.
A majority of former undergraduate re-
searchers, 47.5%, have attended graduate
school, 34.7% continued in a medical field,
3.0% in law, 4.0% in other areas (e.g., busi-
ness, theology); 10.9% have not pursued fur-
ther formal education (Table 1). Five of those
who, as of yet, have not pursued further ed-
ucation degrees are involved in environmental
work or research. Thirty-nine students
(38.6%) have completed or are in terminal de-
gree programs. Currently, 43 (42.6%) of the
former undergraduate researchers are working
in an environmental field. That number does
not include two attorneys who are practicing
environmental law.
DISCUSSION
Two-thirds of the students attending liberal
arts colleges plan to attend either graduate or
medical school (Carter et al. 1990). Over the
past 10 years at TMC, 20% of the graduates
from all majors entered graduate or profes-
sional school; however, a much larger num-
ber—71.2%—of biology graduates did so.
Since over 85% of students who participated
as undergraduates in the Ohio River research
projects have continued their education, we
felt that the undergraduate research experi-
ence may have had a positive influence re-
garding their decisions; field station partici-
pants entered graduate or professional schools
at significantly higher rates than biology ma-
jors (z test; 0.05 level). Although we have not
systematically sampled each former under-
graduate researcher, we did question a num-
ber about their decisions. We also questioned
and discussed this with faculty members.
Some of the factors that seem to have influ-
enced our former undergraduate researchers
in terms of their career choices or in their de-
cision to continue their education are dis-
cussed below.
1. Students who participated in research
can see science as an active process, one that
is continued beyond the classroom. They were
involved in data collection and analysis, equip-
ment repair, and maintenance—not just in
note taking and memorization of facts. Seago
(1992) noted the importance of research and
discovery to the cognitive process.
2. A close working relationship between
students and faculty develops at the station.
The small number of students encourages co-
operation. These students see faculty in a dif-
ferent light than those whose only contact with
faculty is through lecture courses. Students
see that faculty enjoy their work, especially re-
search. Seymour and Hewitt (1994) found that
students who condemned faculty obsession
with research changed their ideas dramatically
when they were allowed to observe or partic-
ipate in that research. The few students who
had this experience liked the pleasant and
open way in which faculty treated undergrad-
uates in research relationships, compared with
their apparent indifference to them ina teach-
ing context. Five of the eight TMC faculty
who have worked on summer research grants
at the station are still on the TMC faculty; stu-
dents recognize the importance of this conti-
nuity.
3. Students build confidence and learn
from practice rather than from theory only.
The attitude of the student is important (Sea-
go 1992). Doing hands-on activities, using tax-
onomic keys, and learning from other students
who have had previous work experience at the
station are vitally important. The mixing of
year levels at the station is important, too, as
students learn from each other.
4. Students are given a stipend for their re-
search participation. This is an incentive to
earn tuition money for next year in a summer
14 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
research project. The students may also
choose to live at the station in dorm-style
housing and to receive free board. Some stu-
dents have also received academic credit for a
portion of their research work.
5. Because the research is funded by in-
dustry, students begin to see the importance
of environmental work to industry. Students
also learn how industry works to achieve en-
vironmental compliance.
6. The time that the research is ongoing,
i.e., summers for 8 to 10 weeks, is generally a
time when students are not in school. They do
not have to concentrate on other courses but
can devote their entire energies to their pro-
jects. The students also learn to handle a mo-
tor boat, electro-shocking equipment, water
chemistry tests, etc. And they have some free
time to enjoy the water.
7. All participants are given joint authorship
of the final report submitted to the sponsoring
industry. This provides students with a signif-
icant addition to their résumés. Often this type
of documented research may give students an
advantage as they apply for graduate/profes-
sional schools or for jobs. When students put
the research findings in written form for oth-
ers to read, the act of communication forces
students to produce a better perspective of the
process and the project (Seago 1992).
8. In recent years some of the students
have presented portions of their research re-
sults at the Argonne Undergraduate Research
Symposium in Chicago. Science favors the
prepared mind (Bruner 1973), and learning to
discuss and conduct research is a major part
of developing that prepared mind (Seago
1992).
A number of other factors may also enter
into the equations that influence students to
continue their education. Preparing this paper
has brought this to our attention. We hope to
analyze these factors systematically in the fu-
ture by surveying all of the former undergrad-
uate researchers who have worked on summer
research projects at the TMC Biology Field
Station.
LITERATURE CITED
Bruner, J.S. 1973. The act of discovery. Pages 402-412
in J.M. Anglin (ed). Jerome S. Bruner: beyond the in-
formation given. W.W. Norton, New York, NY.
Budde, M.L., R. Beck, L. Finke, G. Hater, and M.J. Stag-
genborg. 1971. An investigation of the effect of heated
water discharge from the Beckjord Electric Plant on the
microorganisms in the Ohio River. TMC Biology Field
Station Bull. 1.
Carter, J.L., F. Heppner, R.H. Saigo, G. Twitty, and D.
Walker. 1990. The state of the biology major. Biosci-
ence 40:678-683.
Seago, J.L., Jr. 1992. The role of research in undergrad-
uate instruction. Am. Biol. Teacher 54:401—405.
Seymour, E., and N. Hewitt. 1994. Talking about leaving:
factors contributing to high attrition rates among sci-
ence, mathematics, and engineering undergraduate ma-
jors. Bureau of Sociological Research, Univ. Colorado,
Boulder, CO.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):15-19. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research in Biology: A Developmental Approach
Robert W. Kingsolver and David F. Oetinger
Department of Biology, Kentucky Wesleyan College, Owensboro, Kentucky 42302-1039
ABSTRACT
Undergraduate research can be improved by introducing skills and concepts incrementally over a 4-year
college biology curriculum. Extensive firsthand experience with biological systems, along with a formal in-
troduction to scientific practices and professions early in a student's education, facilitates applications of ideas
and techniques encountered in subsequent course work. Integration of learning, both within the sciences
and with other disciplines, is essential. Gradual transfer of responsibility for laboratory study to the student
develops the ability to conduct quality research, demonstrated by an independent project and a senior
seminar presentation.
EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY
A distinguishing feature of liberal arts edu-
cation at 4-year colleges is that the unit of in-
struction is not the course, or even the major,
but the entire undergraduate curriculum. Fre-
quent contact between faculty from different
disciplines facilitates coordinated educational
effort, and continuity of the student—faculty
relationship over 4 years allows faculty to ap-
proach complex educational objectives incre-
mentally, by building one experience on an-
other over the student’s college career. This
developmental approach to undergraduate ed-
ucation holds many advantages for the stu-
dent, but it is especially effective in teaching
and coordinating the array of concepts and
skills required to conduct meaningful scientific
research.
Scientists often refer to their research as an
art form rather than a reproducible method
(Thomas 1974). While it is true that a re-
searcher's creativity and insight cannot be cap-
tured in matrices of curricular objectives, we
believe that the challenge in teaching students
to conduct research lies not in its indefinable
nature but in its complexity. Like swimming
or flying a plane, research is not a single skill
but a suite of attitudes and abilities that must
be developed one at a time. The ‘sink or swim’
model with which neophytes are frequently in-
troduced to research throws the entire chal-
lenge at them in one assignment, typically de-
manding a research report or science fair pro-
ject as the only measure of success and leaving
them to negotiate dozens of difficult steps in
15
the process as best they can. The unfortunate
result is polarization of student attitudes; those
who survive are exhilarated, but many are left
bewildered and alienated by the scientific pro-
cess.
Among the skills and concepts prerequisite
for successful undergraduate research are (1)
observing natural phenomena, with the un-
derstanding that scientific concepts are ulti-
mately derived from nature; (2) finding biblio-
graphic sources, with the understanding that
scientists build on the work of others; (3) read-
ing scientific papers, with the understanding
that published material is peer-reviewed but
not infallible; (4) generating testable hypoth-
eses, with an understanding of the appropriate
scope of a student project; (5) designing ex-
perimental methods, with an understanding of
the importance of controls and replicates; (6)
developing a research proposal, with an un-
derstanding of the limits and sources of fund-
ing; (7) performing experiments, with an un-
derstanding of safety, cooperation, and ethical
treatment of research subjects; (8) recording
data, with an understanding of the importance
of honesty and accuracy; (9) interpreting re-
sults, with an understanding of the appropriate
statistical methods; (10) presenting the work
in written, oral, and graphic formats, with an
understanding of the power of effective com-
munication; (11) critiquing the work of others,
with an understanding that ideas, not col-
leagues, are subject to rejection; and (12)
learning from mistakes, with the understand-
ing that experimentalists learn more from sur-
prising failure than from anticipated success.
16 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Although these steps are listed in order of
their application, they are not necessarily mas-
tered in this sequence. ‘Ontogeny does not re-
capitulate phylogeny’ in the development of
scientists. The research proposal, for example,
is a primary step for professionals but not an
ideal introductory challenge for students.
There are also good reasons to teach reading
and writing of research papers as a unit in bi-
ology classes, even though these tasks are sep-
arated in the research cycle.
Kentucky Wesleyan College’s biology pro-
gram expects every undergraduate student to
master research skills and conduct research as
a requirement for graduation. We therefore
avoid the common practice of selecting a few
talented students and placing them with re-
search mentors as if they were already in grad-
uate school. Mentoring of selected students
provides valuable experience for participants
(e.g., Cortinas et al. 1996; Rodriguez and West
1995), but this strategy does not serve the ma-
jority of undergraduates. It also tends to en-
gage students in the collection of data but not
in the earlier stages of hypothesis forming and
research design. A simple project of the stu-
dent’s own invention can be more heuristically
valuable than performing a pre-determined
role in a more sophisticated project (Lanza
1988; Soprano 1990).
We have also resisted the common practice
of denying undergraduate research experience
to pre-medical and other allied health pre-pro-
fessionals. While these students may not in-
tend to pursue research careers, we believe
that they should be trained in the mechanisms
of science. In short, we see undergraduate re-
search as an essential component of liberal
arts education and not just a specialized vo-
cational program.
A DEVELOPMENTAL STRATEGY
Our strategy for developing research abili-
ties is to immerse freshmen in direct, broad
experience with biological systems, to create
awareness of research practices in a sopho-
more seminar for biology majors, to foster
component skills in sophomore and junior lab-
oratories, to supervise research projects in the
junior or senior year, and to create a venue for
oral presentations of research in a required se-
nior seminar. The serial prerequisites of most
science curricula follow a developmental mod-
el to some extent, so we will limit this discus-
sion to elements of our program intentionally
altered from the standard major requirements.
At the end of their first year of college, Ken-
tucky Wesleyan biology majors have typically
completed 10 credit hours of a general biology
sequence designed specifically for pre-profes-
sional scientists and incorporating two 2-hour
laboratory periods each week. A_ similarly
structured general chemistry sequence, taken
concurrently by most majors, contributes to
the total of 240 hours of laboratory time that
freshmen receive. Laboratory sessions are
taught by the same faculty who teach the lec-
ture/discussion meetings, establishing conti-
nuity and flexibility in these courses. Topics in
general biology laboratories range from bio-
chemistry to ecosystems, include a diversity of
taxa, and vary in approach from controlled ex-
periments to histological observations to field
data collection. The theme of the freshman
year is direct sensory experience of biological
systems. Secondary sources of information,
such as computer simulations and videotape
presentations are employed later in the cur-
riculum. These technologies are used sparing-
ly at first, though, because representations of
this sort convey limited meaning to a student
unfamiliar with the natural phenomena they
symbolize (Schrock 1985).
Freshman courses outside the natural sci-
ences lend valuable support to our program.
Writing workshop is a six credit-hour se-
quence emphasizing verbal reasoning, com-
position, and bibliographic research. This En-
glish department offering is required of all
students, maintains small class sizes, and in-
volves weekly writing practice. The research
paper produced in the second semester can be
adapted to the student's major interest, and
biology students often pursue a scientific
problem. A research adviser from outside the
English department helps each student with
the paper's content; biology faculty frequently
serve in this capacity. English faculty have also
cooperated with us in presenting unique as-
pects of scientific writing, such as the embed-
ded citation style and the common use of pas-
sive voice in research reports. Kentucky Wes-
leyan’s integrated studies requirement bridges
the ‘two cultures’ of science and humanities
(Snow 1959) by teaming faculty from different
academic backgrounds for interdisciplinary
Kentucky Wesleyan College—Kingsolver and Oetinger 17
courses. Science faculty have collaborated in
four of these: ‘Health Ethics and Society, a
laboratory-based “Environmental Science’
course, a seminar called “Catalytic Thinkers in
Environmental Science, and the freshman
studies course titled ‘Profiles in Leadership.’
In support of our objectives, integrated study
demonstrates the social environment in which
science is conducted and casts the scientist’s
world view in a clearer light through contrast
with other perspectives.
A 1-hour seminar required of all sophomore
biology majors brings the second-year cohort
together at a time when most have decided on
a major but not the details of a career choice.
Sophomore Seminar is centered on the re-
search proposal, which lends itself to discus-
sions of many issues relevant to a scientific vo-
cation. Research objectives, bibliographic
searching and citation styles, interpreting jour-
nal articles, preparing tables and figures, oral
presentations, writing strategies, ethical con-
siderations, rules for handling animals and hu-
man subjects, statistical methods, experimen-
tal design, computer applications, graduate/
professional school requirements, and career
options are among the topics we discuss. Stu-
dent participation is evaluated as part of the
college’s core oral communications require-
ment. Each component of the student's re-
search proposal is submitted and evaluated in
weekly assignments, and the entire proposal is
re-written and re-evaluated at the end of the
course. The intent of Sophomore Seminar is
to give students an overview of the scientific
process so that they can see the relevance of
the biology curriculum, set their own educa-
tional objectives for the next five semesters,
and direct their scholastic efforts over the long
term.
Upper-division biology courses at Kentucky
Wesleyan are fairly typical in their content but
exceptional in the depth of laboratory experi-
ence provided. The 3-hour time block set
aside for the typical laboratory is supplement-
ed by open lab hours for extensive indepen-
dent work. The location of science faculty of-
fices in or near the student laboratories allows
supervision of independent research activity,
and students pursue increasingly challenging
laboratory problems on their own. The genet-
ics, microbiology, immunology, and embryol-
ogy courses, in particular, engage students in
ongoing research efforts requiring student-
generated work schedules, team collaboration,
and maintenance of experimental apparatus
and records over weeks or months. During
this period, students assume greater respon-
sibility for their investigations, and they come
to see the laboratory as a facility for creative
activity rather than a class to attend for a fixed
number of minutes each week. To balance the
types of research experience, all majors are
also required to participate in a field course,
which may be chosen from ecology, field bot-
any, entomology, or marine biology. Support
courses in chemistry and physics are similar in
their laboratory-intensive, problem-solving ap-
proach, and the three departments collaborate
extensively to help individual students, tailor
schedules, and coordinate curricula.
Because of the growing competence of bi-
ology majors and their accumulation of labo-
ratory and field skills, the independent project
functions as a capstone activity rather than a
novel experience. Students often meet this re-
quirement by conducting the research they
proposed in the sophomore seminar. Others
participate in off-campus research fellowships
or collaborate with faculty on new projects.
Each student writes a short proposal for the
research before the project begins, and a writ-
ten report follows the project's completion.
The student researcher and faculty adviser
sign a research contract to ensure that re-
search objectives and completion dates for
project milestones are well defined at the out-
set. This practice facilitates scheduling and
evaluation of the research. Sample topics from
student projects over the past few years in-
clude biomonitoring of water quality, coelomic
infections by acanthocephalan parasites, mi-
crobial communities in cooling systems,
growth of black band disease in coral reefs,
macroinvertebrate population dynamics, ge-
netic bases for sterility in Drosophila, flora of
a reclaimed landfill, and spatial pattern in
whirligig beetle assemblies.
Senior seminar focuses on oral presentation
of student research. Seniors in the course are
provided guidance in organizing their materi-
al, methods for oral presentations, and help in
producing 35 mm slides. The course culmi-
nates in a half-hour presentation from each
student, clocked and followed by questions
from seminar participants in the format of sci-
18 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
entific meetings. Three biology faculty attend
all seminars and provide independent evalua-
tions of each presentation. Feedback from
peers is an important part of the process as
well. Invitations to the campus community
create opportunities to demonstrate our stu-
dents’ accomplishments outside the depart-
ment, and videotapes of each presentation are
kept as a reference library for others.
Co-curricular programs are also instrumen-
tal in developing student research efforts. Our
pre-professional science society helps students
make the transition from college to graduate
or professional school. Guest speakers orient
students to a variety of scientific careers, as do
annual tours of university medical, dental,
pharmacy, and graduate schools. Meetings
with alumni already placed in graduate pro-
grams, always included in these trips, are es-
pecially instructive for students with parallel
post-graduate aspirations.
ASSESSMENT AND CONCLUSIONS
This educational program was not estab-
lished as an experiment; it contains too many
variables for objective evaluation of the merits
of each curricular component. We can, how-
ever, provide subjective judgments on aspects
of the program that have worked more or less
effectively. An obvious cost of this kind of cur-
riculum is the high faculty-to-student ratio re-
quired for its success. Although we enjoy ex-
tensive contact with undergraduates, the time
and energy demanded of faculty are easy to
underestimate. Our approach is feasible in the
small college context but is probably not a re-
alistic model for larger institutions emphasiz-
ing faculty research (Carter et al. 1990). An-
other drawback to a 4-year curricular strategy
is that students forget lessons learned in one
semester before being asked to apply them in
another. This is especially true of theoretical
concepts as opposed to laboratory techniques.
The problem must be addressed by frequent
cross-referencing and appropriate review. The
sophomore seminar, a keystone of the devel-
opmental plan, is frequently criticized in stu-
dent evaluations as too much work for 1 hour
of credit. Their appreciation for the sopho-
more experience tends to grow over time,
though, and we get much more positive ret-
rospective remarks from seniors.
Advantages of a 4-year strategy are most ap-
parent when we place more advanced students
in contact with beginners. Sophomores are en-
couraged to attend senior seminar presenta-
tions, for example, and the results have been
so beneficial that we plan to formalize this ar-
rangement in the future. Juniors and seniors
often serve as tutors or laboratory assistants to
freshmen and sophomores. This kind of peer
mentoring is good for the newer students but
also provides valuable review for the more ex-
perienced undergraduates. We note that stu-
dents who have gone through this program
generate original research ideas and ask per-
mission surprisingly often to continue research
projects after the grading period is over. The
practice of keeping textbooks and course ma-
terials for future reference has been growing
among our students, and we have seen an in-
crease in citations of earlier readings or exer-
cises in the bibliographies of upper-level re-
search reports.
Ultimately, of course, the proof of any un-
dergraduate program is in the performance of
its graduates. Our student population is com-
paratively small, and evidence is necessarily
anecdotal, but our alumni consistently ac-
knowledge that this program has contributed
to their success. Steve Wilt, a 1992 graduate,
was singled out in the 1996 Plenary address to
the Kentucky Academy of Science as a key
contributor in organizing the neuro-molecular
biology program at the University of Louisville
(McLaughlin 1996). Presentations by our un-
dergraduates and recent graduates in meet-
ings of the Kentucky Academy of Science
(e.g., Melcher and Townsend 1996; Novotny
and Rawls 1996), and The Southeastern So-
ciety of Parasitologists (Bassett and Oetinger
1996) are consistent with the conclusion that
a developmental approach enhances meaning-
ful undergraduate research.
LITERATURE CITED
Bassett, R., and D.F. Oetinger. 1996. Interactions be-
tween rats and intraperitoneally-implanted Moniliformis
moniliformis. Annual Meeting, Southeastern Society of
Parasitologists, April 24-26, Murray State University,
KY.
Carter, J.L., F. Heppner, R.H. Saigo, G. Twitty, and D.
Walker. 1990. The state of the biology major. Biosci-
ence 40:678-682.
Cortinas, J.V., J.M. Straka, W.H. Beasley, J.M. Schneider,
and C.M. Machacek. 1996. The research experiences
for undergraduates program: the 1995 program at the
Kentucky Wesleyan College—Kingsolver and Oetinger 19
Oklahoma Weather Center. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc.
77:2925-2936.
Lanza, J. 1988. Whys and hows of undergraduate re-
search. Bioscience 38:1 10-112.
McLaughlin, B. 1996. A model of networking. Plenary
Session II., 82nd annual meeting, Kentucky Academy
of Science, November 14—16. Frankfort, KY.
Melcher, H.L., and L.H. Townsend. 1996. Gynandro-
morph of the introduced pine sawfly, Diprion similis
(Hartig) (Hymenoptera: Diprionidae). Abstracts, Zool-
ogy and Entomology Section, 82nd Annual Meeting,
Kentucky Academy of Science, November 14-16.
Frankfort, KY.
Novotny, N., and J. Rawls. 1996. Screening for mutations
causing failures in the RNA sorting system in spermi-
ogenesis. Cellular and Molecular Biology Section, 82nd
Annual Meeting, Kentucky Academy of Science, No-
vember 14-16. Frankfort, KY.
Rodriguez, E., and J.E. West. 1995. International re-
search on biomedicines from the tropical rain-forest.
Intersciencia 20:140-143.
Schrock, J.R. 1984. Computers in science education: Can
they go far enough? Have we gone too far? Am. Biol.
Teacher 46:252-256.
Snow, C.P. 1959. The two cultures and the scientific rev-
olution. Cambridge University Press, New York, NY.
Soprano, K.J. 1990. Recombinant DNA: technology and
applications. Chatauqua short course for college teach-
ers. University of Dayton Field Center. October 10-12.
Dayton, OH.
Thomas, L. 1978. The lives of a cell. Penguin Books, New
York, NY.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):20-22. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Doing it: The Thing That Makes Science Make Sense
Philip H. Crowley and William S. Cohen
T.H. Morgan School of Biological Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0225
ABSTRACT
For undergraduate life-science majors, research projects can be more than just another way to earn college
credit. Undergraduate research experiences shift the emphasis from the professor as wildemess guide to the
student as explorer. Student researchers learn to take responsibility for a project, use available methods and
guidance to collect and analyze data, draw appropriate conclusions, communicate effectively with other
researchers at all levels of experience, and contribute in their own way to the body of scientific knowledge.
Current life-sciences initiatives in undergraduate research at the University of Kentucky (UK) emphasize
what we call horizontal and vertical integration of research and training: extending these opportunities to a
larger and more diverse group of biology majors and a broader range of life-sciences researchers, encouraging
graduate students to serve as primary mentors for undergraduates, and exposing students to the research
enterprise very early in their undergraduate careers.
INTRODUCTION
“Textbook science” is an oxymoron. Science
is fundamentally an experiential process, a
subtle, improvisational game in which nature
is cajoled into self-revelation. Though the ba-
sic conceptual methods of science are relative-
ly general and accessible, the actual route to
obtaining a particular meaningful and convinc-
ing result usually depends on a groping pro-
cedure that can accurately be called ‘system-
atic blundering. The tools and techniques
keeping this uncertain process on the rails can
be fully understood only by finding some of
the boundaries beyond which they fail; for ex-
ample, principles of experimental design be-
come vivid when a major effort is undercut by
inadequate controls or insufficient replication.
Other people’s scientific victories—-or de-
feats—-just cannot pack the same punch. So
reading about science, listening to learned
practitioners, and conducting set-piece “exper-
iments’ in an instructional laboratory are not
enough, even for beginners. Like the rest of
us, beginners need the chance to experience
the doing of science and the scope to make
constructive errors in a ‘real’ research project
of their own.
In this article, we outline an approach to
incorporating undergraduates into an active
research environment; we describe some ini-
tiatives now underway to implement this in bi-
ological sciences at the University of Ken-
20
tucky. These approaches are still evolving rap-
idly at our institution and at others in Ken-
tucky and across the country. We welcome the
exchange of ideas in this special issue and en-
courage comments and suggestions on the
points made here.
PHILOSOPHY
Unlike the monastic image of brilliant in-
sight achieved in isolation (a la Mendel), con-
temporary science is highly interactive, and
the metaphor of a critical mass of ideas gen-
erating an explosion of understanding seems
more apt for today. Researchers addressing
the same or similar problems within a labo-
ratory, research group, academic unit, univer-
sity—or (especially in this electronic age) be-
yond—may interact with sufficient intensity to
approach this explosive threshold. This is a
process of horizontal integration that can gen-
erate and winnow ideas efficiently and mesh
complementary contributions. But there are
also vertical structure and dynamics in a re-
search environment, corresponding to inter-
actions among individuals at different levels of
experience and responsibility. As researcher-
educators, we aspire in our own groups to
achieve vertical integration of research and
training, in which individuals at different lev-
els in this hierarchy all contribute to the over-
all research effort while gaining appropriate
knowledge and experience in the process. The
result can be an even more stimulating and
University of Kentucky—Crowley and Cohen 21
productive intellectual environment. But how
can we bring this off?
IMPLEMENTATION
This time of rapidly increasing demand for
undergraduate instruction in the biological sci-
ences (e.g., see The Chronicle of Higher Ed-
ucation, 13 Dec 1996, p. A12) coincides with
the advent of powerful molecular and com-
uter-aided methods and of new environmen-
tal and health concerns that must be ad-
dressed. Getting undergraduates into research
laboratories fills in the active and concrete side
of their learning cycles (Kolb 1984) and im-
proves our chances of maintaining a scientific
talent pool for the future. In the Morgan
School at UK, we coordinate an undergradu-
ate research program in the life sciences
(URLS) by attempting to match many of the
900 biology majors with the ca. 400 faculty
life-scientist researchers on campus. In recent
years, about half of our biology graduates have
conducted an undergraduate research project
by the time they graduate, most of them earn-
ing three to six credit hours in the undergrad-
uate research course, BIO 395. We hope to
raise this proportion significantly in the near
future.
The matchmaking between students and re-
searchers begins with the campus-wide re-
quest for a brief program overview and for
sketches of possible projects from life scien-
tists, which are then made accessible to stu-
dents through written materials and postings
on the World Wide Web. Students wanting
BIO 395 credit for the project must fill out a
one-page ‘contract, signed by student and
mentor, describing the project and its tentative
timetable. Expenses associated with these pro-
jects are borne by research-grant funds, REU
grants and supplements (the National Science
Foundation’s Research Experiences for Un-
dergraduates Program), the UK Undergradu-
ate Studies office, the University’s Hughes
project (see below), or the budgets of academ-
ic units. Plans are now being developed, with
funds from the Morgan School's Ribble En-
dowment, to expand the University’s Life Sci-
ences Day to include a poster session for all
URLS participants and scholarship awards for
the best projects.
The UK-Howard Hughes Medical Institute
(HHMI) Undergraduate Research Program is
a campus-wide effort to promote research and
academic careers in the biological sciences,
funded by a 5-year, $1M grant. The goal, as
for URLS activities in general, is to provide
interested and qualified students the oppor-
tunity to join a research group and to partici-
pate in contemporary biological research un-
der the direction of faculty sponsors drawn
from the diverse array of life-sciences special-
ties at this land-grant university. The Academ-
ic Year Research program supports part-time
research during a period of two consecutive
semesters; students receive academic credit
for this through BIO 395 or one of the un-
dergraduate research courses in other aca-
demic units. At the end of each semester, stu-
dents completing their projects present post-
ers describing the approach, results, and im-
plications—the highly successful exercise that
we intend to extend to all URLS participants.
The Summer Research Program, focused on
molecular cell biology, draws students from
both inside and outside the University. Sum-
mer projects are full time for 2 months, with
subsequent presentations by student partici-
pants at the fall HHMI poster display and at
the annual meeting of the Kentucky Academy
of Science.
But these URLS and HHMI research pro-
jects provide opportunities mainly for upper-
level undergraduates and, though of central
importance, cannot by themselves ensure the
full range of vertical research integration that
we believe to be desirable. For this reason, we
have recently launched initiatives aimed above
and below this advanced undergraduate co-
hort to help complete the picture.
Graduate students, particularly those fo-
cused on becoming faculty members in the fu-
ture, need experience in designing and men-
toring projects conducted by neophyte re-
searchers. We have therefore proposed a new
one-credit graduate course, Mentoring Un-
dergraduate Research Projects in Biology, in-
tended mainly for advanced graduate students
who have already completed the doctoral
qualifying examination. The course instructor,
ordinarily the graduate student’s research su-
pervisor, is the faculty member most appro-
priate for overseeing the undergraduate pro-
ject and for guiding students along the way.
This potentially opens new project opportu-
nities for undergraduate students, documents
22, Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
the graduate student’s contribution in the
transcript, and inevitably deepens the gradu-
ate student’s understanding of the research it-
self and of what constitutes a viable project.
This kind of mentoring opportunity could in
some cases be extended to talented master’s
students or even to experienced undergradu-
ates, perhaps with more extensive faculty over-
sight.
At the other end of the experience spec-
trum—incoming freshmen—we have a stu-
dent group with little concept of research ac-
tivities and opportunities at a research univer-
sity whose mission is strongly linked to the life
sciences. Often, the situation is most acute for
members of groups under-represented in sci-
ence. To address this, we have begun a fresh-
man orientation course in the life sciences,
BIO 101, in which researchers and advisers
from some of the University’s many life-sci-
ences programs describe research opportuni-
ties and career possibilities within their fields.
This year, in collaboration with the University’s
Office of Minority Affairs, we are piloting a
biointern program designed to give some in-
coming biology students a work space within
a research laboratory and early exposure to the
active research enterprise. We hope that the
relationships and experiences developing from
this arrangement will improve retention of
these students, encourage their interest in sci-
ence, and attract them into conducting re-
search projects of their own.
CONCLUSION
Understanding science as an active process
depends on committing and recognizing those
constructive errors that move a research pro-
ject forward. Moreover, undergraduates con-
ducting such projects can be significant con-
tributors to the research enterprise, particu-
larly when slotted appropriately into an inter-
active continuum of research expertise. But
the best way to facilitate these outcomes is to
continue the educational meta-experiment:
perhaps the ongoing undergraduate research
initiatives across the country will begin to con-
verge on approaches that most effectively ex-
pand opportunities for students, while making
them real participants in the advancement of
science.
LITERATURE CITED
Kolb, D.A. 1984. Experiential learning: experience as the
source of learning and development. Prentice-Hall, En-
glewood Cliffs, NJ.
]. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):23-28. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research in Biology at Centre College
Christine K. Barton and Anne E. Lubbers
Division of Science and Mathematics, Centre College, Danville, Kentucky 40422
ABSTRACT
Centre College is an undergraduate liberal arts institution that promotes active research in which the
main objective is education of the student rather than publication of papers. Small class size and the absence
of a graduate program enhance our ability to provide the type of high quality research experience that makes
our students well-qualified candidates for graduate school. The level of undergraduate research in the Biology
(BIO) and the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB) programs has grown since 1988, primarily due
to greater availability of funding. Since 1991, ca. 30% of BIO and BMB majors have undertaken a formal
research project, either on campus or at another school. Nearly half of these students continued their
education in a biology- or health-related field. Success of an undergraduate research program requires
adequate compensation for both students and faculty in the form of stipends, funding for supplies and
equipment, and awarding of academic or teaching credit for time spent. As availability of funds declines and
demand for undergraduate research opportunities increases, one creative solution to the conflict may be the
development of collaborative programs between graduate and undergraduate institutions.
INTRODUCTION
In accordance with our liberal arts philos-
ophy of training ‘the whole person, we at
Centre College view undergraduate research
as complementary to our primary task of
teaching. Not only does faculty research help
us bring current scientific concepts and ex-
citement to our classrooms; when done collab-
oratively with students it provides them with
the tools and self-confidence to find answers
to questions on their own. Recognizing that
previous research experience is one of the cri-
teria used by graduate institutions in selecting
new graduate students, we are committed to
providing such experience to our students to
improve their chances of postgraduate suc-
cess.
Indeed, our programs uniquely suit us to
providing high-quality undergraduate research
experiences. One of the advantages of doing
research in the smaller-college environment is
that undergraduates are not competing with
graduate students for money, equipment, and
attention. Moreover, because our class sizes
are restricted to fewer than 30 students, and
we often have the same students in more than
one course, we get to know our students well
and can easily identify and encourage those
who would most profit from doing research
with us. In turn, students feel comfortable
23
enough to approach us about doing research,
often based on a continuation of a project be-
gun in class. An added advantage is that we
have detailed knowledge of what the student
has experienced in the classroom so we can
better build on that knowledge during the re-
search project itself.
Another major difference between under-
graduate research programs at small colleges
and those done where graduate programs exist
is that the student, rather than publishable re-
search itself, is our final product. Students can
play an active role from design to presentation
of their research. Even where the faculty
member determines the subject and goals of
the study, the project is more likely to be self-
contained rather than a less well-defined com-
ponent of a large study.
Undergraduate research programs do in-
volve a variety of costs. The cost most com-
monly addressed is that of funding for equip-
ment, supplies, and stipends. If and when
such funding is provided, however, other costs
come to the forefront. For instance, the in-
creased expectation by students for research
opportunities may outstrip the availability of
major facilities (laboratory space, dormitory
rooms) and faculty time. As student research
becomes more successful, there is danger that
the administration will increase the pressure
on faculty to maintain their level of commit-
94 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
ment, so that faculty feel obliged to spend
more of their summers in a continuation of
their teaching role. At the same time, the ad-
ministration may expect that publication and
grant proposal-writing should increase. It
should not be forgotten that the time faculty
spend in student research is more akin to
teaching than research; the amount of pub-
lishable research accomplished is often re-
duced, and when done in the summer it cuts
short the ‘rejuvenation’ period between aca-
demic years. These costs suggest that optimal
rather than maximal research levels must be
defined and pursued.
HISTORY
Prior to 1988, undergraduate research in bi-
ology was encouraged at Centre College but
the lack of readily available funding often lim-
ited the scope of these efforts, particularly in
summer. From 1988 to 1991, two of the bi-
ology faculty at Centre (M. Barton and C. Bar-
ton), in collaboration with selected faculty
from the University of Kentucky (P. Crowley,
A. Sih, C. Sargent), served as Co-PI’s for an
NSF REU Grant. During each of the four
summers from 1988 to 1991, two or three
Centre College students participated in sum-
mer research projects at the UK Aquatic Re-
search Facility under the mentorship of fac-
ulty from Centre and the University of Ken-
tucky. Since summer 1992 Centre College un-
dergraduate research projects have been
funded through a 5-year grant to the college
from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Individual faculty members have also obtained
external grants that have funded some collab-
orative research projects. In addition, Centre
College has a long-standing tradition of inter-
nally supporting individual faculty requests for
collaborative research projects through the
Faculty Development Committee.
THE PRESENT STATUS
Currently, Centre College offers two differ-
ent majors in the biological sciences: Biolo-
gy(BIO) and Biochemistry/Molecular Biology
(BMB). There are seven full-time and one
part-time faculty members teaching in the
BIO and BMB programs. Each year, about 30
students (15% of the senior class) graduate
with either a BIO or a BMB major (Table 1).
Although our majors are not required to do an
Table 1. The number of graduating students majoring in
the biological sciences over the past 6 years and the total
number (and percentage) of students pursuing undergrad-
uate research projects during either the summer months
or during the academic year at Centre College. “For cred-
it” indicates those students who received academic credit
for their summer research; “No credit” indicates those
students who did not receive academic credit for their
research.
Number of students
pursuing research projects
; Summer only
Number of =
Year graduates Total For credit No credit — School year
91-92 26 10 4 (40) 0 (0) 6 (60)
92-93 22 12 2 (16) 1 (8) 9 (75)
93-94 34 8 3 (38) 2 (25) 3 (38)
94-95 4] rh 1 (14) 2) (29) 4 (57)
95-96 45 13 6 (46) 0 (0) 7 (54)
96-97 31 9 5 (56) 0 (0) 4 (44)
Totals 179 59 21 (36) 5 (8) 33 (56)
independent research project, we have a
strong record of student participation in un-
dergraduate research. Overall, it would be fair
to state that currently all BIO and BMB ma-
jors who seriously want to undertake an un-
dergraduate research project are able to pur-
sue such an opportunity at some time during
their 4 years at Centre.
Since the 1991-1992 academic year, over
30% of all Centre students majoring in either
biology or biochemistry/molecular biology
have elected to undertake a formal research
project (Table 1). The majority of these stu-
dents pursued research during the school year
(Table 1). This level of student participation in
undergraduate research has been facilitated by
the availability of both internal and external
funding provided through sources such as
NSF, EPSCoR, the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute, USDA, Lilly Foundation, and the
Teagle Foundation (Table 2). This funding has
been especially pivotal in the establishment of
a strong summer research program at Centre.
The Hughes grant is a particularly notewor-
thy example of the very positive impact that
funding can have on the establishment of a
strong undergraduate research program at a
small college. With the Hughes funding, we
have been able to support annually four or five
students working on biological research pro-
jects and another six or seven students pur-
suing other areas of scientific research during
Centre College—Barton and Lubbers 25
Table 2. The sources of both internal and external funding used to support undergraduate research projects at Centre
college from 1991 to 1996.
Source of funding
External funds
NSF-REU grant (Summer 1991)
Hughes Medical Institute (1992-1996)
Other external sources (NSF, USDA, EPSCoR)
Intemal Funds
J. C. Young Scholars Program
Unfunded
Total
each of the past five summers. Students se-
lected to conduct these summer research pro-
jects receive a stipend and a housing allow-
ance; in addition, they can elect to continue
the summer project during the fall term by
registering for independent study credit. Gen-
erally, if the preliminary results of the research
project seem promising, the student is en-
couraged to complete the data analysis and to
prepare the results for presentation at the fall
meeting of the Kentucky Academy of Science.
During the school year, students can elect
to pursue undergraduate research projects un-
der three different programs. The John Young
Scholars program allows the strongest stu-
dents to pursue a year-long project during
their senior year. This college-wide, competi-
tive honors program is open to qualified se-
niors interested in undertaking an extensive
research project in their major field of study.
Students competing annually for the six to
eight Young scholars positions submit and de-
fend their research proposals at the end of
their junior year. If they are selected as Young
scholars, they spend two of their final three
terms completing the research project and
presenting the results as part of a campus-
wide symposium in May of their senior year.
In addition, the formal papers written by the
Young scholars are published annually by the
college. Although the Young scholars program
does not provide a stipend for student re-
searchers, there is a modest supplies budget
that is awarded with this honor. Students who
do not qualify as Young scholars may elect to
pursue a non-honors research project during
any academic term, particularly in the junior
or senior year. Generally, these students will
receive academic credit for their independent
Total number of students supported
research project. Finally, Centre College has
an active internship program providing select-
ed off-campus research opportunities for our
BIO and BMB majors. During the 6-week-
long winter term, students have pursued on-
going research projects in areas such as mo-
lecular genetics, plant pathology, and cancer
research at institutions such as the University
of Arizona, University of Arkansas, Vanderbilt
University, University of Kentucky, or Wash-
ington University. Currently, the internship
program emphasizes molecular areas of study;
in the future, we would like to establish new
internship opportunities focusing on organis-
mic areas of research.
In addition to the on-campus research op-
portunities available to biology majors at Cen-
tre College, several of our majors participate
in a number of summer research programs
conducted at other institutions. In the past
several years, we have had Centre students en-
gaged in summer research projects at the Uni-
versity of Kentucky, University of Louisville,
Miami University (Ohio), Vanderbilt Univer-
sity, University of Georgia, Rocky Mountain
Biological Laboratory, and Cranberry Lake Bi-
ological Station, among others.
IMPACT OF UNDERGRADUATE
RESEARCH EXPERIENCES ON
STUDENTS
Of the Centre students choosing to pursue
undergraduate research projects in the biolog-
ical disciplines, nearly half continue their bi-
ology education in some type of postgraduate
programs relating to biology (Table 3). Of the
25 students who continued their education, 13
enrolled in graduate programs in the biologi-
cal sciences. Female graduates are more likely
26 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Table 3. Post-graduate pursuits for students receiving academic credit for undergraduate research at Centre College
over the past 6 years.
Post-graduate pursuit
Medical school
Graduate school in biological sciences
Other professional school relevant to biological
sciences!
Lab tech/researcher
Hospital technician
Pharmaceutical sales
High school biology teacher
State/Federal Biologist
Unknown or non-biological pursuits
Totals
' Dental, veterinary, and pharmacy schools.
to continue these studies in a graduate school
program, whereas male graduates tend to con-
tinue their education in medical school. A sig-
nificant proportion of our undergraduate re-
searchers did not immediately continue their
education following graduation from Centre
College. This trend is reflected in the large
number of students in the unknown/other cat-
egory. Included among these 15 students are
six students who have pursued research pro-
jects during the current academic year but
have not yet focused their future career plans.
During the past 6 years, seven students
have received academic credit for participat-
ing in two undergraduate research projects.
These students account for the discrepancy
between the total number of students in the
three tables. The opportunity to participate in
more than one research project is readily avail-
able to motivated students at small undergrad-
uate institutions, allowing these students to
narrow their broad interests in biology before
applying to graduate schools.
FACTORS INFLUENCING FACULTY AND
STUDENT RESEARCH PARTICIPATION
Clearly, the availability of external and in-
ternal funding largely defines the potential
level of undergraduate research at Centre.
Once funding is available, however, other fac-
tors will We rerine whether or not students
decide to take advantage of the opportunity to
do research. For instance, we advertise re-
search opportunities during advising sessions
and through announcements, and we specifi-
cally identify and encourage particularly prom-
Number of students
Females
NS OR ke Fe WwW
OO SS ON.
bo
=
SS)
Oo
ising students to join us. There also are the
added incentives of receiving academic credit
for research done during the academic year
and stipends for that done during the summer.
A more subtle influence is the atmosphere
created, which may entice students to get in-
volved. We bring in seminar speakers and cre-
ate enthusiasm by hosting an annual poster
session in which students can display the re-
sults of their work to the college community.
The occasion of the annual KAS meeting re-
quires practice sessions and travel as a group
to the meeting itself. As a result, we have seen
a growing sense of camaraderie and pride
among our young researchers and a greater
acceptance of the importance of including this
experience during their 4 years at Centre.
It also is essential to make undergraduate
research attractive to the faculty. In general,
faculty at undergraduate institutions welcome
the opportunity to do research; in fact, tenure
and promotion are usually tied to some level
of research. Research, however, necessarily
draws time and attention away from our pri-
mary teaching mission. At Centre, student re-
search projects are possible primarily through
the dedication of faculty to the students, with
only occasional faculty compensation for these
research efforts. During the summer months,
we may receive a nominal stipend in conjunc-
tion with our collaborative research participa-
tion. Both the Hughes grant and the EPSCoR
program have allowed Centre faculty to re-
ceive some release time in conjunction with
collaborative research efforts during the past
5 years.
Centre College—Barton and Lubbers 27
An additional factor that influences faculty
participation in undergraduate research at
small colleges is isolation from their colleagues
at the large institutions. Commonly, each fac-
ulty member at a small college is the expert in
a particular area of biology. The establishment
of new collaborative research efforts between
faculty at small colleges and those at research
institutions may be desirable in order to
broaden the types of undergraduate research
projects undertaken at both institutions.
THE FUTURE
During the past 5 years, Centre’s strong
commitment to undergraduate research in bi-
ological disciplines has been possible due to
a number of factors: availability of funding,
dedication of the faculty, and qualified stu-
dents. In the future, we anticipate an on-go-
ing demand for a strong, visible undergrad-
uate research program in the biological sci-
ences. To ensure the maintenance of a wide
range of high-quality research experiences,
we expect that we will be faced with a num-
ber of challenges in the years to come. Fund-
ing clearly will be a significant challenge. The
college-wide demand for the available in-
house funds far exceeds the supply and there
is increased competition for the limited funds
available each year. Moreover, our major ex-
ternal source of funding for summer under-
graduate research in the biological sciences
over the last 5 years, the Hughes grant, will
run out this year. Since the summer projects
supported by these funds are most likely to
generate the types of results that will allow
students to present their research at scientific
meetings, the overall visibility of undergrad-
uate research may decline if funding for sum-
mer programs is not continued. Currently, we
are faced with the challenge of obtaining ad-
ditional sources of funding for the on-going
support of the undergraduate research pro-
gram that has become established at Centre
College over the past decade.
In addition to funding, adequate compen-
sation for faculty is essential for the contin-
ued maintenance of strong undergraduate re-
search programs. As the demand for under-
graduate research escalates, undergraduate
institutions, where the teaching load is tra-
ditionally very heavy, will need to develop
curricular mechanisms for systematically
compensating faculty for their collaborative
research efforts. Ironically, with the end of
the funding and faculty release time provided
through the Hughes grant, BIO and BMB
faculty at Centre College are facing greater
student demand for research opportunities.
The attractiveness of undergraduate re-
search opportunities to qualified students de-
pends on a wide variety of factors. Compen-
sation in terms of stipends and academic
credit is essential. The continued availability
of funding is critical for the continuation of
summer research programs since most stu-
dents cannot afford to participate in research
unless they are paid a stipend. At Centre, the
3 hours of academic credit that most students
earn in conjunction with research projects
can be applied toward the requirements of
the major. In addition, there is in-house mon-
ey available for sending students to meetings
if they obtain results worthy of either a paper
or a poster presentation. Undergraduate stu-
dents also need reassurance that funded re-
search opportunities will continue to exist at
the graduate school level in all biological dis-
ciplines.
The importance of undergraduate research
opportunities needs to be continually empha-
sized to the administrations of primarily un-
dergraduate institutions. At Centre, we are
fortunate enough to receive administrative
support for the John Young Honors Program
that has successfully allowed several of our
strongest students to pursue research during
the academic year. Over the years, this pro-
gram, which is funded through in-house
monies, has experienced a number of signif-
icant budget cuts, reducing the number of
students who can be funded and also reduc-
ing the total amount of funding available for
research supplies, etc. Graduate and profes-
sional schools need to continually remind un-
dergraduate institutions of the need for con-
tinuing in-house support for these research
opportunities.
In the future, faculty at small colleges and
larger research institutions will need to col-
laboratively address the increasing demands
for undergraduate research programs. We
would challenge the larger research institu-
tions to consider providing additional oppor-
tunities for professional activities that would
strengthen the ties between the undergrad-
28 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
uate and graduate institutions in this region.
For example, regional symposia focusing on
particular areas of research would permit ex-
change of ideas and presentation of results
based on collaborative studies. Advertised
speaker’s bureaus would provide a readily
available list of faculty willing to visit the
small colleges to share the results of their re-
search and also to witness the types of re-
search being done by our undergraduates.
Collaborative funding of undergraduate re-
search programs may provide one creative so-
lution to the impending funding crisis facing
all scientific research efforts. The NSF-fund-
ed REU program, a collaborative effort be-
tween the University of Kentucky and Centre
College, could serve as a model for this type
of cooperative research experience. Success-
ful funding for undergraduate research pro-
grams will be essential as we in the biological
sciences continue to train our future graduate
students.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):29-32. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research in the Biological Sciences at
Kentucky State University
Karan Kaul
Division of Mathematics and Sciences and Community Research Service,
Kentucky State University, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
and
Paul A. Weston
Community Research Service, Kentucky State University, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
ABSTRACT
The bulk of undergraduate research in the biological sciences at Kentucky State University is done by
students enrolled in Special Problems in Biology, a two-credit-hour course required for all biology majors.
Most students conduct laboratory research projects with research scientists in KSU’s Land Grant Program
or with a biology faculty member. The undergraduate research program has proven to be rewarding for
students as well as for their mentors and has resulted in numerous presentations at scientific conferences
and several publications in refereed journals.
INTRODUCTION
Kentucky State University (KSU), the small-
est of the eight public universities in Ken-
tucky, has a student enrollment of about 2500.
The biology curriculum is administered
through the Division of Mathematics and Sci-
ences; currently there are about 120 students
majoring in biology. During the 1988-1989 ac-
ademic year, after a review of the biology cur-
riculum, a committee consisting of three bi-
ology faculty members recommended that
Special Problems in Biology (BIO 410) be a
required, one-semester, two-credit-hour
course for students seeking a B.S. in biology
from KSU. Before this time, this course was
offered as an elective. The recommendation
was supported by the biology faculty as a
whole; after due process BIO 410 was listed
as a required course for biology majors in the
1990-1992 KSU catalog. The biology faculty
felt that undergraduate research would pro-
vide students with practical experience in how
scientific knowledge is accumulated by for-
mulation of hypotheses, experimental testing
of these hypotheses, collection of experimen-
tal data, and interpretation of data to draw log-
ical conclusions. It was our hope that the ex-
perience would encourage some students to
29
consider graduate school as an option after
graduating from KSU.
During the 23 semesters from fall 1989 to
spring 1997, a total of 163 students took BIO
410 (an average of about seven students per
semester). The other avenue available to bi-
ology majors for getting involved in research
at KSU is to get part-time employment in re-
search projects that are part of either the Land
Grant Program (LGP), which is sponsored by
the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or the
Minority Biomedical Research Support Pro-
gram (MBRS), which is sponsored by the Na-
tional Institutes of Health. The LGP supports
agricultural research and extension projects
designed to remedy problems faced by farm-
ers, especially limited-resource farmers, in
Kentucky. The program encourages involving
undergraduate students in research and exten-
sion projects. The main emphasis of the
MBRS program is facilitating involvement of
students in biomedical research at predomi-
nantly minority institutions, such as KSU, and
helping them learn about careers in the bio-
medical research area.
All biology majors take BIO 410 once dur-
ing their junior or senior year; some take it a
second time as a biology elective course. Stu-
dents in the course have the option of doing
30 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
a library or laboratory research project. In the
first option students write a detailed paper
based on their library research on a particular
topic; in the second option they complete a
laboratory research project and write a report
in a journal format. Almost all students choose
the second option. A biology faculty member
is in charge of the course each semester. This
faculty member supervises and evaluates all li-
brary research projects. Laboratory research
projects are supervised and evaluated by the
individual in whose laboratory the student
does the work. These supervisors include
members of biology faculty or, more often,
one of the research scientists working in the
Land Grant Program at KSU. Rarely, students
choose an off-campus venue for their project.
Students often present an expanded version of
their project in a seminar as part of a required,
one-credit hour Biology Seminar. Students are
also encouraged to present their research find-
ings at scientific meetings. On an average, five
to 10 poster and oral presentations per year
are made by KSU biology majors at annual
meetings of Kentucky Academy of Science; at
Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources,
and Related Sciences; at National Minority
Research Symposium; and at other scientific
conferences. Students are also co-authors of
many other presentations. During the period
1992 to 1996, undergraduates co-authored
eight research publications in refereed scien-
tific journals.
RESEARCH PROJECTS AT KSU
Ongoing research projects at KSU provide
students with an opportunity to gain experi-
ence in a variety of research areas such as
plant physiology, sustainable agriculture, be-
havioral entomology, stored grain entomology,
horticulture, apiculture, water quality/environ-
mental science, animal and human nutrition,
aquaculture, and toxicology.
In our experience, a research project in any
area can be suitable for undergraduate re-
search as long as (1) it is part of ongoing re-
search so the supervisor has an added incen-
tive to spend time with the student and (2) it
is well defined so that the student clearly un-
derstands the scope of her/his project and gets
the satisfaction of having completed the pro-
ject at the end of the semester. Care must be
taken to choose only such projects for under-
graduate research that will be very likely to
yield meaningful data within a relatively short
period of time (10 to 12 weeks). A well-
planned, detailed follow-up on a promising
preliminary experiment will have an excellent
possibility of becoming a successful under-
graduate research project.
One of the most suitable groups of organ-
isms for undergraduate projects in zoological
research is stored-product insects, particularly
beetles. These insects require very little space,
no specialized equipment, and minimal main-
tenance. The life cycle of these insects is typ-
ically 4-5 weeks, and there exists a large body
of literature concerning various aspects of the
biology of these organisms, particularly the
red and confused flour beetles (Tribolium cas-
taneum and T. confusum, respectively). Rear-
ing materials are inexpensive and easily ob-
tained (e.g., mason jars, flour, corn meal, oats,
and other common grocery items). One piece
of equipment that one might wish to purchase
is a brass sieve (cost ca. $50) for separating
insects from the dietary medium, but one can
easily substitute a kitchen or homemade sieve
for this purpose. Although a controlled tem-
perature environment might be required for
rearing studies, room conditions are perfectly
adequate for many other types of studies pro-
vided that temperature fluctuations are not
great.
The short life cycle of these insects means
that, with careful planning, experiments span-
ning two or three generations can be con-
ducted within the time limits of a semester.
Because of their modest living requirements
and the fact that stored-product insects natu-
rally inhabit environments not significantly dif-
ferent from conditions existing in a mason jar
in a laboratory, ecological studies with a fair
degree of relevance to natural systems can
readily be conducted in the laboratory. Pro-
jects dealing with physiology, behavior, and
community ecology are a few types of studies
that can be readily conducted. A number of
influential studies on animal population dy-
namics have been conducted with Tribolium
spp. (Dawson 1968; Park 1948, 1962; Sokoloff
and Lerner 1967; Watt 1955).
An additional advantage of working with in-
sects as test organisms is that insects have gen-
erated little concern regarding animal rights.
This does not mean that one is free to abuse
Kentucky State University—Kaul and Weston Sill
insects, but it does mean that no special per-
mits are required to conduct research projects
using insects as test animals. In addition, in-
sects can be humanely euthanized by freezing
them, and no special handling is required for
disposal of their carcasses (dead insects are
not considered biohazardous waste).
BENEFITS TO STUDENTS
Opportunities for conducting research at
the undergraduate level provide an extremely
important dimension to the overall scientific
education process. The benefits to students
are so numerous it is difficult to justify not
offering such opportunities to undergraduates.
The contributions to the education process ex-
ist at a variety of levels, as enumerated below.
Living the Scientific Method
The most obvious benefit of engaging un-
dergraduates in research projects is to allow
them to experience the scientific method in
ways that coursework, even in laboratory
courses, cannot provide. Perhaps the most sat-
isfying research experience is one allowing in-
vestigation of a phenomenon that has yet to
be studied. Guidance from the research advi-
ser is usually required to direct students in the
development of hypotheses and experimental
design, but the thrill of discovery that novel
research provides is an incomparable experi-
ence for students.
Appreciation of the History of Science
Having to go through the process of gen-
erating, testing, and revising hypotheses also
provides students with a unique perspective
on the history of scientific thought. Even
though the evolution of various scientific con-
cepts is often taught in the classroom, the ex-
perience of testing hypotheses where the out-
come is unknown in advance increases one’s
appreciation of the processes involved in the
scientific explorations that led to the devel-
opment of such important concepts as the cell,
gene, evolution, etc. The experience no doubt
helps students to evaluate scientific papers
more critically.
Professional Development
The contribution of the research experience
to professional development is probably the
most tangible outcome. For students planning
to pursue a career (or at least graduate stud-
ies) in science, the benefits of engaging in re-
search at an early point in their education are
incomparable; gaining an understanding of
how to conduct experiments, analyze data, and
prepare scientific presentations and manu-
scripts are just a few. And of course, being
able to put a scientific paper on one’s curric-
ulum vitae during the undergraduate years is
a great confidence-and-credential builder.
Application of Multidisciplinary Skills
Aside from the strictly scientific educational
benefits provided by involvement with a re-
search project, exposure to a number of other
skills and discipline areas is extended to stu-
dents. The research project demands that stu-
dents exercise logic in developing hypotheses,
designing experiments, and interpreting re-
sults. Although great depth is not possible with
a project conducted within the confines of one
semester, fundamental statistical concepts and
rudimentary analyses can be introduced nat-
urally in the course of the project. Finally,
computer skills and experience with various
types of software applications (word process-
ing, spread sheets, data analysis, and graphics)
can be introduced to students in the logical
course of their project. The early experience
with all of these multidisciplinary skills can
constitute a real advantage later in their aca-
demic careers because it allows students to fo-
cus on more advanced topics.
Overall, the involvement of undergraduates
in research projects at Kentucky State Uni-
versity has been a win-win proposition. Re-
searchers have had additional hands and
minds to conduct research projects that might
never have had high enough priority to receive
their attention; more importantly, students
have had their educational experiences richly
enhanced by conducting research in the lab-
oratory of career scientists. Although recruit-
ment of students into scientific careers is one
desirable outcome of this learning experience,
merely increasing the student's appreciation of
the scientific method by hands-on involvement
in research is enough to justify the continua-
tion of the symbiotic relationship created by
opportunities for undergraduate research such
as those through Special Problems in Biology.
32 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
LITERATURE CITED Park, T. 1962. Beetles, competition, and populations. Sci-
ence 138:1369-1375.
Dawson, P.S. 1968. Xenocide, suicide, and cannibalism in Sokoloff, A., and ILM. Lerner. 1967. Laboratory ecology
Aig aoe lee tu AteeeNT ace 07-2105" and mutual predation of Tribolium species. Am. Natu-
ralist 101: 261-276.
Watt, K.E.F. 1955. Studies on population productivity. I.
Three approaches to optimum yield problem in popu-
lations of Tribolium confusum. Ecol. Monogr. 25:269-
299.
Park, T. 1948. Experimental studies of interspecific com-
petition. I. Competition between populations of the
flour beetles, Tribolium confusum Duval and Tribolium
castaneum Herbst. Ecol. Monogr. 18:265-308.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):33-36. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research in Biology (1987-1997) At Berea College
Ronald B. Rosen and Ralph L. Thompson
Department of Biology, Berea College, Berea, Kentucky 40404
ABSTRACT
A synopsis of undergraduate research in the Department Of Biology at Berea College in 1987-1997 is
presented. Forty-five students and nine faculty members have been involved in 40 research projects. Through
research participation, these students have improved their communication skills, applied the scientific meth-
od, and enhanced their success in graduate and professional schools; faculty members have increased pro-
fessional growth activities. Berea College has promoted and supported scholarly research opportunities over
the last decade utilizing several new grant sources and the College Labor Program. Currently, results from
undergraduate research have been incorporated into 20 presentations, 9 published abstracts, and 7 refereed
articles, each having multiple student authors.
INTRODUCTION
This paper summarizes the last decade
(1987-1997) of undergraduate research in the
Department of Biology at Berea College. The
current biology faculty is composed of seven
members. Five full-time personnel are an an-
imal behaviorist, botanist, developmental bi-
ologist, microbiologist-geneticist, and parasi-
tologist. An adjunct member is an agronomist
in the Department of Agriculture and Natural
Resources, and a part-time faculty biologist
teaches primarily anatomy and physiology and
introductory biology. Fourteen to 20 students
have graduated from the department each
year during the last decade.
Limited research was conducted in the de-
partment between 1962 and 1987. A few stu-
dents were involved in research projects under
the direction of two faculty members in co-
operation between Berea College and the
USDA Forest Service Northeastern Experi-
ment Station in Berea from 1982 to 1987. Un-
fortunately, the USDA research lab closed
down in 1991, ending opportunities and finan-
cial support for undergraduate and faculty re-
search at that facility. New grant sources and
departmental personnel over the last 10 years
have significantly increased opportunities for
undergraduate research in biology at Berea.
The majority of these research projects have
been conducted in summer, but several have
continued as independent studies or labor as-
signments into the regular academic year.
Where continuation into the regular academic
33
year has not been possible, several summers
have usually been required for project com-
pletion. Marked faculty-student interaction, a
characteristic of all of these studies, ranges
from an initial, intensive training period to dai-
ly interaction. Students have continued ongo-
ing projects and, in a number of cases, have
assisted in designing new studies. Following
completion of projects, students have usually
been required to analyze their data and pre-
pare it for presentation at department and
professional meetings.
UNDERGRADUATE PROJECTS,
PRESENTATIONS, AND
POSTGRADUATE STATUS
Undergraduate research in biology at Berea
has involved 45 students (11 of whom partic-
ipated in multiple projects) and nine different
faculty members over the last decade (Table
1). Research results have been incorporated
into 18 oral presentations and two poster ses-
sions at state, regional, and national meetings
(Kentucky Academy of Science, Association of
Southeastern Biologists, Northwest Scientific
Association, and National Council for Under-
graduate Research). Nine research abstracts
have been published in the Transactions of the
Kentucky Academy of Science, Bulletin of the
Association of Southeastern Biologists, and
Northwest Scientific Association. Seven stu-
dent articles with or without faculty co-authors
have been published in the Transactions of the
Kentucky Academy of Science, American So-
ciety of Surface Mining and Reclamation Pro-
34 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Table 1. Undergraduate biology research conducted by the Department of Biology at Berea College during 1987—
1997. Multiple authors are always involved.
Discipline Projects Students Presentations Abstracts Articles
Botany 14 12 9 fo) 2}
Cell and molecular 2 2 2 = =
Developmental 2 7 1 = a
Environmental 6 Wh = = 1
Entomology ] ] = = =
Herpetology 4 is 1 = =
Microbiology 5 9 = = =
Ornithology 2 1 ] 1 1
Parasitology 4 10 6 = 3
Total 40 56 20 9 a
ceedings, Communications in Soil Science and
Plant Analysis, The Kentucky Warbler, Cas-
tanea, and Parasitology.
Over 95% of these undergraduate partici-
pants have graduated or will graduate from
Berea College. Most of these students have
attended or will attend graduate school and
other professional schools. During the last de-
cade, students from this group pursued ad-
vanced degrees in biology, agriculture, or the
professional and allied health fields at Auburn
University, Easter Kentucky University, In-
diana University, Johns Hopkins University,
University of Florida, University of Kentucky,
University of Kansas, University of Minnesota,
University of Notre Dame, University of
Rochester, University of Tennessee, University
of Toledo, Washington State University, and
Washington University at St. Louis.
Graduate fellowships, teaching assistant-
ships, and/or research assistantships have been
awarded to all of these graduates who have
entered advanced degree programs. Special
scholarships have been available to those en-
tering allied health fields, e.g., medical
schools, physician assistant programs, physical
therapy, medical technology, and advanced
nursing programs. Special awards on the col-
lege and national level have also been based
in part on undergraduate research activities.
Two of the last three Thomas J. Watson Fel-
lowships awarded at Berea College for travel
and study abroad have been to biology majors;
one of these individuals also received a Na-
tional Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship. Each of
these students had made presentations and
has published abstracts and at least one article
as a result of their undergraduate research ex-
perience in the Department of Biology. Berea
College honors awarded to biology majors in-
volved in faculty/student research include the
Stanton King Research Award, Austin Scholar,
Wood Scholar, Bangson Biology Award, Brann
Biology Award, and Crawford Conservation
Prize.
FUNDING
The Department of Biology has benefitted
from several recent research grants. In 1986,
the Jessie Ball duPont Religious, Charitable,
and Educational Fund provided Berea College
with a $150,000 grant for 3 years of under-
graduate research in the sciences. In 1990, the
W.M. Keck Foundation awarded the college a
grant of $85,000 to support 3 years of faculty/
student research in the sciences. About 43%
of the duPont funds and 30% of the Keck
grant were ultimately committed to biology re-
search. The department was also the recipient
of a Merck Company Foundation Undergrad-
uate Science Program Grant in 1987 that pro-
vided $22,500 over 3 years; this grant was sub-
sequently renewed for $39,000 over 3 addi-
tional years. In all three cases, science/biology
faculty were required to submit research pro-
posals for an “in-house” review by the aca-
demic dean and a grant review committee
composed of science faculty.
An individual grant from Research Corpo-
ration (Cottrell College Grant) was awarded to
a faculty member in 1988 for $16,000 over two
summers. Beginning in 1995, the Appalachian
College Association (ACA) began to adminis-
ter individual grants from the Andrew Mellon
Foundation Trust for successful undergradu-
ate research proposals to liberal arts faculty at
33 participating Appalachian colleges from five
states. To date, $22,230 has been awarded to
Berea College—Rosen and Thompson 35
Berea biology faculty from this source. The
college has matched these grants with funds
from the Berea College Labor Program to
cover student stipends.
Berea College has recently set aside ca.
$18,000 annually for undergraduate research
in all disciplines. These Faculty-Undergradu-
ate Research Grants are contingent on faculty
initially seeking support from external sources.
Proposals are evaluated by the college’s Pro-
fessional Growth Committee. The biology ad-
junct has received $6400 from this source over
the last 2 years. During this decade, it should
be noted that the Berea College Labor Pro-
gram has routinely provided funds for under-
graduate research assistants in the summer
and the regular academic year.
In 1992, The Kresge Foundation approved
a $150,000 Science Initiative Grant toward the
purchase of new scientific equipment at Berea
College to be used in teaching and research.
This money was awarded on a challenge basis
and required the college to raise an additional
$600,000, creating a permanent endowment
for the purchase and maintenance of such
equipment. Coupled with this initiative, the
Department of Environmental Science and
Technology hired an expert in science instru-
mentation in 1995 to assist the College in
maintaining equipment across campus. Thus,
science faculty now experience very little
“down time” in their research because of
equipment failure.
BENEFITS OF UNDERGRADUATE
RESEARCH
The Department of Biology (i.e., faculty
and students) and Berea College all benefit
from a viable undergraduate research pro-
gram. Students are provided with an oppor-
tunity to increase their knowledge and appre-
ciation of experimental design, techniques,
and trends through actual participation in re-
search activities. They learn by observing, re-
cording, analyzing, and interpreting scientific
research data. Communication skills are in-
creased through reading primary literature,
oral presentations, poster sessions, and prep-
aration of manuscripts. Undergraduate re-
search enhances application and acceptance to
graduate and professional schools and also in-
creases student competitiveness in the job
market.
One of the most common recommendations
that recent graduates provided in our 10-year
departmental self-study was to increase op-
portunities for undergraduate research. Given
the limitations on personnel and time within
our department, an expansion of our research
program would likely be best handled by a re-
search methods course or by increasing op-
portunities for research projects in courses in
our current curriculum. Either of these strat-
egies, coupled with both our current on-cam-
pus projects and off-campus research oppor-
tunities (e.g., research internships and field
studies at other institutions, companies, etc.),
should provide the majority of our majors with
a research experience prior to their gradua-
tion. Although not a focus of this paper, off-
campus experiences have also been valuable to
our undergraduates, and about half of our bi-
ology majors have participated in these activ-
ities at some point in their undergraduate ex-
perience.
Undergraduate research is also an essential
part of the teaching and continued profession-
al growth of faculty. The ‘professional isola-
tion’ and stagnation that faculty frequently ex-
perience at small schools is often countered
by research programs that provide stimulation
and support for further professional develop-
ment. Interaction with colleagues maintaining
similar research interests is increased and may
even result in new off-campus opportunities
for undergraduates. In addition to the con-
structive process of generating new research
proposals and submitting manuscripts for pub-
lication, innovative laboratories, lecture topics,
and field exercises have been developed and
have become important elements in our cur-
riculum.
Finally, the biology undergraduate research
program contributes to the overall reputation
of Berea College as an institution where schol-
arly research is both supported and valued.
Donors are attracted to institutions with active
undergraduate research programs. Presenta-
tions, abstracts, and articles are by-lined from
the Department of Biology of Berea College.
SUMMARY
Active undergraduate research programs in
the Science Division have long been the stan-
dard at Berea, and there are indications that
such programs are rapidly spreading to other
36 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
departments because of the obvious benefits.
Recognition of these benefits in Berea’s new
strategic plan has led to the recommendation
that the College establish an Undergraduate
Research and Creative Projects Program
(URCPP) that would support faculty/student
research and creative project activity across all
disciplines. The excitement and knowledge ac-
quired through these opportunities is best
summarized by a former student: “There al-
ways existed a new task or question to explore
. several real-world attributes were required
while working in such a research environment
including discipline, patience, oral and written
communication [skills], teamwork, leadership,
repetition, and creativity.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are grateful to Dr. Dawn Anderson and
Dr. Megan Morgan-Carr, Department of Bi-
ology, aad Dr. Tern Beebe, Department of
Chemistry, for their thoughtful review of this
paper. Appreciation is extended to Dr. Steve
Boyce, Academic Vice-President and Provost,
and Dr. Larry Blair, Dean of F aculty, for re-
viewing the final manuscript.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):37-38. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research at Asbury College
John A. Brushaber and Richard B. Reznik
Asbury College, Wilmore, Kentucky 40490
ABSTRACT
The science faculty at Asbury College recognized several years ago the importance of undergraduate
research as a component of our academic program. We found that research experience was becoming a
more common criterion for admission of our students to graduate school. At that time our students were
carrying out laboratory exercises in most of their science classes but were not doing intensive, integrated
investigations of biological or chemical phenomena. Only the occasional student was doing research as an
independent study.
We decided that actually doing research is
important in the education of science majors,
whether their career goals are teaching, re-
search, or the health professions. With this in
mind, beginning with the 1992-1993 school
year, we began requiring senior research of all
science majors, except those in pre-nursing or
medical technology tracks. To facilitate the re-
search program three new required courses
were added to our biology and chemistry ma-
jor requirements:
BIO/CHE 392 (1) Introduction to Re-
search. A practical experience introducing stu-
dents to the methods of scientific research and
writing. The topic for an independent research
project is chosen, and a literature search is ini-
tiated.
BIO/CHE 400 (2) Senior Research. Stu-
dents will under faculty supervision, indepen-
dently design and carry to completion an in-
dependent research project of a biological or
chemical nature.
BIO/CHE 475 (1) Senior Seminar. De-
signed to provide practical experience in the
oral presentation of a scientific paper. Stu-
dents will prepare and present a seminar on
their research projects.
ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT
The administration has supported under-
graduate research by granting each faculty
member a 2-hour course load credit each fall
semester for supervising students doing senior
research. We are also appreciative of the col-
lege’s willingness to help finance purchase of
major pieces of equipment needed for in-
house research.
37
LOCATION OF RESEARCH
Most of our students meet their research
requirement in one of three ways. About half
of them do their research at the University of
Kentucky (UK) in conjunction with laborato-
ries and professors there. About a quarter of
them conduct some sort of project using As-
bury College’s facilities. The remainder fulfill
their research requirement doing summer re-
search at a university, spending a semester in
a tropical biology program, or participating in
a research project at various government
agencies. For example, we had two students
who spent a semester doing research with the
U.S. Department of Energy. We encourage
our more capable students to apply for sum-
mer fellowship programs in undergraduate re-
search that are funded by the National Science
Foundation (NSF). These programs have the
advantage of giving the students a long-term
research experience with other gifted students
a challenging setting. Typically the students
conduct research that is on a graduate school
level. Several students have been awarded
NSF fellowships, and they have all done well.
There is a trade off of benefits between do-
ing research on our campus and doing it at
UK. At UK our students typically do relatively
sophisticated research in an established labo-
ratory with an ongoing project directed by a
scientist doing significant research. The down-
side of being assigned a piece of an established
research project is that it sometimes requires
little creativity or independence on the part of
the student. Left to their own devices, stu-
dents typically have a hard time envisioning
38 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
and choosing an avenue for investigation. Our
own facilities limit the types of research stu-
dents can do at Asbury. Research done at our
campus, although perhaps more creative on
the part of the student, is often less sophisti-
cated, at least in the biological sciences. How-
ever, our chemistry department has an ongo-
ing project on transition metal catalysis of pep-
tide synthesis. Another advantage of work at
UK is the regular scheduling of lab hours. Stu-
dents doing their research at Asbury without
a fixed schedule are more inclined to procras-
tinate.
EXPECTATIONS AND EVALUATION
Students must complete a research project
and write a paper to meet the requirements
of the research course. We expect students to
put in about 90 hours of time on their project
and paper. They are given a syllabus with eval-
uation forms and the criteria by which both
the research and paper will be evaluated. Stu-
dents also receive a Style Format for Senior
Papers in Biology/Chemistry. All students
choose a research adviser at Asbury College
even if they work elsewhere. The adviser is
responsible for determining the student’s
course grade. This is done by an evaluation of
the student's laboratory work (50% of grade)
by the adviser and/or supervisor if done else-
where. A rough draft of the research paper
(10% of grade) must be submitted to the ad-
viser. Upon completion, the paper is evaluated
by the research adviser and one other faculty
member for the remaining 40% of the grade.
The senior papers are kept on file in our di-
vision office.
PROBLEMS AND DIFFICULTIES
The most serious problems originate with
the unstructured nature of the research ex-
perience. Most of our students carry out a
good research project. Some have obtained
employment in laboratories because of the
quality demonstrated while doing their re-
search. The most rewarding comment we re-
ceive from employers is ‘Do you have any
more students like that.’ However, there is al-
ways a minority of students lacking self-moti-
vation who simply accomplish little in an un-
structured environment. These students tend
to avoid research at UK or other institutions;
some of them we deliberately steer into re-
search here so our students do not get a bad
reputation at other institutions. Regular con-
tact with the research adviser does help. In the
Biology Department we have a policy that reg-
ular weekly meetings can be part of the course
grade.
The Asbury College Library, although gen-
erous in purchasing scientific periodicals, is
not fully adequate as a source of literature to
support research. Students can do a comput-
erized search at our library, but most students
typically utilize the library at UK or some oth-
er institution.
Occasionally there is disagreement among
the faculty about whether a particular project
qualifies as independent scientific research. A
small minority of projects could have been
better described as reviews rather than origi-
nal research.
Because of the inherent nature of research
and where students do it, we have found it
necessary to be flexible with the deadlines giv-
en in the course syllabus. Students frequently
are given incomplete grades at the end of the
fall term to allow additional time to complete
the research and paper. Occasionally students
who do research in summer or in a research
semester elsewhere actually complete their re-
search before taking the Introduction to Re-
search course.
CONCLUSION
Although the process is time consuming and
occasionally stressful, we feel that our under-
graduate research program is a real asset. It
provides students with an opportunity to un-
derstand the scientific method and scientific
writing by actually doing them. They are well
prepared to enter research if they attend grad-
uate school. Some students have found their
chosen field by the experience of doing re-
search. Others have found employment in lab-
oratories where they have demonstrated their
competence. We are strongly convinced that
our undergraduate research program is a suc-
cess and should be continued.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):39-43. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research Experiences at an Independent Cancer
Research Institute
Julia H. Carter and Diane S. Collier
Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory, 931 Isabella Street, Newport, Kentucky 41071
ABSTRACT
Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory, an independent, not-for-profit [501(c)(3)] organization ded-
icated to the study and research of cancer, has a unique Undergraduate Research Education Program
(UREP). UREP provides opportunities for students to learn research techniques and to develop critical
thinking skills through “hands-on” participation in ongoing cancer research projects at the Laboratory. Stu-
dent involvement in ongoing research at Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory began in 1982; since
then 108 students have participated in the program. The objective of UREP is to encourage undergraduate
students to remain in biology and to go on to careers in science and medicine; therefore UREP addresses
the nationally recognized problem of a decline in the interest of students for careers in science. UREP
provides opportunities for undergraduate students to develop the skills identified by business and industry
in Kentucky as being essential for all employees. Thus UREP serves not only as an introduction to biomedical
research but also as a stepping stone from the undergraduate college laboratory to the world of research
and development in a highly competitive global economy.
INTRODUCTION
Undergraduate research in the biological
sciences offers an educational experience not
only at colleges and universities but also at
government agencies and not-for-profit re-
search institutions throughout the United
States (Russo 1997). Each institute of the Na-
tional Institutes of Health of the U.S. Public
Health Service offers a summer internship
program. The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency also provides research experiences for
undergraduates. Many of the 85 independent
not-for-profit research institutions that are
members of the Association of Independent
Research Institutes (AIRI)—including the
Whitehead Institute, the Oklahoma Medical
Research Institute, the McLaughlin Research
Institute for Biomedical Sciences, and Wood
Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory (the
only AIRI institution in Kentucky)—provide
educational opportunities for undergraduates.
Student involvement in research at Wood
Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory began in
1982 with three students. Wood Hudson’s Un-
dergraduate Research Education Program
(UREP) facilitates student learning of re-
search techniques and developing of critical
thinking skills through “hands-on” participa-
tion in ongoing cancer research projects. In
39
1987, with financial assistance from the Ralph
E. Mills Foundation (Frankfort, Kentucky)
and the James Graham Brown Foundation
(Louisville, Kentucky), UREP became part of
the three-pronged mission of the Laboratory.
To date, 108 students (ca. 16-22 students per
year) from 19 colleges and universities have
participated in UREP.
The objective of UREP is to give under-
graduates “hands-on” experience in biomedi-
cal research and thereby to encourage them
to remain in biology and to go on to careers
in science and medicine. Of the UREP partic-
ipants who remained in the biological science
major and received the bachelor’s degree, 94%
have gone on to careers in scientific research,
technology, science education, and medicine.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Statement of Need
In recent decades there has been a decline
in the number of students planning to pursue
careers in science and medicine. According to
Frank H.T. Rhodes, President of Cornell Uni-
versity and member of the National Science
Board, if this trend continues, by the first de-
cade of the 21st century the United States may
be faced with a 700,000-person shortfall in the
number of technically trained individuals, in-
40 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
cluding 400,000 with the degree of Bachelor
of Science (B.S.). The anticipated shortage of
doctoral-level scientists may be as high as 9600
per year. As Dr. Rhodes stated, “shortages of
this magnitude would be a crippling national
handicap.” Unfortunately, attrition rates from
collegiate science programs are very high
(Fort 1993). Undergraduates cite boredom
with lectures as one reason for leaving science
(Russo 1997).
American society and, indeed, the entire
world community depend on increasingly
complex technologies. More than 50% of the
new laws passed by Congress involve an aspect
of science or technology; continued increases
in that percentage are expected (Shen 1975).
The fact that American businesses must now
compete, in a global economy, with nations
whose youth often have received outstanding
training in science and mathematics necessi-
tates an American work force with technical
expertise.
Because the nature of technical problems to
be solved continues to change rapidly as
knowledge advances, the successful workers of
today and tomorrow must possess not only
technical skills and mastery of facts but also
the ability to “think like scientists.” They must
be able to think logically and critically, have a
knowledge base that has integrated informa-
tion from multiple fields of study, be able to
apply mathematics in problem-solving, and be
proficient in use of computers.
The study of science at the college level is
compartmentalized into subject areas, such as
biology, chemistry, physics, etc. Subjects are
taught sequentially and in isolation from one
another rather than concurrently and with rec-
ognition of interrelationships among various
scientific disciplines. Furthermore, because of
an emphasis on tests and test performance,
rote learning and memorization—necessary
but not sufficient components of science ed-
ucation—are the primary focus of many col-
lege science courses (Fisher 1992; Fort 1993).
For instance, students may learn to “plug in”
figures from a memorized formula, but they
may not be able to determine when and why
that particular formula should be used to solve
a given problem (Michel 1993). Finally, col-
lege course work is, for the most part, not ex-
perientially based. Vice President Al Gore has
remarked that “college students frequently
have no clear conception of ways in which
they can practice the science they are study-
ing” (Gore 1992).
Studies by both the National Science Foun-
dation (1986) and the American Council on
Education (1985) have found that “hands-on”
experience in active research is one of the
most effective techniques for training under-
graduates. According to Tobias (1990), college
science courses (including introductory cours-
es) designed to prepare students for careers in
science should be experientially-based. Many
practicing scientists and engineers began their
careers in science through presently defunct
undergraduate research programs. Today, al-
though research experience is sought increas-
ingly by employers in pharmaceutical and oth-
er industries, as well as by graduate and med-
ical schools, undergraduate research experi-
ence has become difficult to obtain. To quote
one student, “Everyone wants someone with
experience but no one is willing to provide it.”
In addition to “hands-on” experience and
mastery of scientific facts, there is a third es-
sential component of science education: the
teaching of critical thinking skills. By working
with knowledgeable scientists, students not
only learn the technical skills involved in con-
ducting an experiment, but also begin to learn
how that scientist has designed the experiment
to answer a particular question (as well as how
he or she determined which question to ask),
and, once the experiment is completed, how
to analyze the data and interpret the results
and how to identify new questions arising
from those results. Furthermore, by experi-
encing the actual practice of science in ongo-
ing research projects, students can experience
the excitement of acquiring new knowledge
through rigorous experimentation.
Finally, as Fort (1993) pointed out, ap-
proaching science and technology through
“themes with clear social relevance” appears
to be a promising strategy. Wood Hudson
Cancer Research Laboratory approaches sci-
ence education in exactly this fashion. In 1997
alone, more than 1.2 million new cancer cases
will be diagnosed. Students working at Wood
Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory are
aware of the relevance and importance of their
work to society.
Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory—Carter and Collier 4]
Program Goals
The ultimate goal of UREP is to encourage
college students to pursue careers in science
and medicine. Intermediate goals are to pro-
vide opportunities for students to (a) learn
specific laboratory techniques; (b) develop
critical thinking skills; (c) participate in ongo-
ing biomedical research serving a worthy pur-
pose; (d) experience the excitement of scien-
tific discovery by working with practicing sci-
entists; (e) gain valuable work experience that
will give them advantages when seeking em-
ployment or admission to graduate and pro-
fessional schools; and (f) earn income that, in
many cases, is needed for them to remain in
college.
Program Objectives
To achieve the goals of the program, several
objectives have been set. The first objective is
to provide students in UREP with “hands-on”
training and experience in specific laboratory
techniques used in investigations of abnormal
and normal cell and tissue structures and
functions, including techniques of biochemis-
try, cell biology, histochemistry, immunohis-
tochemistry, molecular biology (including
DNA isolation), tissue culture, quantitative
microscopy, and computer imaging.
The second objective is to introduce stu-
dents in UREP to the practice of science (as
opposed to study of scientific facts), including
experimental design (necessity for controls,
standards, adequate numbers of specimens,
etc.), use of library resources, and preparation
of data for publication. As part of learning the
practice of science, UREP students are taught
critical thinking and communication skills
through interactions with practicing scientists
conducting ongoing research projects and
through student participation in weekly meet-
ings of “journal club” (held to discuss and cri-
tique a current journal article).
The third objective is to increase student
responsibility, self-accountability, and self-
monitoring by providing structured laboratory
experiences with progressive levels of student
independence. In addition to laboratory safety
policies, incoming students are required to be-
come familiar with the Wood Hudson policies
on scientific integrity. Computer skills, includ-
ing effective use of word processing, spread-
sheet, and relational database programs, are
taught or reinforced.
The fourth objective is to provide a sup-
portive yet intellectually demanding environ-
ment for learning. Competent practicing sci-
entists, of both sexes, make themselves avail-
able for impromptu discussions of research
problems and techniques and serve as role
models. Although UREP participants come to
the program with an interest in science and
medicine, many report that their UREP ex-
perience has served as a stimulus for contin-
uation of interest and involvement in research.
Finally, the program provides gainful em-
ployment for undergraduate science majors
who are working their way through college.
Generous, multi-year UREP support from 20
foundations, corporations, individuals, and
government agencies has permitted Wood
Hudson to pay UREP participants salaries that
help to meet college expenses.
Job Description for Student Research
Assistants
Student research assistants work where
needed in research programs at the Labora-
tory; their assignments include both scientific
and administrative laboratory work. Scientific
laboratory work involves culture of mammali-
an cells, recombinant DNA procedures, bio-
chemical assays (protein, DNA, and enzyme
assays), cell fractionation techniques, histolog-
ic staining procedures, and computerized im-
age analysis of microscopic sections. Admin-
istrative laboratory work includes assistance
with preparation of grants, manuscripts, and
literature searches. A Procedures Manual is
provided to help students learn laboratory
procedures used in experiments. Students also
learn computer applications in word process-
ing, spreadsheets, and statistical analysis.
Students should have as prerequisites some
background in biological science and an inter-
est in biological research. Generally, they
should have 1 year of college biology and 1
year of college chemistry. They must be able
to work carefully with scientific equipment
and be accurate and precise in collecting and
recording data. Finally, they must be able to
work independently in collecting and studying
published papers relevant to ongoing research
projects.
Each of the students in the program works
42 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
10 hours per week at the Laboratory during
the school year and 20 hours per week during
the summer. Work schedules are flexible to ac-
commodate exams and term papers. Students
work a minimum of a 16-week semester; most
students work in UREP for | or 2 years.
Students Served by UREP
UREP participants typically attend colleges
and universities in the Greater Cincinnati/
Northern Kentucky area (Xavier University,
University of Cincinnati, Thomas More Col-
lege, Northern Kentucky University) and/or
are residents of the area. Many students who
reside in the area attend colleges throughout
the United States and participate in UREP
during their summer breaks. To date, UREP
has drawn 108 students from 19 colleges and
universities across the United States. Most
have begun in UREP as juniors or seniors, al-
though a few have been freshmen or sopho-
mores; two outstanding high school graduates
were permitted to participate during the sum-
mer prior to their beginning college. Few have
had prior exposure to a research environment.
Selection of students for participation is
based upon recommendation of a professor,
courses completed, and personal interviews.
Students with the highest grade-point aver-
ages are not necessarily the most resourceful
UREP participants. Each student is given a
chance to prove himself or herself, but, once
in the program, carelessness in technique or
with data is unacceptable. Students are ex-
pected to be self-starters and to show intellec-
tual curiosity about the work; a questioning at-
titude is strongly encouraged. Because women
are under-represented in science (women
comprise nearly half the work force but only
15% of practicing scientists), they are sought
as participants in UREP. To date, nearly half
(45%) of UREP students have been women.
Members of minority groups are sought for
the same reason. In addition, UREP students
are often the first generation to attend college.
Without exposure to research as undergradu-
ates, these students might never see them-
selves as scientists.
STUDENT EVALUATIONS OF UREP
Students are asked to evaluate the program
at least once a year. This permits adjustments
to be made in emphasis and to ensure that the
program continues to meet student needs.
The following comments were selected from
these evaluations to indicate, in students’ own
words, what UREP has meant to the partici-
pants. “I truly enjoy working at Wood Hudson
because I learn interesting things about re-
search in general, cancer specifically, and the
actual techniques and procedures involved.” “I
feel that my position at Wood Hudson not
only strengthened my application for accep-
tance to medical school but also strengthened
my appreciation for scientific research.”
“Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory
has been my most rewarding job to date. The
program has provided me with a general un-
derstanding of how research is done. I found
this job rather inspiring for the goals I have
set.” “I have gained more knowledge this sum-
mer, through hands-on lab training, than I will
ever hope to gain in the classroom alone.” “My
experience as a student research assistant at
Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory
has been a great opportunity. ... As I prepare
to graduate and apply to graduate school in
molecular biology, the work I have done at the
Lab has given me the background I need.” “I
had begun to despair of ever gaining the ex-
perience that medical and graduate schools
emphasize. I found myself running into the
timeless problem: everyone wants someone
with experience but no one is willing to pro-
vide it.” “One of the things that I like about
this program [UREP] is the independence
that I am given. In the labs at college, students
constantly have teaching assistants looking
over their shoulders. Here, we are given the
chance to spread our wings and try things for
ourselves.”
LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP OF
UREP PARTICIPANTS
While UREP provides gainful employment,
its most valuable benefit is research experi-
ence for the students. Research experience is
sought by graduate schools and employers in
the pharmaceutical and other industries. As a
result, UREP has been very successful in
reaching its stated goals. Of the 66 participants
who have completed the degree of Bachelor
of Science to date, 94% have gone on to pur-
sue careers or postgraduate courses in science
and medicine. Four are practicing medicine
locally and five are practicing in other states.
Wood Hudson Cancer Research Laboratory—Carter and Collier 43
Twelve former UREP students are in master’s
or doctoral programs and nine have earned
advanced degrees in a scientific discipline. Al-
together, 71% of UREP participants who have
earned the bachelor’s degree have obtained
postgraduate education. Many former UREP
participants are currently employed by local
pharmaceutical companies, university labora-
tories, hospitals, and other science-related or-
ganizations.
CONCLUSION
The objective of UREP is to encourage un-
dergraduate students to remain in biology and
to go on to careers in science and medicine;
therefore UREP addresses the nationally rec-
ognized problem of a decline in the interest
of students for careers in science. Success of
UREP is measured by several criteria includ-
ing (a) the percentage of UREP participants
with the degree of Bachelor of Science who
pursue careers in science and medicine; (b)
student evaluations of UREP; (c) the number
of times individual UREP students are asso-
ciated with published (peer-reviewed) re-
search, including authorship, presentation of
research findings at scientific meetings, and ci-
tations for contributions to published work;
(d) the number of students referred to the
program by college biology department chair-
persons; and (e) the number of students ob-
taining college credit for participation in
UREP. During the past 16 years, UREP has
been eminently successful as judged by these
criteria.
As Kentucky participates in a global econ-
omy, businesses and industries within the state
have identified several needs for all employees
including area-specific skills (e.g., chemistry,
mathematics, etc.), communication skills, in-
terpersonal skills, problem solving, computer
skills, organizational skills, and flexibility (Kis-
er 1997). UREP provides undergraduate stu-
dents the opportunities to develop each of
these skills. The Undergraduate Research Ed-
ucation Program at Wood Hudson Cancer Re-
search Laboratory serves not only as an intro-
duction to biomedical research but also as a
stepping stone from the undergraduate col-
lege laboratory to the world of scientific re-
search in a highly competitive global economy.
LITERATURE CITED
American Council on Education. 1985. National priorities
for undergraduate science and engineering education.
National Higher Education Associations Task Force,
American Council on Education, Washington, DC.
Fisher, A. 1992. Why Johnny can’t do science and math.
Popular Sci. 241:50-55, 98.
Fort, D.C. 1993. Shy, science savvy, science smart. Phi
Delta Kappan 74:674-683.
Gore, A., Jr. Education for science. 1992. Address given
at University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, 28 Oct
1992.
Kiser, M.D. 1997. Required educational changes in the
Commonwealth: an industry perspective. Address given
at the Annual Meeting of the Kentucky Academy of
Science, 13 Nov 1997.
Michel, F.C. 1993. Science literacy at the college level.
Physics Today 46:69-71.
National Science Foundation. 1986. Undergraduate sci-
ence, mathematics and engineering education, Report
of the National Science Board Task Committee on Un-
dergraduate Science and Engineering Education. Na-
tional Science Foundation, Washington, DC.
Russo, E. 1997. Undergraduate summer research provides
taste of laboratory life. The Scientist 11(17):1, 9.
Shen, B. 1975. Scientific literacy and the public under-
standing of science. Pages 44-52 in S. Day (ed). Com-
munication of scientific information. Karger, Basel.
Tobias, S. 1990. They're not dumb, they're different: stalk-
ing the second tier. Research Corporation, Tucson, AZ.
]. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):44-46, 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Encouraging New Biologists
Ross C. Clark
Department of Biological Sciences, Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond, Kentucky 40475
ABSTRACT
The world of the future will offer many opportunities for biological research. Eastern Kentucky University
provides a supportive environment for undergraduate biology research and a faculty dedicated to student
development. Student research projects focus on many topics, from the molecular to the ecosystem level.
Involvement in research equips students with many skills and habits that are strong assets for successful
careers.
INTRODUCTION
It has been said that the 20th century has
been the century of physics and that the 21st
will be the century of biology. This is an ov-
ergeneralization, of course. In the future, all
areas of science will continue to uncover new
insights and arrive at further syntheses of how
the natural world functions. As new scientific
insights and relationships emerge and the re-
sulting technology advances, we can also con-
fidently predict that ethical dilemmas will
sharpen and we shall be forced into recasting
our assumptions about our relationships with
each other and with the other inhabitants of
our planet.
Although these inevitable developments will
result from integrating discoveries in all
branches of science, they will devolve primar-
ily from what is happening in biology. In a very
short time, we have come from a grasp of
Mendelian genetics to the point where we
now argue only relatively fine points of evo-
lution and map our own genome; from puz-
zling over the fossil record to constructing mo-
lecular phylogenies; from dependence on wild
food sources and the jungle as “heart of dark-
ness” to unalterable ecosystem fragmentation,
habitat destruction, and a major planetary ex-
tinction episode; and from broad susceptibility
to fatal diseases, to their control, and back to
susceptibility.
Since there is considerable evidence that
within the lifetime of our students the study
of living systems will preoccupy us as never
before, we should choose carefully the ele-
ments of training that will enable students to
function effectively in a very different future.
44
Involvement in research involving natural phe-
nomena is what sets science apart from other
disciplines. As such, it is essential training for
all seriously aspiring biologists. Research, like
the arts, requires both training and practice.
Anyone with curiosity who can grasp complex
relationships and procedures can do research,
but a disciplined approach to the design, ex-
ecution, and analysis of inquiry is most likely
to produce meaningful results. The disciplined
approach is best learned from example.
A DIVERSE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
Although many important scientific advanc-
es have emerged under less than ideal condi-
tions, providing a conducive environment is
fundamental to encouraging research. Some
Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) biology
students come to us with a narrowly focused
view of where they want to go, but many oth-
ers come to us un-preprogrammed. We con-
sider it our mission to maintain a supportive
learning environment that gives students many
choices of where to go in biology and the op-
portunities to develop themselves along what-
ever pathways they choose. Maintaining diver-
sity in the learning environment is a key con-
sideration.
We consider ourselves fortunate in that
many of our students come from backgrounds
where their curiosity has been piqued by life-
long casual observation of organisms; that is,
they still retain meaningful connections to the
natural world. The natural curiosity with
which they arrive is congruent with the great-
est strengths of our program. While we strive
not to be a specialized department, we do
Eastern Kentucky University—Clark 45
have an emphasis. The strength of EKU bi-
ology lies in field-based studies of adaptive be-
havior and relationships, ecosystem structure
and function, and biodiversity. We believe
there always will be a market for biologists
who recognize and understand organisms and
how they function in natural systems. In our
program the molecular approach, instead of
being an end in itself, is a powerful, essential
tool to understanding.
We offer formal majors in biology, biology
teaching, microbiology, environmental re-
sources, wildlife management, aquatic biology,
and cell and molecular biology. In addition,
students may specialize in other areas (e.g.,
botany, zoology, premedical studies). To en-
courage faculty collaboration and students’ in-
dividual choices, we are not organized into
special interest departmental subgroups. Our
20 faculty members all have doctorates from
different schools, which results in a variety of
viewpoints, contacts, and collaborative ar-
rangements useful for student development.
In addition to the normal core biology cur-
riculum required for all undergraduate majors,
we regularly offer 26 advanced courses that
are available to undergraduates. A number of
those courses include a required research
component. Classes are limited in size; ad-
vanced undergraduate classes usually have
fewer than 15 students enrolled. Advanced
undergraduates often enroll in our formal un-
dergraduate research courses, BIO 489 (Field
Studies in Wildlife) and BIO 598 (Special
Problems). These courses can be taken more
than once for credit. A statistics course, pro-
viding the tools for assessing many experi-
ments, is required for all undergraduate biol-
ogy majors. In addition, we encourage student
participation in Phi Sigma biology honorary; in
our student chapter of the Wildlife Society; in
our genetics, evolution, and molecular biology
journal club (GEMS); and in Sigma Xi. This
diverse learning environment encourages
close student-to-faculty contact and the devel-
opment of mentoring relationships, which of-
ten lead to participation in research.
We consider it our responsibility to give all
of our majoring students encouragement and
opportunity to do research. All wildlife man-
agement graduates are required to complete a
formal research project. These studies often
are of publishable quality. Even though our
other degree programs do not specifically re-
quire formal research, we advise all students
interested in continuing their studies past the
bachelor’s level that they should gain research
experience. However, the choice is up to
them. In fact, the majority of our graduating
seniors have formal research experience.
THE RESEARCH ENVIRONMENT
Most undergraduate biology research at
EKU is locally or regionally focused. A sam-
pling of projects within the last 2 years (listed
in no particular order) includes ecological and
adaptive behavior studies on endangered bats
and birds: habitat utilization studies of water-
fowl, game, and non-game mammals; analysis
of endangered goldenrod populations; preda-
tor-prey behavior in reptiles; effects of sewage
on aquatic organisms; biodiversity surveys of
aquatic organisms and vascular plants in dis-
turbed and undisturbed ecosystems; popula-
tion, mating, and nesting behavior of various
bird species; chloroplast genome studies; and
studies in isolation, structure, and diversity of
respiratory enzymes. Additional similar studies
and projects on waterborne microbial patho-
gens and adaptive behavior in fishes are in in-
cipient stages.
While working on their projects, undergrad-
uates either are guided by faculty members
directly or work as members of teams involv-
ing faculty and one or more graduate students.
Our student chapter of the Wildlife Society
typically involves its members in several re-
search projects during their undergraduate ex-
perience. In addition, students who show an
interest are strongly encouraged to seek sum-
mer jobs involving research. Financial support
for projects at EKU may come from several
sources, including direct support from the de-
partment, university faculty development
grants, or external grants and contracts. Fac-
ulty members typically include student sup-
port in the proposals they submit for grant and
contract funding.
THE PAYOFF
We find that the opportunity to be person-
ally involved in research is usually the main
factor that propels students through the piv-
otal transition from passive learning to a dif-
ferent level of dedication to the study of bi-
ology. This is true whether they aspire to ca-
46 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
reers in medicine, other specialized biological
fields, teaching, working in natural resource
management agencies, environmental assess-
ment, or many other career options.
Inexperienced students typically regard re-
search as a potentially exciting but somewhat
mysterious pursuit. Many are interested in try-
ing it but are somewhat hesitant at the begin-
ning. By actually doing research, they discover
that behind every moment of revelation are
many long hours in the field and/or laboratory
doing rather repetitive and elementary tasks.
On the other hand, sustained involvement
in research also teaches students to work co-
operatively and patiently, to accept construc-
tive criticism, to assess results and make judg-
ments more carefully and independently than
they ever have before, and to organize
thoughts coherently and succinctly for presen-
tation to others. In addition, they learn that to
complete projects successfully, one must put
in whatever time it takes: dedicated research-
ers often must work while others play. They
learn that one must be clear about what ques-
tions one seeks to answer and that one must
sometimes start again from the beginning to
make necessary adjustments or to correct mis-
takes. If they work in a relaxed, supportive en-
vironment, they also learn that scientists, con-
trary to popular stereotype, interact in
thoughtfulness and humor with other human
beings. These lessons and_ habits invariably
serve students well as they graduate to jobs
and professional or graduate programs and as
they later interact professionally with col-
Pe their own students, administrators,
an
the general public.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):47-50. 1998.
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Research Experiences in Biology at Murray State
University and the Hancock Biological Station
Tom J. Timmons and David S. White
Department of Biological Sciences and Hancock Biological Station,
Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky 42071-0009
ABSTRACT
Undergraduate research experiences at Murray State University occur on campus in the broader aspects
of biological sciences and at the Hancock Biological Station on Kentucky Lake (HBS) in the more focused
area of ecosystem ecology. All biology faculty conduct research and are expected to mentor students infor-
mally or through formal undergraduate research courses. Students then are encouraged and given support
to present their research results at local, regional, and national meetings and to publish in appropriate
journals. HBS, in association with the Center of Excellence for Reservoir Research and a number of Federal
grants, has provided unique undergraduate research opportunities. Since 1988 more than 100 students have
received financial support while participating in research. Students attending HBS come not only from
Murray State but also from throughout Kentucky and the eastern United States. Research experiences
through the department and the station have made the participating students more competitive and suc-
cessful when applying to graduate schools or entering careers.
The most effective way to understand the
principles of research is to participate in all of
its phases. Universities introduce students to
the beginnings of science through experi-
ments, creative laboratory research projects,
and the web. But the true introduction to re-
search comes in undergraduate research
courses requiring independent study. Many
students are surprised to discover that if any-
thing can go wrong, it probably will: samples
become contaminated in the growth chamber;
half the fathead minnows die in the aquarium
(often the control); the plants are overwatered
and all die: someone stole all the artificial sub-
strates from the stream. Undergraduate re-
search provides students the first opportuni-
ties to actually develop hypotheses, develop
methods to test the hypotheses, experiment,
analyze the data, and then come to conclu-
sions. Some students have their first experi-
ence with a literature review. They have to
learn not only how to find the relevant litera-
ture but also how to critically evaluate what
has been written.
Undergraduate research is not required of
Murray State University (MSU) biology stu-
dents, but we strongly encourage them to ex-
plore topics in their area of biology, particu-
A7
larly in their junior or senior years. Faculty
members in biology at MSU average one stu-
dent per year enrolled in our undergraduate
research courses. Students can register for 1
to 4 hours of credit (BIO 491—BIO 494). The
undergraduate research projects often result
from interests developed in upper-level cours-
es or interactions with other students actively
involved with research. Students must find a
professor with the equipment and facilities for
the project. They are required to write a pro-
posal within 2 weeks of the start of the se-
mester describing the research and have it ap-
proved by the faculty member. A copy of the
proposal is also filed with the chair of the De-
partment of Biological Sciences. Students
work closely with their professors, usually
meeting at least weekly to discuss progress or
problems. They may work daily in the labo-
ratory, depending upon the nature of their re-
search.
The entire faculty in the department is in-
volved with research; therefore, there are
many opportunities for students to interact.
There is no course budget allocated for un-
dergraduate research, so students must rely on
supplies and equipment from faculty, and
most faculty support undergraduate research
48 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
with supplies or funds already available from
research grants. Faculty occasionally help stu-
dents to write proposals to request funds from
organizations such as Sigma Xi, the Scientific
Research Society, or the Council for Under-
graduate Research. Faculty may request funds
e purchase equipment through MSU’s Com-
mittee for Institutional Studies and Research.
Many field projects can be done at little cost.
For example, students can study fishes by just
borrowing a seine or using available micro-
scopes and equipment. Many behavioral stud-
ies can be done in the field with binoculars
and patience.
Murray State University undergraduates
have a unique opportunity to participate in re-
search. The Hancock Biological Station (HBS)
on Kentucky Lake, a component of the De-
partment of Biological Sciences, has a primary
mission to present students with opportunities
for individualized instruction, independent re-
search, and close interactions with research-
ers. No detailed records of undergraduate re-
search at HBS were kept between 1972 and
1988, although we are aware that many stu-
dents were part of research activities. Since
the inception of the Center of Excellence for
Reservoir Research (CRR) in 1988, under-
graduate research is well documented.
HBS is a year-around research and teaching
facility with state-of-the-art laboratories and
equipment for environmental and ecological
studies. There is a nationally recognized sum-
mer field program that attracts students and
faculty from throughout the eastern United
States. HBS serves as the base for the Eco-
logical Consortium of Mid-America (ECO-
MA), a group of eight universities and colleges
that use the station as a base of operation for
field trips and research throughout the year.
CRR provides funding for much of the infra-
structure, conducts a long-term monitoring
program on Kentucky Lake, and maintains an
extensive regional ecological database. Under-
graduates from MSU and other universities
are integrated into each of the research com-
ponents through hourly employment, research
for credit, internships, and a modified re-
search experience program for undergradu-
ates.
Beginning students need to be able to ob-
serve and participate in an active research pro-
gram prior to developing and pursuing indi-
vidual research questions, which is a goal of
the CRR program. CRR undergraduates help
in collecting and analyzing data for long-term
monitoring and in maintaining the database.
In turn, the data and parts of the database are
available for use by students for research
questions. For example, our reservoir data
were used by three undergraduates at Ten-
nessee Tech this past semester. Parts of the
database are often used by students who wish
to use real-world data in advanced statistics.
From 1988 to the present, 56 undergradu-
ates have received hourly wages through CRR.
Many students work up to 20 hours per week
during the academic year and up to 40 hours
per week in summer. Training students to be-
come proficient in the field and laboratory of-
ten takes up to 6 months or longer. Students
also develop an understanding of the methods
and goals of specific research projects. They
are encouraged to ask questions and are al-
lowed to progress at their own rates with men-
toring from M.S. and Ph.D. graduate students,
CRR professional staff, postdoctoral associ-
ates, and research faculty. About a third of
these students have completed a semester or
more of research for credit. Research for cred-
it requires that the students consider the de-
sign of CRR programs and produce a well
thought out research paper.
There has been a rapid growth of externally
funded research at HBS over the past 10
years; the more seasoned and skilled students
are often in demand to participate. External
research has involved 8 to 10 students per year
over the past 5 years. Most of these students
enroll for research credit during the academic
year or summer semester. Many summer stu-
dents come from other universities with the
goal of conducting research in a field setting,
an experience not usually available at their
home institutions. These students either are
integrated into ongoing research at HBS or
accompany their adviser who will be teaching
or conducting summer research at the station.
There is a growing number of students from
other universities who carry out their intern-
ship requirements at HBS. These students
conduct research questions through a faculty
mentor at HBS but enroll for credit at their
home institutions. Included have been stu-
dents from Center College, Long Island Uni-
versity, Kennesaw State, Southern Illinois Uni-
Murray State University—Timmons and White 49
versity, Central Florida, University of South
Florida, Austin Peay State University, and
Madisonville Community College.
HBS/CRR plans to submit a grant proposal
this coming year to the National Science
Foundation to establish a Research Experi-
ences for Undergraduates (REU) program. As
a prelude to the proposal, we created our own
“REU” program for one summer with excel-
lent success. Six very promising undergradu-
ates from throughout the midwest were se-
lected from a pool of 21 applicants. Each stu-
dent attended the American Society of Lim-
nology and Oceanography meeting (at the
beginning of the summer session). Learning
from the presentations attended, each student
designed and conducted a research experi-
ment over the following 8 weeks. Four of the
six students subsequently enrolled in advanced
degree programs in aquatic ecology.
Undergraduate research projects often lead
to posters, presentations, and publications.
Recent papers (Dreves et al. 1996; King et al.
1989) and published abstracts (Derting et al.
1995; Derting and Carter 1995) in this journal
were the result of projects initiated by under-
graduates. Undergraduate research has result-
ed in recent papers in other journals, e.g.,
American Malacological Bulletin (Blalock and
Sickel 1996), Canadian Journal of Zoology
(Derting and Noakes 1995), and Journal of
Mammalogy (Derting and Bogue 1993). The
list of oral and poster presentations by under-
graduates is too lengthy to include here. Fac-
ulty encourage and help students travel to pro-
fessional meetings to present papers; some
meetings are limited to student presenters.
For example, aquatic biology undergraduates
travel to the Annual Fisheries Student Collo-
quium sponsored by the American Fisheries
Society. Many of our undergraduates give pa-
pers at the annual meeting of the Association
of Southeastern Biologists and state societies
such as the Kentucky Academy of Science or
the Tennessee Academy of Science. Many
professional societies have state chapters that
encourage students to give the first presenta-
tion. MSU and Austin Peay State University
sponsor a biannual 2-day joint symposium on
natural history of the lower Tennessee River
basin. The meeting, held in the Land Between
the Lakes, attracts faculty and students from
throughout the midwest. The first day of the
symposium highlights presentations by inter-
nationally known scientists. Undergraduates
are then encouraged to present results of their
research in sessions on zoology, botany, or
ecology. Beyond the abstracts, students may
publish their results in the symposium pro-
ceedings, gaining experience in writing and
editing. Undergraduates also present papers at
national meetings in association with results
from research by professors.
Undergraduate and graduate student re-
search is encouraged by the MSU chapter of
Sigma Xi, which each year sponsors the Sigma
Xi Research Symposium and Poster Compe-
tition day. Students conducting research in any
science-related discipline across campus can
compete. The event provides students with a
forum to present research results and to have
faculty evaluate the presentations and com-
ment on the student work. An award for the
Outstanding Undergraduate Research is pre-
sented at the Sigma Xi Annual Banquet.
Another great advantage of undergraduate
research is the opportunity for undergraduates
to travel to collect data or present papers and
posters at national or regional meetings. Un-
dergraduates interested in paleontology re-
cently have had summer opportunities to trav-
el to Kansas and Spain. Students interested in
field ecology have enrolled in undergraduate
research during the summer and traveled to
Belize and Ecuador. Undergraduates in aquat-
ic biology often travel to coastal field stations
to study ocean communities. One of our fac-
ulty travels to the arctic each summer; he has
involved undergraduate researchers. Many of
our national societies provide travel or lodging
assistance for students giving papers at distant
locations. Even within colleges or depart-
ments, we work harder to find money for
promising students who are presenting papers.
Faculty find undergraduate research a
unique way to interact with students. The
work may not always be recognized by the ten-
ure and promotion committee or provide any
release time for faculty, but we enjoy working
with students, especially in our area of re-
search. Research experience is the best way to
mentor a student. After a student has gradu-
ated, and lectures have been forgotten, the re-
search experience will be long remembered.
The faculty member also will remember the
50 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
student and can write meaningful letters of
recommendation.
The undergraduate research experience is
important for both students and faculty. Stu-
dents learn how to conduct all aspects of re-
search; they discover if research is the field for
them. Research allows students an opportu-
nity to explore areas of interest in greater
depth than any course can offer. Students who
have a research background and are accepted
to graduate school and other professional
schools have an advantage over students with-
out research experience. Students who do not
become researchers also benefit. One student
who traveled to Alaska is now a high school
teacher and incorporates material on arctic
tundra ecology in her science classes. Some of
our students who conducted undergraduate
research at HBS now bring their classes to
HBS to study ecology or chemistry. Although
faculty may benefit from an undergraduate
project, the professional interaction between
student and professor is most important. The
mentoring experience affects students
throughout their future career.
LITERATURE CITED
Blalock, H.N., and J.B. Sickel. 1996. Changes in mussel
(Bivalvia: Unionidae) fauna within the Kentucky portion
of Lake Barkley since impoundment of the lower Cum-
berland River. Am. Malacol. Bull. 13:111—116.
Derting, T.D., T.P. Begin, and M.L. Carter. 1995. Changes
in gut capacity of prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster).
Trans. Kentucky Acad. Sci. 57:65.
Derting, T.D., and B.A. Bogue. 1993. Morphological re-
sponses of the gut to moderate energy demands in a
small herbivore, Microtus pennsylvanicus. J. Mammal.
74:59-68.
Derting, T.D., and M. Carter. 1995. Increased gut capac-
ity in prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster): a response
to metabolic demand or food intake? Trans. Kentucky
Acad. Sci. 57:66.
Derting, T.D., and E.B. Noakes. 1995. Seasonal changes
in gut capacity in the white-footed mouse (Peromyscus
leucopus) and the meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvan-
icus). Canad. J. Zool. 73:243-252.
Dreves, D.P., T.J. Timmons, and J. Henson. 1996. Age,
growth, and food of freshwater drum, Aplodinotus
grunniens (Sciaenidae), in Kentucky Lake, Kentucky/
Tennessee. Trans. Kentucky Acad. Sci. 57:22-26.
King, J.M., C.D. Wilder, and J. McCandless. 1989. Sea-
sonal variations in orthophosphate and inorganic nitro-
gen in a western Kentucky cypress swamp ( Murphy's
Pond). Trans. Kentucky Acad. Sci. 50:51-54.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):51-63. 1998.
Distributional Records for Fishes of the Coastal Plain
Province, Ballard and McCracken Counties, in
Western Kentucky
Michael G. Ryon
Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory,
Oak Ridge, TN 37831
and
Brian A. Carrico
6146 Cougar Drive, Knoxville, TN 37921
ABSTRACT
One hundred and forty-two collections were made at 37 sites located on streams within the Coastal Plain
Province, Ballard and McCracken counties, Kentucky, from 1990 to 1997. Most samples were taken near
the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant as part of its Biological Monitoring Program, but additional collections
were made from six watersheds spanning the Ohio and Mississippi River coastal plain north of Mayfield
Creek and west of the Clarks River. These collections include 112,722 specimens representing 71 species,
40 genera, and 15 families. Compared to published distributional information, the ranges of 59 species were
expanded and three species were added to the stream fauna of this region. Included in these expanded
ranges are new localities for the redspotted sunfish (Lepomis miniatus) and the black buffalo (Ictiobus niger),
two species listed as threatened and of special concern, respectively, by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves
Commission.
INTRODUCTION
The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant
(PGDP) has supported a Biological Monitor-
ing Program for streams bordering its facilities
since 1987 (Birge et al. 1990; Kszos 1994).
This program includes a fish community task
group that monitors the changes in fish com-
munities in Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks
and compares these changes with communi-
ties in area streams (Kszos 1994, 1996a,
1996b: Kszos et al. 1994). As a result of this
monitoring program, extensive fish survey in-
formation has been gathered by the Oak
Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for the
region since 1990. Published information on
fish distributions in the immediate vicinity of
PGDP was limited. Burr and Warren (1986)
reported on distributions in the general area,
but no specific distributional studies have re-
ported on streams in this section of western
Kentucky. Therefore, data generated for the
monitoring study were supplemented by sam-
pling in additional streams to provide a better
understanding of the fish fauna of this region.
The PGDP is located in McCracken County
within 6.3 km of the Ohio River (Figure 1). It
51
lies within the Coastal Plain Province as de-
fined by Burr and Warren (1986) with the lo-
cal streams draining the Mississippi Alluvial,
Eastern Gulf Coastal, and Tennessee River
plains. This province is an area of lowland
plains with only limited relief provided by roll-
ing hills and minor ridges. The geology reflects
a sedimentary origin dating back to the Cre-
taceous seas and includes loose deposits of
gravel, sand, and clay (Burr and Warren 1986;
Mengel 1965). Oxbows, sloughs, and swamps
become more common and the stream chan-
nels become more entrenched adjacent to the
Mississippi and Ohio rivers.
The province includes several streams that
have been widely sampled, including Clarks
River, Mayfield Creek, Obion Creek, Bayou
de Chien, and Terrapin Creek (Burr and War-
ren 1986; Kuhajda and Warren 1985; Sisk
1969). Considerable effort has also been ex-
pended to sample Metropolis Lake, oxbows,
small floodplain lakes, and main channels of
the Ohio River and Mississippi River in this
province (Burr and Mayden 1979; Burr and
Warren 1986; Burr et al. 1990; Krumbholz
1981: Pearson and Krumholz 1984; Rice et al.
52 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
EO
(€C4
nee Cre
=f S 7
oO
Somer poShaw
Figure I.
collection sites near the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reservation and the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant
(PGDP).
1983). However, the streams in McCracken
and Ballard counties north of Mayfield Creek
and west of the Clarks River have not been
surveyed so extensively. Some of this lack of
attention can be attributed to (1) the generally
mundane appearance of the streams, (2) the
considerable areas of habitat modification as-
sociated with agricultural activity, and (3) the
restricted access for streams near PGDP. Ma-
jor streams in this region include Perkins,
Massac, Little Bayou, Big Bayou, Newtons,
Clanton, Humphrey, and Shawnee creeks
(Figure 1). These streams are west of the Ten-
nessee River divide and flow into the Ohio
River, except for Shawnee Creek, which enters
the Mississippi River.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
Fish distribution surveys were conducted
using backpack electrofishers in two standard
procedures. When sampling was conducted as
ORNL $7-1073B/Imh
Big Bayou Creek
3 Little Bayou Creek
S Metropolis Lake
. Paducah Gaseous
S2<_ Diffusion Plant
i Fran ot SI ais
OQ Sample Locations
“4 DOE Reservation Boundary 5 0
ZY Rivers and Streams
Kilometers
Streams in the Coastal Plain Province in McCracken and Ballard counties, Kentucky, and locations of fish-
part of the quantitative PGDP biomonitoring,
the electrofishing sample involved a three-pass
removal estimate at standard sampling sites of
ca. 100 m in length. For each sample, the sites
were isolated by 0.64-cm-mesh seines, two or
three backpack electrofishers followed by
three to five netters were used to make up-
stream passes through the site, and all stunned
fishes were removed for processing. Fishes
were identified, measured, and returned alive
to the sampling location. Voucher or verifica-
tion specimens were taken for species unique
to that location or for species particularly dif-
ficult to identify. Quantitative samples were
collected on a spring and fall schedule at five
standard sites.
When sampling was part of the qualitative
biomonitoring, the electrofishing sample in-
volved a single upstream pass through 100 to
200 m of stream or for a sampling effort of 1
to 2 hours. One or two backpack electrofishers
Fish Distribution Coastal Plain Province Kentucky—Ryon and Carrico 53
were used with two or three netters. Captured
fishes were identified, counted (in most sam-
ples), and returned alive to the stream. Vouch-
er specimens were taken as per the quantita-
tive sites with additional specimens usually
taken to represent each species present at the
sampling location. Qualitative samples were
made throughout the year, at various sites,
from one to 11 times per site. Specimens were
also obtained at a PGDP treatment lagoon
during fish kill investigations. These speci-
mens were retrieved using a small boat and
dipnets.
All voucher specimens were preserved in
10% formaldehyde, washed, transferred to
60% ethanol, and cataloged in the ORNL Fish
Reference Collection. Identification of unusu-
al specimens was verified by Dr. David Etnier,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville. All sam-
pling was conducted following standard oper-
ating procedures (Schilling et al. 1996).
Descriptive ratings were used to categorize
the distribution and abundance of individual
species. Distribution categories, based on
Smith (1965), include generally distributed
(any suitable habitat within the area should
yield species with sufficient collection effort),
occasional (suitable habitat within the area
may or may not yield species even after pro-
longed searches), and sporadic (the encoun-
tering of species cannot be predicted at all).
Relative abundance was categorized following
Ryon (1994) and included rare (one specimen
taken per collection), uncommon (two to 20
specimens taken per collection), common (Qh
to 99 specimens taken per collection), and
abundant (greater than 99 specimens taken
per collection).
COLLECTION SITES
Collection sites were concentrated in the
watersheds of Big Bayou, Little Bayou, and
Massac creeks, but all major watersheds in the
province were sampled. The following site de-
scriptions include stream name, location of the
sample site (stream kilometers to site from
mouth of stream and position relative to map
landmarks), county, and date(s) sampled. Rel-
ative locations are shown in Figure 1 with
numbers indicating each sample site.
1. Perkins Creek at KY 305 (km 4.1), 0.6
km w of intersection of KY 45 and 358,
McCracken County. Jul 1996.
2. Massac Creek at KY 1420 (km 3.2), 8.5
km w of Paducah, McCracken County. Jun
1992 and Jul 1996.
3. Massac Creek at KY 358 (km 6.4), 8.5 km
w of Paducah, McCracken County. Jun 1993,
Aug 1994, and Jul 1996.
4. Massac Creek at KY 62 (km 13.8), 5.5 km
sw of Paducah, McCracken County. Thirteen
occasions from Dec 1990 through Mar 1997.
5. Massac Creek at KY 339 (km 16.9), 8 km
sw of Paducah, McCracken County. Jul 1996.
6. Blacks Branch at KY 1565 (km 2.0), 7 km
w of Paducah, McCracken County. Jun 1993.
7. West Fork Massac Creek at confluence
with Massac Creek (km 6.6), 0.3 km sw of KY
358 and 8.5 km w of Paducah, McCracken
County. Jun 1993.
8. Middle Fork Massac Creek at KY 62 (km
2.4), 8 km sw of Paducah, McCracken County.
Aug 1994.
9. Little Bayou Creek adjacent to settling
ponds at the Tennessee Valley Authority's
Shawnee Steam Plant (km 1.3), 11 km n of
Future City, McCracken County. Jun 1992.
10. Little Bayou Creek at unnamed rd (km
4.3), 2 km w of KY 996 and 9.2 km n of Future
City, McCracken County. Nine occasions from
Dec 1990 through Apr 1996.
11. Tributary to Little Bayou Creek from
PGDP outfall K003 (km 5.0), 8.1 km n of Fu-
ture City, McCracken County. Dec 1990.
12. Little Bayou Creek at KY 358 (km 7.2),
6 km n of Future City, McCracken County.
Twelve occasions from Dec 1990 through Mar
1997.
13. Little Bayou Creek at McCaw Rd (km
9.0), 5.2 km n of Future City, McCracken
County. Ten occasions from Jun 1992 through
Nov 1995.
14. Big Bayou Creek at Boldry Rd (km 2.8),
6.3 km ne of Ragland, McCracken County. Jun
1992 and Jul 1996.
15. Big Bayou Creek at KY 358 (km 6.9),
8.7 km ne of Kevil, McCracken County. Jun
1992.
16. Big Bayou Creek at unnamed rd (km
9.1), 0.9 km e of Bethel Church Rd, and 1.2
km sw of KY 358, McCracken County. Thir-
teen occasions from Dec 1990 through Mar
1997.
17. Big Bayou Creek at unnamed rd (km
54 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
9.4), 1.2 km e of Bethel Church Rd and 1.3
km sw of KY 358, McCracken County. Nine
occasions from Nov 1993 through Nov 1995.
18. Tributary to Big Bayou Creek from
PGDP outfall KO0O1 (km 9.5), 1.4 km e of
Bethel Church Rd and 1.3 km sw of KY 358.
McCracken County. Nine occasions from Nov
1993 through Nov 1995.
19. Big Bayou Creek at unnamed rd (km
10.0), 3.3 km e of KY 725 and 1.7 km s of KY
358, McCracken County. Twelve occasions
from Sep 1991 through Mar 1997.
20. C-611 Treatment Lagoons near Big Bay-
ou Creek (km 10.1), 3.3 km e of KY 725 and
2.0 km s of KY 358, McCracken County. Jan
1992 and Mar 1992.
21. Big Bayou Creek at Water Works Rd
(km 10.4), 3.7 km w of KY 996 and 2.5 km s
of KY 358, McCracken County. Six occasions
from Aug 1994 through Nov 1995.
22. Big Bayou Creek downstream of S. Acid
Rd (km 12.5), 3.3 km w of KY 996 and 3.3 km
s of KY 358, McCracken County. Thirteen oc-
casions from Dec 1990 through Mar 1997.
23. Big Bayou Creek at KY 725 (km 14.5),
0.6 km w of intersection KY 725 and KY 1154,
McCracken County. Jun 1992.
24. Newtons Creek at Grief Rd (km 4.4),
2.2 km n of KY 358, McCracken County. Dec
1990.
25. Newtons Creek at KY 358 (km 6.5), 12.2
km w of Metropolis, IL, McCracken County.
Jul 1996.
26. Nasty Creek at KY 358 (km 5.0), 10.7
km sw of Metropolis, IL, McCracken County.
Jul 1996.
27. Clanton Creek at KY 358 (km 13.8), 5.8
km se of Monkey’s Eyebrow, Ballard County.
Jul 1996,
28. Clanton Creek at Goose Haven Lane
(km 5.7), 1.5 km n of Oscar, Ballard County.
Jul 1996.
29. Humphrey Creek at KY 1105 (km 9.0),
2.7 km sw of Oscar, Ballard County. Apr 1996.
30. Humphrey Creek at KY 60 (km 20.4),
1.0 km ne of La Center, Ballard County. Dec
1990.
31. Humphrey Creek at Mosstown Rd (km
23.7), 3.3 km se of La Center, Ballard County.
Apr 1996.
32. Humphrey Creek at Brookings Rd (km
30.8), 8.8 km se of La Center, Ballard County.
Apr 1996.
33. Mud Slough at KY 310 (km 3.7), 3.3 km
nw of Oscar, Ballard County. Jul 1996.
34. Hazel Creek at unnamed rd (km 7.8),
4.5 km n of Barlow, Ballard County. Jul 1996.
35. Shawnee Creek at KY 60 (km 7.1), 0.8
km s of Barlow, Ballard County. Apr 1996.
36. Shawnee Creek Slough at unnamed rd
(km 5.0), 3.5 km w of KY 60 and 5.8 km sw
of Barlow, Ballard County. Apr 1996.
37. Cane Creek at KY 60 (km 4.6), 6 km s
of Barlow, Ballard County. Apr 1996.
ANNOTATED LIST OF SPECIES
Collections from these 37 localities yielded
112,722 specimens representing 71 species, 40
genera, and 15 families. For each species, the
entry lists collection sites by number (see Fig-
ure 1) and, in parentheses, the number of
specimens collected and the number of vouch-
er specimens. Additional comments about
unique habitats or conservation status are giv-
en when appropriate. Species names are based
on guidelines in Etnier and Starnes (1993) and
Robins et al. (1991). Comparisons to pub-
lished literature refer to the distributional
studies of Burr and Warren (1986), unless oth-
erwise indicated.
LEPISOSTEIDAE—Gars
Lepisosteus oculatus (Winchell). Spotted
gar. Sites: 2 and 28. (3 specimens collected
and vouchered.) Not reported previously from
Massac and Clanton creeks but has been
found in the Ohio River near the mouth of
Massac Creek and in Metropolis Lake.
Lepisosteus osseus (Linnaeus). Longnose
gar. Site: 2. (1 large specimen collected and
released.) Not reported previously from Mas-
sac Creek but has been taken from the Ohio
River in the vicinity of Massac Creek and in
Metropolis Lake.
Lepisosteus platostomus Rafinesque. Short-
nose gar. Sites: 2, 28, and 33. (4 specimens
collected; 3 vouchers.) Not reported previous-
ly from Massac Creek and Mud Slough but
has been collected in the Ohio River, Metrop-
olis Lake, and Clanton Creek.
AMIIDAE—Bowfins
Amia calva Linnaeus. Bowfin. Sites: 2, 14,
and 16. (4 specimens collected and released.)
Not reported previously from Big Bayou and
Massac creeks.
Fish Distribution Coastal Plain Province Kentucky—Ryon and Carrico 55
CLUPEIDAE—Herrings
Dorosoma cepedianum (Lesueur). Gizzard
shad. Sites: 2-4, 10, 14, 16-18, 20-22, and 27—
29. (666 specimens collected; 64 vouchers.)
Occasional and locally common in streams
within the coastal plain.
Dorosoma petenense (Guenther). Threadfin
shad. Site: 33. (1 specimen collected and
vouchered.) Not reported previously from
Mud Slough although many records exist for
the Ohio River in that vicinity.
CYPRINIDAE—Carps and minnows
Campostoma anomalum pullum (Agassiz).
Central stoneroller. Sites: 2-8, 10, 12-19, 21—
I= G0=32° 35, and 37. (44,831 speci-
mens collected; 669 vouchers.) Abundant and
generally distributed in Massac, Little Bayou,
and Big Bayou creeks but less numerous and
only occasional in other coastal plain water-
sheds. Not reported previously from Big Bay-
ou, Little Bayou, and Clanton creeks.
Carassius auratus (Linnaeus). Goldfish.
Site: 4. (1 specimen collected and released.)
Not reported previously from Massac Creek.
Ctenopharyngodon idella (Valenciennes).
Grass carp. Site: 17. (1 specimen collected and
vouchered.) Not reported previously from any
tributaries of the Ohio River in the Coastal
Plain Province north of Mayfield Creek al-
though records from the Ohio and Mississippi
rivers were known. Our specimen was proba-
bly an escapee from fishing ponds located on
the Western Kentucky Wildlife Management
Area (WKWMA) where the species has been
stocked for control of aquatic vegetation.
Cyprinella lutrensis (Baird and Girard).
Red shiner. Sites: 2-4, 7-10, 12-22, 27, 30,
and 31. (2853 specimens collected; 552 vouch-
ers.) Not reported previously from Big Bayou
and Little Bayou creeks but considered com-
mon and generally distributed in small tribu-
taries to the lower Ohio River.
Cyprinella spiloptera (Cope). Spotfin shin-
erusites: 2913579, 10, 14,°15, and 28. (120
specimens collected; 117 vouchers.) Not re-
ported previously west of the Clarks River.
Our specimens represent the first verified rec-
ords from the Coastal Plain Province in Ken-
tucky. The absence of spotfin shiners from
coastal plain ecoregions was also noted for
Missouri (Pflieger 1975) and Tennessee (Et-
nier and Starnes 1993), although Smith (1979)
documented their presence in lowland areas
of Illinois. The spotfin shiner usually occurred
in collections with the steelcolor shiner, al-
though they were not as common or as widely
distributed. Four hybrid specimens between
these two Cyprinella species were also taken.
Cyprinella whipplei Girard. Steelcolor shin-
er. Sites: 2-4, 7, 10, 12, 14-17, 19, and 22. (650
specimens collected; 493 vouchers.) Not re-
ported previously from Big Bayou Creek.
Generally distributed and common in Massac
and Big Bayou creeks but only occasional in
Little Bayou Creek.
Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus. Common carp.
Sites: 1-4, 10, 14, 16-18, 28-31, and 33. (53
specimens collected; 35 vouchers.) Not re-
ported previously from Perkins, Massac, Big
Bayou, Little Bayou, Clanton, and Humphrey
creeks. Generally occasional in distribution
and uncommon at a specific site.
Hybognathus nuchalis Agassiz. Mississippi
silvery minnow. Sites: 1-4, 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16,
17, 19, 22, 25, 27, and 29. (3358 specimens
collected; 716 vouchers.) Not reported previ-
ously from Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks.
Generally distributed and locally abundant
when found in its preferred habitat of slow
runs and shallow pools with sand or soft sub-
strates.
Lythrurus fumeus (Evermann). Ribbon
shiner. Sites: 3, 4, 7, 9-12, 14, 16, 17, 22, and
28-30. (604 specimens collected; 272 vouch-
ers.) Not reported previously from Big Bayou,
Little Bayou, Clanton, and Humphrey creeks.
Generally distributed in the province but usu-
ally uncommon at specific sites.
Lythrurus umbratilis (Girard). Redfin shin-
er, Sites: on) 9213916198 215 22) 2529-3.
and 35. (1343 specimens collected; 324 vouch-
ers.) Not reported previously from Big Bayou
and Little Bayou creeks. Generally distributed
throughout the province and often common to
abundant at specific locations.
Macrhybopsis storeiana (Kirtland). Silver
chub. Site: 29. (1 specimen collected and
vouchered.) Not reported previously from
Humphrey Creek but reported from the Ohio
and Mississippi rivers in the Coastal Plain
Province.
Notemigonus crysoleucas (Mitchill). Golden
shiner. Sites; 1-4, 7, 10, 12-14, 16-18, 21, 22,
25-30, and 34-36. (198 specimens collected;
56 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
36 vouchers.) Not reported previously from
Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Although
its distribution was widespread, numbers were
generally uncommon at most sites.
Notropis atherinoides Rafinesque. Emerald
shiner. Sites: 2, 10, 20, and 29. (55 specimens
collected and vouchered.) Distribution was
sporadic and usually rare to uncommon in our
samples. The species prefers larger streams
and rivers, which were not sampled intensively
in these collections.
Notropis blennius (Girard). River shiner.
Site: 10. (9 specimens collected and vouch-
ered.) Not reported previously from tributar-
ies to the Ohio River in the Coastal Plain
Province. Its preference for larger rivers
would indicate that our specimens were tran-
sients in lower Little Bayou Creek.
Notropis stramineus (Cope). Sand _ shiner.
Site: 10. (1 specimen collected and vouch-
ered.) Not reported previously from tributar-
ies to the Mississippi and lower Ohio rivers
except for Mayfield Creek. Generally uncom-
mon or absent from lowland tributaries in II-
linois (Smith 1979), Missouri (Pflieger 1975),
and Tennessee (Etnier and Starnes 1993).
Notropis volucellus (Cope). Mimic shiner.
Site: 3. (1 specimen collected and vouchered.)
Not reported previously from tributaries to
the Ohio River in the Coastal Plain Province
of Kentucky. Infrequently seen in coastal plain
streams of Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri
(Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993).
Phenacobius mirabilis (Girard). Sucker-
mouth minnow. Sites: 3, 4, 7, 10, 12-14, 16—
19, 22, and 30. (537 specimens collected; 105
vouchers.) Not reported previously from Big
Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Only occasion-
al with most samples having uncommon num-
bers per collection.
Pimephales notatus (Rafinesque). Bluntnose
minnow. Sites: 2-10, 12-14, 16-19, 21, 22, 25,
27, and 29-32. (7897 specimens collected; 812
vouchers.) Not reported previously from any
tributaries of the Ohio River in the Coastal
Plain Province west of Massac Creek. Gener-
ally distributed and common to abundant in
our collections.
Pimephales promelas Rafinesque. Fathead
minnow. Sites: 4, 12, 19, and 22. (59 speci-
mens collected; 14 vouchers.) Sporadic and
uncommon in Big Bayou and Massac creeks.
Not reported previously in any streams west
of Clarks River and north of Mayfield Creek.
Its rarity or absence in coastal plain streams
of neighboring states was also noted by Etnier
and Starnes (1993), Smith (1979), and Pflieger
(1975). Specimens may have been introduced
into Little Bayou and Big Bayou creeks by
fishing activities associated with numerous
small ponds on WKWMA.
Pimephales vigilax (Baird and Girard). Bull-
head minnow. Sites: 2, 3, and 29. (52 speci-
mens collected and vouchered.) Not reported
previously from tributaries in the Coastal Plain
Province north of Mayfield Creek; sporadic in
our samples. This sporadic distribution for the
bullhead minnow in coastal plain streams of
Kentucky contrasts greatly to its distribution
in similar habitats in Illinois (Smith 1979),
Missouri (Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Et-
nier and Starnes 1993), where it was widely
distributed and often very abundant.
Semotilus atromaculatus (Mitchill). Creek
chub: Sites: 426) 8=10, 12.1135 1621952125)
27, 29-32, 35, and 37. (5355 specimens col-
lected; 45 vouchers.) Not reported previously
from Big Bayou, Little Bayou, and Clanton
creeks. Generally distributed and more com-
mon in small streams and the upper reaches
of larger watersheds.
CATOSTOMIDAE—Suckers
Carpiodes carpio (Rafinesque). River carp-
sucker. Sites: 2 and 16. (4 specimens collected;
2 vouchers.) Not reported previously for any
tributaries to the Ohio River in the coastal
plain, but several collections are listed for the
Ohio River in the vicinity of Massac Creek.
Carpiodes cyprinus (Lesueur). Quillback.
Sites: 2 and 3. (4 specimens collected and
vouchered.) Not reported previously from
coastal plain tributaries of Kentucky; primarily
a large stream and river species. Also rare in
coastal plain streams in Illinois (Smith 1979),
Missouri (Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Et-
nier and Starnes 1993) with most records oc-
curring in larger rivers. Our specimens ranged
in size from 8 to 17 cm TL, suggesting that
young and juvenile quillback may use the low-
er reaches of coastal tributaries for rearing and
feeding areas.
Catostomus commersoni (Lacepede). White
sucker, Sites: 3. 4:, 6-8. 12. 16,117 19) 2122;
and 30-32. (99 specimens collected; 13 vouch-
Fish Distribution Coastal Plain Province Kentucky—Ryon and Carrico 57
ers.) Within the province, reported previously
only from Massac Creek. Occasional and un-
common in our samples. The widespread dis-
tribution of the white sucker in coastal plain
streams of Kentucky contrasts with its distri-
bution in coastal plain streams of and Missouri
(Pflieger 1975) and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993) where it was absent or restrict-
ed to a few drainages.
Erimyzon oblongus (Mitchill). Creek chub-
sucker. Sites: 2-13, 16-19, 21-23, 25, 27, 29-
32, and 35-37. (905 specimens collected; 65
vouchers.) Reported previously from streams
of the Coastal Plain Province; locally common
in our samples.
Ictiobus bubalus (Rafinesque). Smallmouth
buffalo. Sites: 1-3, 16, 28, and 33. (48 speci-
mens collected and vouchered.) Not reported
previously from Perkins, Big Bayou, and Mas-
sac creeks but present in a few other Coastal
Plain Province streams. As with other buffalo
species taken in our samples, the majority of
specimens were juveniles (mean = 5.3 cm
TL), indicating that the coastal streams are
used as nursery or rearing grounds for many
of the fishes of the Ohio River in this province.
Ictiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes). Big-
mouth buffalo. Sites: 1-3, 16, 17, and 27. (29
specimens collected; 15 vouchers.) Not re-
ported previously from Massac and Big Bayou
creeks. Most of our specimens were from
deep pools in medium to large streams, al-
though juveniles were taken in a small shallow
section of upper Clanton Creek.
Ictiobus niger (Rafinesque). Black buffalo.
Sites: 2, 10, 16, 17, and 27. (9 specimens col-
lected and vouchered.) Not reported previ-
ously from Massac, Big Bayou, and Little Bay-
ou creeks. Generally considered rare in coastal
plain areas of Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri
(Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993). Because of its limited distri-
bution, the black buffalo is listed as special
concern for Kentucky (KSNPC 1996; Warren
et al. 1986). Our specimens were taken from
pools or backwater areas in medium to large
streams over clay and sand substrates. A few,
larger specimens (up to 26 cm TL) were col-
lected, suggesting the coastal tributaries are
used for more than just rearing areas.
Minytrema melanops (Rafinesque). Spotted
sucker. Sites: 2-4, 10, 13, 15-17, 19, 29, and
30. (132 specimens collected; 16 vouchers.)
Not reported previously from Little Bayou,
Big Bayou, and Humphrey creeks. Occasional
but uncommon in our collections.
Moxostoma duquesnei (Lesueur). Black re-
dhorse. Sites: 3 and 4. (16 specimens collected
and released.) Not reported previously west of
the Clarks River in any coastal plain stream in
Kentucky; generally absent from coastal plain
streams in Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri
(Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993). In our sampling, the black re-
dhorse occurred in Massac Creek sites over
gravel and sand substrates in deep pools. Mas-
sac Creek, the most upland stream in the
Coastal Plain Province, includes more typical
black redhorse habitat than other watersheds.
The specimens were encountered in two sep-
arate sampling events (1991 and 1993); most
were large specimens (26 to 32 cm TL) iden-
tified in the field by lateral-line scale counts
and body shape. Repeated efforts to obtain
voucher specimens in later collections were
unsuccessful, so these records should be con-
sidered suspect but not impossible given our
success in documenting new locations for oth-
er sucker species.
Moxostoma erythrurum (Rafinesque). Gold-
en redhorse. Sites: 2-4, 7, 8, 10, 15, 16, and
21. (145 specimens collected; 43 vouchers.)
Not reported previously from coastal plain
streams west of Massac Creek and north of
Mayfield Creek. Occasional and uncommon in
our samples. As with black redhorse, the gold-
en redhorse was generally absent from coastal
plain streams in Illinois (Smith 1979), Missou-
ri (Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993).
ICTALURIDAE—Bullhead catfish
Ameiurus melas (Rafinesque). Black bull-
head Sites: S10; 12 16. 17519) 21 9007
28, and 36. (34 specimens collected; 12 vouch-
ers.) Not reported previously from Big Bayou
Creek.
Ameiurus natalis (Lesueur). Yellow bull-
head: ‘Sites: 2=6) S=10) 122119) 91=93 95-31
33, and 35. (1655 specimens collected; 74
vouchers.) Not reported previously from Big
Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Generally dis-
tributed and common in our sampling, occur-
ring from small tributaries to the largest
streams.
Ameiurus nebulosus (Lesueur). Brown bull-
58 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
head. Site: 28. (3 specimens collected and
vouchered.) Not reported previously in Clan-
ton Creek. This location was a typical lowland
stream habitat, with soft mud substrates.
Specimens of all three bullhead species were
taken in this sample. The limited distribution
of brown bullheads in this province of Ken-
tucky is very similar to the distribution in Il-
linois (Smith 1979), Missouri (Pflieger 1975),
and Tennessee (Etnier and Starnes 1993),
where the brown bullhead was also the least
common of the three bullhead species.
Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque). Channel
catfish. Sites: 2, 3, 14, and 29. (8 specimens
collected; 7 vouchers.) Not reported previous-
ly from Massac and Big Bayou creeks.
Noturus gyrinus (Mitchill). Tadpole mad-
tom. Sites: 3, 9, 10, and 29. (9 specimens col-
lected; 7 vouchers.) Not reported previously
from Little Bayou Creek.
Noturus nocturnus Jordan and Gilbert.
Freckled madtom. Sites: 2 and 14. (7 speci-
mens collected and vouchered.) Not reported
previously from tributaries in the coastal plain
north of Mayfield Creek. Restricted to sites
adjacent to the Ohio River in our sampling.
ESOCIDAE—Pikes
Esox americanus vermiculatus Lesueur.
Grass pickerel. Sites: 2-4, 7, 10, 14, 16, 19,
29, 34, and 36. (43 specimens collected; 12
vouchers.) Not reported previously from Little
Bayou, Big Bayou, and Humphrey creeks. Oc-
casional but usually uncommon in our sam-
pling.
APHREDODERIDAE—Firate perches
Aphredoderus sayanus (Gilliams). Pirate
perch. Sites: 1=4) (8=1.0: 19-16, 19721) 122,25:
28-31, 33, 34, and 36. (281 specimens col-
lected; 37 vouchers.) Not reported previously
from Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Gen-
erally distributed and locally common in our
sampling.
CYPRINODONTIDAE—Killifishes
Fundulus olivaceus (Storer). Blackspotted
topminnow. Sites: 2-6, 8-10, 12-19, 21-23,
25-27, 29-33, and 35-37. (8892 specimens
collected; 121 vouchers.) Reported previously
from all coastal plain streams. Generally dis-
tributed, usually common, and locally abun-
dant in our samples.
POECILIIDAE—Livebearers
Gambusia affinis (Baird and Girard). West-
ern mosquitofish. Sites: 1-5, 8-10, 12-17, 19,
21, 22, 25-31, and 33-36. (4199 specimens
collected; 126 vouchers.) Occasional and lo-
cally common in Coastal Plain Province
streams.
ATHERINIDAE—Silversides
Labidesthes sicculus (Cope). Brook silver-
side. Sites: 2-4, 33, and 36. (14 specimens col-
lected; 11 vouchers.) Occasional in the coastal
plain streams, usually associated with larger
streams.
PERCICHTHYIDAE—Temperate basses
Morone chrysops (Rafinesque). White bass.
Sites: 2, 3, 28, and 29. (15 specimens collected
and vouchered.) Not reported previously from
Massac and Humphrey creeks.
Morone mississippiensis Jordan and Eigen-
mann. Yellow bass. Sites: 2, 29, and 33. (4
specimens collected and vouchered.) Not re-
ported previously from Massac and Humphrey
creeks.
CENTRARCHIDAE—Sunfishes
Centrarchus macropterus (Lacepede). Flier.
Sites: 3; 10,12, 14,16, 17,.21.,, 25, 26, 34, and
36. (53 specimens collected; 8 vouchers.) Not
reported previously from Massac, Big Bayou,
and Little Bayou creeks.
Lepomis cyanellus Rafinesque. Green sun-
fish. Sites: 2-6, 8-10. 12-23, 25-31-33: and
35. (3994 specimens collected; 52 vouchers.)
Reported previously from all Coastal Plain
Province streams. Occasional and locally com-
mon in our sampling.
Lepomis gulosus (Cuvier). Warmouth. Sites:
9- A. 8-10 ISG 19 21 2925. 264,28 —olle
34, and 36. (206 specimens collected; 20
vouchers.) Not reported previously from Big
Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Occasional
and usually uncommon in our sampling.
Lepomis humilis (Girard). Orangespotted
sunfish. Sites: 10, 17, 28, and 33. (16 speci-
mens collected; 13 vouchers.) Not reported
previously from Big Bayou Creek. Sporadic
and rare in our sampling.
Lepomis macrochirus Rafinesque. Bluegill.
Sites: 2-6, 8-23, 26, 28-33, and 36. (2556
specimens collected; 68 vouchers.) Reported
previously from all Coastal Plain Province
Fish Distribution Coastal Plain Province Kentucky—Ryon and Carrico 59
streams. Generally distributed and abundant
in our sampling.
Lepomis megalotis (Rafinesque). Longear
sunfish. Sites: 2-6, 8-23, 27-31, 33, and 36.
(19,242 specimens collected; 148 vouchers.)
Reported previously from all Coastal Plain
Province streams. Generally distributed and
abundant in our sampling.
Lepomis microlophus (Guenther). Redear
sunfish. Sites: 9, 10, 14, 16, 21, and 28-30. (37
specimens collected; 5 vouchers.) Not report-
ed previously from Big Bayou, Little Bayou,
and Clanton creeks.
Lepomis miniatus Jordan. Redspotted sun-
fish. Sites: 10, 12, 14, 29, and 36. (7 specimens
collected; 5 vouchers.) Not reported previous-
ly (under spotted sunfish, Lepomis punctatus)
from Big Bayou, Little Bayou, and Humphrey
creeks. This species is recognized as a threat-
ened species in Kentucky (KSNPC 1996; War-
ren et al. 1986). Our specimens were collected
in a variety of stream habitats: small to large
streams, over clay, sand or rock substrates, in
shallow streams (<30 cm depth) or in deep
pools (>1 m depth), and in turbid or clear
water. In most samples, they were found in
areas of slower velocity near pools or deeper
sloughs. The sporadic distribution and rare to
uncommon abundance of redspotted sunfish
throughout the Coastal Plain Province support
its threatened status. The variety of habitats in
which the species was found, however, sug-
gests that it may be flexible in habitat prefer-
ences.
Micropterus punctulatus (Rafinesque).
Spotted bass. Sites: 2-4, 7-13, 15-19, 21, 22,
and 30. (517 specimens collected; 41 vouch-
ers.) Not reported previously from Big Bayou
and Little Bayou creeks.
Micropterus salmoides (Lacepede). Large-
mouth bass. Sites: 1-5, 9, 10, 12-14, 16, 17,
ONES 956.9799, 31 33, and (34. (281
specimens collected; 56 vouchers.) Reported
previously from all Coastal Plain Province
streams.
Pomoxis annularis Rafinesque. White crap-
pie. Sites: 2, 3, 14-16; 18, 21. and’ 30.: (28
specimens collected; 14 vouchers.) Not re-
ported previously from Big Bayou and Massac
creeks.
Pomoxis nigromaculatus (Lesueur). Black
crappie. Sites: 2, 28, 33, and 36. (29 specimens
collected and vouchered.) Not reported pre-
viously from Massac Creek.
PERCIDAE—Perches
Etheostoma asprigene (Forbes). Mud dart-
er. Sites: 2, 10, 14, 29, and 36. (34 specimens
collected; 31 vouchers.) Not reported previ-
ously from Massac, Big Bayou, Little Bayou,
and Humphrey creeks. Sporadic but could be
common locally in our sampling.
Etheostoma chlorosomum (Hay). Bluntnose
darter. Sites: 3, 4, 10, 12, 14, 22, 28, 29, and
36. (79 specimens collected; 35 vouchers.) Not
reported previously from Big Bayou and Little
Bayou creeks. Sporadic and generally uncom-
mon in our sampling.
Etheostoma gracile (Girard). Slough darter.
Sites: 3—>: 6-10) 12-1406. 18) 19) 22°25. 28:
32, 33, 36, and 37. (315 specimens collected;
70 vouchers.) Not reported previously from
Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks. Occasional
in our sampling but could be common at cer-
tain sites.
Perca flavescens (Mitchell). Yellow perch.
Site: 14. (1 specimen collected and vouch-
ered.) Not reported previously in the Coastal
Plain Province or any streams west of the Ten-
nessee River in Kentucky. Our specimen was
a juvenile (5.5 cm TL) at a site within 3 km
of the Ohio River. The distribution of yellow
perch in neighboring states is also limited,
with no records in coastal plain tributaries of
Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri (Pflieger 1975),
or Tennessee (Etnier and Starnes 1993).
Percina caprodes (Rafinesque). Logperch.
Sites: 2-5, 10, 19, and 33. (85 specimens col-
lected; 17 vouchers.) Not reported previously
from Massac, Big Bayou, and Little Bayou
creeks. Sporadically distributed and generally
uncommon in our sampling. In coastal plain
streams in other states, the logperch is absent
or rare in Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri
(Pflieger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and
Starnes 1993).
Percina maculata (Girard). Blackside darter.
Sites: 3, 4, and 7. (53 specimens collected; 11
vouchers.) Not reported previously from trib-
utaries to the Ohio River in the Coastal Plain
Province in Kentucky; our specimens in Mas-
sac Creek represent the first in this region.
Although not listed by Burr and Warren
(1986), the blackside darter was reported from
Obion Creek, a tributary to the Mississippi
60 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
River (Smith and Sisk 1969). The species was
also found infrequently in coastal plain sam-
pling in Illinois (Smith 1979), Missouri (Pflie-
ger 1975), and Tennessee (Etnier and Starnes
1993), where it was becoming less widely dis-
tributed. Locally common in our sampling;
most frequently collected over gravel and sand
substrates in runs and shallow pools.
Percina shumardi (Girard). River darter.
Site: 2. (1 juvenile specimen (3.6 cm TL) col-
lected and vouchered.) Not reported previ-
ously from tributaries to the Ohio River in the
coastal plain. Absent from the coastal plain of
Illinois (Smith 1979), confined to larger chan-
nels of direct tributaries to the Mississippi Riv-
er in Tennessee (Etnier and Starnes 1993), but
common in tributaries in Missouri (Pflieger
1975).
Stizostedion canadense (Smith). Sauger.
Site: 2. (13 specimens collected and vouch-
ered.) Not reported previously from tributar-
ies to the Ohio River in the Coastal Plain
Province. Our specimens were juveniles and
were common in the one collection.
SCIAENIDAE—Drum
Aplodinotus grunniens Rafinesque. Fresh-
water drum. Sites: 2, 20, and 33. (7 specimens
collected; 3 vouchers.) Not reported previous-
ly from Big Bayou Creek, Massac Creek, and
Mud Slough.
DISCUSSION
Many of the species discussed have not
been reported previously from specific stream
locations in the coastal plain (Burr and Warren
1986). However, their occurrence in the gen-
eral area was inferred based on habitat pref-
erences and known localities within the Ohio
River, Mississippi River, or some tributaries in
the Coastal Plain Province. Our sampling rec-
ord provides details on exact stream locations
for many species and adds three species to the
known fauna of the area. The spotfin shiner,
black redhorse, and yellow perch were not re-
ported previously from the Coastal Plain Prov-
ince in Kentucky. In our sampling, the spotfin
shiner was occasional in the province, occur-
ring in several larger streams. The black red-
horse was found only in Massac Creek and was
generally uncommon.
Our sampling also extended the known
range for eight species from just the large riv-
ers to include smaller tributaries in the Coastal
Plain Province. The threadfin shad, grass carp,
river shiner, mimic shiner, river carpsucker,
quillback, sauger, and river darter were not re-
ported previously from coastal streams or trib-
utaries to the Ohio River. Most of these spe-
cies are more commonly associated with large-
river habitats, which would partially explain
their rarity in the sampled streams, while the
grass carp is an introduced species whose
range is being expanded by the activities of
people.
An additional 14 species were found in new
locations in the Coastal Plain Province north
of Mayfield Creek and west of the Clarks Riv-
er, where previously they had been known
only from the large rivers and/or one other
locality such as Metropolis Lake, Mayfield
Creek, Obion Creek, or Massac Creek. These
species included spotted gar, goldfish, ribbon
shiner, sand shiner, fathead minnow, bullhead
minnow, bluntnose minnow, white sucker,
spotted sucker, golden redhorse, brown bull-
head, freckled madtom, blackside darter, and
logperch. The bluntnose minnow, white suck-
er, spotted sucker, and golden redhorse were
reported previously only from Massac Creek;
all of these species are more widespread in the
coastal plain.
Additional locations are also documented
for the black buffalo and redspotted sunfish,
species designated as being rare in Kentucky
(KSNPC 1996). These species were collected
in low numbers but in a variety of streams,
indicating that their presence may be more
widespread in the Coastal Plain Province than
previously thought. Many of these new rec-
ords are a result of repeated sampling at set
locations rather than single collections spread
over a wide area. Also the use of electrofishing
gear probably resulted in more efficient col-
lection of larger fishes, such as the sucker spe-
cies.
The 71 species recorded in our study rep-
resent 69% of the species reported by Burr
and Warren (1986) for this area of the coastal
plain. The majority (78%) of the species we
did not find are primarily species of large riv-
ers and would be encountered with less fre-
quency in the streams that were the focus of
most of our effort. Some of the species we did
not find—e.g., pugnose minnow (Opsopoeo-
dus emiliae) and blackstripe topminnow (Fun-
Fish Distribution Coastal Plain Province Kentucky—Ryon and Carrico 61
dulus notatus )—are more common in smaller
streams and bayous and are usually associated
with aquatic vegetation, a cover type not fre-
quently encountered in our sampling. Other
stream species that are listed for this area of
the coastal plain, but that we did not find, in-
clude several species listed as threatened or of
special concern (KSNPC 1996); their rarity
may be responsible for our failure to locate
them.
The collection records also provide useful
information on the general nature of the wa-
tersheds within the Coastal Plain Province. Al-
though there was much overlap in species
common to all of the streams, the larger sys-
tems had unique species within their fish com-
munities.
Massac Creek differs from most streams
within the Coastal Plain Province. Although
structurally similar to the other streams, it
does tend to have the highest gradients in the
region. This might explain the occurrence of
several species that might be considered atyp-
ical for the province. For example, both the
black redhorse and blackside darter occurred
only in Massac Creek; the typical habitat for
these species is more upland i in character than
that found in most streams in the coastal plain.
Also, there are many species more common in
upland streams (e.g., golden redhorse and log-
perch) that occur with greater frequency in
Massac Creek than in other streams. Con-
versely, species more typical of lowland
streams (e.g., flier, orangespotted sunfish, and
mud darter) occur at lower frequencies or are
absent in Massac Creek. These collection re-
cords reinforce the designation of Massac
Creek as part of the Tennessee River Plain
(Burr and Warren 1986) with a mixture of
both upland and lowland species. Massac
Creek had the greatest number of species, 60,
in our collections of coastal plain streams.
Big Bayou and Little Bayou creeks, more
lowland in character than Massac Creek, have
some species reflecting the influence of the
recreational fisheries of the WKWMA. The
presence of the grass carp and fathead min-
now is likely to be a result of such manage-
ment activity. The presence of the two pro-
tected species in the watershed also suggests
that impacts associated with the PGDP may
be quite limited and restricted to areas im-
mediately adjacent to outfalls or to brief pe-
riods when streams conditions are unfavor-
able; it also demonstrates the value of the wa-
tershed for species diversity within the prov-
ince. The similar number of total species in
this watershed (50 species in Big Bayou Creek
and 33 species in Little Bayou Creek) com-
pared to others in the province (38 species in
Humphrey Creek and 33 species in Clanton
Creek) reinforces this conclusion.
The impact of other activities in the prov-
ince was demonstrated substantially by the re-
duced faunas in some areas of Newtons and
Perkins creeks, where total numbers of spe-
cies were only 17 and 8, respectively. One sur-
vey of Newtons Creek was limited to one
specimen of one species. This reduced fish
community may be due to agricultural impacts
such as high levels of sediment associated with
runoff from fields, reduced riparian cover, and
channelization of stream sections. The possi-
ble input of pesticides, herbicides, or fertiliz-
ers with resulting impacts on the fish com-
munities also cannot be discounted. Perkins
Creek has been impacted by urban develop-
ments such as sewage discharges. This stream
was similar in size and habitat to parts of Mas-
sac Creek but contained far fewer species (8)
than the mean number of species (20) for a
comparable site in Massac Creek.
In general, the fish fauna of the northern
section of the Coastal Plain Province was quite
diverse given the limited habitat complexity of
the lowland streams. This diversity was also
evident when compared to coastal plain
streams in Illinois, Missouri, and Tennessee
where many of the species found in our sur-
veys were absent or present at only a few lo-
cations. The influence of the large rivers bor-
dering the coastal plain was great, with many
species collected in our surveys represented
only by juveniles, which may be utilizing the
tributaries for feeding or rearing areas. We
also noted a connection between flooding or
elevated flows in the Ohio River and an in-
creased number of specimens and species at
some sites where samples where taken at reg-
ular intervals. The role of the smaller tribu-
taries in coastal plain streams should include
that of safe haven during such periods of stress
in the main river. Many species in our sam-
pling were represented by only one or a few
specimens, indicating that further sampling
62 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
would probably continue to add to the species
record.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We acknowledge many people who helped
with our collection efforts and those who
helped on species identifications and manu-
script preparation. For assistance with field
sampling we thank A. Anderson, C.A. Bran-
son, B.F. Clark, R.L. Hinzman, R.P. Hoff-
meister, J.R. Khyme, W.C. Kyker, J.M. Loar,
M.K. McCracken, M.J. Petersen, R.B. Petrie,
R.A. Redden, W.K. Roy, W.H. Schacher, E.M.
Schilling, D.W. Smith, J.G. Smith, M.R.
Smith, L.M. Stubbs, A.L. Thomas, and WS.
Wilkerson. For assistance with species identi-
fications we thank E.M. Schilling and D.A. Et-
nier. For assistance with manuscript prepara-
tions and reviewer comments we thank L.A.
Kszos, E.M. Schilling, and P.L. Henry. This
work was partially funded by Environmental
Management, Lockheed Martin Energy Sys-
tems, Inc. The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion
Plant is managed by the Lockheed Martin En-
ergy Systems, Inc., for the U.S. Department
of Energy under contract DE-AC05-
840OR21400. Oak Ridge National Laboratory
is managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Re-
search Corp. for the U.S. Department of En-
ergy under contract DE-AC05-96OR22464.
This paper is publication No. 4681, Environ-
mental Sciences Division, ORNL.
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Distribution and Population Estimates of the Federally Endangered
Relict Darter, Etheostoma chienense, Bayou du Chien, Kentucky
Kyle R. Piller’ and Brooks M. Burr
Department of Zoology, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, Carbondale, Illinois 62901
ABSTRACT
The relict darter, Etheostoma chienense, is a federally endangered species endemic to upper reaches of
the Bayou du Chien drainage of western Kentucky. Between fall 1994 and spring 1996 we conducted a study
to determine present distribution and to assess population size and abundance of E. chienense. Sixteen of
28 sites sampled harbored E. chienense. Estimates of the total drainage-wide population were between 9533
and 31,293 individuals. The species was considered common to abundant at five sites but rare or uncommon
at the remaining 11. Length-frequency estimates revealed four age classes; age groupings reported here are
comparable to what has been reported for other species of Etheostoma subgenus Catonotus.
INTRODUCTION
Etheostoma subgenus Catonotus (Pisces:
Percidae) includes 17 described species com-
mon in rocky strewn headwater streams of
eastern North America (Braasch and Mayden
1985; Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Kuehne
and Barbour 1983; Page 1983; Page et al.
1992). Species of Catonotus attach and guard
eggs on the underside of flattened substrates
(Page 1983; Page et al. 1992). Kentucky har-
bors 11 species in the subgenus (Burr and
Warren 1986; Page 1983; Page et al. 1992).
Many species, e.g., the fantail darter, Etheos-
toma flabellare, are widely distributed in the
state, while others including the relict darter,
E. chienense, are restricted in distribution
(Biggins 1993; Warren et al. 1994).
The relict darter, Etheostoma chienense
Page and Ceas, is a recently described species
(Page et al. 1992) endemic to the Bayou du
Chien drainage of western Kentucky (Biggins
1993; Webb and Sisk 1975; Warren et al.
1994); prior to 1994 little information was
available regarding life-history traits (Piller
and Burr n.d.; Warren et al. 1994).
Etheostoma chienense is restricted in terms
of its range. Previous surveys of the Bayou du
Chien drainage conducted by Webb and Sisk
(1975) and by Warren et al. (1994) revealed
that the species occurred at only nine sites and
was known to spawn in only one tributary in
the upper reaches of the drainage. As a result
of its limited distribution, the relict darter was
' Present address: Tulane University Museum of Natu-
ral History, Belle Chasse, LA 70037.
64
listed as federally endangered in 1993 (Biggins
1993). In addition to the species’ restriction to
a small watershed, two other factors including
the lack of suitable spawning substrate and, at
the time of listing, only one reported spawning
reach also contributed to the federally endan-
gered status (Warren et al. 1994).
Distributional studies of rare taxa are nec-
essary when researchers attempt to formulate
appropriate management decisions. Our study
was undertaken to document the present dis-
tribution and to determine population esti-
mates for E. chienense.
STUDY AREAS
The Bayou du Chien is a gravel, mud, cob-
ble, and sand-bottomed Coastal Plain system
that is a direct tributary of the Mississippi Riv-
er. The entire watershed is privately owned
and is used principally for agriculture. This
drainage lacks the slabrocks characteristically
used for spawning by most species of Caton-
otus (Warren et al. 1994) and, as a result, E.
chienense is opportunistic in terms of egg de-
position substrates and will deposit its eggs on
the underside of almost any hard substrate
(Piller and Burr n.d.).
The entire Bayou du Chien drainage served
as the study area (Figure 1). It originates in
southwestern Graves County and flows in a
northward arc through Hickman and Fulton
counties to its confluence with the Mississippi
River near Hickman, Kentucky. It drains ca.
554 km2, most of which is fertile farmland
(Burr and Warren 1986).
Many of the common problems affecting
the streams of eastern North America have
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr
65
A
Fulgham
14 13 42 11
5 8
O
© Moscow 10
O 15 9 L3G
16 6)
D Water 4
Valley 3
1 H 2
A Obion Creek E Cane Creek
B Bayou du Chien F Sand Creek
C Mud Creek G Jackson Creek
D Little Bayou du Chien
© Record stations from
previous surveys
Figure 1.
H South Fork Bayou du Chien
e@ Record stations from recent
(1994-1996) surveys
Distribution of Etheostoma chienense, Bayou du Chien drainage, Graves, Hickman, and Fulton counties,
western Kentucky, 1994-1996. Numbers refer to localities of occurrence (see text).
also affected Bayou du Chien. Stream chan-
nelization has lead to a loss of appropriate or
suitable habitat and change in stream flow pat-
terns. All but the final 8-10 km of the system
has been channelized (Webb and Sisk 1975).
The Bayou du Chien, presumably once a free-
flowing stream with numerous riffles, runs,
and gently flowing pools, has been converted
to a deep ditch with sluggish, turbid water.
More importantly, many stream reaches in the
drainage have had riparian vegetation com-
pletely removed. Such vegetation normally
shades the stream, decreases silt load, and,
most notably, provides spawning substrate for
darters. Warren et al. (1994) believed that the
lack of woody riparian vegetation and the low
availability of suitable spawning substrates
have adversely impacted relict darter popula-
tions.
METHODS
Monthly visits were made to Bayou du
Chien and many of its tributaries in late sum-
mer and early fall 1994 and 1995 to assess dis-
tribution and population status of the relict
darter. Collection localities were primarily
sites sampled by Webb and Sisk (1975) and
Warren et al. (1994), but several others within
the drainage were sampled in an effort to dis-
cover new localities of occurrence. Because of
the endangered status of the species, no spec-
imens were vouchered from any new sites.
Sampling was accomplished using standard
minnow seines (Jenkins and Burkhead 1993)
and dip nets, and all captured darters were
measured to the nearest millimeter (SL) and
then released. Length data were used to ana-
lyze population structure by way of length-fre-
quency estimation.
In spring 1996 we obtained a population es-
timate for each site where E. chienense was
captured. All estimates are based on 200 linear
meter reaches (100 m along each stream
bank). Areas in the middle reach of a stream
were excluded because of the affinity of E.
chienense for undercut banks and other near-
bank cover (Piller and Burr n.d.). Several 10-
20 m reaches were measured and sampled at
each site. We attempted to capture darters
within each section by “kicking” around in-
stream objects and beneath undercut banks. A
block net was used in small tributaries to help
increase catch rate and avoid darter escape.
After sampling several sections, we obtained a
66 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Table 1.
Sites surveyed in 1994-1996 in the Bayou du Chien drainage that produced Etheostoma chienense with
habitat data, population estimates, and population status for each site of occurrence. Site numbers refer to numbered
sites in Figure 1] and the text.
Locality
Site 1. Trib. of Bayou du Chien, Rt. 94/45
Site 2. South Fork Bayou du Chien, Kingston Rd.
Site 3. South Fork Bayou du Chien, Pea Ridge Rd.
Site 4. Bayou du Chien, 2422 Rd.
Site 5. Bayou du Chien, Bard Rd.
Site 6. Bayou du Chien/Jackson Creek/South Fork BDC
Site 7. Jackson Creek, Lawrence Rd.
Site 8. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 1283
Site 9. Unnamed trib., Bayou du Chien, Rose Rd.
Site 10. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 307
Site 11. Sand Creek, Rt. 307
Site 12. Bayou du Chien, Davis Rd.
Site 13. Bayou du Chien, Howell Rd.
Site 14. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 51
Site 15. Cane Creek, Howell Rd.
Site 16. Cane Creek, Coolie Rd.
mean darter density for each site by averaging
the results obtained from each 10-20 m sec-
tion sampled. In addition, the amount of suit-
able habitat (i.e., undercut banks or instream
cover) was also estimated for each 200 m
study area. Population estimates were ob-
tained by multiplying the mean darter density
by the amount of suitable habitat at each site.
In addition to a population estimate for
each site, we obtained a drainage-wide popu-
lation estimate by averaging the results from
the site-by-site analysis. The total linear
stream meters inhabited were multiplied by
the average amount of suitable habitat ob-
tained in the areas where E. chienense was
captured to arrive at the total amount of suit-
able habitat. The lower range of the popula-
tion estimate was determined by multiplying
the total amount of suitable habitat by the av-
erage darter density within the drainage. The
resultant population estimate should be less
than the actual number because not all darters
were captured and because the relict darter
probably inhabits additional stream kilome-
ters. To determine an upper range, we used
the greatest darter density and multiplied it by
the total amount of suitable habitat.
The site-by-site population estimates were
obtained from a one-time sampling effort,
which may not accurately describe the popu-
lation status of E. chienense. To account for
the single- census bias, we used the following
Suitable Darters
habitat Density (darters/ Population Riparian
(m/200 m) — (darters/m) 200 m) status zone (m)
120 0.000 0 Rare 1-2
20 0.100 2 Rare 1-2
80 0.100 8 Uncommon 0-1
60 0.256 15 Common 1-2
10 0.100 1 Rare 0
88 0.200 2, Uncommon |-2
140 0.755 106 Abundant 4-6
140 0.430 60 Common 3-4
50 0.200 10 Uncommon 3-4
130 0.500 65 Common OF
100 0.000 0 Rare 2-3
130 0.375 49 Common 2-3
100 0.066 Th Uncommon O-]
100 0.230 23 Uncommon 2-3
40 0.500 20 Uncommon 0-1
100 0.066 7 Rare 2-3
categories to classify the abundance of relict
darters at each site over the 2-year sampling
period: (1) Rare—species captured or vouch-
ered only once or very infrequently; (2) Un-
common—captured semi-regularly, but usu-
ally only in small numbers; (3) Common—col-
lected regularly and usually found in moderate
to large numbers; and (4) Abundant—com-
monly collected in large numbers, one of the
dominant species.
RESULTS
The relict darter was most commonly col-
lected in the upper reaches of the drainage in
both the mainstem of Bayou du Chien and
many of its smaller tributaries. Sixteen of the
28 sites sampled or reconnoitered within the
drainage produced E. chienense adults, juve-
niles, and/or nests (Figure 1)(Table 1). (See
Piller [1996] for a complete listing of all sites
sampled.) Etheostoma chienense presently in-
habits a total of 94,200 linear meters of stream
(47,100 m for each stream bank); population
estimates suggest that the total drainage pop-
ulation is between 9533 and 31,293 individu-
als. Following is a summary of all known sites
of occurrence of E. chienense. Each section
gives the population estimates taken in spring
1996, the population abundance status at each
site as observed over the 2-year sampling pe-
riod, and a detailed habitat description of each
locality of occurrence.
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr 67
Site 1. Tributary to Bayou du Chien, near
intersection of Rt. 45 and Rt. 94, 0.5 km s of
Water Valley, Graves Co., rare. Two unguard-
ed nests were found on 9 Apr 1994, and a
single nest was discovered on the underside of
a broken piece of concrete on 15 Apr 1995.
Although it is evident that reproduction occurs
at this site, it is likely that few individuals in-
habit this locality. Habitat modification and
degradation at this site are acute. Cultivated
fields extend to the edge of the stream, and
only a few scattered trees remain along the
bank. The tributary has been channelized, and
the stream flow velocity is low. The bottom
substrate consists entirely of mud and silt. Re-
turn trips to collect additional specimens
proved unsuccessful. It is possible that the
spawning adults may have been waifs washed
downstream during a flood. No darters were
captured at this site in the 1996 survey; there-
fore we have a population estimate of zero in-
dividuals for this site.
Site 2. South Fork Bayou du Chien,
Kingston Rd., Graves Co., rare. This site was
sampled on 27 Aug 1994 and 11 Mar 1995 and
failed to produce any E. chienense, but on 2
Apr 1996 a 66-mm male and a 46-mm female
were captured beneath a small log anchored
to the bank. Both were in breeding condition
and were apparently ready to spawn. Addi-
tional sampling failed to produce other E. chi-
enense. Suitable habitat and instream cover
are limited. The substrate consists entirely of
sand, and virtually no undercut bank habitat is
available. We conservatively estimate 1 m of
suitable habitat per 10 linear meters of stream.
A narrow ]—2 m riparian zone exists, but trees
are sporadic along the stream bank. From the
low darter densities and the lack of suitable
habitat, we estimate that two E. chienense in-
habit the sample area.
Site 3. South Fork Bayou du Chien, Pea
Ridge Rd., 2.4 km e of Water Valley, Graves
Co., uncommon. This site was sampled by
Webb and Sisk (1975) and Warren et al.
(1994): both failed to capture any E. chi-
enense. In our study, the site was sampled
three times and initially produced two adults
(71 and 62 mm SL) on 11 Mar 1996 that were
collected ca. 40 m downstream from the
bridge under a partially submerged railroad
tie. Two other individuals (74 and 58 mm)
were collected in a deep undercut bank in wa-
ter 0.75-1 m deep. The riparian zone up-
stream from the bridge has been removed,
and the stream bed has been channelized.
Subsequent sampling trips produced only
small numbers of individuals and no more
nests. Downstream from the bridge are long
stretches of sand raceways and numerous
deep pools. Few undercut banks or spawning
habitat are available and, although a narrow
riparian zone remains, it consists largely of
herbaceous vegetation. We estimate that eight
E. chienense inhabit the 200 linear meters
sampled.
Site 4. Bayou du Chien, 2422 Rd., 3.2 km
ne of Water Valley, Graves Co., common. This
locality is one of the uppermost sites surveyed
in the main channel of Bayou du Chien. The
stream averages 2—3 m in width; the substrate
consists entirely of sand and gravel. The ma-
jority of suitable habitat lies upstream from
the bridge. A 1-2 m wide woody riparian zone
is present on both sides. The downstream
reach has been significantly modified. Culti-
vated fields extend to the stream’s edge, and
woody bankside vegetation has been almost
completely removed. We conservatively esti-
mate that 15:E. chienense occupy the sample
area.
Site 5. Bayou du Chien, Bard Rd., Graves
Co., rare. This site averages ca. 1-2 m in
width, and no woody riparian zone is present
(Figure 2A). The stream has been dredged
and straightened and little or no undercut
bank habitat is available. The only instream
cover is a few scattered pieces of limestone
rip-rap used for bank stabilization. This is the
most anthropogenically modified site sampled
in the drainage. The amount of suitable hab-
itat and darter density is extremely low. We
estimate that one darter occupies the 200 lin-
ear m reach sampled.
Site 6. Bayou du Chien, Jackson Creek,
and South Fork Bayou du Chien, Rt. 45,
Graves Co., uncommon. These localities were
lumped into a single site because of their geo-
graphic proximity. All three sites merge within
a 100 m reach. This site maintains water year-
round due to several coldwater springs feeding
South Fork Bayou du Chien. The site was eu-
trophic with many filamentous green algae
present along the stream bottom, even during
mid April. Eutrophication is likely a conse-
quence of the extremely small riparian zone
68 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Figure 2. Contrast in localities where Etheostoma chienense was collected during the 1994-1996 survey. (A) site 5, a
highly modified reach, Bayou du Chien, Bard Rd., Graves Co., KY; (B) Site 7, ideal habitat, Jackson Creek, Lawrence
Rae key.
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr 69
and the agricultural field that borders the
south side of the stream. The north side has
an adequate riparian zone ca. 3-4 m wide. On
16 Apr 1995 this site yielded a single male
guarding a nest attached to the underside of
a rubber tire. No other darters were captured
during the study. We estimate that two darters
occupy the sample area.
Site 7. Jackson Creek, northeast of Water
Valley on Lawrence Rd. (formerly Roy Law-
rence Dr.), Graves Co., abundant. Prior to
1994 Jackson Creek was the only stream in the
Bayou du Chien drainage known to harbor a
spawning population of E. chienense (Biggins
1993; Warren et al. 1994). One of the upper-
most sites surveyed in the drainage, it is the
type locality of E. chienense (Page et al. 1992).
Jackson Creek is a first-order tributary that av-
erages 1-3 m in width. Substrate consists of
sand and gravel; although no slabrocks are
present, a few areas contain small concentra-
tions of cobble (64-256 mm). Downstream
from the bridge, there is an extensive tree can-
opy covering the stream and a substantial
amount of undercut bank habitat. The riparian
zone, consisting of deciduous trees and her-
baceous vegetation, extends 4—6 m in width on
both sides (Figure 2B). Above the bridge, a
cattle pasture borders both sides of the
stream, and although a few large trees are still
present along the surrounding fenceline, the
riparian zone has been significantly reduced.
A substantial amount of woody debris existing
in the riparian zone (above and below the
bridge) is deposited into the stream. This in
turn provides a surplus of spawning substrate
and cover for darters and other aquatic spe-
cies. Jackson Creek has been relatively unaf-
fected by anthropogenic modifications; the
pristine nature of the stream undoubtedly
contributes to the healthy population at this
site. Extrapolating, we estimate that 106 dart-
ers occupy the site. This population is the larg-
est in the drainage and is one of the primary
areas of recruitment.
Site 8. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 1283, 4.5 km
n of Water Valley, Hickman/Graves Co., com-
mon. This site has been subject to a variety of
human modifications. Above the bridge, the
stream is ca. 4-6 m wide, and a narrow woody
riparian zone exists on both sides of the
stream. There are ca. 20 m of suitable habitat
immediately upstream from the bridge, but
the remaining reach has been channelized and
little suitable habitat is present. Silt-covered
substrates, sluggish flow, and lack of hetero-
geneity undoubtedly contribute to low densi-
ties. Although the area below the bridge has
been partially channelized, the stream flows
more freely, has a higher velocity, and harbors
a greater density of E. chienense. Sand is the
dominant substrate below the bridge, but
there is a small area (100 m?) near the bridge
that has many cobble-sized rocks available for
spawning. The woody riparian zone has been
significantly reduced, but the remaining veg-
etation extends about 1-2 m on either side of
the stream. We estimate that 60 individuals
occupy the sample area, which stretches from
ca. 25 m above the bridge to 75 m below.
Site 9. Unnamed tributary, Bayou du
Chien, Rose Rd., 6.7 km se of Fulgham, Hick-
man Co., uncommon. This site failed to yield
specimens in both of the previous surveys, but
several adults and nests were discovered on 31
Mar 1996. There is an abundance of woody
material available for nesting, but little under-
cut bank habitat exists. Flow is extremely low,
and it is likely that this small tributary dries
completely in the late summer and early fall.
Several females also were collected on 9 Apr
1996, but no other nests were discovered. The
population estimate for this site is 10 individ-
uals.
Site 10. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 307, 4.5 km
s of Fulgham, Hickman Co., common. The Rt.
307 site yielded darters during both of the
previous surveys, and E. chienense was rela-
tively common in the present study. A multi-
tude of spawning habitat and cover is available
including tree roots extending into the water,
logs and sticks deposited from the overhang-
ing tree canopy (2-3 m riparian zone), and
deep undercut banks. This reach of Bayou du
Chien has been partially straightened and wid-
ened. We estimate that 65 darters occupy the
sample area, which stretches from 50 m above
the bridge to 50 m below.
Site 11. Sand Creek, Rt. 307, 4.0 km s of
Fulgham, Hickman Co., rare. This small
stream can be classified as ephemeral or in-
termittent. The stream commonly lacks water
or dries to isolated pools in summer and early
fall. Sand Creek was sampled nine times dur-
ing the study. Several adults were captured in
1994, but few individuals since. Four nests
70 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
were found in the 3- year study. No individuals
were found during the Warren et al. (1994)
study, but Webb and Sisk (1975) reported cap-
tures, although vouchers remain unavailable.
The riparian zone averages ca. 1-2 m in width,
and an ample amount of undercut bank hab-
itat is available. Although it was shown that
spawning does occur, it is likely that many E.
chienense larvae become trapped in isolated
pools in times of low water. No E. chienense
were captured in 1996, and few others were
captured in previous visits. We estimate that
zero darters occupy this site. Low water levels
and the intermittent nature of the stream
seem to be the main reasons that few individ-
uals or nests have been discovered at this lo-
cality.
Site 12. Bayou du Chien, Davis Rd., 4.8
km sw of Fulgham, Hickman Co., common.
The Davis Rd. site yielded three specimens
for Webb and Sisk (1975) and Warren et al.
(1994). On 8 Aug 1995, 15 individuals were
collected in fewer than 30 minutes, while on
23 Mar 1996 only four individuals were col-
lected in the same time frame. Several nests
were photographed in 1995 and 1996. Reach-
es above and below the bridge are similar. An
ample woody riparian zone remains along the
stream’s edge, but channelization is evident. A
substantial amount of spawning habitat is
present, and many undercut banks exist. For
the sample area, which extends from imme-
diately below the bridge to 100 m down-
stream, we estimate that 60 darters inhabit the
reach.
Site 13. Bayou du Chien, Howell Rd.,
Hickman Co., uncommon. This site has a
mainstem character averaging 7-8 m wide
with a strong flow. There are no alternating
stretches of riffle-pool habitats, and undercut
bank microhabitat is limited. The site failed to
yield specimens, but two unguarded nests at-
tached to small sticks were found on 2 May
1996. Below the bridge the south stream bank
almost completely lacks woody vegetation with
only a few scattered trees present along the
bank. On the north side a riparian zone great-
er than 5-6 m extends along the bank. Above
the bridge, a buffer zone 3-4 m wide borders
both sides of the stream. Although a suitable
riparian zone is present at this site, the chan-
nel has been straightened and ditched. No
adults were ever captured, but two nests were
discovered in the area sampled. We estimate
that two darters occupy the area.
Site 14. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 51, 0.8 km
se Clinton, Hickman Co., uncommon. Prior to
our study, the farthest downstream localities
of occurrence were Bayou du Chien, 6.4 km
n Cayce, Hwy. 239, Fulton Co., and Bayou du
Chien, 0.8 km n of Moscow, Hickman Co. Ad-
ditional sampling efforts at these localities
proved unsuccessful. Bayou du Chien, Rt. 51,
is presently the farthest downstream site of oc-
currence. This new locality was first discov-
ered on 27 Aug 1995. Five individuals (28-45
mm) were captured near the bridge. Subse-
quent collections also have yielded specimens
but always in low numbers. Little spawning
habitat is available. Undercut banks are scat-
tered, and some woody material has been de-
posited into the stream from the remaining
woody vegetation. Upstream from the bridge,
the riparian zone remains intact, but the
stream channel has been ditched and straight-
ened. The sampled area stretches 50 m above
and below the bridge. We estimate that 23
darters occupy the area.
Site 15. Cane Creek, Howell Rd., uncom-
mon. Two nests were found in 1994, a single
nest was discovered on 31 Mar 1995, and sev-
eral others were found in 1996. The area be-
neath the bridge and immediately upstream
contained the only suitable habitat or cover
within 200 m of the bridge. The spawning
habitat consisted of several pieces of limestone
rip-rap and small rocks. The area downstream
has an extremely low flow rate and little un-
dercut bank habitat. Riparian buffer zones ex-
tend 1-2 m to either side, and siltation is ex-
tremely high. Several silt-tolerant species were
collected downstream including Ameiurus na-
talis and Lepomis cyanellus. The area up-
stream lacks a riparian zone; and tilled fields
extend up to the stream’s edge. The popula-
tion estimate for this site may be misleading,
because all suitable habitat occurs immediate-
ly below the bridge within a 5-6 m linear
reach. We estimate that 20 darters occupy the
sample area, most occurring in the vicinity of
the limestone rip-rap.
Site 16. Cane Creek, Coolie Rd., rare.
This site was sampled three times and failed
to yield any adult E. chienense. Two nests at-
tached to the underside of a large wooden
board were discovered on 2 May 1996, but no
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr 71
males were guarding the eggs at the time of
discovery. This site has been moderately de-
veloped. A small 2-3 m buffer zone borders
both sides of the creek. The creek averages 2—
3 m wide and is fairly shallow but probably
maintains flow year round. Much woody de-
bris is scattered throughout the stream, but
little undercut bank habitat is present. Be-
cause no darters were ever captured and only
two unguarded nests were discovered, we es-
timate that two darters occupy the site.
Length-Frequency Estimation
Length—-frequency estimates of all individ-
uals captured from fall 1994 to spring 1996
revealed four age classes (Figure 3A). Sepa-
rate length-frequency estimates were then de-
termined for males (Figure 3B) and females
(Figure 3C) from spring 1995 and 1996. Males
were ca. 40 mm SL by age one and between
52 and 62 mm SL by age two. Age-three males
ranged from ca. 63 to 76 mm SL. On the other
hand, females were slightly smaller than males
at each age class. Females were almost 35 mm
SL by age one and ranged from 47 to 54 mm
SL by age two. Age-three females were 55 to
68 mm SL.
DISCUSSION
Our results demonstrate that the distribu-
tion and abundance of E. chienense are both
a function of the availability of quality habitat
and the amount of suitable spawning substra-
ta. The most viable populations were found in
reaches having gently flowing water, abundant
undercut bank habitat, low silt load, and a suit-
able quantity of spawning substrata or in-
stream cover. Adults occurred almost exclu-
sively in reaches with appropriate cover and
spawning substrata and were absent or in low
abundance at sites that lacked these features.
It is difficult to ascribe aquatic-habitat deg-
radation to one or even two sources, but chan-
nelization and the removal of riparian vege-
tation are two factors that have reduced hab-
itat heterogeneity in streams of the midwest-
ern and southeastern United States (Karr and
Schlosser 1977: Schlosser 1991; Warren and
Burr 1994: Williams et al. 1989). Channeliza-
tion is a common and biologically controversial
practice aimed primarily at controlling flood-
ing and increasing drainage rate of agricultural
land. Stream channelization has severely im-
pacted Bayou du Chien by changing stream
flow patterns, reducing in-stream flows, and
decreasing aquatic habitat complexity.
Historically, Bayou du Chien was presum-
ably a free-flowing stream with alternating ar-
eas of riffles, runs, and pools. Although a few
of these reaches remain, much of the stream
has been converted to a deep ditch with uni-
form depth, velocity, and substrate. In times
of high water or flooding, velocity rates are at
their most extreme through channelized
reaches of the stream. Straightening of the
stream is aimed at increasing the drainage, but
it also destroys and removes much of the in-
stream cover. Many aquatic organisms cannot
withstand increased flow rate and often seek
alternative shelter during floods (Brookes
1988; Hynes 1970). Furthermore, channelized
sections of stream often have little or no flow
when water levels are below normal. Many
aquatic organisms, including darters, prosper
in flowing waters and cannot withstand stag-
nant or low oxygenated waters.
In addition, the removal of streamside veg-
etation, a common practice associated with
stream channelization, is executed to increase
the amount of tillable agricultural land.
Streamside vegetation is critical in maintaining
water quality. First, the tree canopy normally
shades the stream, thus helping to maintain
normal water temperatures (Hansen 1971;
Karr and Gorman 1975). Second, rooted bank-
side vegetation assists in reducing bank ero-
sion and stream turbidity by decreasing soil
loss (Emerson 1971; Hansen 1971). Finally,
woody vegetation provides allochthonous in-
put into the stream and, most importantly,
provides spawning substrate and cover for
darters and other aquatic organisms.
The major impacts of anthropogenic modi-
fications on the North American ichthyofauna
have been well documented. Burr and Warren
(1986) noted that, in Kentucky, stream chan-
nelization and the concomitant removal of
woody vegetation have most negatively affect-
ed streams in the lowland regions of the lower
Green River and Coastal Plain, including Bay-
ou du Chien. Several other studies, including
those of Congdon (1971), Etnier (1972), and
Trautman and Gartman (1974), have docu-
mented the decrease of fish and invertebrate
biomass following stream channelization.
Although no pre-modification data are avail-
q2 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
20
Frequency
3S
—+
0 | --}——+—_fl
0 57) 10) 559208 25-30. 35") 405-45" 7 500 2555 (60) 5655 708 755 180
Length (mm SL)
B
20 4
15 +
a>
F
SO
eo
ive
5+
eA | Mle
0 Sy W107 lS 1 20'2255- 30) 350-40)" 45) 250) 55.60" 65-270 75780
Length (mm SL)
c :
20 -
Frequency
=
+
0+ t t t t + “=
Os 5,102 SF 205725) 1300 S55 40 455 508555 160) 165 970580
Length (mm SL)
Figure 3. Length—frequency graphs of Etheostoma chienense based on (A) all individuals captured 1994-1996, (B)
males spring of 1995 and 1996, and (C) females spring 1995 and 1996 from the Bayou du Chien drainage, western
Kentucky.
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr 1s
able for comparison, several reaches of stream
within Bayou du Chien have been channelized
and deforested to different degrees, thus al-
lowing comparisons within the drainage. Eth-
eostoma chienense is abundant at only one site
in the drainage, Jackson Creek, an unchan-
nelized stream with a wide (4-6 m) riparian
zone. A plethora of woody debris at this site
provides an abundance of spawning substrata,
and consequently Jackson Creek harbors the
most viable population of E. chienense. The
species is considered common at four addi-
tional localities. These sites have been mod-
erately modified but still have adequate quan-
tities of spawning materials and instream cov-
er. At 11 of the remaining sample sites the
species is rare or uncommon. Stream reaches
such as those at South Fork Bayou du Chien,
Pea Ridge Rd. (Site 3), and Bayou du Chien,
Bard Rd (Site 5) have been radically modified
and lack suitable riparian zones, and therefore
contain low numbers of E. chienense.
Welsch (1992) provided minimum require-
ments for the reforestation of open lands and
for the management of existing streamside
buffer zones for the purpose of sediment re-
moval, input of organic material into the
stream, and maintenance of suitable water
temperatures. According to these require-
ments, streamside buffer zones should consist
of three distinct zones. Zone 1, nearest the
streambank, should be ca. 5 m in width and
left unmanaged. It should consist of a mix of
native riparian trees and shrubs that can pro-
vide organic input into the stream in the form
of leaf fall, large woody debris, and detritus.
Zone 2 also should consist of native trees and
shrubs but should have an average width of 20
m. The purpose of zone 2 is for filtration, de-
nitrification, and sediment and nutrient re-
moval from runoff. Zone 2, known as the man-
aged forest zone, should have trees and shrubs
periodically harvested to help maintain consis-
tent vegetation growth. The runoff control
zone (Zone 3) should be at the outward edge
of zone 2 and average 6 m in width. The veg-
etation should consist of grasses and shrubs
that need to be periodically mowed or grazed
to help maintain growth. As mentioned be-
fore, the Bayou du Chien watershed is used
presently for tillable agriculture; because of
this, most of the streamside vegetation has
been removed. Most sample sites on Bayou du
Chien have a buffer zone of only 2-3 m rather
than the 30 m proposed by Welsch (1992). An
increase in the riparian zone of only 10 addi-
tional meters could positively benefit the E.
chienense population.
The results of our length-frequency esti-
mation indicate that the age groupings of E.
chienense are similar to those reported for two
other species of Catonotus, E. squamiceps
(Page 1974) and E. olivaceum (Page 1980). Al-
though age groupings here are comparable to
what has been previously reported, age deter-
mination by length-frequency estimation is of-
ten unreliable (Jearld 1983). Without large
sample sizes (500+ individuals) it is difficult
to delineate age-classes because of overlap-
ping groups among year classes. The low sam-
ple sizes in our study weaken the reliability of
the age-classes.
STATUS, THREATS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
In our 2-year study, seven additional sites of
occurrence of E. chienense were discovered; it
is likely that other, intervening areas not sam-
pled also harbor viable populations. Historic
localities, including two sites near Moscow,
Kentucky, still remain void of relict darters.
Collections by Webb and Sisk in the 1970s are
the only vouchered specimens this far down-
stream; the species seems to be extirpated
from these localities. Because the habitat is ex-
tremely sluggish and swamplike, the occur-
rence of E. chienense downstream of the Bay-
ou du Chien, Rt. 239 bridge is extremely un-
likely.
At the time of the Warren et al. (1994) sur-
vey, conducted in the fall, many of the small
tributaries including Sand Creek, Rt. 307 and
Cane Creek, Coolie Rd were totally dry or
comprised of only isolated pools. Although
several of these localities produced individuals
during this study, it is likely that these inter-
mittent streams contribute little to recruit-
ment. In periods of low rainfall, nests may be-
come desiccated because of low water levels,
or young-of-the-year may become trapped in
isolated pools and become subject to preda-
tion by birds or other organisms.
Etheostoma chienense is presently maintain-
ing an effective population size; the potential
for downlisting from federally endangered to
federally threatened is conceivable in the fu-
74 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
ture. Several factors relevant to retention of
the species endangered status include the fol-
lowing: (1) two sites that yielded specimens
for Webb and Sisk (1975), Bayou du Chien,
Hwy. 239 and Little Bayou'du Chien, Hwy.
239 (Figure 1), failed to produce any speci-
mens in our study; (2) range restriction of the
species to only the upper reaches of the Bayou
du Chien drainage; (3) the continuing effects
of natural flooding and drought at several
points along the stream, including drying of
small tributaries during times of low flow; (4)
evidence of pesticide and sediment runoff; (5)
potential for heavy predation of larval E. chi-
enense in the primary nesting areas (Piller
1996); (6) potential for further habitat alter-
ation (i.e., dredging, snag removal, channeli-
zation, reduction of buffer zones); and, most
importantly, (7) the lack of knowledge regard-
ing the degree of recruitment of individuals
into the population. No larval E. chienense
were discovered in our study, and only a few
juveniles were captured in late spring and ear-
ly summer. After determining the habitat of
larval E. chienense and the degree of recruit-
ment into the existing population, an informed
decision regarding endangered or threatened
status should be made.
Etheostoma chienense has persisted in spite
of various threats, but it cannot be assumed
that its viability will remain indefinitely. A sin-
gle toxic chemical spill into Jackson Creek or
an extremely dry spring and summer could
have devastating effects on population num-
bers. We recommend that the following steps
be implemented and that E. chienense be
monitored for several years.
1. Known sites of occurrence should be sam-
pled periodically to determine trends in
distribution and population abundance.
2. Habitat preferences of juvenile and larval
E. chienense should be determined. AlI-
though we have documentation that nest-
ing occurs at several localities in the upper
reaches of the drainage, the biology of lar-
vae is unknown, and consequently recruit-
ment estimates are lacking.
3. Habitat quality should be maintained
throughout the drainage. The proper au-
thorities (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Kentucky
Department of Fish and Wildlife Re-
sources) should attempt to closely monitor
the entire drainage and limit the number
of permits granted to snag, channelize, or
modify the existing watershed.
4. In the future, voluntary planting of woody
riparian vegetation should be done along
stream banks to help decrease sedimenta-
tion, to provide suitable habitat for terres-
trial organisms, and, most importantly, to
provide spawning substrata for relict dart-
ers should be strongly suggested to private
landowners. The specifications proposed by
Welsch (1992) are perhaps unrealistic for
the Bayou du Chien. The entire watershed
is in private ownership, with agriculture be-
ing the primary use of the watershed. The
creation of large buffer zones, even an in-
crease of 10 m of woody streamside vege-
tation, would almost certainly be beneficial
to the species.
5. Spawning substrate (i.e., ceramic tiles)
should be added annually. As shown pre-
viously (Piller and Burr n.d.), the artificial
spawning substrate provides an effective
management tool that increases nest pro-
ductivity and presumably enhances survi-
vorship and recruitment. Seeding stream
reaches throughout the upper portion of
the drainage for several consecutive years
may significantly increase or at least main-
tain current population numbers.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We thank the following for assistance in the
field: D.J. Eisenhour, A.B. Mowery, T.R. Piller,
R.M. Strange, W.J. Poly, J.M. Maushard, K.M.
Cook, Z.U. Campbell, M.J. De Jesus, and A.K.
Wilson. Funding for this project was made
possible through a grant from the Kentucky
Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources to
B.M. Burr. This article is a portion of an orig-
inal thesis by K.R. Piller submitted in partial
fulfillment for the degree of Master of Science
at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
LITERATURE CITED
Biggins, R. G. 1993. Endangered species status for the
relict darter (Etheostoma chienense) and bluemask dart-
er (Etheostoma (Doration) sp.). Fed. Reg. 58(26):
8480-68486.
Braasch, M.E., and R.L. Mayden. 1985. Review of the
subgenus Catonotus (Percidae), with descriptions of
two new darters of the Etheostoma squamiceps species
Relict Darter—Piller and Burr D
group. Occas. Papers Mus. Natl. Hist., Univ. Kansas
119:1-83.
Brookes, A. 1988. Channelized rivers: perspective for en-
vironmental management. John Wiley and Sons, New
York, NY.
Burr, B.M., and M.L. Warren Jr. 1986. A distributional
atlas of Kentucky fishes. Kentucky Nature Preserves
Comm. Sci. Tech. Ser. 4.
Congdon, J.C. 1971. Fish populations of channelized and
unchannelized sections of the Chariton River, Missouri.
Pages 52-62 in E. Schneberger and J.L. Funk (eds).
Stream channelization: a symposium. Spec. Publ. 2,
North Central Division, American Fisheries Society,
Omaha, NB.
Emerson, ].W. 1971. Channelization: a case study. Science
173: 325-326.
Etnier, D.A.1972. The effect of annual rechanneling on a
stream fish population. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 101:372-
375.
Hansen, D.R. 1971. Stream channelization effects of fish-
es and bottom fauna in the Little Sioux River, Iowa.
Pages 29-51 in E. Schneberger and J.L. Funk (eds).
Stream channelization: a symposium. Spec. Publ. 2,
North Central Division, American Fisheries Society,
Omaha, NB.
Hynes, H.B.N. 1970. Ecology of running waters. Univ.
Toronto Press, Toronto, Ont.
Jearld, JN [fie 1983. Age Determination. Pages 301-324 in
L.A. Nielson and D.L. Johnson (eds). Fisheries tech-
niques. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD.
Jenkins, R.E., and N.M. Burkhead. 1993. Freshwater fish-
es of Virginia. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda,
MD.
Karr, J.R., and O.T. Gorman. 1975. Effects of land treat-
ment in the aquatic environment. Pages 120-150 in
R.G. Christensen (ed). Non-point pollution seminar.
EPA 905/9-75-007, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Chicago, IL.
Karr, J.R., and LJ. Schlosser. 1977. Impact of nearstream
vegetation and stream morphology on water quality and
stream biota. EPA 600/3-77-097, Ecological Research
Series, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Athens,
GA.
Kuehne, R.A., and R.W. Barbour. 1983. The American
darters. University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, KY.
Page, L.M. 1974. The life-history of the spottail darter,
Etheostoma squamiceps, in Big Creek, Illinois, and Fer-
guson Creek, Kentucky. Ill. Nat. Hist. Surv. Biol. Notes
89:1-20.
Page, L.M. 1980. The life-histories of Etheostoma oliva-
ceum and Etheostoma striatulum, two species of darters
in central Tennessee. Ill. Nat. Hist. Surv. Biol. Notes
113:1-14.
Page, L.M. 1983. Handbook of darters. T.F.H. Publica-
tions, Neptune City, NJ.
Page, L.M., P.A. Ceas, D.L. Swofford, and D.G. Buth.
1992. Evolutionary relationships within the Etheostoma
squamiceps complex (Percidae; subgenus Catonotus)
with descriptions of five new species. Copeia 1992:615—
646.
Piller, K.R. 1996. Distribution, population estimates, nest-
ing biology, and spawning habitat improvement of the
relict darter, Etheostoma chienense, Bayou du Chien,
Kentucky. M.S. thesis, Southern Illinois University at
Carbondale, Carbondale, IL.
Piller, K.R., and B.M. Burr. n.d. Reproductive biology and
spawning habitat supplementation of the relict darter,
Etheostoma chienense, a federally endangered species.
Symposium. Behavior and fish conservation: case stud-
ies and applications. Env. Biol. Fishes. In press.
Schlosser, [.J. 1991. Stream fish ecology: a landscape per-
spective. Bioscience 41:704—712.
Trautman, M.B., and D.K. Gartman. 1974. Re-evaluation
of the effects of man-made modifications on Gordon
Creek between 1887 and 1973 and especially as regards
its fish fauna. Ohio J. Sci. 74:162-173.
Warren, M.L., Jr., and B.M. Burr. 1994. Status of fresh-
water fishes of the United States: overview of an im-
periled fauna. Fisheries 19:6-19.
Warren, M.L., Jr, B.M. Burr, and C.A. Taylor. 1994. The
relict darter, Etheostoma chienense (Percidae): status
review of a Kentucky endemic. Trans. Kentucky Acad.
Sci. 55:20—27.
Webb, D.H., and M.E. Sisk. 1975. The fishes of west Ken-
tucky. III. The fishes of the Bayou du Chien. Trans.
Kentucky Acad. Sci. 36:63-70.
Welsch, D.J. 1992. Riparian forest buffers: function and
design for protection and enhancement of water re-
sources. Forest Service, Northeastern Area, USDA,
Randor, PA.
Williams, J.E., J.E. Johnson, D.A. Hendrickson, S$. Con-
treras-Balderas, J.D. Williams, M. Navarro-Mendoza,
D.E. McAllister, and J.E. Deacon. 1989. Fishes of
North America endangered, threatened, or of special
concern: 1989. Fisheries 14:2—20.
]. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):76-92. 1998.
The Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University,
Morehead, Kentucky: Design and Fabrication of a Research
Instrument for Undergraduate Faculty and Student Research in
Radio Frequency Astrophysics
Benjamin Malphrus, Eric Thomas, Michael Combs, Brian Lewis, Bob Ratliff, Brian Roberts,
Chad Pulliam, Jennifer Carter, John Pelfrey, Dara Preece, and Viju Hullur
Morehead Astrophysical Observatory, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
Russell Brengelman, David Cutts, and Charles Whidden
Department of Physical Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
Rodney Stanley, Robert Hayes, and William Grise
Department of Industrial Education and Technology, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
Drew Henderson
Information Technology, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
Daniel Puckett
ACE Engineering, Morehead, Kentucky 40351
and
Jeff Kruth
Kruth-Microwave Electronics, Hanover, Maryland 21076
ABSTRACT
Faculty and students of the Departments of Physical Sciences and Industrial Education and Technology at
Morehead State University have designed and assembled the Morehead Radio Telescope (MRT) to provide a
research instrument for undergraduate astronomy and physics students and an active laboratory for physics,
engineering, and computer science undergraduates and faculty. The telescope functions as a research and
educational instrument for undergraduate students, faculty, and science teachers throughout Kentucky. The
goals of the MRT program are to enhance curricula in physics, physical science, electronics, and science
education programs by serving to provide (1) a research instrument for investigations in astronomy and astro-
physics; (2) an active laboratory in astronomy, physics, electrical engineering, and computer science; and (3) a
research instrument and laboratory for science teacher education and in-service programs. The telescope in-
corporates a modular design in which components may be easily removed for use in laboratory investigations
and in student research and design projects. The performance characteristics of the telescope allow a varied
and in-depth scientific program. The sensitivity and versatility of the telescope design facilitate the investigation
of a wide variety of astrophysically interesting phenomena. The MRT provides hands-on experience in research
and instrumentation technology in a cutting-edge science, one that is in the midst of scientific revolution.
INTRODUCTION was achieved on 12 Oct 1996. An overview of
The design of the Morehead Radio Tele- the MRT instrumentation, detailed descrip-
scope (MRT), Morehead State University _ tion of major subsystems (antenna, alt-azimuth
(MSU), Morehead, Kentucky, provides an in- drive and control systems, optoisolator circuit-
strument capable of supporting scientific re- ry, receiver systems, and controlling computer
search in observational astrophysics at radio and interface), theoretical performance char-
frequencies. The design and fabrication of the _ acteristics, intended scientific programs, and
basic MRT systems are complete; first light project significance is provided herein.
76
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al.
oN mae
pet
ea A
< Nh a iia z
Waveguide System
Focal Feed S rt Ney
ed Suppo =
Waveguide to Coax Transition SAY,
Front-End Receiver
Astronomer
(to scale)
Limit switches
Dimensions and Motion
44 ft * 11 ft
(13.42 m * 3.35 m)
Reflecting Surface:
Total Surface Area:
Focal Distance:
Moving Weight:
Total Weight:
3.50m
1,155 kg
4,527 kg
Positioner:
Elevation Range:
Azimuth Range:
Slew Rates:
0 Degrees to 90 Degrees
20 min/360Degrees Az.
10 min/ 90 Degrees El.
Automated tracking
and transit modes
Data Collection:
Figure 1. Morehead Radio Telescope (MRT), Morehead
409 ft squared (38m squared)
Cal.
Reflecting Surface
Precision Clinometer
t
17
Zh
—
Superstructure
LSS
=
Elevation Axis
and Bearings
YT
ae
Elevation Stop Block
Counterweights
Elevation Control Box
Elevation Postioning
System
Azimuth Indicator
East End Access Panel
Pedistal:
Azimuth Drive System
Translators
Power Supplies
Optical Encoders
Opto-isolator Circuitry
Supporting Electronics
Automated Az.-alt. system
0 Degrees to 360 Degrees
State University, Morehead, Kentucky. Morehead Radio
Telescope systems and subassemblies. Major systems and subassemblies are identified in the diagram as well as di-
mensions of the instrument and positioning characteristics.
MRT INSTRUMENTATION
The basic design of the MRT includes a
wire-mesh parabolic reflecting antenna, alt-az-
imuth tracking positioner control and drive
systems, receiver and signal processing system,
controlling computer sorta an interface device,
and supporting electronics and hardware (Fig-
ure 1). The system is designed around a total
power receiver that converts radiation from
space concentrated by the antenna system to
an electrical signal, which is amplified, modi-
fied, and interpreted. The MRT system is con-
trolled by a Macintosh IIsi controlling com-
puter and utilizes a National Instruments Lab
NB interface board, optical isolation system,
and robotic drive and control systems devel-
oped by MSU faculty and students. The con-
trolling computer positions the telescope, in-
structs it in robotic tracking of cosmic sources,
and controls data collection and storage. The
data from a particular experiment are then
transferred via ftp to a Sun Sparcstation for
imaging and analysis (Malphrus et al. 1992).
Antenna
The MRT employs a high-gain, 40-foot an-
tenna designed for L-Band operation. A sur-
plused Army NIKE-Hercules ANS-17 radar
antenna was obtained and modified for radio
astronomy applications. The antenna was se-
lected because of its large aperture, excellent
aperture efficiency (afforded by its innovative
offset feed design), and low cost. The original
system included a parabolic reflector, antenna
feed horn, waveguide system, and azimuth po-
sitioning system. The unmodified positioning
system provided azimuth coverage of 360 de-
78 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Mac IIsi
Controlling
Computer
Decoder
Position Indication
System
De O)
Figure 2.
Azimuth
Translator
_ Drive and
1] Control
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. MRT azimuth control and
drive system. This schematic diagram outlines drive and control system as well as the indication system designed to
position the telescope in azimuth.
grees at a continuous antenna rotation speed
of six revolutions per minute.
The main purpose of the antenna system is
to track objects in space and to collect and
concentrate radio signals from space. These
radio signals are then focused by the reflector
to a single focal point on the antenna horn
where a waveguide system transmits the elec-
tromagnetic wave to a terminus at which the
front-end receiver is located. A probe inserted
into the waveguide to coax transition converts
the electric field of the radio wave to an elec-
trical signal via electromagnetic induction. The
electrical signal is then amplified and condi-
tioned by the receiver front-end, which then
sends the data to the back-end receiver and
controlling computer to be further condi-
tioned and analyzed.
Azimuth and Elevation Drive and Control Sys-
tems
Positioning the telescope is accomplished
by alt-azimuth and elevation drive and control
systems designed and built by MSU faculty
and students and Automation Concepts and
Engineering (ACE). The systems utilize a
common controlling computer and interface
board, independent electromechanical drive-
train, and positioning control systems. A block
diagram of the azimuth drive and control sys-
tems is provided in Figure 2. The azimuth
drive system incorporates a translator, stepper
motor, and gearing system that drives a 6-foot
diameter bull gear inside a rotating turret to
which the telescope superstructure, antenna,
and feed support system (the moving compo-
nents of the telescope) are attached. The el-
evation drive system incorporates a more rad-
ical rod-and-reel type design. A fixed axle is
positioned at the center of gravity of the mov-
ing component of the telescope. The axle is
affixed to rotating couplers located on top of
a supporting elevation positioning assembly.
Motion in elevation is accomplished by con-
trolling the motion about this axle with a rod-
and-reel assembly positioned at the base. Ca-
bles attached to pick points on the focal feed
support structure are reeled in and out around
a rod driven by the elevation control assembly.
The elevation control assembly consists of a
translator, stepper motor, gearing, and cou-
pling system that control the rotation of the
rod, motion of the cables, and ultimately mo-
tion of the telescope about the elevation axis
(Figure 3) (Malphrus 1996).
Multiple-Use Systems
Macintosh IIsi controlling computer. The
Macintosh controlling computer is a standard
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 79
Mac IIsi
Controlling
Computer
| Position Indication
| System
Precision
Bi-axial Clinometer
Saag Tar Ee
Figure 3.
Opto-
Isolators
=
Elevation
Translator
Drive and
Control
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. MRT elevation control and
drive system. This schematic diagram outlines drive and control system as well as the indication system designed to
position the telescope in elevation.
microcomputer that utilizes a Motorola 6040
microprocessor and has 16 MB of RAM and
1 GB of hard disk memory with a mathematics
co-processor. A multi-function analog, digital,
and timing I/O (input/output) board is in-
stalled in the computer. It contains a 12-bit,
successive approximation A/D converter with
eight analog inputs, two 12-bit D/A converters
with voltage outputs, 24 lines of transistor-
transistor logic compatible I/O, and three
counter/timer channels for timing I/O. The
multifunction interface board is controlled by
LabVIEW, a software system featuring inter-
active graphics, a state-of-the-art user inter-
face, and a powerful graphical programming
language “G.” This software is used (1) to send
the input pulses to both the azimuth and el-
evation translators; (2) to move the telescope;
(3) to analyze the data collected from the op-
tical encoder and clinometer; and (4) to collect
data from the receiver system. The signal path
from the controlling computer to the drive and
positioning systems is outlined in Figure 4.
Interface board. A National Instruments
LAB-NB Interface Board is used to interface
the computer with the electromechanical
hardware. It is used primarily to interface the
computer's I/O board with the hard wiring of
the telescope’s drive, control, and receiver sys-
tems.
Optoisolators. The optoisolators are elec-
tronic circuits designed and built by MSU stu-
dents and faculty and ACE Engineering. The
purpose of the optoisolators is to isolate high
voltage components of the system from low
voltage components of the system. There are
two types of optoisolators: transmitters, which
transmit the signals from low voltage circuits,
and receivers, which receive the signals from
high voltage circuits. A system of optoisolators
is incorporated into the drive and control cir-
cuitry for total optical isolation. A schematic
diagram of the MRT optoisolator system as
wired is given in Figure 5.
Drive and Control Systems
zimuth translator. The azimuth transla-
tor is a self-contained unit incorporating the
power circuits and logic elements needed for
bi-directional control of a stepper motor. The
azimuth translator was designed and built by
MSU students in cooperation with ACE En-
gineering. It can be triggered by pulses from
an internal oscillator or from an external pulse
source and will drive the motor at a rate of up
to 1,000 steps per second. The unit can be
80 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Azimuth Signal Drive
MAC II Si
CABLE | CABLE 2
CABLE 3 CABLE7
CABLE 8
Elevation Signal Drive
CABLE | CABLE 2
CABLE 3 CABLE 7 CABLE 16
MAC II Si
Return Signal From Clinometer
CABLE 18 CABLE 2
CABLE 1
Clinometer
Return Signal From Encoder
CABLE 18 CABLE 3
TS2 Terminal Strip 2
OT1 Optoisolator Circut
IB1 Interface Block 1
Figure 4.
CABLE 2 CABLE 1
MAC II Si
TLI1 Translator 1
TL2 Translator 2
M1 Motor |
M2 Motor 2
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. Telescope drive and posi-
tioning systems signal path. This schematic diagram summarizes the signal path for the azimuth drive signal, the
elevation drive signal, the return signal from the elevation clinometer, and the return signal from the azimuth encoder.
operated in ambient temperatures from 0°C
to +40°C. The azimuth translator is used to
control the azimuth stepper motor; a similar
elevation translator is used to control the el-
evation stepper motor.
Stepper motors. The SLO-SYN stepper
motors operate as phase-switched DC motors.
The motor shaft advances 200 steps per rev-
olution (1.8° per step) when a four-step input
sequence (full-step mode) is used and 400
steps per revolution (0.9° per step) when an
eight-step input sequence is used. Logic de-
vices are normally used for switching the
speeds. Counterclockwise rotation is obtained
81
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al.
‘sos.ins 1amod a[qeilsopun sulese pus-yorq aq} yojoid 0} 1dAtada1 puo-yuoy 980} [0A ysry oy} WO Iojyoautooods puv aloo. pud-yorq IBLIOA-MO] ayy
JPLOSI Aqpeando oO} poustsop St MOAT 10}e,0s10}do ay Moro 1oyrjos1o}dG, ‘Ayon}UOy ‘pRaya1oyy ‘APSAIIATU 9321S peoyoioy “(LYIN) adoosafay, oIpey proys1oyy “CG aInsy
07 Md = CND
0761 SLLI 91 SI pt el 201 O1 Ud = As+
0000000000 7 Adans sobod'sitSd
0000000000 1Td = GND
1 Ud = As+
1 Aiddns Mog = [Sd
edoosefay, wory mdu]
61 8h Lb aL
pOS TPL
8 GOL LL CL SL WL
Ob LE SL eL OL
AS+ @Sd
6 OL LL CLE! vIL SL Ob
Oto
Sh pL Sb 2b
Joyndarog oy nding
0¢ Wd = GND
0261 SILI 91 SI HL El ZIT O1 Md = Ast
0000000000 2 Aiddas saMod = 2S
0000000000 IT =aNo
1 Wd = Ast
ol6é 8 LYS bETT
1 Addins smog = 1§d
saqndueg wor] yduy
Ob Vb EL 2b
6 OL LL ZLEL vl SL OL
6 OL LL CL EL WE Sb OL
6} 8b 21 9b
edooseiqy, 0} sing
82 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
by reversing the order of the switching steps
of the clockwise rotation.
Gear reduction system. The gear reduc-
tion system utilizes precision-built parallel
shaft speed reducers specifically designed to
provide long, trouble-free service on heavy-
duty, low speed, high torque applications.
They are directly coupled to the stepper mo-
tors in the drive trains of both axes. For the
azimuth system, three speed reducers with ra-
tios 12.5:1, 30:1, and 10:1 are coupled back to
back to provide a gear reduction of 3,750:1.
This elaborate gear reduction system allows
the drive train to move the azimuth axis of the
telescope at the rate of one revolution per 23
hours 56 minutes (sidereal day) in the tracking
mode and at the rate of one revolution in 25
minutes in the slew mode. One speed reducer
with ratio of 15:1 is incorporated into the el-
evation system and is sufficient to drive the
telescope at an appropriate tracking rate and
at a slew rate of 10° per minute.
Position Indication Systems
Azimuth indication system. The azimuth
indication system is based on measuring the
rotation of an axle in the drive system with an
optical incremental shaft encoder. The optical
incremental shaft encoder is a noncontacting,
rotary-to-digital, position feedback device
mounted on the azimuth drive shaft at the
stepper motor assembly. The internal mono-
lithic electronic module converts the real-time
shaft position angle, speed, and direction into
TTL-compatible outputs. The encoder is used
to count the rotations of the stepper motor
shaft. This datum basically provides feedback
as it is used to determine if the shaft rotation
count is equal to the number of pulses sent to
the stepper motor. The number of steps per
degree of sky was empirically determined for
the azimuth system. The resulting indication
system provides feedback for the telescope
position in azimuth to an accuracy of 0.10° and
allows the telescope to position itself to any
desired azimuth.
Elevation indication system. The elevation
indication system is based on precisely mea-
suring the tilt of the antenna focal plane with
a high-precision biaxial clinometer. The Model
9000 precision biaxial clinometer developed
by Applied Geomechanics is a low-cost biaxial
clinometer designed for a wide variety of in-
dustrial and scientific applications (Figure 6).
A precision electrolytic transducer comprises
the sensing element. It has two orthogonal tilt
angles (X and Y tilt) and one temperature
channel as its output channels. The unit has
an operating temperatue range of = 10° ‘to
+50°C. The clinometer is mounted on the
parabolic reflector of the MRT, and one of the
orthogonal tilt angles (Y tilt) is used for ele-
vation positioning. As the antenna is moved
from the local horizon to the zenith, the elec-
trolytic transducer’s voltage changes accord-
ingly; this value is collected by the computer,
and the software converts this value to the de-
grees to determine precisely the inclination of
the antenna.
MRT Receiver System
Overview. The MRT receiver system de-
sign and fabrication program was a joint effort
between MSU faculty and Kruth-Microwave
Electronics Company (K-MEC). The program
to design, fabricate, and test a complete radio
astronomy receiver system for the reception of
signals in the 1,420 MHz region was under-
taken in 1993 and completed in 1995. A mod-
ular, flexible approach was chosen to permit
simple upgrades as evolving experimentation
needs require. Standard microwave/RF com-
ponents were used where possible to reduce
development time and to increase reliability.
Custom low-noise amplifiers were built to
mate with existing antenna feed assemblies.
Initial design work was performed by MSU
faculty; all additional work was performed at
the Maryland facilities of K-MEC. The system
design is comprised of a single receiver with
integral low noise amplifier directly mated to
the existing waveguide flange of the MRT an-
tenna.
System design. The overall receiver sys-
tem design utilizes a low noise, sensitive, sta-
ble receiver to convert the 1,420 MHz hydro-
gen line frequency to a frequency region suit-
able for processing by standard laboratory
equipment. A DC voltage derived from an en-
velope detector is incorporated in the final
stage. In this context, low noise means less
than 100 K. Ultimately, a noise factor of 40 K
was attained for the receiver system. Tradi-
tionally, this would have required cryogenic
cooling of the first stage semiconductor am-
plifier. However, advances in GaAs FET tech-
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 83
Ground Black
X-output Green
Y-output Blue
Temperature
Figure 6.
Transducer
ICs
ee june 5-pin header
Signal and Power
Connection
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. Biaxial precision clinometer
basic diagram. A high precision biaxial clinometer is utilized in the elevation positioning feed-back system. As the
instrument tilts in elevation, the level of an electrolytic liquid contained in a vial on the circuit board changes accord-
ingly. This change in liquid level causes a corresponding change in potential difference among the electrodes in the
vile. The circuit board then interprets this potential difference as a position angle.
nology allowed the fabrication of amplifiers
with 35 K noise temperatures with the device
junctions at room temperature (Kruth 1994).
The MRT receiver system incorporates a
low noise Amplifier (LNA) that utilizes a field
effect transistor (FET). The system is com-
prised of two major subsystems: the front and
back-end receiver systems. The front-end re-
ceiver is mounted at the waveguide terminus
mounted on the focal feed support of the
MRT superstructure. A back-end, intermedi-
ate frequency (IF) processor consisting of one
channel of 160-21.4 MHz and one channel of
21.4-1 MHz conversion is utilized for back-
end processing with associated power sup-
plies, monitor circuitry, and controlling com-
puter. A block diagram of the overall system
design is provided in Figure 7. Major receiver
components include the following: LNA as-
sembly, assembled with front-end receiver; re-
ceiver down converter, 1,420 MHz to 160
MHz; W] IFC-162 160 MHz to 21.4 MHz IF
converter; 21.4 MHz to baseband IF proces-
sor; Fluke 6160 synthesizer for microwave os-
cillator control; 5 MHz frequency standard;
power supply/housing for IF processor; and
miscellaneous RF circuitry, cabling, filters, at-
tenuators, etc.
A triple conversion system is used with a
first IF of 160 MHz and a bandwidth at the
first IF of 23 MHz. The second conversion
translates to a frequency of 21.4 MHz, with a
bandwidth of 1 MHz. The frequency of 21.4
MHz is a standard IF for surveillance radios
and one for which a great variety of filters
(both crystal and LC) is available, so the IF
84 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
RCVR
DWN-CNV
Cable Bundle
SYSTEM BLOCK DIAGRAM
Figure Tf
Power Supply
+ Control
IF PROCESSOR
=
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. MRT receiver system block
diagram. This schematic diagram outlines the major components of the front-end and back-end receiver systems.
bandwidth can be easily modified. The final
conversion is to baseband, essentially DC-1
MHz. This final conversion is easily modifiable
to allow a flexible choice of final IF before
detection. This strategy permits direct digiti-
zation (FFT processing on PC based plat-
forms) as well as experimentation with parallel
filter bank approaches. The receiver system
consists of two major components: (1) Remote
receiver front-end containing RF circuitry de-
signed to down convert the 1,420 MHz band
to 160 MHz; and (2) The back-end receiver,
consisting of monitor circuitry for the con-
verter, additional IF converter stages, refer-
ence oscillator for coherent locking of the re-
ceiver front-ends, and additional test equip-
ment.
A key feature of this system is that all of the
frequency generation components used in the
various conversion stages are phase locked to
common reference frequency. This reference
source consists of a high-quality, 5 MHz, tem-
perature-compensated crystal oscillator and
associated buffer amplifiers. Additionally, the
5 MHz source can be derived from a rubidium
or cesium beam clock, affording the utmost in
stability and accuracy, if such a source be-
comes available. A commercial synthesizer
drives the phase-locked oscillator in the re-
mote receivers and, in turn, is locked to the 5
MHz standard. The use of a common refer-
ence frequency scheme such as this permits
the remote receiver to be locked on the re-
ceive channel, regardless of external pertur-
bations, e.g., weather conditions and seasonal
temperature. This is particularly desirable in
the event that a second receiver is added to
the system for the purpose of interferometric
measurements. This design will permit the
phase coherent manipulation of the signals
from the down converter box (second receiv-
er) for interferometry-based observations and
experimentation. A more detailed discussion
of the circuitry and theory of operation of the
front-end and back-end receivers is provided
below.
Front-end receiver. The front-end receiver
consists of the LNA, image reject band-pass
filter, mixer, IF pre-amplifier, IF roofing filter,
level set variable attenuator, IF post-amplifier,
local oscillator, and required power supply
regulators and control circuitry (Figure 8).
The front-end receiver is housed in a box suit-
able for outdoor mounting at the terminus of
the waveguide mounted on the antenna focal
feed support structure (Kruth 1994).
High electron mobility transistor (HEMT)
FET devices are used for the first stage, fol-
lowed by GaAs FET gain blocks. The device
utilized for the first stage application is the Nip-
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 85
AVANTEK
PREAMP pOSTAMP AVANTEK
POSTAMP
TO ALL
COMPONENTS
POWER
SUPPLY
Figure 8.
ATTN. 160 MHZ
160 MHZ
OUTPUT
= L.O. SAMPLE
PLO
O REFERENCE
INPUT
O
PHASE LOCK
INDICATOR
22-30 VDC
INPUT
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. Front-end receiver diagram.
This schematic diagram illustrates the major components of the front-end receiver system. The front-end receiver is a
superheterodyne receiver designed around a low noise amplifier that utilizes an extremely low noise high electron
mobility field effect transistor.
pon Electric Company (NEC) NE32684AF
ultra-low noise pseudomorphic hetero-junc-
tion FET. This device has a measured noise
figure of 0.3 dB (approximately 30 K) at room
temperature, with an associated gain of 22 dB
at 1,400 MHz. This value represents excellent
performance. Care in the amplifier design and
fabrication was exercised to preserve these val-
ues. The first stage amplifier achieves 0.5 dB
noise figure and 18 dB gain using this device.
The design of the input matching stage for this
amplifier is critical as any losses from mis-
match or attenuation may directly degrade the
noise figure. A simple circuit incorporating the
WG-microstrip transition is utilized, with a
single tuned circuit response. With this ap-
proach, it is not possible to provide much fil-
tering, so a filter is added between the follow-
ing stages.
This stage is followed by an Avantek pack-
aged gain block pair consisting of a UT02012
and a UT02013 amplifier cascade. This com-
bination provides good gain (20 dB), excellent
intercept point (P-sat = +21 dBm fundamen-
tal), and a modest noise figure of 2.5 dB. This
effectively controls the noise figure degrada-
tion due to second stage contribution. Due to
the high gain and wideband nature of the first
stage amplifier, a front-end pre-selection filter
is necessary to block out terrestrial interfer-
ence. This interference is from diverse sources
such as TACAN, radar, cellular phone har-
monics, INMARSAT uplinks, and others. The
bandwidth of the selected filter is on the order
of 150 MHz, centered at 1,420 MHz; the in-
sertion loss is 2 dB. A standard double-bal-
anced mixer is used for the first converter
stage. A standard drive level type is appropri-
ate to this application; the conversion loss is 6
dB.
The 160 MHz IF amplifiers are of conven-
tional design. A coaxial bandpass filter is used
to establish the bandwidth of the first con-
verter system. Since the desired bandwidth is
2 MHz, a filter of at least five times this value
must be used to permit future expansion of
the experimental system. The bandwidth of
the system is preserved down to the final
stage; it is possible to use wider filters should
experimental needs require. A 2 MHz filter is
86 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
used to preserve the 2 MHz system bandwidth
all the way down to final detection.
The level set attenuator that is included in
the design allows manual control of the gain
of the receiver in order to coarsely equalize
the gain of the two receivers when used to-
gether. Fine gain is controlled in the IF pro-
cessor system. The calculated end-to-end gain
of the front-end is 68 dB. The calculated noise
figure is 0.535 dB based on a 0.5 dB first stage
and a 2.5 dB second stage. An overall noise
figure of <0.4 dB (approximately 40 K), was
attained.
The local oscillator, a phase-locked (PLO)
cavity tuned type made by California Micro-
wave, utilizes a “brick” style oscillator. This os-
cillator is a fundamental L band cavity using a
low noise bi-polar transistor as the oscillator
element. It incorporates a reference multipli-
er/harmonic mixer arrangement to permit
locking. The oscillator is driven by a synthe-
sizer at 105.0835 MHz and, as the PLO as-
sumes the phase noise and stability character
of the oscillator directly, a reference signal of
high quality is therefore produced.
The front-end receiver package is housed in
a waterproof aluminum box approximately 12
in’, with all electrical connections made on
one face. Thermal insulation and heating blan-
kets are used to provide a relatively constant
temperature environment for the outdoor re-
ceiver unit. An integral power supply that op-
erates from 22-30 VDC, and uses well-fil-
tered, regulated DC-DC converters provides
the various voltages required by the system.
This permits a single low-voltage feed to the
receiver package, for simplicity and safety.
Back-end receiver. The back-end receiver
is comprised of a synthesizer used to generate
reference signals for the down-converter, an
IF processor with crystal oscillator for condi-
tioning of the IF signal, a down-converter
power supply, an optoisolation system, a con-
trolling computer, and interface device. A
high-quality Fluke synthesizer that can gen-
erate the 105 MHz range reference signal for
the receiver converters is incorporated into
the back-end receiver system. This is an ad-
aptation of the popular 6160A series that has
been modified to use an external 5 MHz stan-
dard. The output of the remote receiver at 160
MHz is transmitted by low loss 50 ohm coaxial
cable to the indoor rack. Here the signal is
buffered and split. A sample of the 160 MHz
“wideband” IF is available on the front panel
of the control box. The other leg of the power
splitter is applied to the 160-21.4 MHz IF
converter system. This system element used is
a Watkins-Johnson IFC-162 IF converter
module, a self-contained system. This device
converts the signal to a frequency of 21.4
MHz without degrading the signal-to-noise ra-
tio. The internal crystal oscillator used to con-
vert the signal was modified so that the signal
can be phase-locked to the reference 5 MHz
oscillator. Refer to Figure 9 for a schematic
diagram of the back-end receiver (Kruth
1994).
Additional filtering is then used to establish
the desired final bandwidth before detection.
The final conversion brings the 21.4 MHz
down to “baseband” by beating against a crys-
tal-controlled oscillator. The frequency of the
synthesized oscillator can be changed, along
with the 21.4 MHz filtering, to allow obser-
vations at different bandwidths at the final de-
tection stage. Buffered sample ports are avail-
able at all pertinent points in the signal path
for access to the signal. This is a useful feature
for built-in tests as well as experimentation.
The complete receiver system concept is
shown in block diagram form in Figure 7,
which provides an overview of the intercon-
nection of the various system elements. A reg-
ulated high current supply provides 26 VDC
nominal for operating the outdoor receiver
package.
A calibrated semiconductor noise source is
incorporated into the front-end LNA wave-
guide port of the receiver package to inject a
precise amount of excess noise for calibration
purposes. A precision coupler and attenuator
is used to precisely set the injection level of
the noise source into the first amplifier. The
coupler was manufactured as part of the am-
plifier to minimize the impact of additional in-
sertion loss. In fact, the scheme used did not
noticeably denigrate the noise temperature.
MRT Operator Program
The computer operator program developed
for the MRT is responsible for positioning the
telescope in azimuth and elevation, tracking of
cosmic objects as the sky apparently rotates,
determining telescope position in altitude and
azimuth via independent feedback loops, and
controlling data collection and storage in ad-
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 87
21.4 MHz
SAMPLE
WJ IFC-162
LF. SAMPLE
WIDEBAND
160 MHZ OUTPUT
I.F. PROCESSOR
Figure 9.
2MHZ BPF
WIDEBAND 21.4MHZ OUTPUT
BASEBAND
OUTPUT TO
DETECTOR
4MHZ LPF
Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. Intermediate frequency (IF)
processor block diagram. The IF processor is designed around an internal crystal oscillator phase-locked to an external
reference 5 MHz oscillator. The 160 MHz IF signal is mixed with the internally generated signal and down-converted
to 21.4 MHz. The final conversion brings the 21.4 MHz signal down to baseboard by beating against a controlled
crystal oscillator. The synthesized oscillator can be adjusted to allow different bandwidths at the final detection stage.
dition to controlling additional experimental
parameters. The initial design of the control-
ling program was developed by MSU students
and faculty. The program has evolved from its
initial design in order to compensate for op-
erational characteristics of the positioning sys-
tems, which have developed as these systems
have matured. This evolution has been carried
out by students, along with MSU staff, after
performing operational tests of the positioning
system components.
The controlling program has been devel-
oped with the Labview Virtual Instrumenta-
tion software package, which provides a graph-
ical programming environment “G,” with built
in accessibility to the functions of the National
Instruments LAB NB interface card. The
graphically intensive language “G” is ideally
suited to the production of programs used in
data collection and analysis as it was initially
designed to communicate with interface tech-
nologies. Virtual instruments developed with
this package actually mimic hardware compo-
nents such as spectrum analyzers and oscillo-
scopes by conditioning the signal in exactly the
same way that the hardware counterpart
would. This package reduces the need for ex-
pensive and space-consuming hardware.
The program determines positioning re-
quirements based on the current Universal
Time, as well as the destination coordinates
(right ascension and declination) provided by
the operator. After determining the local si-
dereal time based on this input data, and con-
verting the coordinates of the object of inter-
est to its current azimuth and altitude, the op-
erator program provides the necessary control
signals to the azimuth and elevation translators
via digital I/O ports on the interface card. The
necessary positional accuracy is achieved by
monitoring the azimuth encoder and elevation
clinometer. Positional accuracy of 0.10 arcde-
grees is achieved via this feedback loop.
The operator program performs transit op-
erational mode by positioning the antenna to
the target location, then monitoring the analog
signal from the receiver. Tracking mode ad-
ditionally incorporates an algorithm to monitor
the deviance of the antenna’s position from
the desired position, with the intention of
achieving the aforementioned positional ac-
curacy. It was necessary for the operator pro-
gram to evolve based on experiments per-
formed with the mechanical elements of the
positioning system. The number of TTL puls-
es required to position the telescope in ele-
vation and azimuth was determined empiri-
cally from numerous experiments. These val-
ues were then programmed into the program
to automate positioning of the telescope.
Schematics of the major components and al-
88 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
ogrithms of the operator program are provid-
ed in Figures 10 through 12.
THEORETICAL PERFORMANCE CHAR-
ACTERISTICS OF THE MRT
The minimum detectable flux density, the
weakest detectable radio frequency signal
from space (As,,,,, ), expressed in Janskys (1
Jansky = 10° wm” Hz ') may be calculated
(Kraus 1986):
A ge KSI
where:
AS,,,,. = minimum detectable flux density
Ks = receiver constant (= 1)
T.,, = system temperature
K = Boltzman’s constant (1.38-10-°3J-K~')
€,, = aperture efficiency (0 < €,, < 1)
dimensionless
A = aperture area (m?)
Av = pre-detection bandwidth in Hz
At = post-detection integration time
Values for the MRT subsystems are ob-
tained from laboratory measurements of the
MRT front-end receiver furnished by Kruth
Microwave Electronics Corporation (K-
MEC); values for the antenna system are
taken from AORG (1968). The following val-
ues are substituted:
Ta Olean
Av = 2-10° MHz
Ks = 1
Cae 00
A = 38 m?
These values produce a value of 5.35 * 10°
= 5.35 Janskys assuming a one-second post-
detection integration time.
The total system temperature (T,,,) includ-
ing noise contributions due to the waveguide
and other factors is described by (Kraus 1986):
Se a ast T_,L(1/e) — 1] + (1/e) Ty
where:
T,,, = system temperature
T, = antenna temperature
T,,, = physical temperature of waveguide
€ = transmission efficiency
T, = receiver temperature
Values:
T, = 40.31° (from Kruth Microwave
Electronics Corp. K-MEC)
€ = 0.9923 (from MDL Component)
Book (Waveguide Manufacturer)
For WR-650, Aluminum Loss*
0.233 dB/100 at 1,421 MHz
15’ of W.G. = 0.3345 dB loss
Assume for dipole array efficiency = 50%
Efficiency of WG = 10(—loss/10)
= 10(—0.03345/10) = 0.9923
T,, = 290°
T, = 25° (see below)
The antenna temperature (T,) was calculated
in the following manner (5):
T, = 3K (3K cosmic microwave background
radiation)
3K (atmosphere)
2K (scattering from feed support
structure)
2K (diffraction spillover to ground)
5K (Ohmic losses)
10K |
haere (scattering by inappropriate surface
geometry)
Applying these values gives:
T,, = 25° + 2.242° + 40.31° = 67.73°
Solving for the minimum detectable cosmic
temperature:
Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 89
Telescope Control
Tracking
Desired Azimuth} |Desired Elevation
Data Collection]
Sampling Rate
Figure 10. Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. MRT operator program
positioning system front-end. The MRT operator program utilizes virtual instruments that incorporates a strip chart
recorder with the positioning and data collection system. The user-end control panel is shown in the diagram.
ae Ks.-T,,,
eae (Av)(At)
Recalculated system minimum sensitivity:
= (.04787° K
ZAM.
AS nin ray wl
E, pA
AS, = 5.349 X 10-% = 5.35 Janskys
The spatial resolution (expressed as half-
power beamwidth-HPBW) is determined
from the following relationship:
aEBW =
D(m)
where:
HPBW = Half-power beamwidth in degrees
d = Operating wavelength in meters
D = Aperture diameter in meters
Calculation of the HPBW of the existing MRT
system must be performed in two steps as the
antenna is symmetric about a major and a mi-
nor axis (Malphrus and Bradley 1987).
HPBW of the Major Axis:
(58)(0.211 m)
13.42 (m)
HPBW = 0.91192°
HPBW =
Repeating the calculation for the minor axis
reveals:
(58)(0.211 m)
3:355_ (mm)
HPBW = 3.647°
HPBW =
SCIENCE PROGRAMS
The MRT will be employed in a widely var-
ied scientific program. Research programs
will range from investigating single cosmic
phenomena to measuring secular variation of
radio sources to mapping structures and areas
of sky. The MRT will be utilized in research
programs in planetary, galactic and extraga-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
90
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Morehead Radio Telescope—Malphrus et al. 91
kal I ap
Local Sidereal
t
[ DBL |
| Right Ascension
eH |
26 | =rh rm/60 rs/3600);
Te ian ‘ ea A seeey
= raz] | |
38 Tz] T
I 32 fs
3] | | ;
| <a 180
9 Declination-—7 7]
| Gap Be a
dec
al=asin(sin(lat)*sin(dec) +
one cos(lat)*cos(dec)*cos(ha));
Cre LZ, |e eed (ha))
4.ddd 18
azx=(cos(ha)*sin(lat) -
tan(dec)*cos(lat));
azy=sin(ha);
Figure 12. Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky. MRT operator program
azimuth and elevation subroutine. The azimuth and elevation subroutine is responsible for converting the celestial
object’s coordinates in right ascension and declination to local azimuth and elevation and for sending pulses to the
translators to position the telescope in azimuth and elevation.
lactic astronomy and in SETI Searches. Re-
search programs will include observing dis-
tant galaxies for variability, mapping regions
of the Milky Way, spectral analyses of cosmic
phenomena, and measurement of galactic ro-
tation utilizing measurements of the Doppler
shifts of hydrogen clouds in galactic spiral
arms. Astrophysically interesting phenomena
such as quasars, radio galaxies, supernova
remnants, giant molecular clouds, HI regions,
cosmic masers, and exotic stars such as neu-
tron stars and possible black holes will be in-
vestigated.
Research programs will include observing
distant galaxies for variability, mapping regions
of the Milky Way, spectral analyses of cosmic
phenomena and, galactic rotation and dynam-
ics. Astrophysically interesting phenomena will
be investigated including quasars, radio gal-
axies, supernova remnants, giant molecular
clouds, HI regions, cosmic masers, and exotic
stars such as neutron stars and black hole can-
didates.
CONCLUSIONS AND PROJECT SIGNIF-
ICANCE
The demilitarization initiatives that the U.S.
government has undertaken have recently pro-
duced a surplus of high-tech military equip-
ment. Many U.S. scientists have begun to take
advantage of the demilitarization efforts by ac-
quiring and modifying surplus military equip-
ment for use in scientific research projects.
The MRT project is a classic example of the
re-utilization of surplus high-tech equipment
for basic science research. The success of the
MRT project depends on the validity of the
scientific results produced by the various re-
search initiatives undertaken with the instru-
ment. This validity of the scientific results is
directly related to performance characteristics
of the instrument. Radio telescopes are gen-
erally rated among the largest and most sen-
sitive scientific instruments ever produced.
The scale and sensitivity of instruments is ne-
cessitated by the phenomenally weak radiation
92 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
they collect from space. In point of fact, the
flux density of even a moderately strong cos-
mic source at 1,420 MHz (the central oper-
ating frequency of the MRT) is on the order
of a few Janskys (Jansky = 10°-°° W/m?/Hz).
An analogy that radio astronomers use to de-
scribe the weak signals detected by these in-
struments from space is to imagine converting
the electromagnetic radiation into mechanical
energy. If one converted all of the electro-
magnetic radio frequency radiation from space
collected by all the radio telescopes from all
over the world since the inception of the sci-
ence in 1932, and converted this energy into
mechanical energy, it would roughly be the
equivalent kinetic energy contained in a falling
snowflake. If this energy were converted into
electric energy it would light a 100-watt light
bulb for almost 1 second (Malphrus 1996).
Because of the inconceivably weak radiation,
the performance characteristics of the radio
telescope must be conform to research-grade
specifications to perform valid science. The in-
strument’s performance characteristics—spe-
cifically antenna gain, minimum detectable
flux density, and spatial resolution—are critical
characteristics affecting the scientific results of
a given research project. Experiments de-
signed to measure these performance charac-
teristics empirically are implicated.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Funding for the MRT was provided by the
National Science Foundation’s Instrument and
Laboratory Improvement program and More-
head State University. Numerous individuals
have been involved in the design and devel-
opment of the instrument's many subsystems
and have provided materials and services: Joe
Planck, Porter Dailey, Steve Leitz, Gene Cau-
dill from Physical Plant, Morehead State Uni-
versity; Ms. Regina Kissick, Department of
Physical Sciences; and Dr. Ronald Eaglin,
president, Dr. Gerald DeMoss, dean of the
College of Science and Technology, and Dr.
J.C. Philley, vice president of academic affairs,
Morehead State University.
LITERATURE CITED
[AORG] Army Operational Research Group. 1968. AN-
FPS 36 Radar Antenna Systems Operational Parame-
ters. U.S. Army Document. Washington DC.
Kraus, J.D. 1986. Radio astronomy. 2nd ed. Cygnus Qua-
sar Publishers, Powell, OH.
Kruth, J. 1994. A receiver system for radio astronomy.
Internal document. Kruth Microwave Corporation,
Hanover, MD.
Malphrus, B.K. 1996. The history of radio astronomy and
the National Radio Astronomy Observatory: evolution
toward big science. Krieger Publishers, Melbourne, FL.
Malphrus, B.K., and R. Bradley. 1987. The National Radio
Astronomy Observatory 40-Foot Radio Telescope op-
erators’ manual. Internal NRAO Document. Green
Bank, WV.
Malphrus, B.K., R. Brengelman, D. Cutts, and C. Whid-
den. 1992. The Morehead Radio Telescope: design and
fabrication of a research instrument for undergraduate
faculty and student research in radio frequency astro-
physics. Grant proposal submitted to the National Sci-
ence Foundation. Morehead State University, More-
head, KY.
Malphrus, B.K., R. Brengelman, D. Cutts, C. Whidden,
and P. Hitchcock. 1996. The Morehead Radio Tele-
scope operator's manual. Internal document, Morehead
State University, Morehead, KY.
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(1):93-110. 1998.
Abstracts of Some Papers Presented at the
1997 Annual Meeting of the
Kentucky Academy of Science
AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE
Botanical vs. synthetic insecticides. GEORGE F. AN-
TONIOUS, Community Research Service, Atwood Re-
search Facility, Department of Plant and Soil Science,
Kentucky State University, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Changes in pesticide formulations and the use of re-
strictions have greatly reduced pesticide levels in field wa-
ter released into public waterways and consequently have
reduced the adverse impact to resident fish species and
other aquatic life. Interest in the use of botanical insec-
ticides (BIs) has grown over the last decade. BIs are now
applied in the United States to control insect pests of veg-
etables; most home gardeners and small organic farmers
are flocking back to botanical. However, no matter how
promising BIs seem from the entomologist’s point of view,
persistence of BIs in soil and water under field conditions
has to be tested. At Kentucky State University (KS) Re-
search Farm, we conducted an experiment to study the
behavior of the active ingredients of two formulations, a
botanical insecticide containing pyrethrin (Py’s) and pi-
peronyl butoxide (PBO) and a synthetic insecticide
(Thiodan 3EC) containing a- and B-endosulfan. Our ob-
jectives were to study movement of the active ingredients
at trace levels in soil and their loading to natural surface
runoff water following spraying on highly erodible land.
The low residues of total Py’s detected in soil and runoff
water and their low toxicity to mammals should cause little
environmental concern. Py’s are encouraging as alternative
insecticides.
Comparison of creeping bentgrass green varieties and
Bermudagrass fairway varieties in southern Kentucky. D.I.
SOLBERG, H. LIU,* and P. DOTSON, Department of
Agriculture, Western Kentucky University, Bowling
Green, KY 42101.
Southern Kentucky belongs to the transition zone for
turfgrass growth. Both cool season and warm season turf-
grasses can grow in the region but are subjected to heat
stress for cool-season turfgrasses and cold stress for warm-
season turfgrasses. The objective of our study was to com-
pare four creeping bentgrass (Agrostis palustris) cultivars
(‘Pennlinks’, ‘Penncross’, ‘Crenshaw’, and ‘Cato’) used as
golfcourse putting greens and among three Bermudagrass
(Cynodon dactylon) cultivars (419°, ‘Quicksand’, and ‘Va-
mont’) used as fairways under high maintenance in south-
erm Kentucky. The study was done at the Western Ken-
tucky University Farm, Bowling Green. The greens and
fairways were built in 1994. Weekly evaluation of turf
quality, color, percent coverage, and pest problems were
conducted from February to October 1997. ‘Penncross’
and “Pennlinks’ had the best performance as putting-green
grasses. ‘Crenshaw’ showed more dollar spot than others.
93
‘Cato’ ranked lowest among the four cultivars of creeping
bent. There were no significant differences among the
three Bermudagrass cultivars. However, ‘Quicksand’ ex-
hibited the earliest spring green-up. Evaluation will be
continued through the next growing season.
Constructed wetlands for water quality improvement.
GEORGE F. ANTONIOUS,* FRANK YOUNG, and
MATTHEW E. BYERS, Community Research Service,
Atwood Research Facility, Department of Plant and Soil
Science, Kentucky State University, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Kentucky is generally a rural state. In areas where mu-
nicipal sewage is not an option because the bedrock is
near the surface and infiltration is impossible or the water
table is high and contaminants can be discharged directly
to the groundwater, onsite constructed wetlands systems
are appropriate. These systems are natural means of
wastewater treatment at the site of origin and have tre-
mendous biological and biochemical activity for the deg-
radation and decomposition of toxic organics, nutrients,
and pathogenic bacteria. To monitor the efficiency of con-
structed wetland systems in Kentucky, four homeowners
installed and maintained systems that were sampled and
monitored for temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO),
biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended sol-
ids (TSS), nitrate nitrogen (NO,-N), ammonia nitrogen
(NH,-N), orthophosphate (PO, ion), and fecal coliform
(FC) bacteria. Water quality data were statistically ana-
lyzed using an analysis of variance to test the influence of
sampling date, individual system sampled, and port dis-
tance within each system with respect to the septic tank
on concentration of the tested parameters. The studied
systems provided good reductions in concentrations of
TSS and BOD and had satisfactory FC bacteria reduction
potential but were less effective in nutrient removal. Fur-
ther research work in the system design is needed to in-
crease efficiency for NO,-N, FC, and PO, removal.
Onsite constructed wetland demonstration. FRANK S.
YOUNG III,* GEORGE F. ANTONIOUS, and MAT-
THEW E. BYERS, Community Research Service, At-
wood Research Facility, Kentucky State University, Frank-
fort, KY 40601; MICHAEL DAVIS, Department of Tech-
nical Education, Kentucky Tech Anderson Technology
Center, Lawrenceburg, KY 40342.
Many of Kentucky’s residents still reside outside of large
metropolitan areas and prefer to live in the rural country-
side where city sewer is not an option. A conventional
onsite wastewater treatment system for these families is a
septic tank for the collection and retention of solids and
sludge, in combination with a lateral drainage field for the
distribution and further treatment in optimal soils. Of
94 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Kentucky's 600,000 onsite treatment systems 70% are lo-
cated in soils that are less than optimal for which these
systems were designed. That means an estimated 420,000
systems contribute to the non-point source pollution prob-
lems. Many of these failures are due either to a geological
failure or straight pipe disbursement directly into streams
and rivers. The discharge from these systems consists of
a highly concentrated combination of pathogenic bacteria,
nitrogen rich nutrients, and organic pollutants. An onsite
constructed wetland system as an alternative to conven-
tional leachfield treatment can reduce environmental
health problems. At Kentucky State University Research
Farm, a wetland is being constructed consisting of two 6’
X 30’ trenches excavated to ca. 18”. The first trench is
lined with a black plastic liner. The trenches were partially
filled with crushed limestone to 14” and then capped with
a smaller size rock. Influent will flow through the con-
structed wetland cells whereby septage will flow via pos-
itive displacement being treated by microbes and the roots
of the aquatic macrophytes. A third cell consisting of a
trench like the first will be used for further treatment of
the effluent coming from the first two cells. Two different
types of distribution fields will be utilized to compare se-
rial vs. parallel distribution. Constructed wetlands give
hopeful potential to Kentucky's future in onsite sewage
recycling.
BOTANY & MICROBIOLOGY
Confirmation of extrafloral nectar on Heliconia latis-
patha (Heliconiaceae). THOMAS C. RAMBO, C. TONY
R. HAMPTON, ELINOR E. RAMBO, and TODD N.
BEZOLD, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern
Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY 41099.
Heliconia latispatha has been shown to attract ants,
mosquitoes, and other insects to supposed extrafloral nec-
taries on the external surface of the terminal bud of the
inflorescence, but the presence of extrafloral nectaries has
not been confirmed. A closely related species, H. imbri-
vata, does not attract insects and has been assumed to lack
extrafloral nectaries. At Estacién Sirena, on the Osa Pen-
insula of Costa Rica, 10 H. latispatha and 20 H. imbricata
plants were selected and monitored for insect visitors
hourly from 0530-0930 and from 1330-1730. After 5
days, a sugar solution was applied daily to 10 of the H.
imbricata buds at 0600 and 1400, and insect visitors were
recorded for an additional 5 days. The H. latispatha at-
tracted insect visitors throughout the test period; the H.
imbricata with no added sugar did not attract visitors; the
H. imbricata to which sugar was added attracted insects
briefly, but the effect did not last more than 2 hours.
These results confirm the lack of extrafloral nectaries on
H. imbricata; if any nectar were present, the buds would
have regular insect visitors. These results also confirm that
H. latispatha produces nectar throughout the day, since
insects were always present. Small samples of nectar from
H. latispatha buds were obtained and tested with a field
refractometer for sugar concentration. The samples
showed a range of 3% to 15% sugar, confirming that H.
latispatha does indeed produce extrafloral nectar.
Forest sedges (Carex, Cyperaceae) of 10 Kentucky
State Nature Preserves. ROBERT F.C. NACZI* and
LORI A. HEEG, Department of Biological Sciences,
Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY
41099.
Sedges (Carex, Cyperaceae) comprise the largest genus
of flowering plants in Kentucky, with about 125 species in
diverse habitats in the state. Despite their taxonomic and
ecologic importance, sedges are poorly known. We inves-
tigated forest sedges by sampling 10 Kentucky State Na-
ture Preserves with widely varying sizes and locations but
similar dominant vegetation (mesic forests): Audubon
(Henderson County), Blanton Forest (Harlan Co.), Blue
Licks (Robertson Co.), Brigadoon (Barren Co.), Cumber-
land Falls (McCreary Co.), Floracliff (Fayette Co.), Nat-
ural Bridge (Powell Co.), Pine Mountain (Bell Co.), Quiet
Trails (Harrison Co.), and Vernon-Douglas (Hardin Co.).
Our goals were to assess sedge diversity, abundance, and
geographic distributions, which we accomplished through
intensive field work in late spring and early summer 1997.
In all, we observed 55 species of sedges (44% of Kentucky
total). The preserves with the highest diversity were Quiet
Trails, Cumberland Falls, and Natural Bridge (28, 24, and
23 species, respectively). Audubon, Blue Licks, and Blan-
ton Forest had the fewest species (3, 6, and 9). Species-
area relationships reveal that the relatively small Quiet
Trails (45 ha) had higher than expected diversity and the
large Blanton Forest (435 ha) had lower than expected
diversity. We observed no state endangered or threatened
species. However, we encountered four species previously
recorded from five or fewer counties. Forty-five of our
collections appear to be new county records. The highest
proportion of county records come from Audubon
(100%), Quiet Trails (90%), and Blue Licks (80%), indi-
cating Henderson, Harrison, and Robertson counties, re-
spectively, merit additional floristic investigation.
Genotypic and phenotypic variation found in isolated
populations of Spiraea virginiana (Rosaceae). CON-
STANCE M. ANDERS* and ZACK E. MURRELL, De-
partment of Biology, Western Kentucky University, Bowl-
ing Green, KY 42101.
Spiraea virginiana Britton is a federally listed rhizo-
matous shrub endemic to the southern Blue Ridge and
Appalachian Plateau provinces. The typical habitat of S.
virginiana is along scoured sections of high-gradient
streams. Present evidence indicates that the species does
not reproduce sexually. No viable seeds or seedlings have
been found in the wild, suggesting that populations within
drainages are products of vegetative reproduction, most
probably occurring when rhizomes broken loose from up-
stream populations wash downstream to form new ramets.
There is considerable confusion, therefore, regarding
identification of individuals and thus no known mecha-
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting 95
nism for evaluating population size and structure. Phe-
notypic variation in S. virginiana was examined through a
morphometric examination of leaf size and shape, using
Morphosys to make 25 leaf measurements. These data
were analyzed using Principal Components Analysis, to
identify any morphological variation within and between
drainages. We are currently examining genetic identity
across the distribution using Randomly Amplified Poly-
morphic DNA (RAPDs), in an attempt to evaluate the
genetic diversity. Genetic uniformity among the drainages
would suggest that either extant populations are the an-
cestors of migrants that persisted through the glacial max-
imum in the watershed of the Gulf of Mexico, or they are
the products of a severe bottleneck during the Hypsi-
thermal Period. Genetic variation among the drainages
would suggest that S. virginiana persisted through the last
glacial maximum within the present day drainage systems,
supporting Ogle’s hypothesis that the present distribution
of S. virginiana represents the remnants of a more wide-
spread distribution in the past.
Infrageneric relationships, populational biology, and
mode of speciation in the North American fem genus Pen-
tagramma (Pteridaceae). MARK C. JENSEN, Depart-
ment of Biological and Environmental Sciences, More-
head State University, Morehead, KY 40351.
The relative frequency of different modes of speciation
in plants has been the subject of considerable speculation.
On the basis of geographical distribution, allopatric spe-
ciation by subdivision has been considered most frequent.
However, due to the theoretical difficulty of transforming
widespread population systems through gene flow or se-
lection, other authors have argued that geographically lo-
cal models of speciation (e.g., the peripatric model) are
more likely. Empirical evidence is clearly required to ad-
dress this question, yet the kinds of data required are
available for few, if any, plant groups. I have tested for
the operation of allopatric versus local modes of speciation
in the fern genus Pentagramma by searching for predicted
genetic “signatures” of speciation. Analyses based on nu-
clear DNA sequencing, chloroplast DNA restriction sites,
and chromosome number have been used to elucidate the
evolutionary relationships in this group. The populational
genetic structure in these taxa based on isozyme electro-
phoresis analyses has been used to quantify the richness
and distribution of allelic variation and to assess the man-
ner in which genetic diversity is partitioned among differ-
ent populations, subspecies, and species. Few studies of
homosporous ferns have combined a molecular phyloge-
netic approach with an analysis of their populational ge-
netic structure, yet this combined approach is necessary
to reliably infer the mode of speciation.
In search of Vibrio fischeri lux homologues in Edward-
siella ictaluri. EDWARD TODD JACOBS and GEOF-
FREY W. GEARNER,* Department of Biological and
Environmental Sciences, Morehead State University,
Morehead, KY 40351.
Autoinduction is a sensing mechanism employed by
certain bacterial species to monitor their own population
density. These bacteria produce a compound called au-
toinducer, which is permeable to the cell membrane and
will accumulate in the surrounding environment. If extra-
cellular concentrations rise high enough, autoinducer will
diffuse back into the bacterial cells and turn on genes
required for certain bacterial behaviors. One of the best
characterized autoinduction systems is that of the marine
bacterium Vibrio fischeri. Vibrio fischeri uses autoinduc-
tion to regulate the lux operon, which encodes biolumi-
nescence enzymes. In the free-living state, autoinducer
concentrations never rise in the cell, and the bacterium
does not produce light. In the host-associated state where
cell densities are great, bioluminescence is expressed.
Certain pathogenic bacteria use autoinduction systems to
regulate the expression of virulence factors. In our study,
a 32P-labeled ssDNA probe exhibiting sequence identity
with the luxR gene was used to probe restriction enzyme-
digested Edwardsiella ictaluri DNA. The objective was to
address the question, does E. ictaluri, a problematic chan-
nel catfish bacterial pathogen, possess autoinduction reg-
ulatory elements that regulate the gene expression of a
virulence factor? Southern blot data showed that the luxR
probe annealed to a 8.8-kb Sal I fragment of V. fisheri
DNA but did not hybridize with E. ictaluri DNA. Our
work was supported by the Kentucky Academy of Science
Marcia Athey Fund and Morehead State University.
Isozyme comparison of a putative hybrid (Heliconia im-
bricata * H. latispatha; Heliconiaceae) with its parent
species through use of starch gel electrophoresis. C.
TONY R. HAMPTON,* THOMAS C. RAMBO, TODD
N. BEZOLD, and ELINOR E. RAMBO, Department of
Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University, High-
land Heights, KY 41099.
Genetic analysis of a putative hybrid (Heliconia imbri-
cata X H. latispatha) was done with starch gel electro-
phoresis to detect variations in isozymes. Young unfurled
leaf tissue was collected from 35 individuals of the parent
species and 6 putative hybrids, stored in liquid nitrogen,
and transported to the National Museum of Natural His-
tory for genetic analysis. Two enzyme systems were run
(Aconitase, Isocitrate Dehydrogenase). The resulting data
suggest that the putative hybrid is an F, hybrid between
the parent species. Morphological data reinforced the
electrophoretic data.
Morphological comparisons of Heliconia latispatha, H.
imbricata, and their putative hybrids (Heliconiaceae).
TODD N. BEZOLD,* TONY R. HAMPTON, and THO-
MAS C. RAMBO, Department of Biological Sciences,
Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY
41099.
Morphological characteristics of Heliconia latispatha
96 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
and H. imbricata were compared with those of putative
hybrids between these species. Data were collected from
35 individuals of H. latispatha, 35 H. imbricata, and 6
hybrids. Besides plant height and the middle bract’s ori-
entation to the rachis, the height, width, length, pubes-
cence, and color of vegetative and reproductive structures
were measured. Perianth and staminode morphology was
recorded. Data were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis one-
way non-parametric AOV. Morphological characteristics
between progenitors proved to be significant. The hybrids
share characteristics with one or the other parent. No sig-
nificant difference was found between the hybrids and H.
latispatha in perianth length, bract orientation, and drupe
length and width. With H. imbricata, the hybrids share
bract width and petiole length. The hybrids exhibit inter-
mediacy between the progenitors in petiole and rachis di-
ameter, bract length, and leaf blade width. They often
grows among patches of H. imbricata in shaded areas. The
absence of H. latispatha may indicate succession, since
this species prefers sunny locations. Phenotypic variability
exists within Heliconia species, especially H. latispatha. A
particular genotype of H. latispatha may be the contrib-
utor to hybrid crossing, since sites with both parents exist
without any hybrids.
Morphometric studies of the Sphagnum cuspidatum
complex: the S. trinitense/S. mississippiense species pair.
ALLEN C. RISK, Department of Biological and Environ-
mental Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead,
KY 40351.
The Sphagnum cuspidatum complex is a taxonomically
difficult group of peat mosses. Members of the complex
are distinguished from other section Cuspidata species by
branch leaves noticeably elongated toward the branch tips,
deltoid to ovate-deltoid stem leaves with obtuse to acute
apices, and branch leaf hyalocysts with few pores. The S.
trinitense/S. mississippiense species pair is distinguished
from other members of the complex by denticulate to ser-
rulate branch leaf margins, features of the stem hyalo-
dermis, and branch leaves appressed when dry. Sphagnum
mississippiense was described in 1987 as a species endem-
ic to southern Mississippi and eastern Louisiana and dis-
tinguished from S. trinitense on the basis of branch leaf
shape. The results of morphometric analyses (various uni-
variate analyses and principal components analysis) of 35
herbarium specimens (including three paratypes of S. mis-
sissippiense) identified as either S. trinitense or S. missis-
sippiense from southern Mississippi and eastern Louisiana
did not support the recognition of two taxa. Characters
such as branch leaf length, branch leaf width, and branch
leaf length-to-width ratio exhibited continuous variation
across the specimens. Specimens identified as S. missis-
sippiense are interpreted as representing variation within
S. trinitense.
Phylogenetic placement of African Cornus (Cornaceae):
evidence from nuclear rDNA. SCOTT A. MYERS* and
ZACK E. MURRELL, Department of Biology, Western
Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY 42101.
The genus Cornus (dogwoods) contains 50 species that
have been divided into nine subgenera. One of these spe-
cies, C. volkensii, has been segregated into the subgenus
Afrocrania. Previous studies combined morphological, an-
atomical, and chemical data to produce a hypothesis of
evolutionary relationships that placed the subg. Afrocrania
as a segregate lineage sister to the subg. Cornus, and
placed the Afrocrania/Cornus lineage sister to the big
bracted dogwoods. The subgenus Afrocrania has been ex-
amined morphologically, anatomically, and palynologically;
however, it was not sequenced in Xiang’s analysis of rbcL
(chloroplast) sequence data, or in her analysis of the matK
region of chloroplast DNA. Murrell’s earlier analysis of the
Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) region of nuclear ri-
bosomal DNA included sequence data for C. volkensii,
but these data were suspect due to inconsistencies with
the sequence data for members of the subg. Cornus. We
amplified both ITS regions from the subg. Afrocrania us-
ing the external primers 4 and 5 and the Polymerase
Chain Reaction (PCR) and consistently obtained two dis-
tinct migrating bands approximately 750 bp in length. We
cloned these amplified regions in an attempt to isolate
these disparate bands for sequencing. Analysis of the se-
quence data suggests that the evolutionary origin of the
African dogwood was not with the cornelian-cherries but
was basal to the red-fruited clade of dwarf dogwoods, cor-
nelian-cherries, and big-bracted dogwoods; however, anal-
ysis of these data may be complicated by the problem of
long branch attraction. These results suggest a need to re-
examine fruit development and inflorescence structure in
subg. Afrocrania and Cornus.
Plant and soil changes during 39 years of succession on
coal spoil in southern Ohio. JOE E. WINSTEAD,* De-
partment of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
Morehead State University, Morehead, KY 40351; JOHN
T. RILEY, Department of Chemistry, Western Kentucky
University, Bowling Green, KY 42101.
Of 1958 origin, an unreclaimed strip mined coal spoil
bank in Vinton County, Ohio, has been studied at 3-, 13-,
23-, 33-, and 39-year intervals measuring vegetational and
soil changes along a 40-m transect and permanent plots.
The site was initially invaded by Andropogon, Solidago,
Bidens, and Danthonia species; tree cover dominated by
Acer, Liriodendron, and Platanus species has developed
on an area more stabilized than most of the overburden
resulting from mining activity. Analysis of soil samples col-
lected during the study indicates a decline in acidity, a rise
in nitrogen levels, and a consistent high level of sulfur in
the substrate supporting vegetational development. Phys-
ical change from erosion and instability of the rock and
coal shale substrate appear to limit vegetational develop-
ment to zones or patches with more diverse plant com-
munities being limited to areas of reduced slope. Colo-
nization of bare spoil continues with Solidago, Rubus, and
Andropogon virginicus being major contributors to devel-
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting oF
opment of biomass. A distinct disturbed habitat, this aban-
doned strip mine has provided the stimulus for a variety
of studies examining the adaptive mechanisms of vegeta-
tional development.
Preliminary bryophyte and vascular flora of the Hog
Hollow Seeps, Bath County, Kentucky. JACK R. OUS-
LEY* and ALLEN C. RISK, Department of Biological
and Environmental Sciences, Morehead State University,
Morehead, KY 40351.
The Hog Hollow Seeps comprise 70 streamhead
swamps located near Cave Run Lake Dam in the Daniel
Boone National Forest, Bath County, Kentucky. These
wetlands occur at the contact between overlying Quater-
nary fluvial deposits and Mississippian shales and silt-
stones. The sites range in area from 10 m? to over 1000
m?. The most abundant woody plants in these wetlands
are Acer rubrum, Nyssa sylvatica, Alnus serrulata, Ilex
verticillata, Lindera benzoin, and Aronia melanocarpa.
The ground layer is dominated by Carex atlantica subsp.
atlantica, C. lurida, C. crinita, C. debilis, Osmunda cin-
namomea, O. regalis, and Glyceria striata. Bryophytes are
abundant at the sites with Thuidium delicatulum, Pallav-
icinia lyellii, Odontoschisma, Plagiomnium ciliare, and
Sphagnum lescurii being the most common taxa. The Hog
Hollow Seeps contain numerous species uncommon in
Kentucky. New state records found during the ongoing
study are Telaranea nematodes, Pleuridium palustre,
Aneura maxima, and Carex seorsa. Other uncommon taxa
include Sphagnum magellanicum and Eriophorum virgin-
icum. At two of the sites, a putative Carex hybrid (C. seor-
sa X C. atlantica subsp. atlantica) was discovered. The
presence of aborted achenes, nonexserted stamens, and
morphological intermediacy of the perigynium beak be-
tween that of C. seorsa and C. atlantica subsp. atlantica
support the hybrid interpretation.
Taxonomic status of the varieties of starry campion, Sil-
ene stellata (Caryophyllaceae). LORI A. HEEG* and
ROBERT F.C. NACZI, Department of Biological Sci-
ences, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights,
KY 41099.
Starry Campion, Silene stellata (Caryophyllaceae), is a
perennial herb native to eastern North American decid-
uous forests. Two varieties have been described for this
species: variety stellata and variety scabrella. Authors dis-
agree regarding the taxonomic merit of var. scabrella.
Some segregate var. scabrella from the glabrous var. stel-
lata by the scabrous inflorescences, stems, and leaves of
var. scabrella. Through studying the morphology, geogra-
phy, and ecology of S. stellata in the laboratory and field,
we have tested the hypothesis that variety scabrella is a
taxonomic entity distinct from S. stellata. Statistical anal-
yses of measurements of herbarium specimens (17 char-
acters per specimen) from throughout the range of the
species reveal a high level of variability in S. stellata. Nei-
ther the morphologic characters nor the geographic dis-
tribution of S. stellata appears to correlate with pubes-
cence patterns. Nearly every population of S. stellata we
examined contained a mixture of pubescent and glabrous
plants. All habitats observed during extensive field work
in Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee were open, mesic
deciduous forests or forest edges. The species occurs in
an array of soil types with a broad range of pH values:
3.95-7.63 (n = 17 populations). Ecologic data do not in-
dicate a difference in the habitat requirements of the two
varieties. Preliminary results indicate that var. scabrella
should not be recognized at any taxonomic rank.
Vascular flora of Raymond Athey Barrens State Nature
Preserve, Kentucky. KERRY L. HALE,* JAMES C. ES-
TILL, and ZACK E. MURRELL, Department of Biology,
Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY 42101.
Raymond Athey Barrens State Nature Preserve, Ken-
tucky, is a site owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky
and managed by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves
Commission (KSNPC). This preserve contains some of
the best examples of barren communities in the state. The
barrens are typified by open-growth post oak and black
jack oak dominating the woodland canopy. Cedar glades
occur as small openings scattered within the wooded bar-
rens. These habitats support several plant communities
and a high diversity of associated species. Several rare or
imperiled species have been located in this preserve, such
as prairie gentian (Gentiana puberulenta), Carolina lark-
spur (Delphinium carolinianum), and upland-privet (Fo-
restiera ligustrina). The total vascular flora was invento-
ried at the 156-acre site from fall 1996 through 1997. Col-
lections were made on a biweekly basis; specimens have
been identified and deposited in the WKU herbarium. All
data have been entered into the Index Kentuckiensis da-
tabase to obtain biogeographical and life-history infor-
mation. Results have been used to determine the number
of intrinsic, extrinsic, adventive, and disjunct species pres-
ent at the site. Biogeographical data were also used to
determine relative location and abundance of each species
within Kentucky. These results will be used to evaluate
the long-term health of the site and to provide data for
use as a comparison with other barrens and glades within
the karst region.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
Allosteric regulation of CPSase. AARON HAUBNER*
and JEFF DAVIDSON, Department of Microbiology and
Immunology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40506.
In mammals the multi-enzymatic protein CAD initiates
the first three steps in de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis.
This protein has three separated structural domains each
with a distinct enzymatic function. These domains are car-
bamoyl phosphate synthetase (CPSase), aspartate trans-
carbamylase (ATCase), and dihydroorotase (DHOase),
which represent the first three steps in the pyrimidine
biosynthetic pathway. The first is the glutamine-depen-
dent activity of the CPSase domain in which carbamyl
98 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
phosphate is produced from bicarbonate, ATP, and am-
monia and is driven by the hydrolysis of glutamine.
CPSase activity is allosterically inhibited through feedback
inhibition by UTP, the end product in the pyrimidine bio-
synthetic pathway, and is stimulated by 5-phosphoribosy-
1-pyrophosphate (PRPP), which is the substrate for the
fifth step in pyrimidine synthesis. Previous work has begun
to define the region involved in allosteric binding and its
importance in CPSase activity. Through a series of re-
placement and deletion mutations in the region encoding
the allosteric site of CPSase an allosterically altered
CPSase would be obtained. This altered CPSase may have
unique properties in its allosteric regulation. CAD-defi-
cient mammalian cells transfected with the new CAD are
to be utilized to obtain the allosterically-altered protein.
Through use of a radio-labeled linked enzyme assay,
CPSase activity in the presence or absence of varying
amounts of UTP and PRPP would be tested. By testing
the altered protein activity, the region involved in allo-
steric regulation CPSase will be better defined.
Analysis of spermatogenesis by a screen for x-linked
male-sterile insertional mutations in Drosophila melano-
gaster. BRENT J. PFEIFFER* and JOHN RAWLS, Uni-
versity of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
The Drosophila melanogaster spermatogenesis process
is a 10-day program of cellular events directed by a large
array of genes. A recent screen in the autosomes has re-
vealed a collection of genes involved in known human de-
fects. We have conducted a similar screen aimed at iden-
tifying spermatogenesis genes on the X chromosome of
Drosophila, using the transposable element P| 1wB]. This
transposon is distinguishable by the red eye (w+) phe-
notype and its mobilization is dependent upon the pres-
ence of transposase, which will be provided by the ele-
ment delta, 2-3. Most importantly, genes containing a in-
sertion of the P[|1wB] can be easily clone, using features
engineered into the transposon. Female flies bearing a
Curly (Cy) second chromosome containing. P[1wB] by
segregation by Cy and w+ among offspring (i.e., w+ non-
Cy females); then we tested whether the insertion event
of the transposon at a new site has created a mutation
affecting spermatogenesis. A total of 232,700 flies were
screened, resulting in the isolation of 546 w+ Cy+ fe-
males. Segregation analysis showed that 202 of the fe-
males bore X chromosome insertions of P| 1wB]. Subse-
quent analysis showed that 14 of these sex-linked muta-
tions are recessive lethals and another 18 are presumptive
male-sterile mutations. Further tests are underway to
characterize these male-sterile mutations, to identify
genes that are involved in the defects and the roles of
these genes during spermatogenesis.
Biochemical and functional analyses of the Neurospora
crassa mt a idiomorph. MELISSA L. PHILLEY,* De-
partment of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
Morehead State University, Morehead, KY 40351,
CHUCK STABEN, School of Biological Sciences, Uni-
versity of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
The Neurospora crassa mt a-1 gene encoding the MT
a-l polypeptide determines a mating type properties: veg-
etative incompatibility and sexual mating compatibility
with A mating type. The in vitro and in vivo functions of
the MT a-1 polypeptide and specific mutant derivatives
have been characterized. MT a-1 polypeptide produced in
Escherichia coli bound to specific DNA sequences whose
core was 5'-CTTTG-3". DNA binding was dependent on
an intact HMG box domain (a DNA binding domain
found in high mobility group proteins and a diverse set of
regulatory proteins). Mutations within the HMG box elim-
inated DNA binding in vitro and eliminated mating in vivo
but did not interfere with vegetative incompatibility func-
tion in vivo. Conversely, deletion of amino acids 216-220
of MT a-1 eliminated vegetative incompatibility, but it did
not affect mating or DNA binding. Deletion of the car-
boxyl terminal half of MT a-1 eliminated mating and veg-
etative incompatibility in vivo but not DNA binding in
vitro. These results suggest that mating depends upon the
ability of MT a-1 polypeptide to bind to and presumably
to regulate the activity of specific DNA sequences. How-
ever, the separation of vegetative incompatibility from
both mating and DNA binding indicates that vegetative
incompatibility and mating function by biochemically dis-
tinct mechanisms. Preliminary evidence suggests MT a-1
functions as a multimer to control a-specific functions.
Do interleukin-6 and glucocorticoids regulate rainbow
trout metallothionein gene transcription? JASON HAM-
MONDS* and CHRISTER HOGSTRAND, School of Bi-
ological Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40506.
Metallothionein (MT) is believed a play a role in the
redistribution of zinc from plasma to the liver in response
to infection and/or tissue injury. MT is a low molecular
weight, zinc-binding protein; its synthesis in the liver is
increased during stress and infection, apparently to in-
crease the hepatic zinc accumulatory capacity. The 5’-
flanking region of the rainbow trout MT-A gene contains
putative regulatory elements for glucocorticoids and in-
terleukin-6. Functionality of these cis elements has not yet
been illustrated. The purpose of our study is to investigate
the roles of glucocorticoids and IL-6 in MT gene tran-
scription activation. A reporter vector system was utilized
with different length MT promoters linked to a luciferase
reporter gene. One construct contains the putative IL-6
response element, putative glucocorticoid response ele-
ment, and six metal response elements (pMT-1042). The
truncated promoter lacks the IL-6 response element
(pGL-6MRE). These constructs are being transfected into
salmonid cell (CHSE-214) and transcription activation
with IL-6, glucocorticoids and various combinations of the
two are ongoing. The inducibility of the rainbow trout
MT-A gene by IL-6 and/or glucocorticoids would indicate
that MT is involved in the relocation of Zn in an immune
and a stress response.
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting 99
Effects of peroxynitrite on membrane and cytosolic pro-
teins. JENNIFER DRAKE,* TANUJA KOPPAL, LORI
BETTENHAUSEN, and D. ALLAN BUTTERFIELD,
Department of Chemistry and Center of Membrane Sci-
ences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
Nitric oxide, a free radical, is very unstable but a rela-
tively benign molecule. However, nitric oxide reacts with
superoxide to form a more damaging oxidant, peroxyni-
trite. Though peroxynitrite is not a free radical, it exhibits
hydroxyl radical-like reactivity and indiscriminately attacks
all biological components of the cell causing oxidation of
proteins, lipids, DNA, and other macromolecules. The
goal of our study was to examine damage caused by per-
oxynitrite to proteins of brain synaptosomal membrane
and erythrocyte membranes. Electron paramagnetic res-
onance (EPR) along with the protein-specific spin label,
2,2,6,6.-tetramethyl-4-maleimidopiperidine-1-oxy] (MAL-
6), was used to study the changes in the membrane pro-
tein structure. Peroxynitrite was synthesized by bubbling
ozone through sodium azide solution and constantly mon-
itoring the absorbance at 302 nm. Initially, time and dose
response studies with Mal-6 labeled synaptosomal mem-
brane were conducted. Ten minutes incubation of syn-
aptosomal membrane peroxynitrite caused significant de-
creases in the W/S ratio, a parameter indicating protein
oxidation. Increasing concentrations of peroxynitrite
caused increased protein oxidation. Similar trends in the
decrease of W/S ratios were observed in erythrocyte mem-
branes. Synaptosomal membrane were then pre-incubated
with the antioxidant glutathione before treatment with
peroxynitrite, which resulted in protection against protein
oxidation. The activity of glutamine synthetase (GS), a cy-
tosolic enzyme highly sensitive to protein oxidation, was
also determined after peroxynitrite treatments using the
GS Assay. The results of this study showed that 30 minutes
incubation of the enzyme with peroxynitrite led to a de-
crease in GS activity in proportion to increasing peroxy-
nitrite concentration. This study will lead to a better un-
derstanding of the damaging role of peroxynitrite in neu-
rodegenerative diseases.
Genetics of a bio-protective alkaloid in grass-endophyte
symbioses. ALLISON C. MALLORY,* HEATHER WIL-
KINSON, and C.L. SCHARDL, Department of Plant Pa-
thology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546.
Epichloe species and their asexual relatives, Neotyphod-
ium spp., are fungal endophytes living in symbiosis with
many temperate grasses (subfamily Pooideae). In these
mutualisms, the fungal symbionts protected their hosts
from biotic and abiotic stress factors, while the hosts pro-
vide an ecological niche for the symbionts. The biochem-
ical basis for many bioprotectives is several classes of al-
kaloids. One class, the saturated aminopyrrolizidines “lo-
lines,” are of great ecological and agricultural significance
because they provide protection from insect herbivores,
cause little or no toxicity to grazing mammals, and are
hypothesized to play a role in enhanced drought tolerance.
Furthermore, these compounds are unique to grass-en-
dophyte associations. Mendelian analysis of loline expres-
sion in F, and BC, generations of E. festucae in meadow
fescue suggests a single locus (LOL) governs this pheno-
type. Fingerprints of amplified polymorphic DNA (AFLP)
indicated polymorphic bands for the parents that segre-
gated among the progeny. Bands that consistently segre-
gated with lolines expression (<30% recombination) in
many progeny will constitute markers closely linked to
LOL. Putative markers and those yet to be identified will
be used in eventual map-based cloning of the locus. Fur-
thermore, culture conditions have been identified that
demonstrate that lolines are fungal metabolites. To date,
induction experiments using N. uncinatum reveal that lo-
lines expression (1) is qualitatively dependent on nitrogen
source and (2) involves similar kinetics across replicates,
with maximal expression between 19 and 27 days. Biolog-
ical materials generated from these induction experiments
will be used to further elucidate the genetics and bio-
chemistry of lolines expression.
In vitro translation of random transcripts generated by
terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase. MICHAEL L.
SPENCER* and CRAIG TUERK, Department of Bio-
logical and Environmental Sciences, Morehead State Uni-
versity, Morehead, KY 40351.
Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) is a tem-
plate independent DNA polymerase found in prelympho-
cytes. TdT is proposed to generate the N region during
V(D)J recombination by adding deoxynucleotides to a free
3’ end in a random manner. Here we use TdT to generate
a library that encodes for random proteins. TdT was used
to extend the oligo T3P in the presence of all four deoxy-
nucleotides. Maximum extensions were obtained in the
presence of 0.5 mM dNTP, 2 mM CoCl,, 2 mM BSA, and
supplementation of TdT and dNTP at the halfway point
of the reaction. We achieved extension lengths of over
1000 nucleotides. The extension product (called dNT3P)
was ployC tailed. Another oligo with T7 promoter se-
quences and polyG tail was annealed to the ployC dNT3P
product. Reverse transcriptase was used to fill in the an-
nealed oligos. T7 RNA polymerase was used to transcribe
the conversion product followed by treatment with
DNase. The resultant RNAs were converted to cDNA us-
ing reverse transcriptase and run through 35 cycles of
PCR. This step was necessary to eliminate any library
products that did not contain a T7 promoter followed by
a random region with a fixed 3’ primer annealing site. The
library was transcribed using T7 RNA polymerase and
translated in vitro to yield a range of random peptides,
30-50 kDa.
Lysophoshatidic acid induces apoptosis in NGF-differ-
entiated PC6 cells. WILLIAM J. FLUKER,* FRED-
RICK W. HOLTSBERG, and SHELDON M. STEINER,
School of Biological Sciences, University of Kentucky,
Lexington, KY 40506.
Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a novel lipid mediator
100
with a wide range of biological activities. The brain has
high levels of both LPA and its receptor. LPA induces
neurite retraction in nerve growth factor (NGF)-differ-
entiated PC12 cells, a tissue culture, neuron model sys-
tem. The current studies examined LPA-induced re-
sponses in NGF-differentiated PC6 cells, a clonal line of
PC12 cells. LPA induced apoptosis in PC6 cells within 24
hours as assessed by chromatin condensation and protec-
tion with a broad substrate caspase inhibitor, z-VAD-fmk.
Associated with apoptosis has been the increase in pro-
duction of nitric oxide (NO). LPA appears to mediate
apoptosis via nitric oxide since nitric oxide synthase inhib-
itors protect PC6 cells against LPA-induced apoptosis. In
contrast to typical LPA signaling, pertussis toxin did not
block LPA-induced apoptosis. Activation of signals at the
level of gene expression were then examined. NGF-dif-
ferentiated PC6 cells were treated with LPA and total
RNA was collected at various times. Certain mediators
such as c-fos and c-jun, that have been induced during
apoptosis, are examined by reverse-transcribed polymer-
ase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Further analysis of gene
products will continue to determine their role in LPA-
mediated apoptosis.
Mechanism for utilization of farnesol and geranylger-
aniol for protein isoprenylation in mammalian cells.
LONG B. THAI* and CHARLES J. WAECHTER, De-
partment of Biochemistry, University of Kentucky College
of Medicine, Lexington, KY 40536.
Research in the Waechter laboratory focuses on the elu-
cidation of how free farnesol (F-OH) and geranylgeraniol
(GG-OH) can be utilized for isoprenoid biosynthesis in
mammalian cells. When rat C6 glial cells and an African
green monkey kidney cell line (CV-1) were incubated with
[°H]F-OH, radioactivity was incorporated into cholesterol
and isoprenylated proteins. The incorporation of label
from [3H|F-OH into cholesterol in C6 and CV-1 cells are
blocked by squalestatin 1 (SQ) which specifically inhibits
the conversion of farnesyl pyrophosphate (F-P-P) to squa-
lene. This result strongly suggests that cholesterol, and
probably isoprenylated proteins, are metabolically labeled
via F-P-P. SDS-PAGE analysis of the delipidated protein
fractions from C6 and CV-1 cells, revealed several labeled
polypeptides. Consistent with these proteins being modi-
fied by isoprenylation of cysteine residues, Pronase E di-
gestion released a major labeled product with chromato-
graphic mobility of [*H]farnesylcysteine (F-Cys). A differ-
ent set of polypeptides was labeled when C6 and CV-1
cells were incubated with |[*H]GG-OH. Both sets of pro-
teins appear to be metabolically labeled by
[?H]mevalonolactone, and |*H]labeled F-Cys and geran-
ylgeranyl-cysteine (GG-Cys) were liberated from these
proteins by Pronase E treatment. In vitro experiments are
in progress, which use various ce!! homogenates and pos-
sible phosphoryl donors to detect the phosphorylation re-
actions converting F-OH and GG-OH to F-P-P.
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
Modulation of synaptic efficacy at the crayfish neuro-
muscular junction by a molting hormone (20-hydroxyec-
dysone). MARVIN E. RUFFNER* and ROBIN L. COO-
PER, School of Biological Sciences, University of Ken-
tucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
With quantal analysis of synaptic transmission the evi-
dence presented indicates that the active steroid molting
hormone 20-Hydroxyecdysone (20-HE) appears to be act-
ing through a rapid, non-genomic mechanism directly on
the motor nerve terminal to decrease the probability of
vesicular release in the presence of neural activity during
an intermolt stage in crayfish. The quantal analysis reveals
that fewer vesicles being released for a given stimulus
when 20-HE is present. This reduced synaptic efficacy
produces a smaller evoked postsynaptic current which in
turn results in a smaller excitatory postsynpatic potential
(EPSP) across the muscle fiber membrane. The presented
neurophysiological parameters are fitting with the behav-
ior of arthropods (insects and crustaceans) during their
molt cycle. This work attempts to demonstrate a presyn-
aptic site of action for ecdysteriods through a non-geno-
mic mechanism in reducing synaptic transmission. The ef-
fects of 20-HE can be reversed with application of the
crustacean neuromodulator serotonin (5-HT) which en-
hances synaptic transmission.
Nucleotide variation in isolates of equine infectious
anemia virus from donkeys infected with the Wyoming
strain. BRAD WILLIAMS,* CHARLES J. ISSEL, and R.
FRANK COOK, Department of Veterinary Science, Uni-
versity of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
Donkeys infected with the Wyoming strain of equine
infectious anemia (EIAV) do not exhibit the typical signs
of the infection as seen in horses infected with the virus.
However, at 18 days post inoculation (dpi) one donkey did
become positive for antibody against gp45 of ETAV ac-
cording to a synthetic antigen ELISA (SA-ELISA). Plasma
samples were taken from this donkey at various time
points throughout the infection, and presence of the virus
was detected by using PCR with primers specifically de-
signed to amplify the 3’ U3 enhancer region of the long
terminal repeat (LTR) of the EIAV genome. This region
was chosen because it is known to contain transcription
factor binding motifs important to viral replication and
because it is one of the few hypervariable regions of the
EIAV genome. The virus was detected at 210 dpi by first
stage PCR. The DNA was isolated and used to produce
clones, which were then sequenced. The sequences
showed some nucleotide variation compared to the con-
sensus sequence for the Wyoming 3’ LTR. Of these
changes, perhaps the most significant was a nucleotide
substitution that added a PEA-2 transcription factor bind-
ing site. When this same type of study was performed with
horses infected with EIAV, all the horses that showed clin-
ical signs of the disease had lost the PEA-2 transcription
factor binding motif.
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting
PCR-amplification of the CHD gene allows identifica-
tion of sex in house sparrows (Passer domesticus). EMILY
M. HALPIN* and DAVID F. WESTNEAT, School of Bi-
ological Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40506.
Under certain environmental conditions, for instance
when food is limited, parent birds may vary the sex ratio
of their offspring from the expected 1:1. Our understand-
ing of sex ratio evolution is, however, limited by our ability
to identify the sex of the offspring at as early an age as
possible. In house sparrows, it is impossible to determine
the sex nestlings using morphology or behavior. This
makes the study of juvenile sex ratio variation very diffi-
cult. Using amplification of blood samples, we can now
ascertain the sex of nestlings. PCR-amplification and poly-
acrylamide gel electrophoresis of DNA from house spar-
rows shows the presence of a unique CHD gene only on
the W chromosome. The W chromosome is only present
in female birds. Thus, this allows identifying the sex of
house sparrows as early as several days after fertilization.
Using blood samples from nestling house sparrows then
applying this technique, it can now be assessed whether
the parent birds are varying the sex ratio of their offspring.
The further study of sex ratio variation by parent birds has
many implications in the theory of evolution and in spe-
cies preservation.
Role of Prp38p in spliceosome maturation. ELIZA-
BETH OTTE* and BRIAN RYMOND, School of Biolog-
ical Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40506.
The spliceosome is a complex enzyme that catalyzes a
two-step reaction converting pre-messenger RNA (con-
taining introns) into mature mRNA (lacking introns). The
numerous protein and RNA subunits of the spliceosome
assemble in a defined order upon each intron substrate.
One of the protein subunits of the enzyme in the yeast
Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Prp38p, was discovered and
characterized by the Rymond lab as a factor necessary for
pre-mRNA splicing. In the absence of Prp3Sp, splicing is
arrested at a late stage of spliceosome maturation. Based
on previous studies, we propose that Prp38p facilitates a
conformational change within the spliceosome that per-
mits its essential U6 small nuclear RNA (snRNA) to be
properly placed within the active site of the enzyme. It is
our hypothesis that Prp38p promotes spliceosome matu-
ration through the release of the U6 snRNA from its in-
termolecular base pairing with the spliceosomal U4 sn-
RNA. To test this hypothesis, spliceosomes assembled in
the presence or absence of Prp38p were purified by affin-
ity chromatography and the state of U4/U6 helices ana-
lyzed by gel electrophoresis.
Synaptic activity and the regulation of mouse myosin
heave chain Ila. THOMAS E. BELL* and PHILIP H.
BONNER, School of Biological Sciences, University of
Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
101
The expression of the mouse muscle protein myosin
heavy chain Ia has been shown to be nerve tissue de-
pendent. (Stacey L. Smith, MS. Thesis, UK) This nerve
dependency can likely be attributed to either 1) synaptic
activity or 2) effects of some trophic factor released from
nerve terminals. Satellite cells and fibroblasts derived
from postnatal gastrocnemius and soleus muscles were
grown in tissue culture and the cells were formed into
small tissue-like aggregates. The aggregates were co-cul-
tured with newborn or fetal spinal cord explants. The co-
cultures were allowed to incubate for 10-12 days. The
muscle fibers in the co-cultures were often contractile and
intracellular recording using glass microelectrodes showed
the presence of action potentials. Upon addition of curare,
contraction and action potentials of active neuromuscular
junctions in the co-cultures. These curare-inhibitable fi-
bers were mapped for position and stained by immuno-
cytochemistry using an anti-MyHC Ha monoclonal anti-
body. Those fibers in which the contractile activity was
curare inhibited contained MyHC Wa. Uninnervated
mono-cultures showed little or no MyHC Ila. These data
suggest a correlation between curare sensitive, synaptic
activity and the upregulation of MyHC Ila synthesis.
Synthesis of a cell specific cell-cell cross-linker. CHRIS-
TOPHER J. BORTHS* and BOYD E. HALEY, Depart-
ment of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
40506.
Previous research in this laboratory has shown the ex-
istence of a nucleotide binding site on antibodies. This site
is in the variable region of both the heavy and light chains
at a location of conserved aromatic residues. The binding
of a nucleotide, like adenosine triphosphate (ATP), does
not diminish the antigen recognition of the antibody. By
using the nucleotide binding site as a point of attachment,
it is possible to attach a drug to an antibody. This would
allow the drug to specifically interact with the cell targeted
by the antibody as well as adjacent cells. The synthesis of
a nucleotide derivative coupling 8-N,ATP to ouabain was
performed to test the attachment of a drug to an antibody.
Once coupled to the antibody, the synthesized nucleotide
derivative would allow antigen recognition by the antibody
as well as present a biologically active ouabain. The oua-
bain can bind to the free NA*t/K*-ATPase of adjacent
cells, doing so with a dissociation constant of about 10~°
molar, thereby cross-linking two cells. The agglutination
of cross-linked cells would then be easily removed from
the body. This system provides a means of targeting a
specific cell type, like a cancer cell, and removing the cell.
The final product has been synthesized but has not yet
been fully characterized. It has shown biological activity
similar to free ouabain, but NMR and antibody binding
studies have not been completed.
CHEMISTRY
Synthesis of a homologous series of N,N ’-bis(1-naph-
thylmethylidene)-alpha,omega-diaminoalkanes. JOHN L.
MEISENHEIMER* and NDOFUNSU M. BADIKA,
102
Department of Chemistry, Eastern Kentucky University,
Richmond, KY 40475.
A homologous series of diimines, described as N,N’-
bis(1-naphthylmethylidene)-alpha,omega-diaminoalkanes,
was prepared to be used in a synthetic sequence that will
lead to a variety of new heterocyclic compounds. In the
course of determining the nature of these compounds, two
interesting physical properties were observed. The melt-
ing points vary substantially with respect to an odd or even
number of “alkane-type” carbons in the molecule. They
follow the usual pattern of relatively higher melting points
with an even number of carbons even though this portion
of the molecule is only a very small fraction of the total
formula weight. The 'H NMR shows only six aromatic
hydrogens per naphthyl group in their usual region of ab-
sorption, 7-8 ppm units down-field from the TMS refer-
ence, rather than the seven hydrogens per naphthyl group
that are obviously present. There is, however, an addition-
al proton absorption for two protons further downfield in
the region of the anisotropically deshielded hydrogens of
the two imine functions. It is our hypothesis that this ab-
sorption behavior is a result of an intramolecular associ-
ation of the number eight hydrogens of the naphthyl
groups with the lone-pair electrons on the imine nitro-
gens. We term this an example of “impositional hydrogen-
bonding.” We present a computer-generated molecular
model that clearly indicates the proximity of the number
eight hydrogens of the naphthyl groups to the imine ni-
trogens.
GEOLOGY
Comparison of land drainage with joint systems. DAN-
IEL S. BRYANT, Department of Physical Sciences, More-
head State University, Morehead, KY 40351.
Segments of meandering streams appear to follow pat-
terns believed to be directly related to systematic jointing.
In our field work we used simple techniques: a Brunton
compass to find trends of the joints and a protractor to
measure trends of segments of the Little Sandy River in
locations on the Ashland and Argillite, Kentucky, 7 %-min-
ute topographic quadrangles. The data were then analyzed
to demonstrate that jointing correlates well with the ge-
ometry of meandering streams. Joints are generally ver-
tical or nearly vertical planar rock fractures with no ap-
preciable movement. They originate by tensional stress or
the release of elastically stored stresses over a given area.
Joints occur in sets that are parallel and usually coincide
with a set perpendicular or nearly so to each other. If two
or more sets of joints occur, then the pattern is referred
to as a joint system. This pattern is compared to the
changing directions of the meandering stream studied. To
obtain data, we located many outcrops in the area and
measured the joint directions. Also, the linear segments
of the stream were measured on the map with a protrac-
tor. Both data sets were plotted on a rose diagram to find
four mean directions, each of which was within about 1
degree difference, demonstrating that the part of the Lit-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
tle Sandy River studied appears to be controlled by joint-
ing.
The Kinderhookian-Osage (lower Mississippian) bound-
ary in southeastern Ohio based on conodonts. ARLINDA
J. FANNIN* and CHARLES E. MASON, Department of
Physical Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead,
KY 40351.
The Kinderhookian-Osagean boundary in southeastern
Ohio has been a topic of debate for many years. We
sought to locate this boundary by using conodont biostra-
tigraphy. The boundary, in the area of Morehead, Ken-
tucky, has previously been identified using conodonts to
occur in the basal 25-50 cm of the Borden Formation.
We focused on an equivalent interval found along Ohio
route 32 at the Adams and Pike county line. All samples
were collected from mudstone intervals within the basal
3 m of the Henley Member of the Cuyahoga Formation.
Seven 5-kg samples were processed and examined for con-
odonts. The first set, three samples, was taken from the
basal 10 em, a 30-cm interval above the dolostone bed,
and a 30-cm interval below the first siltstone bed. The 30-
cm sample above the dolostone bed contained conodonts
from both the uppermost Kinderhook and lowermost Os-
agean conodont biozones. To locate the boundary more
precisely, we took the second set, four samples, at 10-cm
intervals above the dolostone bed. The second sample
contained elements from both the Siphonodalla isosticha-
upper crenulata zone from the uppermost Kinderhookian
and lower Gnathodus typicus zone from the lowermost
Osagean. Thus the boundary between the Kinderhookian
and the Osagean series in southeastem Ohio occurs be-
tween 0.56 and 0.66 m above the base of the Henley
Member of the Cuyahoga Formation.
Mineral composition of fossil cephalopod hard parts
from the lower Mississippian of Kentucky. CODY
BLACKBURN,* Department of Physical Sciences, More-
head State University, Morehead, KY 40351; R. THOMAS
LIERMAN, Department of Geography and Geology, Uni-
versity of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40251; CHARLES E.
MASON, Department of Physical Sciences, Morehead
State University, Morehead, KY 40351.
The mineral composition of fossil cephalopod hard
parts from the lower Mississippian of Kentucky is believed
to be original hard parts (aragonite). Currently the oldest
reported original hard parts in the world have come from
the lower Pennsylvanian-age Kendrick Shale found in
eastern Kentucky. The specimens examined came from
two areas. The first was a nautiloid from the Big Hill sec-
tion, Madison County, Kentucky; the second was an am-
monoid from along U.S. 127 just south of Liberty, Casey
County, Kentucky. The specimens were collected from the
basal part of the Nancy Member of the Borden Forma-
tion. The composition of modern cephalopod samples,
namely Nautilus, Sepia, and cuttle fish, and inorganic min-
eral samples of aragonite were used to establish a basis
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting
for comparison. The known samples along with unknown
cephalopod samples were crushed with a glass mortar and
pestle. The samples were then passed through a small-
mesh sieve. After drying they were run through a dry sieve
and scattered onto microscope slides painted with nail
polish (to hold the small fragments in random orienta-
tion). The samples were then run through the X-ray dif-
fractometer to determine their composition. The samples
in question were then compared to the known samples.
The nautiloid samples from Madison County were deter-
mined to be calcite rather than aragonite. However, the
ammonoid samples from Casey County showed strong but
not conclusive evidence of aragonite.
Mountain bog soils: Kentucky’s missing histosols? DE-
METRIO P. ZOURARAKIS,* A. (TASOS) KARATHAN-
ASIS, and MARC EVANS, Kentucky Division of Conser-
vation, Department for Natural Resources, 663 Teton
Trail, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Hearing news of the discovery of previously undocu-
mented bogs in Cumberland and Pine Mountain, we spec-
ulated that organic soils, or Histosols, unknown to occur
in Kentucky might be present in these unique, relict eco-
systems. A visit was organized to bogs within the Cum-
berland Gap Historic Park, where Sherri’s Bog and others
were visited. This is a bog complex, large enough to be
open to the sun, and characterized by dense mats of moss-
es and herbaceous vegetation. Unlike most of the bogs,
which occur near the heads of drainages (hollows) close
to the top of the mountain crest, this relatively large com-
plex occurs in the floodplains adjacent to streams. Woody
vegetation ranged from scattered individual shrubs or sap-
lings to rarely dense stands of shrubs, with large trees
rarely occurring. Thick cushions of mosses carpet parts of
the bog. Typical or characteristic plants, like many sedges
and rushes, as well as uncommon or rare plants also exist.
Soil profile descriptions and total carbon data of samples
taken at two contrasting sites, characterized by the abun-
dance of fern muck and moss peat, respectively, show the
predominance of organic horizons in these profiles. The
information available thus far gives support to the hypoth-
esis that these are, in fact, previously unclassified soils,
representing inclusions in the official Soil Survey of Bell
and Harlan counties.
A new Middle Devonian (Givetian) ammonoid fauna
from the Boyle Dolomite of central Kentucky. CHARLES
E. MASON,* Department of Physical Sciences, More-
head State University, Morehead, KY 40351; GLEN C.
BARNETT, 255 Old Flemingsburg Road, Morehead, KY
40351: DAVID M. WORK, Nevada State Museum, Car-
son City, NV 89701.
The Middle Devonian (Givetian) ammonoids of our
study were first discovered as silica-replaced casts in re-
sidual soils derived from the Boyle Dolomite in a tobacco
field located near the southwest corner of the Hedges 7-
1/2’ quadrangle, Clark County, Kentucky. An additional
103
specimen was discovered as float in a nearby stream. The
Boyle Dolomite ranges from 5 to 6 feet in this area and
is underlain unconformably by the Bisher Dolomite and
conformably overlain by the Ohio Shale. It consists pre-
dominantly of dolomite and chert with minor interbeds of
shale. The Boyle ammonoid fauna includes Pharciceras sp.
aff., Pharciceras tridens (Sandberger), Pharciceras n. sp.,
Tornoceras n. sp., and gen. et sp. indet. Pharciceras is the
dominant element of this fauna in both diversity (two spe-
cies) and abundance (12 out of 14 specimens). Collective-
ly, these ammonoids indicate reference to the classical
Pharciceras Stufe of latest Givetian age. This represents
the first report of Pharciceras sensu strictu in North
America and the first reported Devonian ammonoids from
Kentucky. Pharciceras Stufe faunas containing elements
similar or common to the Boyle fauna are known from
North Africa, Spain, and Germany.
Paleoecology and taphonomy of a Middle Ordovician
edrioasteroid firmground, central Kentucky. B. NICHO-
LAS GARLAND* and FRANK R. ETTENSOHN, De-
partment of Geological Sciences, University of Kentucky,
Lexington, KY 40506.
This paper details the plight of a Middle Ordovician
community that was rapidly buried and subsequently fos-
silized in the Sulphur Well Member of the Lexington
Limestone near Danville, Kentucky. Of major concern in
this community is a group of extinct echinoderms known
as edrioasteroids. These relatively small animals lived as
epifaunal filter feeders, primarily on brachiopod valves
atop marine firmgrounds and hardgrounds. The edrioas-
teroid in our study, Cystaster stellatus, largely used the
shells of the brachiopod Rafinesquina “alternata” as its
substrate and occurs in such great numbers on this firm-
ground as to enable a study of its paleoecology and ta-
phonomy. The disarticulated, convex-up position of most
Rafinesquina valves suggests that the valves were trans-
ported to the locality, because the living animal is normally
bivalved and lives in a convex-down position. Cystaster
stellatus demonstrates a marked tendency to cluster near
the elevated central portion of the brachiopod shells, pre-
sumably to elevate themselves higher into the water col-
umn. If the brachiopods had been alive at the time, it is
more likely that the edrioasteroids would have congregat-
ed near the margins of the shells where food-rich waters
were being drawn into the shells. This evidence suggests
that the edrioasteroids colonized the firmground to gain a
feeding advantage shortly after the dead, disarticulated
brachiopod shells were transported onto the surface. Ed-
rioasteroids appear to have been relatively fragile animals
containing only a few small plates as hardparts. These
plates readily dissociated after death, making preservation
uncommon. Thus, the fact that so many edrioasteroids are
well preserved on this surface indicates that the surface
experienced rapid burial by fine-grained sediment. Most
likely, the sediment was deposited after an intense storm
moved through the area, churning the upper levels of the
shallow sea. In the aftermath, the edrioasteroid commu-
104
nity was left buried. Hence, preservation of this surface
allows us to peer for an instant in geological time at the
life of a unique and extremely rare sea-bottom commu-
nity—a Middle Ordovician edrioasteroid firmground.
Range extension of the Kinderhookian age-AA fauna in
southeastern Ohio and northeastern Kentucky. RYAN L.
WARD* and CHARLES E. MASON, Department of
Physical Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead,
KY 40351.
The fauna found in the basal part of the Borden For-
mation is a dysaerobic fauna of uppermost Kinderhookian
age and is composed predominantly of pyrite-replaced ju-
venile mollusks. Its original discovery was along the AA
highway at the Brightman Cemetery section in Lewis
County, Kentucky. A recent study has extended its range
north to Shawnee State Park in Ohio. Our study deter-
mined that the geographic range of this fauna does extend
farther than previously known along the strike of its out-
crop belt to the northeast and southwest. Three areas
were sampled: near the entrance of Shawnee State Park,
along Ohio 32 at the Pike and Adams county line, and
along 1-64 at mile-post 135. After the bulk samples were
dried, a 5-kg subsample was extracted for processing. All
samples were then soaked in kerosene for 24 hours. The
kerosene was decanted and water was added. The samples
were then wet-sieved using U.S. standard #20 and #140
nested sieves. The remaining sample was dried, and the
material caught on the #20 sieve was examined under a
binocular microscope. The Shawnee sample, found earlier
to contain the AA Fauna, was used for comparison in this
study. The Ohio 32 sample, although weathered, had the
AA Fauna in abundance, thus extending the range along
strike northeast 20 miles. The I-64 sample, heavily weath-
ered, also contained elements of the AA Fauna, thus ex-
tending the range along strike southwest 34 miles. This
fauna has now been found to persist 65 miles along strike
in the basal 10-12 centimeters of the Henley Bed of the
Farmers Member of the Borden Formation.
Retrospective view of Kentucky's 1992 Professional Ge-
ologist Registration Act. JOHN C. PHILLEY, Depart-
ment of Physical Sciences, Morehead State University,
Morehead, KY 40351.
After nearly 2 decades of effort, a law was enacted by
the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1992 to provide for
the registration of geologists engaging in the public prac-
tice of geology. The law provides for a five-member Board
of Registration for Professional Geologists, which admin-
isters the provisions of the law and serves ca. 2000 reg-
istered geologists. The Division of Occupations and Pro-
fessions within the Department of Administration in the
Finance Cabinet provides office space and assistance for
the Board. The Board has established various administra-
tive regulations and has adopted the licensing examina-
tions developed and maintained by the National Associa-
tion of State Boards of Geology. The success of registra-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
tion candidates on the licensing examinations may have
significant implications for assessing the effectiveness of
undergraduate degree-granting geology programs.
HEALTH SCIENCE
Effects of dietary energy restriction and exercise on
body weight of female rats. DAMON SHARP,* YI
ZHANG, and CHANGZHENG WANG, Human Nutri-
tion Program, Community Research Service, Kentucky
State University, Frankfort, KY 40601.
To study the combined effects of energy restriction and
exercise on body weight reduction, 60 female Fischer 344
rats (7 months old) were randomly assigned into six groups
of 10 each in a 2 X 3 factorial experiment. The control
group was fed the control diet (AIN-93M). The R80 and
R60 groups were fed the R80 diet and R60 diet at 80%
and 60% of the average intake of the control. The R80
and R60 diets provided the same amounts of protein, min-
erals, and vitamins but only 80% and 60% of the energy
consumed by the control. The intake of exercising groups
was matched to the corresponding non-exercising groups.
The exercise groups were trained to run on a treadmill
for 30 min/day, 5 daysAveek at the speed of 30 m/min.
The non-exercising groups were kept in the treadmill
without running for the same amount of time. All rats
were fed daily and weighed every other day. Body weight
of the control group did not change during the 10-week
period, but body weights of R80 and R60 groups de-
creased. Starting at week 4, body weight of the exercising
groups became lower than the corresponding non-exer-
cising groups. At the end of the experiment, body weights
of R80 and R60 groups were reduced from their initial
body weight by 10% and 26%, respectively. Exercise
caused additional body weight reduction. Therefore, com-
bining energy restriction and exercise resulted in more
weight reduction than energy restriction or exercise alone.
Effects of dietary energy restriction with exercise on
bone mineral content and bone mineral density in Fischer
344 rats. YI ZHANG* and CHANGZHENG WANG, Hu-
man Nutrition Program, Kentucky State University,
Frankfort, KY 40601
We determined the effects of energy restriction with
exercise on the skeleton of rats. Sixty female Fischer 344
rats (7 month old) were randomly assigned into six groups
of 10 each in a 2 x 3 factorial experiment. The control
group was fed the control diet (AIN-93M). The R80 and
R60 groups were fed the R80 diet and R60 diet at 80%
and 60% of the average intake of the control. The R80
and R60 diets provided the same amounts of protein, min-
erals and vitamins but only 80% and 60% of the energy
consumed by the control. The intake of exercising groups
were matched to the corresponding non-exercising
groups. The exercise groups were trained to run on a
treadmill for 30 min/day, 5 daysAveek at the speed of 30
m/min. The non-exercising groups were kept in the tread-
mill without running for the same amount of time. Rats
were scanned on a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometer
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting
(DEXA) with both the total body scan mode and the ap-
pendicular scan mode at week 0, 5, and 10. Bone mineral
content and bone density of the total body, femur bone,
and the L2-L5 lumbar vertebrates were similar for the
exercising groups compared to the corresponding non-ex-
ercising groups. The RSO and R60 groups had lower bone
mineral content and bone density than the control group.
Our results indicated that energy restriction in both levels
resulted in significant bone loss and that exercise did not
prevent bone loss under the condition of this study.
Precision of rat bone density measured by dual-energy
X-ray absorptiometer. JASMIHN WOODARD,* YI
ZHANG, and CHANGZHENG WANG, Human Nutri-
tion Program, Community Research Service, Kentucky
State University, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Dual energy X-ray absorptiometer (DEXA) offers a
powerful research tool to monitor bone density of animals
and human subjects. We determined the precision of bone
density determined by DEXA. Twelve female Fischer 344
rats were anesthetized before they were scanned twice
each with the small animal total body mode and then the
appendicular mode. In the total body mode, a region of
interest was defined to measure bone mineral content,
bone area, and bone density of the right and left femur.
In the appendicular mode, only the right femur was mea-
sured for these parameters. Total body tissue mass deter-
mined by DEXA was consistently higher than actual body
weight of the rats, and the two variables were closely cor-
related (r? = 0.96). The repeatability of bone mineral con-
tent, bone area, and bone density were 0.82, 0.72, and
0.73 for the total body scan. Measurements on the right
and the left femur determined with the total body scan
were correlated. Bone density of the right fermur mea-
sured by the appendicular mode was highly correlated
with that determined by the total body scan. These results
indicate that DEXA can measure rat bone mineral con-
tent, bone area, and bone density with acceptable preci-
sion. Only one femur needs to be measured because the
similarity between the left and right femur. Bone density
of the femur can be determined from total body scan.
MATHEMATICS
Effect of closed lab on retention and achievement in
CS1 course. CAROL W. WILSON, Department of Com-
puter Science, Western Kentucky University, Bowling
Green, KY 42101.
The CS1 closed laboratory course provides a structured
and supervised environment in which beginning program-
ming students have an opportunity for hands-on reinforce-
ment and exploration of the topics being covered in lec-
ture. Spurred by national curriculum recommendations,
many schools implemented closed labs for their entry-lev-
el classes in the early 1990s. Most research on effective-
ness of the closed lab has been anecdotal rather than em-
pirical. We conducted a causal-comparative study with 8
semesters of data to determine if there was a statistically
significant difference in achievement and retention be-
105
tween the students who were enrolled in both my lecture
and lab sections and the students who were enrolled in
only my lecture section. The sample was a sample of con-
venience: the students enrolled in my classes. The lecture-
only control group contained 247 students; the lecture-&-
lab treatment group, 115 students. Calculated over all 8
semesters, the retention rate of the lab-&-lecture students
was a statistically significant 13.33% higher than the lec-
ture-only students. When achievement was reported as a
percentage grade, the lecture-&-lab students scored
1.75% higher than the lecture-only students. This was not
statistically significant.
PHYSIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
Antioxidant activity of resveratrol. D.J. SAXON* and
D.T. MAGRANE, Department of Biological and Environ-
mental Sciences, Morehead, KY 40351.
A low-density lipoprotein (LDL)/very low-density lipo-
protein (VLDL) fraction was isolated by ultracentrifuga-
tion from the plasma of rats maintained on a 5% choles-
terol diet. Aliquots of lipoprotein containing 200 4M cho-
lesterol were oxidized for 24 hr at 37°C in the presence
of 10 ~M CuSO, in phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4,
containing either resveratrol or ethanol (control). Lipid
peroxide formation was then determined by measuring
thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS). Antioxi-
dant activity (AOA) was calculated with the following for-
mula: AOA = (100)(TBARScowrno, — TBABSnrsvenarnon/
TBARSontrot: When 1, 5, or 10 1M resveratrol was add-
ed at the beginning of the oxidation reaction, the resver-
atrol inhibited oxidation of the lipoprotein in a
dose-dependent manner. The AOA of 10 &M resveratrol
was 63%. A delay of 1 hr before the addition of 10 4M
resveratrol to the oxidation reaction did not reduce the
antioxidant capability of resveratrol, but a delay of 2 hr
before the addition of 10 4M resveratrol did reduce the
AOA. Pre incubation of 10 ~M resveratrol with the lipo-
protein for 4 hr before the addition of CuSO, did not
increase the AOA of resveratrol.
Antioxidant effects of tamoxifen. D.T. MAGRANE*
and D.J. SAXON, Department of Biological and Environ-
mental Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead,
KY 40351.
Although estrogens have been reported to act as anti-
oxidants, the effect of the estrogen blocker tamoxifen
(TAM) on lipoprotein oxidation, has not been studied. A
low-density and very low-density lipoprotein fraction was
isolated by ultracentrifugation from the plasma of rats
maintained on a 5% cholesterol diet. Lipoprotein aliquots
containing 200 wg cholesterol were oxidized for up to 24
hr at 37°C in the presence of 10 wM CuSO, in phosphate-
buffered saline, pH 7.4, containing either TAM or ethanol
(control). Lipid peroxide formation was then determined
by measuring thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances
(TBARS). Antioxidant activity (AOA) was calculated with
the following formula: AOA = (100)(TBARSconrro. —
TBARS amoxiren)/T BARScontrrot- When 1, 5, or 10 4M
106
of TAM was added at the beginning of the oxidation re-
action, inhibition of lipoprotein oxidation was dose-depen-
dent. The AOA of 10 wM TAM was 70%. If the addition
of 10 tM TAM was delayed 1 hr after the oxidation re-
action was initiated by Cu?*, the AOA was not reduced
when measured at 2 and 4 hours. However, if TAM was
delayed 2 hr, lipoprotein oxidation was reduced. Pre-in-
cubation of 10 wM TAM with lipoprotein for 4 hr before
the addition of Cu2*, did not increase AOA of TAM.
Effects of glycosylation on functional properties of skel-
etal muscle and cardiac sodium channels. YZHANG,* D.
SPECK, and J. SATIN, Department of Physiology, Uni-
versity of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536.
The effects of glycosylation on cloned rat skeletal mus-
cle wl and human cardiac hH1 Na* channels were stud-
ied with and without pretreatment of glycosidases in w1
and hH1 transfected HEK 293 cells using whole-cell and
cell-attached patch clamp. In 1 transfected groups, pre-
treatment of endoglycosidases castanospermine (100 pg/
ml) and swainsonine (500 ng/ml) as well as exoglycosidase
neuraminidase (0.15 U/ml) caused significant shifts of Vy,
for steady-state activation to depolarization direction (A V
= ~6 mV). For hH1 groups, castanospermine (100 \g/
ml) pretreatment also caused about 6 mV depolarization
shift of V,, for steady-state activation. For steady-state in-
activation, endoglycosidase pretreatment resulted in a
small shift of V,, to hyperpolarizing direction in w1, but a
big depolarizing shift of V,, in hH1. The possible role of
charge-screening effect in glycosidase-induced depolariza-
tion shift of V,, for steady-state activation was investigated
with addition of extracellular divalent cation (Mg?**). For
w1 transfected cells, castanospermine pretreatment sig-
nificantly reduced Mg?* (3~30 mM)—elicited depolariza-
tion shift of V,, for steady-state activation when compared
to the situation in control. These data suggest (1) that
glycosylation of 1 and hH1 sodium channels could reg-
ulate cell excitability by differentially altering activation
and inactivation kinetics in these two channel isoforms
and (2) that the effect of glycosylation on activation be-
havior is at least partly through charge-screening mecha-
nism. We are testing if treatment of glycosidase could
change the gating current, as well as the single channel
conductance and opening probability in wl and hH1
transfected cells.
Effects of non-mammalian antidiuretic hormone, argi-
nine vasotocin, on developing American bullfrogs, Rana
catesbeiana. ENDANG L. WIDIASTUTI and JOHN J.
JUST,* Department of Biological Sciences, University of
Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506.
When tadpoles are injected with arginine vasotocin
(AVT), the body weight increases (a tadpole “Brunn ef-
fect”). To understand whether the Brunn effect is caused
in part by AVT’s action on the mesonephric kidney, 170
tadpoles were cannulated prior to 10-° M AVT injection.
Two groups of tadpoles, Taylor-Kollros stage T-K VII-XV
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
and T-K XVI-XIX, treated with AVT had urine formation
rates (UFRs) (2.4 + 0.5 or 6.1 + 1.2 pl/g/hr) significantly
lower than the UFRs of vehicle injected controls (8.9 +
0.9 or 10.7 + 1.6 pl/g/hr). Two AVT receptor (V, or V,)
antagonists were injected with AVT. Neither antagonist
prevents a decrease in UFR caused by AVT (V, = 1.9 +
1.2 pl/g/hr, V, = 0.9 + 0.5 wl/g/hr) in young tadpoles (T-
K VII-XV) but both antagonists inhibited the AVT action
in older tadpoles (T-K XX-XXV) as indicated by elevated
UFRs (V, = 13.4 + 3.8 wl/e/hr, V, = 16.0 + 11.5 pV/o/
hr). Thus the mesonephros of older tadpoles has two re-
ceptors (V, and V,) for AVT and a third unknown AVT
receptor exists in kidneys of the youngest tadpoles. Just
like AVT, dehydration of tadpoles also decreases the UFR
at all stages. The V, and V, receptor antagonists do not
show the same response in dehydrated tadpoles as they
did in AVT injected tadpoles. This suggests that dehydra-
tion in tadpoles does not cause a decrease in UFR by only
causing a release of AVT from the posterior pituitary but
must bring about the decrease in UFR by other hormonal
or physiological modulations.
Partial characterization of Na*,K*-ATPase and its gill
and antennal gland osmoregulatory role in the crayfish,
Orconectes putnami. M.E, FULTZ* and D.T. MA-
GRANE, Department of Biological and Environmental
Sciences, Morehead, KY 40351.
Crayfish living in a hyposmotic environment excrete co-
pious amounts of very hyposmotic urine. Ionic homeosta-
sis must be maintained by absorption of ions across the
gills and reabsorption of ions from the urine by the an-
tennal gland. The enzyme responsible for this absorption
is Nat,Kt-ATPase. Orconectes putnami were placed in
distilled water, 8.75, 17.5, or 25.5 g¢ NaCl/liter following
acclimation to distilled water. Three crayfish were sampled
every 2 days. Antennal gland and gill activity as well as
Na* concentrations in urine and hemolymph were mea-
sured. Antennal gland as well as gill Na*,K*-ATPase ac-
tivity decreased as salt in the media increased. In distilled
water, urine was very dilute (0.17 mg/ml Na* after 10
days) but became more concentrated as the external me-
dia concentration increased (4.15 mg/ml in Na* after 10
days exposed to 17.5 g/liter NaCl). As the salt concentra-
tion increased in the media, hemolymph Na‘ slightly in-
creased from 2.42 mg/ml in distilled water to 3.16 mg/ml
in 17.5 g/liter NaCl media. Although O. Putnami are able
to osmoregulate and tolerate saline conditions, this toler-
ance was not seen at 5.5 NaCViter since all crayfish died
within 5 days.
Proliferation and apoptosis in livers of rats receiving ta-
moxifen and 7,12 dimethylbenzanthracene. J. CARTER,*
M. HARTIG, J. ORZALI, A. ARNSPERGER, O. WHIT-
FORD, B. HURST, and D. WARSHAWSKY, Wood Hud-
son Cancer Research Laboratory, Newport, KY 41071 and
Department of Environmental Health, University of Cin-
cinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267.
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting
Tamoxifen (TAM), a nonsteroidal antiestrogen used to
treat breast cancer, may be a breast cancer chemopre-
ventive agent. After oral doses, high levels of TAM are
found in livers of women and rats. TAM is a genotoxic
hepatocarcinogen in rats. To investigate hepatotoxic ef-
fects of TAM and its effects on metabolism of the breast
carcinogen 7,12 dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA),
Sprague Dawley female rats were pretreated for 7 days
with TAM (0.3 mg/day) then given DMBA (20 mg/rat).
TAM treatment continued for 7 days. Some animals were
untreated and others received vehicle, or TAM, or
DMBA, alone. Apoptosis was detected in histologic sec-
tions by the TUNEL method and cell proliferation by im-
munohistochemical detection of proliferating cell nuclear
antigen (PCNA). Relative to untreated controls, treatment
with TAM, DMBA, or TAM + DMBA increased the rel-
ative liver weight and alkaline phosphatase activity in the
liver. TAM reduced the specific activities of cathepsin D
and B-glucuronidase. Hepatocyte proliferation and apop-
tosis were not significantly altered in rats given TAM
alone. Apoptosis was significantly increased in livers of rats
1 day after receiving DMBA, and cell proliferation was
increased seven-fold 7 days after DMBA. Since DMBA is
not a hepatocarcinogen, whereas TAM is hepatocarcino-
genic, these data suggest that cell proliferation is not a
major risk factor for liver cancer in this model.
Skeletal participation in calcium homeostasis in the ad-
olescent male rat. D.L. DEMOSS* and G.L. WRIGHT,
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
Morehead State University, Morehead, KY 40351; De-
partment of Physiology, Marshall University School of
Medicine, Huntington, WV 25704.
Adolescent Sprague Dawley male rats were labeled with
3H tetracycline and fed diets containing various amounts
of calcium in an attempt to monitor calcium homeostasis
indirectly via bone turnover. Calcium flux from the amor-
phous/bone fluid compartment and resorption of calcified
bone were monitored along with various anatomical pa-
rameters (body mass, individual bone mass, 3H-tetracy-
cline content and calcium content) to provide insight into
regulation of calcium homeostasis at both skeletal and or-
gan levels. As dietary calcium decreased in concentration
from 5% to 0.02%, no effect was observed on body mass,
but an independent graduated response was detected for
both the bone fluid and calcified compartments. This de-
creasing calcium-stimulated response initially affected the
bone fluid compartment in an attempt to maintain extra-
cellular calcium concentration, but as dietary calcium con-
tinued to decrease, calcified bone was called upon to de-
fend plasma calcium levels. Anatomically, the effect of de-
creasing dietary calcium appears to preferentially affect
the appendicular skeleton initially to balance plasma cal-
cium levels and sacrifices bone from the axial skeleton
secondarily, and more dramatically only in the face of a
severe calcium deficiency.
107
Tamoxifen inhibits the growth of DU145 human pros-
tate cancer cells in vitro. V. BORUSKE, J. SHERIDAN,
M. HARTIG, P. REES,* and J. CARTER, Wood Hudson
Cancer Research Laboratory, Newport, KY 41071.
Synthetic estrogens have been used to treat advanced
prostate cancer and are thought to reduce testosterone
synthesis by suppressing luteinizing hormone-releasing-
factor stimulation of the pituitary gland. Evidence has re-
cently been presented that the synthetic estrogen dieth-
ylstilbestrol (DES) has a direct cellular effect on several
androgen insensitive human prostate cell lines including
DU145. DU145 cells were isolated from a brain metas-
tases in a patient with widespread metastatic prostate can-
cer who was being treated with DES. Growth of DU145
cells was altered when the indicator dye phenol red was
absent from the media. Since phenol red has estrogen-like
activity on some cultured cells, the antiestrogen tamoxifen
(TAM) was tested for growth inhibitory effects on andro-
gen resistant DU145 cells. The immortalized human
breast cell line MCF-10F was used as a positive control.
Cells were plated in 96 well plates at 1,000 cells per well.
After 24 hours the medium was replaced by a medium
containing TAM (2.2 x 10-°—2.2 X 10-4 M). Cell growth
was monitored by a non-radioactive cell proliferation assay
that utilized bioreduction of the tetrazolium compound
MTS (Promega, Madison, WI) as a measure of cell num-
ber. Growth was inhibited over 3 days of TAM treatment
in a dose dependent manner in both cell lines in the pres-
ence of phenol red; however, growth arrest was not as-
sociated with apoptosis under these conditions.
PSYCHOLOGY
Individual differences in dysphoria: relations to apprais-
als, coping, and adjustment. DANIEL R. STRUNK* and
EDWARD C. CHANG, Department of Psychology,
Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY
41099.
Previous research has shown that individual differences
in dysphoria are significantly linked to global life satisfac-
tion but has yet to consider the potential confounding in-
fluence of appraisals and coping activities. Our study at-
tempted to address this issue by examining the influence
of dysphoria on appraisals, coping, and global life satisfac-
tion in 361 college students. Results indicated that even
after controlling for the potential confounding influence
of appraisals and coping, dysphoria remained a significant
predictor of global life satisfaction.
SCIENCE EDUCATION
Mandatory environmental education; a case for support.
JOHN G. SHIBER, Division of Biological Sciences, Uni-
versity of Kentucky, Prestonsburg Community College,
Prestonsburg, KY 41653.
Results of a 2.5-year study of nearly 600 community
college students enrolled in five biology courses over-
whelmingly (95%) support mandatory environmental ed-
ucation from kindergarten through college. Scores on pre-
entry and post-exit tests concerning environmental issues
108
indicate that biology courses taught with emphasis on the
environment increase student environmental awareness by
as much as 35% in those with weak backgrounds in biol-
ogy taking Basic Concepts in Biology and Aspects of Hu-
man Biology and by as much as 23% in those with stron-
ger backgrounds taking Human Ecology, Animal Biology,
and Conservation Biology. Ninety-six percent of students
enrolled in the newly introduced Human Ecology and
Conservation Biology expressed enthusiasm for the cours-
es by completing all course requirements; 90% became
involved in community service and other outside activities
appropriate to the course. Further, 59% said they had
learned over 75% of the course material; 37% had learned
50% to 75%. Ninety-nine percent would recommend the
courses to friends, commenting that the course material
enlightened them on the impact of people's activities on
the environment and that our environmental problems
must be faced and dealt with by all people. Increased
public awareness of environmental matters and our re-
sponsibility to nature has opened many career possibili-
ties. It would be unfortunate if educators did not seize
this opportunity to create standardized courses on the en-
vironment as they have for math, English, and other dis-
ciplines from kindergarten through college. Such basic
training would help prepare students for the immense task
of restoring and maintaining our planet's health.
ZOOLOGY & ENTOMOLOGY
Altered protein composition of Lirceus lineatus (Iso-
poda) infected by Acanthocephalus dirus. DAVID F.
OETINGER, Department of Biology, Kentucky Wesleyan
College, Owensboro, KY 42302.
Lirceus lineatus (Say, 1818) collected from Rhodes
Creek, Daviess County, Kentucky, have a high prevalence
(23.8%) of infection with Acanthocephalus dirus. Infected
isopods have either lighter integumental pigmentation or
are more darkly pigmented; only 0.7% of normally pig-
mented isopods are infected with A. dirus. Previous stud-
ies have demonstrated that the affected integumental pig-
ments are tryptophan metabolites in the ommochrome
pathway (xanthommatin and ommins). Our study was un-
dertaken to evaluate protein composition of male and fe-
male uninfected L. lineatus, male A. dirus-infected iso-
pods, and female A. dirus-infected isopods. Denaturing
sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis
(SDS-PAGE) of homogenized uninfected isopods (exclud-
ing the digestive tract) showed that male and female iso-
pods have several weak protein bands, at least one of
which (100 kDa) corresponds to that of a hemocyanin.
Uninfected female isopods, with brood pouches, had
many more protein fractions—12, six of which are in the
range of 70 to 130 kDa. Homogenates of lighter-pig-
mented infected isopods were represented by seven pro-
tein bands whereas those of darker-pigmented infected
isopods only had one or two protein bands. Homogenates
of both male and female A. dirus produced 12 distinct
protein bands. These results support the hypothesis that
the stress associated with reproduction (female isopods
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
with brood pouches) or infection with A. dirus have a
significant impact on protein metabolism. Results for
lighter-pigmented infected isopods are consistent with the
concept of nutritional pigmentation dystrophy; whereas
results for darker-pigmented infected isopods are similar
to what has been reported for ommochrome-pigmented
insects that have been subjected to stress.
Comparison of growth and feeding patterns in two spe-
cies of cave adapted isopod crustaceans (Family Cirolan-
idae): Anopsilana crenata from Grand Cayman Island and
Bahalana geracei from San Salvador Island, Bahamas.
ERIC HOEL* and JERRY H. CARPENTER, Depart-
ment of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky Univer-
sity, Highland Heights, KY 41099.
Specimens of Anopsilana crenata Bowman and Franz,
1982, were collected from West Bay Cave, Grand Cayman
Island; they live in this small cave partially exposed to
sunlight and are partially cave adapted with small rudi-
mentary white eyes and slight amounts of reddish brown
body pigment. Bahalana geracei Carpenter, 1981, were
collected from Lighthouse Cave, San Salvador Island, Ba-
hamas; they are highly cave adapted with total loss of eyes
and body pigment. Both species were studied in labora-
tory cultures maintained at 26°C for 4 months to compare
growth and feeding rates. Anopsilana crenata specimens
fed much more frequently (every 2 weeks) compared to
B. geracei (every 2 months). Anopsilana crenata molted
much more frequently (every month), compared to B. ger-
acei (once a year). Anopsilana crenata had no observed
premolt fast, while B. geracei had an observed 3 to 4 week
premolt fast. The activity level was much greater in A.
crenata, and the life span appears to be much shorter (1—
2 years) compared to B. geracei (20+ years).
Comparison of movement patterns in male and female
Bahalana geracei, a marine cave isopod (Family Cirolan-
idae) from San Salvador Island, Bahamas. RONALD D.
BITNER* and JERRY H. CARPENTER, Department of
Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University, High-
land Heights, KY 41099.
Bahalana geracei Carpenter, 1981, is a cave-adapted
cirolanid isopod crustacean known only from San Salvador
Island, Bahamas. Preliminary research showed that males
of B. geracei are less than 20% of the adult population.
We hypothesized that this was at least partially due to
males moving more, which would increase their vulnera-
bility to predation and reduce their numbers. Forty-seven
freshly captured specimens were placed in individual cu-
bicles, subdivided into 16 squares. Observations on their
positions were recorded three to eight times per day for
7 days. Using means and standard errors, we statistically
compared the total number of times males and females
moved. Males did move more often than females of com-
parable size, and large females moved more often than
small females. These data support our hypothesis that
males move more often than females.
Abstracts, 1997 Annual Meeting
Detection of hybridization events between the coyote,
Canis latrans, and the domestic dog, Canis familiaris, us-
ing two polymorphic microsatellite loci and cranial mor-
phometric analysis. JOHN J. COX* and CRAIG TUERK,
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
Morehead State University, Morehead, KY 40351.
Cranial morphometric and genetic DNA microsatellite
analyses were utilized to determine the taxonomic status
of the coyote in Kentucky and to detect any potential hy-
bridization between the coyote, Canis latrans, and the do-
mestic dog, Canis familiaris. Cranial morphometric anal-
ysis involved the employment of 19 linear cranial mea-
surements, previously found to be discriminatory between
wild and domestic canids, in a discriminant function anal-
ysis. We analyzed 174 canid skulls from the United States
and Canada and subsequently used the data to classify 65
unknown canids from Kentucky. Discriminant function
analysis indicated hybridization between coyotes and do-
mestic dogs to be 7-11%. However, only one of 28 (3.5%)
wild samples indicated hybridization; thus possible over-
estimation of hybridization may incurred by a potential
bias of hybrid sample retention found in institutional col-
lections. DNA samples were taken from 55 Kentucky can-
ids (31 coyotes and 24 domestic dogs). Genetic analysis
involved the examination of two microsatellite loci previ-
ously determined to be polymorphic. Data indicated a
high degree of polymorphism and interspecific allele over-
lap at one microsatellite locus and distinct species-specific
alleles at the second locus, thus indicating the utility of
this locus for hybridization assessment. Four individual
coyote-like canids shared one allele with domestic dogs at
this locus, but hybridization was not confirmed by mor-
phological data. Therefore, on the basis of morphological
and genetic data, the Kentucky canids analyzed in this
study are best described as Canis latrans, the coyote.
Effects of omentectomy on ectopic Moniliformis mo-
niliformis. ANGELO M. STERGIOU* and DAVID F.
OETINGER, Department of Biology, Kentucky Wesleyan
College, Owensboro, KY 42302.
We undertook an experiment to further evaluate the
occurrence of a gravid adult female Moniliformis monili-
formis in the greater omentum of a female laboratory rat,
Rattus norvegicus. This rat had received orally-adminis-
tered M. moniliformis cystacanths, which should have re-
sulted in lumen-dwelling intestinal parasites. The present
experiment sought to determine the fate of intraperito-
neally-implanted M. moniliformis in omentectomized rats
and non-omentectomized rats. In almost all cases, masses
with worms were found in apparently-regenerated omen-
tal tissue upon necropsy. Usually, the proboscis was free
from the omental tissue and the parasites appeared active.
In non-regenerated omental tissues, the parasites were
found encysted at the pancreas, spleen, or pelvic region.
Blood glucose determinations (Boehringer Mannheim
“Accu-Check”) of omentectomized-infected hosts sup-
ported the hypothesis that intraperitoneal M. moniliformis
does bring about decreased blood glucose levels. Glucose
109
levels declined to as low as 85 mg/dl for an omentectom-
ized-infected rat at 105 days post infection. Glucose levels
of the omentectomized-infected rats decreased rapidly
perhaps because of increased pancreatic activity. Also, in
an omentectomized-infected rat with a glucose level of 85
mg/dl at 105 days post infection, M. moniliformis was
found to be interwoven among pancreatic tissue at nec-
ropsy. This finding is consistent with the observation that
there appears to be hypertrophy of pancreatic tissue.
Hypoxia: a stimulus for age-dependent induced hatch-
ing of the walleye, Stizostedion vitreum. SARAH M.
BLANK,* JEFF WEAVER, and JOHN J. JUST, Depart-
ment of Biological Sciences, University of Kentucky, Lex-
ington, KY 40506.
Most aquatic embryos grow inside a proteinaceous egg
case from which they must escape to complete develop-
ment. Oxygen (O,) consumption increases during embry-
onic development while surface area for gas exchange re-
mains constant; thus hypoxia may be a natural stimulant
for the release of hatching enzymes. A repeated measures
experiment was utilized to examine hypoxia as a stimulant
of hatching. Embryos 6-20 days post-fertilization (PF) and
raised at 10-12°C were exposed to nitrogen (0% O,), air
(20% O,), oxygen (100% O,), and a mixture of air and
nitrogen (10% O,); percent hatch was recorded at 10-min-
ute intervals for 90 minutes. A minimum of four experi-
mental units consisting of 15 embryos in a 50 ml vial con-
taining 10 ml of pond water was used for each treatment
at each developmental time period. Control embryos first
hatch on day 17 PF reaching 5% hatch with 100% hatch
occurring on day 21 PF. Hypoxia (10% O,) induced pre-
mature hatching on day 18 PF as the percent hatch of
those embryos exposed to environments of 10% oxygen,
20% oxygen, and 100% oxygen was 67%, 54%, and 13%,
respectively. Percent induced hatching increased in an
age-dependent fashion as demonstrated by comparing day
18 PF (above) to day 19 PF embryos exposed to the same
three oxygen environments (10, 20, or 100%) resulting in
92%, 57%, and 23% hatch, respectively. Walleye embryos
were sensitive to anoxia. Exposure of day 18 and 19 post-
fertilized embryos to anoxia for 40 minutes and 60 min-
utes resulted in 33% and 100% mortality, respectively,
within 24 hours. Hyperoxia (100% O,) delayed hatching
for at least 3 hours in 18-, 19-, and 20-day post-fertilized
embryos.
Role of male chemosignals in female odor- and social-
preferences in prairie voles. JENNIFER L. WILES* and
TERRY L. DERTING, Department of Biological Sci-
ences, Murray State University, Murray, KY 42071.
Female prairie voles must be exposed to chemosignals
of conspecific males to be reproductively active. Upon ac-
tivation, female voles use olfactory cues to choose a mate.
The level of testosterone in a male prairie vole has been
associated with female preference for male odor. Testos-
terone level in male prairie voles, and consequently fe-
110
male odor preferences, may be affected by physiological
condition. We studied the effect of testosterone level and
nutritional history on attractiveness of male odors to fe-
males, and female odor, social, and mate preferences. The
odors of males born to mothers food-deprived during
pregnancy were preferred by more females than were the
odors of males born to mothers fed ad libitum. Maternal
food-deprivation did not significantly affect the body mass,
survival, or plasma testosterone level of male offspring.
The odors of males food-deprived post-weaning were not
more attractive to females than the odors of control males.
Females spent a greater amount of time investigating the
odors of males with a high testosterone level, regardless
of whether the males were control or food-deprived post-
weaning. Level of plasma testosterone and the nutritional
history of males can influence the attractiveness of male
odors to females, but female odor preferences are not al-
ways indicative of female social and mate preferences.
Status survey of the endangered duskytail darter, Eth-
eostoma percnurum, in Big South Fork of the Cumber-
land River, Kentucky. BROOKS M. BURR and DAVID
J. EISENHOUR,* Department of Zoology, Southern II-
linois University, Carbondale, IL 62901; Department of
Biological and Environmental Sciences, Morehead State
University, Morehead, KY 40351.
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(1)
From 7 to 9 Sep 1995, an intensive survey of a 19 km
reach of the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River was
conducted with the goal of finding the federally endan-
gered duskytail darter, Etheostoma percnurum, in Ken-
tucky. Using underwater observation and_kick-seining
around slabrocks, we found 60 specimens. The primary
habitat of E. percnurum includes clean, silt-free rocky
pools immediately above riffles, where it seeks cover un-
der cobbles and slabrocks. Five of eight sites we sampled
produced at least one E. percnurum, with the greatest
abundance near the mouth of Troublesome Creek. The
range of this species in Kentucky is confined to 7 stream
km of the Big South Fork; this darter was the rarest of
the 12 darter species we encountered. We recommend
that E. percnurum be added to Kentucky's list of protect-
ed species as an endangered species. A preliminary mor-
phological comparison of specimens from the Big South
Fork (Cumberland River drainage) and Copper Creek
(Tennessee River drainage) revealed strong differences in
aspects of squamation and body shape. Our comparative
analyses suggest that populations of Big South Fork E.
percnurum constitute an independent evolutionary unit.
However, sample sizes are small. We strongly recommend
an additional search for the species in spring to obtain
nuptial males and females and to observe the species’
nesting biology.
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Guidelines for Contributors to the Journal
1. GENERAL
D.
1D):
E.
Original papers based on research/review in science
will be considered for publication in the Journal; at
least the first author must be a member of the Acad-
emy. Announcements, news, and notes will be includ-
ed as received.
Papers (in triplicate) may be submitted at any time to
the editor.
John W. Thieret
Biological Sciences
Northern Kentucky University
Highland Heights, KY 41099
Phone: (606) 572-6390
FAX: (606) 572-5639
E-mail: thieretj}@nku.edu
List in the cover letter your telephone/FAX numbers,
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ACS style guide, American Chemical Society, Wash-
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stitute of Physics, New York, 1990.
. IN-TEXT CITATION OF LITERATURE
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use names of all authors—e.g., (Jones, Smith, and Wil-
liams 1991): for works with three or more authors use
name of the first author followed by et al—e.g., (Lee
et al. 1985).
Guidelines for Contributors
B. Do not include any reference unless it has been pub-
lished or accepted for publication (“in press”). In the
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JOURNAL ARTICLE
Lacki, M.J. 1994. Metal concentrations in guano from a
gray bat summer roost. Transactions of the Kentucky
Academy of Science 55:124—126.
BOOK
Ware, M., and R.W. Tare. 1991. Plains life and love. Pi-
oneer Press, Crete, WY.
PART OF A BOOK
Kohn, J.R. 1993. Pinaceae. Pages 32-50 in J.F. Nadel
(ed). Flora of the Black Mountains. University of
Northwestern South Dakota Press, Utopia, SD.
WORK IN PRESS
Groves, S.J., IV. Woodland, and G.H. Tobosa. n.d. De-
serts of Trans-Pecos Texas. 2nd ed. Ocotillo Press,
Yucca City, TX.
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9. ABSTRACTS FOR ANNUAL MEETINGS
Instructions on style of abstract preparation for papers
presented at annual meetings may be obtained from the
editor. Copies will be available also at each annual meet-
ing of the Academy.
NEWS
The 1998 annual meeting of the Kentucky Academy of Science will be held November 12,
13, and 14 at Jefferson Community College, Southwest Campus, Louisville.
CONTENTS
ARTICLES
Undergraduate Research in Kentucky: Biological Sciences.
Introduction: James O2 Lukens... 0c riko recede woe Sok doe bon de thee coeiadaee 1
A Program for Facilitating Undergraduate Research in Biology. Jerry W.
Warner eee caneoechenme sy car eoe cle sa eee as TOE cee CRE CREEL E Neem aes ante IES 2
Using Water Quality Monitoring as a University-Level Teaching Tool.
Brian..C. Reeder 020 io issen Siecs hac Voce Nes ius koe gn Nae ae eee 6
A Summary of 25 Years of Undergraduate Research at the Thomas More
College Biology Field Station: What Became of the Students? William
S. Bryant’and John: W.. Fernen 55.5. oesechocdncae bac se gos seks oe vedntete eke. 12
Undergraduate Research in Biology: A Developmental Approach. Rob-
ert W. Kingsolver and David F. Oetinger ................c0.ccceccecsecceceecees 15
Doing it: The Thing That Makes Science Make Sense. Philip H. Crowley
and William: S: -Coheny rio. toi ee losstinsscnusnsledepcecseceees so ssseseaceneceees 20
Undergraduate Research in Biology at Centre College. Christine K. Bar-
ton and‘Anne Ex Lubbers' 2 e oreo ooo acs eae tao hd Me 23
Undergraduate Research in the Biological Sciences at Kentucky State
University. Karan Kaul and Paul A. Weston ...............0ccccecceceeececeees 29
Undergraduate Research in Biology (1987-1997) at Berea College.
Ronald B. Rosen and Ralph L. Thompson ..............02cceccescneceeeenseees 33
Undergraduate Research at Asbury College. John A. Brushaber and
Richard'B: Reznile ccc orc eo nee oh Ae enh vos oe 37
Undergraduate Research Experiences at an Independent Cancer Re-
search Institute. Julia H. Carter and Diane S. Collier ....................- 39
Encouraging New Biologists. Ross C. Clark .............ccccccecccececsceceoees 44
Undergraduate Research Experiences in Biology at Murray State Univer-
sity and the Hancock Biological Station. Tom J. Timmons and David
So Witte os oe io eels Want el NA LS tae smal cA MN Tae 47
Distributional Records for Fishes of the Coastal Plain Province, Ballard and
McCracken Counties, in Western Kentucky. Michael G. Ryon and Brian
AS CErri€o, 5.3535 ea EN RTS ES EUR Rat CSCO WS AP eS 51
Distribution and Population Estimates of the Federally Endangered Relict
Darter, Etheostoma chienense, Bayou du Chien, Kentucky. Kyle R. Piller
and Brooks M) Burris. 0.605008 2 Oe EN TT TAD OC, 64
The Morehead Radio Telescope, Morehead State University, Morehead,
Kentucky: Design and Fabrication of a Research Instrument for Undergrad-
uate Faculty and Student Research in Radio Frequency Astrophysics. Ben-
jamin Malphrus, Eric Thomas, Michael Combs, Brian Lewis, Bob
Ratliff, Brian Roberts, Chad Pulliam, Jennifer Carter, John Pelfrey,
Dara Preece, Viju Hullur, Russell Brengelman, David Cutts, Charles
Whidden, Rodney Stanley, Robert Hayes, William Grise, Drew Hender-
son, Daniel Puckett, and Jeff Kruth ..............cccccccccncacoceccscececscccececeee 76
ABSTRACTS OF SOME PAPERS PRESENTED AT THE 1997 ANNUAL MEET-
ING OF THE KENTUCKY ACADEMY OF SCIENCE ..............0s00esccsseeceeceee 93
d ; | ont
CHAK
Vid JOURNA
KENTUCKY <Z
ACADEMY OF
SCIENCE
Official Publication of the Academy |
Volume 59
Number 2
Fall 1998
The Kentucky Academy oF Science
Founded 8 May 1914
Governinc Boarp For 1998
ExecutivE COMMITTEE
President: Patricia K. Doolin, Research, Applications and Development, Ashland Petroleum Company,
P.O. Box 391, Ashland, KY 41114
President Elect: Gordon K. Weddle, Department of Biology, Campbellsville University, Campbellsville, KY
42718
Vice President: Blaine Ferrell, Department of Biology, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY |
42101
Past President: Marcus T. McEllistrem, Department of Physics and Astronomy, vaiversty. of Kentucky,
Lexington, KY 40506-0055
Secretary: Joseph W. Wilson, Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Vexinaton: KY 40506-
0055
Treasurer: William E. Houston, 161 Motainaster Court, Bowling Green, KY 42103
Executive Secretary (ex officio): Donald Frazier, Science Qutreach Center, University of Kentucky, Lex-
ington, KY 40536-0078
Editor, JOURNAL (ex officio): John W. Thieret, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky
University, Highland Heights, KY 41099; (606) 572-6390
Editor, NEWSLETTER (ex officio): Maria K. Falbo-Kenkel, Department of Physics and Geology, Northern
Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY 41099
Director, Junior Academy of Science (ex officio): Vincent A. DiNoto Jr., Department of Physics, Jefferson
Community College SW, 1000 Community College
Drive, Louisville, KY 40272
Program Coordinator (ex officio): Robert O. Creek, Department of Biological Sciences, Eastern Kentucky
University, Richmond, KY 40475
MEMBERS, GOVERNING BOARD
Robert J. Barney 1999 Barbara L. Rafaill ; 1999
Charles N. Boehms 2001 J.G. Rodriguez 1998
dames F. Hopgood 1998 AAAS/NAAS Representative
Bruce A. Mattingly 2000 Lee A. Roecker 2000 -
James Ross ‘2001.23
COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATIONS
Editor and John W. Thieret, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University,
Chair: Highland Heights, KY 41099
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JOURNAL OF THE KENTUCKY ACADEMY OF SCIENCE
ISSN 1098-7096
Continuation of
Transactions of the Kentucky Academy of Science
Volume 59 Fall 1998 Number 2
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(2):111-157. 1998.
Special Paper
Rafinesque’s Botanical Pursuits in the Ohio Valley (1818-1826)
Ronald L. Stuckey
Herbarium, Museum of Biological Diversity, Department of Plant Biology, College of Biological Sciences, The Ohio
State University, 1315 Kinnear Road, Columbus, Ohio 43212
TISRYESeCGYC HRY GVGL AY. se We oe eee yace UAH Oe tS ea ea eae eee AT OT a ee ans medal 113
nkevioussLvalliations OmNatinesque Ss) WOrk 1: vote. wt saiuese <a sarenacentas qadcnee nated aamaaccer 114
@ontubutions/erorito Coming tothe: Ohio) Valley... 22. .2200062 dea ceeds hee 114
Extent of Travels in the Ohio Valley and Enthusiasm for Field Study......................06. 116
Eublicationss)escribing New; @hioiWalley Plantsy\s.. +072. 4.c4).cani-eieeaeeas! eee. 118
Botanical Associates and Correspondents in the Ohio Valley..................:s:eeceeeee ee eee 125
Crowthiof IRatmesquesi Wester terbaruni ns: cn se... 2 nicnre cere comes ayn aceane aa fone 134
Rafinesque’s Contributions to the Flora, Phytogeography, and Idea of Plant Succession in
Kem EUC kay eu es tesa Ac phates Lal eee ere ae ine ae Mca oe Lara LR ati cate at MMe SON Raa, 135
WrritinedocallMlorash ace ren ury dale tei ct arate thos satin: cepiss ceainiies iam i enemas «clue 135
Early Catalogues of the Flora of Kentucky and the Ohio Valley ....................:0:0000 136
PhytogeographicaliRegionsvotukentucky. 1 a.c + -aeteor soos tect seeesc Seek erent ns caters ee 137
Plant SuccessiontingtheMimestone Regionvon Kentucky mi sena ts. cesses setae eee a 138
Rafinesque’s Botanical Work at Transylvania University...............2..ccececeececeeceeneenes 139
Botantcallllnstmrctionteeess srker ames una liniae Utena earuUNice ene Cen Ik Gy ee ae 139
MheMransylvaniay Botanical Garden ie acancirceih sa meee nN ens cavethe crit gel cecvae 142
(hes Wentuckyslustitute: cates re tesscb ete era ie lee AAO yar ce EN ors ge Seat oars arte socera te 145
An American Calendar, of Flora, an Untinished(Project;2.3..090.0..- 20-42. -4see+ cesta scence stes 145
Why Ratmesque ert lransyivamiay Wmiversity oe sctceescee: nensecen areas serie) eee eit estan 146
SUMIVINT Ayan rae Me en eteh sce eat acre co mis re aacean clea rid osteo! icra ses Sha ane SEATS SYR core SON Pecans ort ce eee Sec hca 146
Achnowledgementsi. ave strent ccc teect esr e Sick Mr mens eae a eyeinht Seteranceaeirte sere 148
REference se Gite tren ities uae eu tvs cee eye Ay ea ity aL ay UN Udo taste eae mica Wal UL, oR Oya ca a en 148
References to Rafinesque’s Publications Cited with the Numbers of Fitzpatrick (1911) or
Boew.eg OS 2) erie crn tense reuse cee Aaacce are te Ault as nce ey i Necera tan eee or nee ae ae 148
Other References Cited, Including Letters and Publications by Rafinesque Not Cited in
Bitzpateick| (LOI) ormBoewen(l982)) Wii cscscspacth se Preto aae sae aersnier a -toisea ner sceeenamet 153
inlet
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
112
"E
ae
SQT
INE
RAF
TANTINE SAMUEL
*
CONS
tle
2
810, when Rafinesque was age
opi in ]
he artist Fal
|
afinesque drawn from life by t
896, opposite p. 182).
S.R
~
ay
Portrait of C.
Reproduced from Youmans
Figure 1.
(1
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
113
INTRODUCTION
Although Constantine Samuel Rafinesque
(1783-1840) (Figure 1) published papers and
books in many disciplines within the sciences
and humanities, his favorite pursuit and most
extensive scientific work was in botany. His
botanical contributions are the ones that have
been most thoroughly scrutinized and evalu-
ated by his contemporaries and their succes-
sors. In these analyses, Rafinesque is most of-
ten criticized for having seen too much vari-
ation in plants, a propensity that led him to
provide generic, specific, or varietal names for
minor variants. His formal descriptions of new
plants were often cryptic and incomplete as
judged by his reviewers and by today’s stan-
dards. For example, he did not always make
adequate comparisons of critical morphologi-
cal structures of leaves, flowers, and fruits with
those of closely related taxa, nor did he always
provide information on habitats, geographical
locations, and donors or collectors of speci-
mens with the completeness preferred by
present-day botanists.
The most damaging review of Rafinesque’s
taxonomic botanical publications was written
by the young, talented Asa Gray (1810-1888),
who was to become North America’s foremost
botanist during the second third of the cen-
tury. The negative comments by Gray (1841)
overshadowed whatever credibility Rafin-
esque’s works may have had, to the extent that
later taxonomic botanists, who were dominat-
ed by Gray’s thinking, mostly ignored and for-
got Rafinesque’s contributions for nearly a
century. Yet, Gray did point out that Rafin-
esque had possessed great potential as a bot-
anist even though he was not well educated in
taxonomic and structural botany. Rafinesque
had taught himself botany, a study that began
when, as a boy in France, he collected plants
in the field, pressed them to make an herbar-
ium, and studied Latin in order to read botan-
ical books. Gray admitted that many of Raf-
inesque’s publications were credible contri-
butions and contained new plant names that
should have been adopted. Moreover, at that
time and for many years later, no plant tax-
onomist had the knowledge or resources to
sort through Rafinesque’s new names to de-
termine which were validly published or had
priority. The science of taxonomic botany and
its code of nomenclature had not yet devel-
oped the sophistication to assimilate the mass
of information that Rafinesque had added to
the literature.
Gray observed that the quality of Rafin-
esque’s work deteriorated from about 1819 to
the end of his life in 1840. This gradual de-
terioration appears to have had its beginning
with a series of unfortunate events in Rafin-
esque’s life. The earliest of these occurred on
his return trip to North America in 1815,
when his ship sank off Long Island, New York,
and all of his botanical manuscripts, speci-
mens, and personal possessions were lost to
the sea. The effects of this loss may well have
been compounded by the rejection for publi-
cation of manuscripts that he had submitted
to the Committee on Publication at the Acad-
emy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, and,
beginning in 1819, by Benjamin Silliman, the
editor of the American Journal of Science and
Arts (Anonymous 1817-1818; Stuckey 1986;
Boewe 1987a). During this same period, Raf-
inesque learned that the woman with whom
he had lived and had two children in Sicily had
married a comedic actor soon after his depar-
ture from that island. At about the time Raf-
inesque was becoming established in Lexing-
ton, Kentucky, the death of his closest friend
and chief benefactor, John D. Clifford (1779-
1820), deprived him of an anticipated collab-
orator on several natural history projects (Pen-
nell 1942). Of his personal sense of loss, Raf-
inesque wrote to botanist Charles W. Short on
15 June 1820:
You have heard of the loss of Mr. Clifford [on 8 May],
it has been a heavy one for us all, and for me in
particular. All the plans we had formed for the ben-
efit of science are nearly defeated. But I shall en-
deavor to do what I can by myself.
Among the earliest authoritative studies,
based on original research, of Rafinesque’s life
and botanical work were the paper by Gray
(1841) and books by Call (1895) and Fitzpat-
rick (1911). Beginning in the second quarter
of the 20th century, the resurgence of interest
in Rafinesque’s life and scientific work was
114
marked by detailed critical evaluations of his
contributions to taxonomic botany (Fernald
1932, 1944a, 1944b, 1946; Merrill 1942, 1943,
1948a, 1948b, 1949; Pennell 1942; Stuckey
1971la, 1971b, 1986) and by an emended ver-
sion of Fitzpatrick (1911) by historian Charles
Boewe (1982). Thus, it would appear now that
little if any evaluation remains to be done from
a botanical perspective. The point does need
to be made, however, that for the most part
these earlier evaluations were concermed pri-
marily with the taxonomic aspects of Rafin-
esque’s botanical work, and although taxono-
my was important to him and to the botanical
community, Rafinesque did much more than
collect, name, and describe new plants.
This paper presents the first comprehensive
review of Rafinesque’s botanical activities and
contributions while he was traveling and con-
ducting field work in the Ohio Valley from
1818 to 1826. The temporal delimitations co-
incide with the beginnings of botanical explo-
ration west of the Allegheny Mountains, and
the geographical region covered, the Ohio Val-
ley, encompasses the lands drained by the
Ohio River and its tributary streams. Not dis-
cussed in this paper are Rafinesque’s original
ideas on plant evolution, or what he called
“perpetual mutability,” his approaches to a
natural system of classification of plants, al-
ready being developed by the French bota-
nists Antoine de Jussieu (1748-1836) and Au-
gustin Pyramus DeCandolle (1778-1841), and
his logical rules that he believed should be
used in assigning scientific names to plants.
Most of these topics have been considered in
some detail by other recent evaluators (Ster-
ling 1978; Porter 1986; Cain 1990). Further-
more, no appraisal is made here of Rafin-
esque’s lengthy and trenchant reviews, pub-
lished between 1817 and 1819,287241256.258.264,
265.267.255.305 of the book-length manuals and flo-
ras of various parts of North America.
PREVIOUS EVALUATIONS OF
RAFINESQUE’S WORK
Several of the general evaluations men-
tioned earlier refer to Rafinesque’s taxonomic
botanical work in the Ohio Valley. The book-
length biography by Call (1895) devoted 10
pages to several positive and negative aspects
of Rafinesque’s work, but he confined his eval-
uation to Rafinesque’s studies of taxonomic
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
botany in the broad sense. Call concluded that
Rafinesque’s “botanical work demonstrates
that he was the creature of an unfortunate en-
vironment, the victim of an unbalanced train-
ing, the intellectual scientific problem of his
day.” Pennell (1942) summarized by writing:
On coming to Kentucky he simply reveled in seeing
and describing a new world of living things. He
rushed from one group of plants or animals to an-
other in an ecstasy of discovery. He could scarcely
spare the precious time for thorough work, and the
tedium of minute dissections always irked him.
Hence it is that so many of his presentations remain
unsatisfactory.
In a more specific analysis, Friesner (1952,
1953) discussed the bearing of Rafinesque’s
contributions to the vascular plants of Indiana
and determined that of the 22 names that Raf-
inesque proposed for those taxa occurring in
Indiana, only Oenothera pilosella was current-
ly in use. This statistic alone does not speak
well for Rafinesque’s powers of discrimination
as a taxonomist. Meijer (1973) considered Raf-
inesque
a very perceptive enthusiastic worker . . . active at the
frontier of the western penetration . . . [who] grossly
overestimated the amount of novelties in the Flora
of Kentucky compared with the far better explored
states of New England and Pennsylvania, though he
realized that as far as the trees and shrubs were con-
cerned you could see in Kentucky ‘nearly all the trees
and shrubs of Virginia, Ohio and Tennessee’; . . . he
was a great example of an enthusiastic field worker,
a good naturalist, living in a time and surroundings
where a pursuit of scientific inquiry for its own sake
was a rather rare phenomenon.
CONTRIBUTIONS PRIOR TO COMING
TO THE OHIO VALLEY
Rafinesque came from France to Philadel-
phia in April 1802 and began to study the flora
of the east coast of the United States from
Virginia to New York and as far west as the
Allegheny Mountains in Pennsylvania. Yet, at
21 years of age, he longed for a wider botan-
ical experience. To United States President
Thomas Jefferson, Rafinesque (1804) wrote on
27 November 1804, as published by Betts
(1944):
The Western parts of the U[nited]. S[tates]. are as
yet very little known. I intend to go and explore part
of Kentucky & Ohio next Spring. I wish I could go
still farther and across the Mississippi into the unex-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
plored region of Louisiana, but it is a mere impos-
sibility in my private Capacity to visit such unsettled
and as yet very wild Country .... If it ever seems
worthwhile to you, to send a Botanist in Company
with the parties you propose to make [a] visit [to] the
Arkansas or other Rivers, I can not forbear Mention-
ing that I would think myself highly honored with the
choice of being selected to make known the Ve-
get[abl]e. and Animal riches of such a New Country
and would think that Glory fully adequate to com-
pensate the dangers and difficulties to encounter.
Jefferson replied on 15 December 1804 that
he was contemplating sending an exploring
party to the sources of the Red and Arkansas
rivers the following spring. He offered Rafin-
esque the opportunity to accompany the ex-
pedition, but, as Rafinesque had already sailed
for Italy and would be living in Palermo, Sicily,
for the next 10 years, this first chance to ex-
plore the western country did not materialize.
In 1806, while in Sicily, Rafinesque began
to send short botanical papers to the Medical
Repository, published in New York City by his
friend Samuel L. Mitchill,; M.D. (1764-1831).
Among these contributions to North American
botany were additions to Andre Michaux’s Flo-
ra (1803),° a prospectus of projected botanical
works,® notes on new genera and species,”
writings on medicinal properties of selected
plants,!° and a short review of the progress of
American botany.'? Aside from these more
routine kinds of notes, Rafinesque published
two pioneering papers in North American bot-
any. The first was his admirable “Essay on the
exotic plants, mostly European, which have
been naturalized, and now grow spontaneously
in the Middle States of North America”
(1811).2! This paper was the first on the in-
vasion of foreign plant species onto this con-
tinent. Thoroughly researched, it is an excel-
lent review of its subject, drawing information
from the writings of the botanists Henry
Muhlenberg, Benjamin S. Barton, and André
Michaux, from unpublished data from his bo-
tanical friends, and from his own knowledge
based on three seasons of field work from
1802 through 1804. He provided the scientific
names of over 250 species and their sources
of invasion, whether by agriculture or garden-
ing or by accident, and he noted their locali-
ties, habitats, and abundance. He urged that
other writers make distinctions between native
and foreign plants and engage in specific stud-
115
ies of invasive species. At the time, Rafinesque
was the only botanist in America who had ex-
tensive field knowledge of the floras of both
North America and Europe. Certainly he was
the only one in a position to prepare this in-
novative treatment.
The second of Rafinesque’s pioneering ef-
forts, also published in 1811, was his last pa-
per” in the Medical Repository and repre-
sented in its simplest form a taxonomic revi-
sion of two genera of submersed aquatic
plants, Callitriche and Potamogeton. Funda-
mentally, a taxonomic revision evaluates the
studies of the recognized species in a part or
all of a particular genus, and it includes the
names and descriptions of previously known
species, lists synonyms, and provides the
names and descriptions of new species. Raf-
inesque’s paper is the first taxonomic revision
of a group of plants known to have been pub-
lished in the United States (Stuckey 1998).
Providing diagnostic characters in Latin and
with information on localities for most of the
species, Rafinesque’s treatment of Callitriche
enumerated 10 species, from North America
and Europe, of which four were new. Of the
new ones, he named and described three, and
to the fourth he gave a name based on a de-
scription from a manuscript by Muhlenberg.
He renamed four species and retained the
original names for two, citing the original au-
thors. In Callitriche it appears that only one
of his proposed names, C. terrestris Raf., is in
use today, but this genus is in need of a critical
taxonomic study. Of the eight species of Pot-
amogeton that he presented, Rafinesque de-
scribed two as new, renamed five, and re-
tained one name. Today, Potamogeton is a
well-studied genus, and four of Rafinesque’s
seven names are retained at either the specific
or varietal level in the flora of eastern North
America. One name, P. petiolaris, remains to
be evaluated.
In 1814, Rafinesque published at his own
expense in Palermo his Précis des découvertes
et travaux somiologiques entre 1800 et 1814,?°°
in which he named and described as new to
science 38 species of vascular plants. The de-
scriptions included habitat and geographical
location, with 17 of the plants being from var-
ious parts of eastern North America, 18 from
the island of Sicily, and 3 not identified as to
geographical source. Of the species from
116
North America, all were from states bordering
the Atlantic Ocean, except one from Canada
and another one noted as “In the state of Ohio
in N[orth] A[merica].” The latter was a species
of spiderwort that Rafinesque called Trades-
cantia ohiensis; it was apparently the first plant
that he named from the Ohio Valley. Yet he
had not made any journeys to that part of the
continent. How then did Rafinesque obtain
this specimen?
In the second volume of his New Flora of
North America (1837, p. 84),°° published
some 20 years later, Rafinesque revealed the
source of his Ohio spiderwort, with the state-
ment: “In Ohio ... described in 1814 from a
specimen of Dencke given me by Van Vleck,
but I have not met it in Ohio .... ” Denke,
spelled with a “c” by Rafinesque, refers to the
Moravian clergyman Christian Frederick Den-
ke (1775-1838), who was a missionary in west-
ern Ontario, Canada (Stuckey and Wehrmeis-
ter 1979). During the first decade of the 19th
century, Denke had studied with the mission-
ary David Zeisberger (1721-1808) at Goshen,
Ohio, and served a short time as a missionary
to Indians on the Huron River in northern
Ohio. John Van Vleck (1751-1831), another
Moravian clergyman, resided in Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania, where Rafinesque visited him in
1804, at which time he may have given Raf-
inesque the specimen (Barnhart 1921). The
subsequent North American botanical litera-
ture referred this species to T. canaliculata,
named by Rafinesque in the Atlantic Journal
in 1832, until Fernald (1944b) pointed out
that the correct name, based on priority, was
T. ohiensis Raf.
EXTENT OF TRAVELS IN THE OHIO
VALLEY AND ENTHUSIASM
FOR FIELD STUDY
In the Ohio Valley, Rafinesque showed con-
siderable enthusiasm for studying plants in the
field and published extensively, naming and
describing many plants as new to science.
However, only a few of his names have priority
and are in use today. Rafinesque interacted di-
rectly or through correspondence with nearly
every known botanist in the Ohio Valley, and
he developed an extensive herbarium of west-
em plants by acquisition and exchange with
these and other botanists and by his own ex-
tensive field collections. His publications on
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
the botany of Kentucky provided the first flora
or checklist of plants from the state, the first
outline of the state’s major phytogeographical
regions, and the first discussion of ecological
succession of plants in the limestone region of
central Kentucky. Beginning in 1819, Rafin-
esque served as Professor of Botany and Nat-
ural History at Transylvania University in Lex-
ington, where he presented lectures on these
and other subjects by subscription to ladies
and gentlemen of the community. Later, he
was also the University’s librarian and an or-
ganizer and superintendent of the short-lived
Botanical Garden. He was instrumental in or-
ganizing the Kentucky Institute and presented
several lectures before that group.
From his travels and experiences with
plants, Rafinesque developed extensive knowl-
edge of the botany of the Ohio Valley (1818-
1826). His botanical work at this time is sum-
marized largely from his Life of Travels
(1836)°* and his letters to two botanists, Zac-
cheus Collins (1764-1831) of Philadelphia
(Pennell 1942) and Charles W. Short (1794—
1863) of Kentucky (Perkins 1938). Rafinesque
journeyed by various conveyances—on foot,
by covered flatboat, by keelboat on the Ohio
River, by coach, by common wagon, and by
horse—in company with other botanists and
guides. In 1818, at age 34, during his first trip
west of the Allegheny Mountains, Rafinesque
stopped to search for plants at many of the
towns along the Ohio River; among these were
Steubenville, Wheeling, Marietta, Gallipolis,
Cincinnati, Louisville, and Henderson. From
this last place, he then traveled 40 miles to the
north, to New Harmony on the Wabash River,
where he entered the prairies of Illinois. In
the Life of Travels,* he claimed to have made
“a rapid excursion to the mouth of the Ohio,”
but this locality was actually the mouth of the
Wabash, as clarified from Rafinesque’s journal
by Charles Boewe (pers. comm. 1997). He did
not explore along the Mississippi River or go
into Missouri as had been his intention. Trav-
eling mostly on foot, he returned through the
barrens of western Kentucky to Louisville and
from there to Frankfort and Lexington*® (Fig-
ure 2). During his return to Philadelphia in
the fall, he traveled by foot along the Zane
Trace through the towns of Chillicothe, Lan-
caster, Zanesville, and Steubenville and thus
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
Indianapolis
TENNESSEE
PENNSYLVANIA
CAROLINA
OHIO RIVER BASIN
Figure 2. Ohio Valley localities recorded by Rafinesque in his Life of Travels (1836), from Pittsburgh to the mouth
of the Wabash River and east to Lexington, May-September 1818. (1) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; (2) Steubenville, Ohio;
(3) Wheeling, West Virginia; (4) Marietta, Ohio; (5) Letart Rapids = Letart Falls, Ohio; (6) Gallipolis, Ohio; (7) Neville,
Ohio; (8) Cincinnati, Ohio; (9) Vevay, Indiana; (10) Louisville (including Shippingsport and the Falls of the Ohio),
Kentucky; (11) Troy, Indiana; (12) Yellow Banks = Owensboro, Kentucky; (13) Evansville, Indiana; (14) Hendersonville
= Henderson, Kentucky; (15) New Harmony on the Wabash, Indiana: (16) Shawneetown on the Ohio, Illinois; (17)
Wabash River (mouth) (called Ohio River mouth), Ilinois/Indiana; (18) Morgantown = Morganfield, Kentucky; [14]
Hendersonville = Henderson, Kentucky; [12] Yellow Banks = Owensboro, Kentucky; (19) Green River (mouth), Ken-
tucky; (20) Hardinsburg, Kentucky; (21) Salt River (mouth), Kentucky; (22) Sheperdsville, Kentucky; (23) Middletown,
Kentucky; (24) Frankfort, Kentucky; (25) Lexington, Kentucky.
saw the southem portion of Ohio (Rafinesque
1818b) (Figure 3).
Rafinesque returned to Lexington in May
1819 (Figure 4) to assume his professorship at
Transylvania University. During the next 6
years, as described in his Life of Travels
(1836),°° he botanized throughout Kentucky
(Figures 4, 5, 6), preferring to walk rather
than ride on horseback or take other means of
travel. A map of the Ohio Valley (Figure 7)
shows all of the locations mentioned by Raf-
inesque in his Life of Travels. These locations,
already shown on the maps in other figures,
give an approximation of where he botanized
in the Ohio Valley, and particularly in Ken-
tucky. Having been in various cities on the east
coast in the summer of 1825, Rafinesque re-
turned to Lexington in the fall of that year but
left permanently the following spring. On this
last trip from Lexington, taken on foot and by
stage, he traveled on a northerly route through
Ohio by way of Cincinnati, Dayton, Spring-
field, Columbus, Mount Vernon, Mansfield,
and Milan to Sandusky on Lake Erie (Rafin-
118
: et)
Figure 3.
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Dein \s £
Route of C.S. Rafinesque's Trip From Lexington,
Kentucky, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1818.
Rafinesque’s route from Lexington, Kentucky, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1818. (1) Lexington, Ken-
tucky; (2) Blue Licks Spring, Kentucky; (3) Maysville, Kentucky, and Aberdeen, Ohio; (4) Bainbridge, Ohio; (5) Chil-
licothe, Ohio; (6) Lancaster, Ohio; (7) Zanesville, Ohio; (8) Cambridge, Ohio; (9) Cadiz, Ohio; (10) Steubenville, Ohio;
(11) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; (12) Bedford, Pennsylvania; (13) Lancaster, Pennsylvania; (14) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
esque 1826). From there he went by steam-
boat to Buffalo, then across New York on the
Erie Canal to Troy, down the Hudson River
to New York City, and eventually to Philadel-
phia, his residence for the remainder of his life
(Figure 8).
Rafinesque’s enthusiasm for the study of
plants in the field is perhaps best illustrated
by a story told by the ornithologist John James
Audubon (1785-1851). During Rafinesque’s
visit to Henderson, Kentucky, on the Ohio
River, Audubon (1832) showed him a drawing
of a plant common in the neighborhood.
When Rafinesque declared that no such plant
existed in nature, Audubon said that he could
show it to him “on the morrow.” But Rafin-
esque could not wait until then; instead, he
asked to be taken immediately to the river
bank, where he plucked plants one after an-
other, and explained with great enthusiasm
that he had not merely a new species, but a
new genus. Together the two men went on
field trips during the 3 weeks of Rafinesque’s
stay. The most memorable of the trips, de-
scribed in great detail by Audubon, was one
during which Rafinesque became lost while
escaping into an enormous tangled canebrake
(Arundinaria) following the sudden appear-
ances of a black bear and a thunderstorm. Al-
though Rafinesque collected multitudes of
plants while in Henderson, he never again ex-
pressed a desire to visit a canebrake.
PUBLICATIONS DESCRIBING NEW
OHIO VALLEY PLANTS
When Rafinesque entered the Ohio Valley
in 1818, he had published within that year ar-
ticles on several new genera and species of
plants from the state of New York???%s!25+
286 in the first volume of the American Journal
of Science and Arts. Established and edited by
Benjamin Silliman (1779-1864) at Yale Col-
lege, this periodical was to become the most
prestigious scientific journal in North Ameri-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
»
~~
napolis i Columbus Sp,
cy MAR
y
(23). SINCINNATI
£2
ea
Lane “4 (5 Ry
YL iO
Fe. OUISVILLE @ CN)
rats) ot G
VIRGINIA
Figure 4. Ohio Valley localities recorded by Rafinesque in his Life of Travels (1836), from Pittsburgh to Lexington,
May 1819; in Kentucky during the summer of 1819; and from Lexington to North Bend, Ohio, with Charles Wilkins
Short, and return to Lexington, 1821. (1) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; (2) Marietta, Ohio; (3) Parkersburg, West Virginia;
(4) Letart Rapids = Letart Falls, Ohio; (5) Maysville, Kentucky; (6) Washington, Kentucky; (7) Mayslick, Kentucky;
(8) Blue Licks, Kentucky; (9) Paris, Kentucky; (10) Lexington, Kentucky; (11) Lancaster and Knob hills (large area),
Kentucky; (12) Buttonlick and Harmon Lick, Kentucky; (13) Irvine, Kentucky; (14) Estil Springs and Wasioto Hills
(large area), Kentucky; (15) Winchester, Kentucky; [10] Lexington, Kentucky; (16) Mount Sterling, Kentucky; (17)
Olympia Springs, Kentucky; [10] Lexington and Elkhorn River, Kentucky; (18) Harrodsburg, Kentucky; (19) Chaumiere
des Prairies and Nicholasville, Kentucky; (20) Mount Pleasant, a Shaker village = Shakertown, Kentucky; [10] Lexing-
ton, Kentucky; (21) Burlington, Kentucky; (22) North Bend, Ohio; (23) Miami River (mouth), Ohio; (24) Cincinnati,
Ohio; (25) Big Bone Lick, Kentucky; [10] Lexington, Kentucky.
ca. Silliman published only seven of Rafin-
esque’s papers on plants before he was warned
by friends “at home and abroad” about Raf-
inesque’s poor botanical judgments. He sub-
sequently rejected and returned to Rafinesque
a large bundle of submitted manuscripts.
Twenty-some years later, Silliman (1841)
wrote in a note:
This [decision] will account for the early disappear-
ance of his communications from this Journal. The
step was painful, but necessary; for, if there had been
no other difficulty, he alone would have filled the
Journal, had he been permitted to proceed.
Good evidence now exists that the Ohio his-
torian, antiquarian, and postmaster Caleb At-
water (1778-1867), of Circleville, was among
those individuals “at home” who warned Sil-
liman of Rafinesque, and that Atwater’s malice
was largely responsible for the beginnings of
the permanent “fall from grace” of Rafin-
esque’s reputation (Boewe 1987a). This idea is
developed further in the section on Rafin-
esque s botanical associates.
Rafinesque’s publications on botany during
the time he was in the Ohio Valley appeared
in foreign scientific journals, little-known lit-
120
¥ Nachville
Figure 5.
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
>}
Indianapolis
AS
az»
«\ Columbus Rp,
5 3,
= 3 Gy
S . 8
A\ i
VIRGINIA
Kentucky localities (except Clarksville, Tennessee) recorded by Rafinesque in his Life of Travels (1836), for
his route to the Tennessee River, May 1823. [18] Lexington; (1) Harrodsburg; (2) Cedar Lick, Lincoln County; Muld-
raugh’s Hill (large area); Green River; (3) Rochester; (4) Elk Lick, Hart County; (5) Bowling Green; Cumberland River;
(6) Elkton, Todd County; (7) “West Union, a village of Shakers” = South Union [?]; (8) Russellville; (9) Hopkinsville;
(10) Clarksville, Tennessee; (11) Canton, Trigg County; [9] Hopkinsville; [8] Russellville; [7] “West Union”; [5] Bowling
Green; (12) C[h]ameleon Spring, Warren County; (13) Mammoth Cave; Green River; (14) Cedar Lick, Marion County;
(15) Knob Lick, Lincoln County; (16) Gov. Isaac Shelby’s, Lincoln County; (17) Col. David Meade’s, Jessamine County;
(18) Lexington.
erary journals that were never firmly estab-
lished, or in publications created by himself.
His first communications on newly discovered
genera and species were in letters to his friend
Dr. Samuel L. Mitchill, who as editor pub-
lished them in the American Monthly Maga-
zine and Critical Review, issued in New York.
Although Rafinesque began publishing in that
journal in 1817, his first article? on new
plants from the Ohio Valley appeared there in
1818. It was a letter, dated 20 July 1818 from
Louisville, in which he outlined his discoveries
in natural history made during his journey ear-
lier that year. In the botanical portion of this
letter, Rafinesque provided names and de-
tailed descriptions for four new genera, each
with a representative species. He also noted
having 35 new species, but listed names for
only 20 of them. On 5 October, in a letter?”
from Lexington, he wrote that he had 12 new
genera and about 80 new species. One new
genus, Nevrosperma (=Momordica L.) was
fully described, as was a single species, N. cus-
pidata (=M. balsamina L.). He observed that
it was an annual plant, cultivated under the
name “balsam apple” in Kentucky, where he
had collected specimens and seeds of the
plant. He also named, adequately character-
ized, and provided information on habitats and
localities for three other new species in other
genera. In a paper”? in the January 1819 issue
of the American Monthly Magazine, Rafin-
esque noted that he had discovered two new
genera and 25 new species of monocotyledons
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
<s infanepots
121
«\ Columbus lee 4
= ie}
2
= Oo
A Pe)
4
9
c CUMBERLA™
Figure 6.
Kentucky localities recorded by Rafinesque in his Life of Travels (1836), for the Wasioto or Cumberland
Mountains, in the south-central part of Kentucky, August-September, 1823. [14] Lexington; (1) Danville; (2) Shelby
[=property of Gov. Shelby, Lincoln Co.]; (3) Stanford; (4) Hall’s Gap, Lincoln Co.; (5) Green River (source); (6)
Somerset: (7) Rockcastle River (mouth); (8) Cumberland River (two falls); (9) Barbourville; (10) Pine Mountain, Bell
Co. (also a mountain range); Poplar Mountains; (11) Hazelpatch, Laurel Co.; (12) Mount Vernon; (13) Crab Orchard;
[3] Stanford; (14) Lexington.
and 12 new genera and 125 new species of
dicotyledons. These numbers of new genera
and species are evidence of the rapid pace at
which Rafinesque must have worked during
his first field season in the Ohio Valley.
Rafinesque continued to publish newly dis-
covered taxa from the Ohio Valley and other
parts of the country in the American Monthly
Magazine from 1817 through 18197491799!
2 and the American Journal of Science in
1818 and 1819.2%27975125+256 Perhaps the most
noteworthy species from the western states
described in the latter journal was his Myo-
surus shortii (=M. minimus L.),2°° received
from, and named in honor of, Charles W.
Short of Hopkinsville in the barrens of west-
em Kentucky, where Short had obtained the
plant. In four of the published pa-
pers?”2"2256289 cited above, four new genera
and eight new species of vascular plants were
actually described from the Ohio Valley. Based
on Merrill’s (1949) data, the only one of these
taxa not placed in synonomy is Dodecatheon
angustifolia, the identity of which remains un-
known. Merrill’s analysis shows that these taxa
were not really new to science and that the
journal editors were probably justified in re-
turning Rafinesque’s manuscripts.
Damaging though this rejection may have
been to Rafinesque’s self-image, it was for the
better of science. Rafinesque, however, did
not curtail his research but instead turned to
other outlets to publish his descriptions of new
plants. He found receptive periodicals in Paris
in the Journal de Physique, de Chemie,
dHistoire Naturelle et des Arts in 1819 and
122
Indianapolis
ILLINOIS
M
TENNESSEE
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
po
PENNSYLVANIA
\f ARYLAND
:
4
WEST
VIRGINIA
NORTH
CAROLINA
OHIO RIVER BASIN
Figure 7. Map of the Ohio Valley showing all of the locations mentioned by Rafinesque in his Life of Travels (1836),
including all of the locations shown on the maps in other figures, giving an approximation of where he botanized in
the Ohio Valley, and particularly in Kentucky.
1820,3°°65 and in Brussels in the Annales Gé-
nérales des Sciences Physiques in 1820 and
182 ] .340,341,345,346,350,351,353,356,374 Pe described 50
new genera in his first article*” in the Journal,
which Asa Gray (1841) noted was “probably
one of Rafinesque’s most creditable produc-
tions.” Later articles®*!°° described the new
genus Enemion and its type species, E. biter-
natum. In the Annales Générales, he pub-
lished revisionary or monographic treatments
of Rosa’ and Houstonia*! and remarks on
the genera Viscum,** Samolus,**° Vibur-
num,°**° Jeffersonia,*° Enemion,**'°°° Trilli-
um. Tridynia,**® Steironema,®*© and Lysi-
machia®® and the family Convolvulaceae.*™
Some of these papers were reprinted at later
dates.
At home in Kentucky, Rafinesque turned to
newly formed literary journals in Lexington as
outlets for publication of his new taxa. In
1819, in an article?” in the Western Review
and Miscellaneous Magazine, edited by Har-
vard College graduate William Gibbes Hunt
(1791-1833), Rafinesque described two spe-
cies of new shrubs, Betula rupestris, the rock
birch, and Cornus obliqua, the obliqual dog-
wood of Kentucky. They were discovered
growing together on the rocky sandstone cliffs
of the Kentucky River in Estill County. Raf-
inesque thoroughly characterized each species
by writing in English a specific definition, or
diagnosis, a full description, a number of ob-
servations on habitat, locality, and phenology,
and comparisons with closely related species
made from personal observations of living
plants and from the literature. His name for
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
man
Figure §.
123
arm
(oom Ss iN g |
Route of C.S. Rafinesque's Final Trip from
Lexington, Kentucky, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
in 1826.
Rafinesque’s final route from Lexington, Kentucky, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1826. (1) Lexington,
Kentucky; (2) Williamstown, Kentucky; (3) Cincinnati, Ohio; (4) Dayton, Ohio; (5) Springfield and Yellow Springs,
Ohio; (6) Columbus, Ohio; (7) Mt. Vernon, Ohio; (8) Mansfield, Ohio; (9) Portland (now Sandusky), Ohio; (10) Cleve-
land, Ohio; (11) Fairport, Ohio; (12) Erie and Presque Isle, Pennsylvania; (13) Buffalo, New York; (14) Niagara Falls,
New York; (15) Lockport, New York; (16) Rochester, New York; (17) Montezuma, New York; (18) Syracuse, New York;
(19) Utica, New York; (20) Little Falls, New York; (21) Schenectady, New York; (22) Troy, New York; (23) West Point,
New York; (24) New York, New York; (25) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
the dogwood is accepted, and the name for
the birch remains to be evaluated. The de-
scription of the latter plant would match B.
pumila were it not for the fact that Kentucky
is far to the south of that species’ natural range
(John J. Furlow, pers. comm.).
Believing that the general public had as
much interest and enthusiasm for the details
of natural history as he himself had, Rafin-
esque wrote popular articles on various topics
for a local newspaper, the Kentucky Gazette,
between 1820 and 1822, under the general
heading “The Cosmonist.” Of those articles
known to survive, three concern bota-
ny.*#!4#2447 One article“? contained descrip-
tions of, and observations on, two spring flow-
ering herbs, Enemion biternatum and Styly-
pus vernus, that he discovered near Lexington.
Rafinesque had previously named and de-
scribed the two species as new to science in
European journals, and he apparently was
quite fond of them, for he wrote enthusiasti-
cally of their discovery in a letter of 1 Decem-
ber 1820 to Professor Augustin Pyramus
DeCandolle, to whom Rafinesque referred as
the first botanist of the European continent.
The description of these new plants in the
Kentucky Gazette made it possible for them to
124
be known to the local readership. Both of the
plants are now considered distinct species, but
Torrey and Gray placed them in different gen-
era, where they have remained under the
names Isopyrum biternatum (Raf.) Torr. &
Gray and Geum vernum (Raf.) Torr. & Gray,
respectively. In the Flora of North America,
Rafinesque’s genus Enemion is recognized as
a genus with five species, including E. biter-
natum Raf. (Ford 1997).
A second paper‘ listed 16 species and
common names of the roses of the United
States, all of which Rafinesque had described
in 1820 in the Annales Générales. In addition,
this paper includes a description of one new
species, Rosa viscida (=R. virginiana Mill.).
Rafinesque urged the cultivation of these new
roses in the gardens of Lexington. These two
articles and the third one“ on the botany of
the western limestone region, discussed be-
low, were all quite technical, differing little in
terminology from his articles in the scientific
and literary journals. Of these articles under
the heading “The Cosmonist,” Rafinesque
(1836, p. 65)%° later admitted that he “could
not make Nat[ural] history popular.”
Rafinesque also sent papers on new taxa to
the Cincinnati Literary Gazette, published by
John P. Foote (1783-1865). Through this out-
let he initiated a series of papers called “Neo-
phyton,” of which four numbers are known to
have been published. In them he named and
described the new genus Cladrastis and its
type species, C. fragrans,*”” two new species
and eight new varieties of Collinsia,*** the spe-
cies Prenanthes opicrina,*® and the new genus
Lophactis with its type species, L. uniflora.**'
These papers contain a number of similarities.
In addition to the formal presentation of the
binomial names and short formal diagnoses in
English, Rafinesque gave detailed remarks on
many aspects of the plants, including when
and where he first discovered them, how the
plants differed from related taxa, blooming
time, origin and meaning of common names,
practical uses, detailed notations on habitat,
and names used by other botanists who al-
ready had seen the plants. These papers give
much accurate information about the plants,
and they represent examples of very complete
taxonomic studies for the early 19th century.
The paper on Collinsia*® is a revision of this
North American genus, in which Rafinesque
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
unnecessarily, but for his own reasons, rena-
med Nuttall’s C. verna, the type, as C. bicolor,
with six new varieties, and described two new
species, C. alba and C. purpurea, the latter
with two varieties. In assigning the names to
these three species, Rafinesque reasoned that
since they were all vernal species, C. verna
had been improperly named by Nuttall. Ac-
cordingly, Rafinesque named the three species
by the color of their flowers. The first, C. ver-
na, with bicolored white and blue corollas, be-
came C. bicolor; the white-flowered one, C.
alba; and the purple-flowered one, C. purpu-
rea. Of his proposed new taxa in the four pa-
pers in the Cincinnati Literary Gazette, only
the monotypic Cladrastis is maintained today,
as C. lutea (Michx. f.) K. Koch according to
many authors. Rudd (1971) adopted the name
C. kentukea [as “kentuckea”| (Dum.-Cours.)
Rudd, based on a description of 1811 by Du-
mont de Courset, who had young, non-flow-
ering specimens cultivated in France. The ge-
nus Cladrastis was accepted early by John Tor-
rey, who wrote Rafinesque that it “is a very
good one.”°*! Rafinesque recommended culti-
vation of Prenanthes opicrina (=P. crepidinea
Michx.) as a source of medicinal compounds.
Merrill (1949) questioned whether the Lo-
phactis, which Rafinesque redescribed in
1832," might be a Coreopsis, but Tod F.
Stuessy (pers. comm.) believes it is a Silphium.
The format, style, and generally informative
details of these writings are those of quality
presentations; in this respect, these papers
contain valuable and useful information on
natural history of the plants. However, the tax-
onomic decisions that Rafinesque made as the
initial justification for these papers now make
them mostly worthless as taxonomic studies.
All of the species of Collinsia in eastern North
America are considered to be one, C. verna
Nutt. Rafinesque’s paper on Collinsia is an ex-
ample of the extremes to which he would go
to describe all of the variants in a genus with
a single species.
To further the cause of making known his
discoveries of new western plants, Rafinesque
published in Lexington his Annals of Nature*”®
in 1820, and his own journal, the Western Mi-
nerva®°8” in 1821. In the latter journal Raf-
inesque published an article*”' on botanical
discoveries made in Kentucky, extracted from
a letter of 1 December 1820 to Augustin Pyr-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
amus DeCandolle of Geneva, Switzerland. An-
other article®* is a taxonomic revision of the
genus Clintonia, taken from a letter of 26 Sep-
tember 1819 to Dr. Samuel L. Mitchill of New
York. In a later article,’ Rafinesque alleged
that his “secret foes” paid his printer to sup-
press the Western Minerva, but he saved three
copies of the first and only number, from
which Fox (1900) published a detailed syn-
opsis of its contents. Rafinesque’s last taxo-
nomic botanical publication while he was a
resident of Lexington was a four-page pam-
phlet, Neogenyton (1825),** dedicated to Pro-
fessor DeCandolle, that described 66 new
genera of North American plants. However,
new taxa of western plants continued to ap-
pear in his writings after he returned to Phil-
adelphia in 1826. Several of these items ap-
peared as short articles in his Atlantic Journal
and Friend of Knowledge (1832-1833)?
729-731.732.749.755 and in his Herbarium Rafines-
quianum (1833) .797-779.786,795, 797, 798,800,802—805,817-819
He described individual taxa in his books,
among them the two-volume Medical Flora
(1828-1830),>°45°" American Manual of the
Grape Vine (1830),°°> New Flora and Botany
of North America (1836-[1838]),°° Flora Tel-
luriana (1836 [1837-1838]),°*° Alsographia
Americana (1838),°°° Sylva Telluriana
(1838),5°° American Manual of the Mulberry
Trees (1839),5% and Autikon Botanikon
(1840) 897
Much of Rafinesque’s taxonomic work in
botany remained obscure until Merrill pub-
lished his comprehensive Index Rafinesqui-
anus (Merrill 1949). Several years in the mak-
ing, this invaluable index lists all of the known
names proposed by Rafinesque, their sources
of publication, and their modern equivalents
when known. This single most important and
indispensable compendium unlocks the infor-
mation that Rafinesque so widely, yet obscure-
ly, published in North America and Europe.
In a study limited to the plants of Indiana,
Friesner (1953), also using Merrill's Index, de-
termined that Rafinesque had named 22
plants from Indiana, and that, of these, only
one name, Oenothera pilosella, was still rec-
ognized in the flora of that state. The nomen-
clature Friesner used was according to the
eighth edition of Gray’s Manual (Fernald
1950). All 22 names, along with their sources
of publication and modern equivalents, if
125
known, were listed in Friesner’s paper. Fries-
ner further reported that Rafinesque proposed
1210 names for the plants known in the 1950s
to grow in Indiana, but only 33 (or 2.73%)
were still in use at that time.
To gain a similar idea of the number of spe-
cies that Rafinesque named and described
from the Ohio Valley, I tallied the plant names
that Merrill noted with the abbreviations
“descr.” or “nom. nota” for the Ohio Valley
states. The totals were 70 from Illinois, 19
from Indiana, 320 from Kentucky, 166 from
Ohio, and 37 from Tennessee, for a total of
612 new taxa. The 166 taxa named from Ohio
included 118 from along the Ohio River and
along Lake Erie. When these 118 names are
excluded, 48 names remain. Forty of these 48
are species in which four epithets are retained,
with two in their original genera and two
transferred to other genera. Twenty-four of
the specific names have been placed into syn-
onymy, and twelve remain unknown. The re-
maining eight names are varieties, and their
identities also remain unknown. Rafinesque’s
two accepted species described from the Ohio
flora are Acalypha rhomboidea and Tradescan-
tia ohiensis, and the two whose epithets have
been transferred to other genera are Camassia
scilloides (Raf.) Cory and Isopyrum biterna-
tum (Raf.) Torr. & Gray, although the latter
has been returned to Enemion (Ford 1977).
In a broader perspective for eastern North
America, Call (1895) wrote that 13 genera, 8
subgenera, and 16 species established by Raf-
inesque appeared in the sixth edition of the
Manual of the Botany of the North United
States by Gray, Watson, and Coulter (1890).
He predicted that others would be added with
the advance of time and that “the full sum of
tardy justice eventually will be reached.” Ex-
amination of the eighth, most recent, and
most geographically comprehensive edition of
Gray's Manual (Fernald 1950) indicates a cur-
rent recognition of 18 genera, 84 species, and
13 varieties, as determined by me.
BOTANICAL ASSOCIATES AND CORRE-
SPONDENTS IN THE OHIO VALLEY
As was his practice everywhere he traveled,
Rafinesque sought to meet and socialize with
botanists of the Ohio Valley and to obtain in-
formation about plants from them. Further-
more, he was always quick to express his
126
thanks to others. As a result of this practice,
he left several more or less detailed invento-
Ties?>1.554,749,788,563,565 of contemporary American
botanists; from these lists, the range and na-
ture of his personal associations may be largely
reconstructed. Boewe has provided identifying
annotations for many of the more obscure per-
sons that Rafinesque named in his autobiog-
raphy (Rafinesque 1987).
The acknowledgements in Rafinesque’s
Medical Flora (1828)°°* are especially note-
worthy in that some of the names there do not
appear in any of Rafinesque’s other lists. Of
the 16 persons named, seven were from the
Ohio Valley. Otherwise, the proportion of
westerners in the remaining lists is invariably
lower. For example, in Rafinesque’s “Account
of the botanical collections ...,°°"** pub-
lished in 1832, he named 57 persons who had
contributed to his herbarium. Forty-four were
Americans, and only 11 of these are known to
have resided in the Ohio Valley at any time.
In his last known list, the “Historical sketch”
at the beginning of the second part of his New
Flora ... (1837),°° Rafinesque named 25
American collectors who had contributed to
his herbarium. Only nine of these are known
to have resided in the Ohio Valley at any time.
These statistics indicate that, although Rafin-
esque was the most prolific collector of plants
in the Ohio Valley, he still relied heavily on
botanists of Europe and the eastern seaboard
to supply him with specimens.
Ohio Valley residents acknowledged as
sources of information on medicinal plants by
Rafinesque in his Medical Flora (1828)°*' were
Drs. Short and Brown of Lexington, Dr. Eoff
of Wheeling, Dr. Miiller of New Harmony, Dr.
Drake of Cincinnati, Dr. Crockett of Frank-
fort, and Dr. Graham of Harrodsburg. The
Ohio Valley residents who contributed to his
herbarium were identified by Rafinesque in
subsequent publications? **5° as follows:
Bradbury, Dr. “Crockatt” [in 1832] or “Crock-
et” [in 1837], “Mrs. Mary Holley born Austin,”
Dr. Locke, Dr. “Miller” [Miller], Dr. Short,
Miss Jane Short, John C. Short, Ridgely, Stein-
hauer, and Dr. Ward. Of the western contrib-
utors to Rafinesque’s herbarium, all except
John Locke, Frederick Ridgely, and Daniel
Steinhauer are discussed below. Dr. Crockett,
like Rafinesque’s other students, is discussed
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
below in the sub-section on “Botanical In-
struction.”
OK OK
As early as 1810, the English plant collector
John Bradbury (1768-1823) had explored the
Missouri Country, at the particular encourage-
ment of Thomas Jefferson (True 1929; Rickett
1950). Bradbury’s subsequent book, Travels in
the Interior of America, was published in Lon-
don in 1817, and few readers could have been
more susceptible to that book’s sense of ad-
venture than Rafinesque. This book could only
have served to reinforce any pre-existing
thoughts that Rafinesque may have had of re-
locating to the trans-Allegheny region.
In his Life of Travels (1836, pp. 57, 64),
Rafinesque recalled visiting “my friend Brad-
bury” as he passed through Middletown dur-
ing his first foray into Kentucky in 1818, and
then recalled that “In 1822 Bradbury came to
see me: he had sold me in 1817 many new
plants of Missouri, and I had written a florula
missurica, which I sent to Swainson [the zo-
ologist and traveler William Swainson (1789-
1855)| in England, whom I fear never re-
ceived it.” Thus, his most significant interac-
tion with Bradbury had already taken place by
the time Rafinesque came to the Ohio Valley
in 1818.
Rafinesque sought to commemorate Brad-
bury in the new genus Bradburya, published
in the Florula Ludoviciana in 1817, but the
genus Wisteria, named by Nuttall in 1818, was
later conserved over Rafinesque’s name. Raf-
inesque continued to acknowledge Bradbury,
who was among eight named “Botanical Au-
thors ... who have added to my N.Amer.
herbals” (Rafinesque 1832).7°75* Five years af-
ter making this acknowledgement, Rafinesque
(1837)%°° named Bradbury repeatedly in his
exhaustive lists of writers, “friends and assis-
tants” from whom “... I have received much
help by gifts or exchanges of specimens, new
facts and observations,” and “Botanical trav-
elers who ... come to explore our Plants in
order to send them to European Gardens or
Herbals... .”
* OK OK
The traveling English naturalist Thomas
Nuttall (1786-1859), then based in Philadel-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
phia, suggested to Rafinesque that he should
make the acquaintance of the young Kentucky
physician Charles Wilkins Short (1794-1863),
who was just beginning his illustrious botanical
career (Perkins 1938; Davies 1945). Nuttall
had been impressed with Short’s knowledge of
plants when they botanized together in the vi-
cinity of Lexington during the summer of
1816. Arriving in Cincinnati in the summer of
1818, Rafinesque met Dr. Short’s older broth-
er, the lawyer John Cleves Short (1792-1864),
and the two men spent a day at John Short’s
residence at North Bend, on the Ohio River
about 15 miles below Cincinnati. Botanist
Short was not present at this meeting. The
previous year he had moved from Lexington
to Hopkinsville, a small Christian County
town, in the barrens of western Kentucky,
where he expanded his medical practice and
speculated in land.
Upon his arrival in Louisville, Rafinesque
wrote his first letter to Dr. Short on 17 July
1818. Concerning plants, he stated:
I regret exceedingly that I cannot visit your part of
the country and see your herbarium, as it is my wish
to become acquainted with the geographical range of
all the plants of the western country. I have seen a
few of your plants at your brother's and have deter-
mined most of them, having with me Pursh’s Flora
& Persoon’s sinopsis. I am able to determine any
plant that I see. I will mention the Orchis spectabilis
of Llinnaeus]. as an instance, which you sent to your
brother as an unknown plant.
Rafinesque proposed to Short that he send his
herbarium, or any part of it, to Lexington,
where later in the summer Rafinesque would
be able to provide the names for all of Short’s
plants, and to exchange duplicate specimens.
On 15 September 1818, Short reportedly re-
turned a letter and a parcel of 44 specimens,
to which Rafinesque gave names, and of which
12 were new to science (Perkins 1938). Raf-
inesque’s notes on the plants were enclosed in
a letter of 27 September 1818. With this ex-
change began a correspondence that spanned
the next 19 years. Twelve letters from Rafin-
esque to Short (Perkins 1938; Davies 1949;
Boewe 1980) and one from Short to Rafin-
esque (Boewe 1961) are known to have sur-
vived. Short’s handwritten “Memoranda of
Letters” (1816-1824) contains notations of at
least four other letters written to Rafinesque
between 1818 and 1822.
127
Rafinesque’s letters covered many topics—
for example, exchanges of plants and publi-
cations, identifications of and notes about
plants, comments on his travels, and his work
at Transylvania University. In addition to hay-
ing Short collect and send him plants, es-
pecially the vernal ones of western Kentucky,
Rafinesque, in a letter of 27 September 1818,
outlined many other projects, which “may in-
crease your meritorious labours.” As Short was
a good artist, Rafinesque wanted a drawing “of
any other rare, peculiar, new or doubtful
plant” of Kentucky. Later, on 15 June 1820,
Rafinesque again urged Short to illustrate
plants, for “We may afterwards do something
with them for the advantage of science.” Still
later, on 16 November 1827, when Rafinesque
was writing his Medical Flora (1828-
tions of rare medicinal plants and general in-
formation on materia medica, a subject Short
had been teaching at Transylvania University
since 1825. Rafinesque asked Short to obtain
data from distant students who knew of me-
dicinal uses of plants, and he wanted Short’s
former students from Alabama to send him
plants from that state. Rafinesque must have
been grateful for Short’s contributions of spec-
imens and illustrations, for he dedicated his
Medical Flora to John Torrey, Short, and Ste-
phen Elliott, three American botanists he held
in high esteem. During the course of his writ-
ings, Rafinesque commemorated Short’s name
in one genus, Shortia (S. dentata), and in two
specific epithets, Myosurus shortii (=M. min-
imus L.) and Gentiana shortiana (=G. sapon-
aria L..).
Rafinesque and Short met on two occasions:
in Lexington in September 1821, and in Hop-
kinsville in the early summer of 1823. The
meetings were described briefly in Rafin-
esque’s Life of Travels (1836, pp. 64, 69).°°
Traveling in Short’s carriage on the Ridge
Road, the two men botanized along the 82-
mile route from Lexington to Cincinnati and
on to North Bend, where they explored at the
mouth of the Big Miami River and visited
Short’s brother and his uncle William Henry
Harrison (1773-1841), a general and later the
ninth United States president.
Rafinesque’s activities in this neighborhood
were not forgotten. More than 50 years later,
on 27 December 1879, Dr. John A. Warder,
128
who had purchased a part of the Harrison es-
tate, wrote to George Engelmann of St. Louis
regarding the recognition of Catalpa speciosa
as a distinct species:
and right here (North Bend) where Gov. Harrison
had introduced it, the plant seems to have escaped
the notice of all the botanists, Clark, Thos. Lea, R.
Buchanan, Drs. Locke & Riddell, Dr Wm Short [sic]
of Kentucky who often visited his brother near us,
who had planted many trees obtained from Genl.
Harrison, and even Rafinesque himself who bota-
nized in this region—
From North Bend, Rafinesque went on
horseback to explore Big Bone Lick, about 18
miles south of Cincinnati, noting in a later ar-
ticle®™ that he “collected several plants,” and
that “Many pretty plants are found in the val-
ley and hills, but no saline plants.” After Raf-
inesque had explored the area for several days,
Short met him there, and together they re-
turned to Lexington. This first visit must have
been cordial, as Rafinesque wrote to Short on
1 February 1822 that Short’s “renewed invi-
tation to visit your part of the Country, Bar-
rens &c meets my long delayed wishes.” These
wishes later came true during Rafinesque’s
travels into western Kentucky in 1823, when
he and Short together studied plants of the
barrens.
No letters passed between Rafinesque and
Short after their parting in Hopkinsville in
1823, until Short reportedly sought to renew
the exchange of dried plant specimens and in-
formation on medicinal plants in letters of 16
November 1827 and 5 August 1834 (Perkins
1938). Meanwhile, Rafinesque had moved to
Philadelphia and Short to Lexington. On 7
September 1834, Short replied that, for the
past 3 or 4 years, he had “been very industri-
ously engaged in collecting and preserving the
plants of Kentucky ...” and that he had sent
about 5000 specimens of about 600 species to
various correspondents in Europe and Amer-
ica. He was already honor bound to send
plants to these botanists during the forthcom-
ing winter, but because his supply of speci-
mens was sufficient, he would have plants
enough for Rafinesque. Short imposed one
condition: he wanted at least one parcel of
plants containing Rafinesque’s novelties from
Kentucky before he would exchange any more
plants with him. Rafinesque had apparently
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
promised to send specimens to Short and
none had been received.
On 25 October 1834, in response to Short’s
condition, Rafinesque promised a small pack-
age, but in reality he needed money and want-
ed the affluent Dr. Short to buy his plants. He
wrote:
You will see in the last [letter] that I offer my whole
Herb[arium]. for sale, the whole or in parts at specific
prices; and it is for this that I reserve my numerous
& rarest Discoveries. I shall not be able to send you
for Exchange all my N[ew]. Splecies]. & G[enera].
because I have already disposed of most Duplicates
& expect New]. Sp[ecies]. or very rare ones in re-
turn. But you may expect some if you send me New
things, or you may buy my standard Monographs.
However my N[ew]. Splecies]. from Kentucky may
be found again by you, & I will willingly acquaint you
with their location that you may look for them, &
comply thus with your request. Nay I look upon you
to supply me again with some very rare plants which
I have sent to Europe & have only single specimens
left. But this will be only for next year[’s] herboriza-
tions. This year you can only supply me the Gentians
or such as you have collected & have to spare. By
the numerous list of your correspondents to whom
you are to send plants, I am afraid you will have few
left for me, & hardly time to attend to my Demands.
Yet I recommend you to send any Doubtful plant
from Kentucky, as I know them so well that I can
more easily give you their names than anybody else.
This passage certainly reveals the self-center-
edness in Rafinesque’s approach to botany. He
did comply with Short’s condition by sending
a small package which, as recorded in his let-
ter of 15 November 1834, consisted of sets of
54 American plants and twelve “Oriental
plants ... from Egypt, Palestine & Greece ...
sent as a Sample.” The American plants were
chiefly from the seashore, the barrens, the Al-
legheny Mountains, and the Carolinas, but
none was from Kentucky.
My search in July and August 1965 at the
Herbarium of the Academy of Natural Sci-
ences of Philadelphia, where Short’s herbari-
um is deposited, revealed 49 specimens of
eastern North American plants that Short had
obtained from Rafinesque (Stuckey 1971a).
With the exception of three specimens, all of
them contain locality data, including 20 from
the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania, but
none of the specimens had the name of a Ken-
tucky locality or even the name “Kentucky”
itself. These specimens bear the original blu-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
ish gray labels with the names of the plants
and their localities in Rafinesque’s handwrit-
ing, along with the printed stamp, “C. S. Raf-
inesque Philadelphia, Pa.,” usually in the bot-
tom left-hand corner. Rafinesque also stated
in his letter of 15 November 1834 that he had
put aside 100 other plants for Short, but ap-
parently they were not sent. Nor, apparently,
did Short ever receive any of Rafinesque’s
specimens from Kentucky.
Of the few specimens that he received from
Rafinesque, Short had nothing positive to re-
late. Writing to John Torrey on 11 August
1835, Short stated that Rafinesque’s package
“contained a miserable parcel of things, most
of them as familiar to me as a ‘thrice told tale’,
together with some faded fragments of exotic
affairs, rendered imposing and venerable by
being labelled from ‘Etna’, ‘Egypt’, and ‘Pal-
estine’ &.c&.c” On 10 May 1841, in a letter to
William Darlington of West Chester, Pennsyl-
vania, Short described Rafinesque’s plants as
“so miserably bad that they have been eye-
sores to me whenever I have met them ... .”
As also noted in his letter of 11 August 1835
to John Torrey, Short had sent a considerable
collection of plants to Rafinesque that spring,
but it is not known if these were received.
On 7 November 1837, in his last known let-
ter to Short, Rafinesque expressed annoyance
toward Short for not having sent specimens of
rare plants from Illinois and western Ken-
tucky, as supposedly promised. He made ad-
ditional demands of Short by insisting that
Short purchase his published works and the
rare plants he had recently acquired from the
herbarium of Zaccheus Collins. Rafinesque
wanted specimens of all the gentians and oth-
er rare plants of Kentucky and Illinois, includ-
ing specimens of those taxa that he had al-
ready described. He begged for Short’s pub-
lications and new botanical information on
Kentucky. As a favor, Rafinesque also asked
for the names of all the botanists and botanical
collectors known to Short in the west and
south, because he wished “to make a complete
list of Authors, Works, pamphlets, collections,
herbals, gardens, Collectors, travellers &c in
N. America.”
Because only one of Short’s letters to Raf-
inesque is known to survive, Short remains the
silent partner in their botanical interactions
prior to 1834. It appears that Rafinesque ex-
129
tracted from Short as much botanical infor-
mation as possible and that Short, with his
characteristic reserve and quiet manner, cal-
culated the situation carefully and was com-
pletely generous and cooperative. Even in
Short’s one surviving, and apparently last, let-
ter of 7 September 1834, he displays a sense
of annoyance because Rafinesque had not ful-
filled his earlier promises to send specimens
and provide localities of his new plants from
Kentucky. Short evidently was not about to
purchase Rafinesque’s books and plants just to
confirm information on a flora he already
knew quite well. After 1835, as is well docu-
mented from Short’s letters to John Torrey,
William Darlington, and Asa Gray, the metic-
ulous Dr. Short became totally disenchanted
with the erratic Rafinesque and his slipshod
and self-aggrandizing botanical work (Stuckey
1986). Apparently Short responded to no
more of Rafinesque’s demands after 1835.
ok OOK OK
In 1818, at New Harmony, on the banks of
the Wabash River in southern Indiana, Raf-
inesque met Dr. Johann Christopher Miiller
(1777-1845), the doctor, schoolmaster, and of-
ficial musician of the Harmony Society. Miiller
had accompanied the Rev. George Rapp, the
Society's founder, to Economy, Pennsylvania,
in 1803. From 1814 to 1824, the Society func-
tioned at New Harmony. In 1825, Rapp sold
the community to Robert Owen and returned
to Economy with Miiller, who there served as
Curator of the Museum of Natural Curiosities
(Pitzer and Elliott 1979). As noted in Rafin-
esque’s Life of Travels (1836, p. 56),°° Miiller
“had a fine herbal [herbarium] and gave me
some fine plants: we went together to herbor-
ize in the meadows.” Over the course of his
career, Rafinesque published species of plants
that he and Miller collected together from
the Wabash country in 1818, or that Miiller
later gave to Rafinesque. These plants were:
Amorpha tomentosa (=A. canescens Pursh),°”
Collinsia purpurea (=C. verna Nutt.),"?° Cus-
cuta aphylla (=? C. glomerata Choisy),? Do-
decatheon angustifolium,?” Helichroa fuscata,
H. crocea, (both =Echinacea purpurea (L.)
Moench),*° Lophactis uniflora (=Silphium -
sp.)*°* and Tradescantia rupestris (= T. vir-
giniana L.).”° In his paper on Collinsia,*° Raf-
130
inesque wrote that Miiller was the first to dis-
cover a species in this genus, the plants having
come from Economy near Pittsburgh. Miiller
had sent the plants to the Rev. Henry Muhl-
enberg of Lancaster, who mistook them for a
new species of Herpestis. Miiller was the first
to discover Rafinesque’s new C. purpurea
(=C. verna Nutt.) on the Wabash in Indiana.
It is not known if Miiller’s own herbarium has
survived, but a few of his specimens were giv-
en to Dr. William Darlington in 1816 and to
the Rev. Lewis David von Schweinitz in 1831,
when these two botanists visited Economy
during westward journeys. A few of Miiller’s
specimens are now in the Darlington Herbar-
ium (DWC) at West Chester State College,
Pennsylvania, and in the Schweinitz Herbari-
um at the Academy of Natural Sciences of
Philadelphia (PH).
* OK OK
Rafinesque corresponded with Ohio histo-
rian and antiquarian Caleb Atwater (1778-
1867), who was the postmaster at Circleville.
Atwater’s publications include several pioneer-
ing papers on the prairies of Ohio (Atwater
1818, 1827, 1831, 1838). In his Life of Travels
(1836, p. 62),°° Rafinesque commented that
he had “sent a florule of Ohio” to Atwater,
probably no later than 1819, but nothing was
ever learned by its author concerning the fate
of this work. It may have been titled “Flora of
the State of Ohio or Catalogue of its plants,”
which appeared as item number 66 in the cat-
alogue of 100 works, essays, and manuscripts
that Rafinesque appended to his 15 February
1824 letter to Thomas Jefferson, as part of an
application for a faculty appointment in the
newly created University of Virginia (Betts
1944). Although Atwater included lists of
plants in his History of the State of Ohio (At-
water 1838), the information is credited to
other individuals who evidently were the au-
thors.
As mentioned earlier, Boewe (1987a) has
presented evidence that Atwater was among
those individuals who warned Benjamin Silli-
man of Rafinesque’s scientific indiscretions.
The first evidence of animosity between At-
water and Rafinesque appeared in Atwater’s
Archaeologia Americana (Atwater 1820a). Al-
though it was based on careful field examina-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
tion, this survey of prehistoric Indian mounds
included acknowledgements to many contrib-
utors. Among them was Rafinesque’s friend
and patron John D. Clifford, but no mention
of Rafinesque was made, even though he and
Atwater had been in correspondence on the
subject of antiquities for some time. Rafin-
esque (1820)°°> reviewed Atwater’s survey in
the Western Review and Miscellaneous Mag-
azine, published in Lexington in September
1820, and when Atwater saw the review, he
became furious with Rafinesque, and in a let-
ter of 20 October 1820 to Isaiah Thomas
(1749-1831), the president of the American
Antiquarian Society, Atwater stated that Raf-
inesque had inserted into the review “more
than one hundred base falsehoods as were
ever uttered by man.”
Atwater’s malice, as expressed to Silliman,
was undoubtedly a primary factor in the de-
struction of Rafinesque’s reputation. In_ his
Life of Travels (1836, p. 62),°°° Rafinesque
seemed to gloss over the whole matter by not-
ing simply that Atwater “quarrelled with me
when he found that I was likely to take up the
subject [of antiquities].” In a letter’ of 7 Jan-
uary 1821 to Bory St. Vincent (1778-1846),
editor of the Annales Générales des Sciences
Physiques of Brussels, Rafinesque described
Atwater as “an able man; but a diffuse writer,
his style being deprived of order, perspicuity
and elegance.”
* OK OK
The Indiana botanist identified only as “Dr.
Ward” has received inordinate attention from
researchers due to his involvement with the
Walam Olum, an alleged Delaware Indian
tribal chronicle the pictographic part of which
he is supposed to have obtained and given to
Rafinesque sometime between 1820 and 1822.
No fewer than four possible “Drs. Ward” have
been named in the literature, but in no in-
stance is there an exact or compelling corre-
spondence between Rafinesque’s own sketchy
description of his source and the biographical
data otherwise available (Weer 1942, 1954;
Barlow and Powell 1986; Boewe 1987b). The
candidates are Dr. John Russell Ward, Dr.
William Ward, and the Rev. John Ward, all of
Kentucky, and Dr. Malthus A.W. Ward, who
did indeed reside briefly in Indiana.
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
Rafinesque apparently made his first refer-
ence to “Ward” in a letter of 24 September
1822, to Zaccheus Collins, in which he an-
nounced his intention to name in Ward’s hon-
or a St. John’s-wort, Hypericum wardianum
(Barlow and Powell 1986; Boewe 1987b).
Boewe pointed out that “Hypericum wardian-
um is a manuscript name that never saw pub-
lication ...,” and regarded this eponymy as
evidence for the possibility that Ward was the
collector.
In his article “... On 12 Nlew]. Splecies].
of Plants from Illinois, &c.,” Rafinesque
(1832)° wrote that “they were chiefly discov-
ered in 1818, or given me since by Dr. Muller
and Dr. Ward.” Although this sentence is
hopelessly ambiguous, the person responsible
for the eight Illinois plants collected in 1818
may well have been Rafinesque himself.
When Rafinesque (1824)** first published
the genus Lophactis, he mentioned only that
the plant was very rare in Kentucky and that
“it has been found near Harmony on the Wa-
bash by Dr. Miller” [Miiller]. When he wrote
about the plant 8 years later, Rafinesque
(1832)** redescribed it as Lophactis uniflora
(=Silphium sp.) and added: “I noticed in 1818
this plant on the Wabash, but out of blossom|;]
in 1821 Dr. Ward brought me a perfect [flow-
ering] specimen from White Rliver]. Indiana.”
Rafinesque is not known to have visited this
locality, but Ward supposedly obtained the
Delaware pictographs there.
In his list of the 12 new Illinois species, Raf-
inesque (1832)° provided the dates when he
first obtained them. Assuming that Rafinesque
himself was responsible for the specimens col-
lected in 1818, and that Miiller was responsi-
ble for at least one and no more than three of
the remaining plants collected in subsequent
years, then Rafinesque’s cumulative attribu-
tions would indicate that Ward was responsi-
ble for a total of as few as three and for no
more than five of Rafinesque’s “new species.”
In 1833, Rafinesque listed Ward as one of
three contributors to the collection listed in
the “Florula Centralis or Illinoensis.”*!! Since
Rafinesque provided no further information
on collectors and localities in this publication,
it is impossible to adjust the figures already
suggested as to the extent of Ward’s contri-
bution to Rafinesque’s herbarium. It might be
noted, however, that the three plant names
131
Collinsia purpurea, Plantago gonophylla, and
P. atrofusca occur both here and in the 1832
list. As noted earlier, the Collinsia is more
likely to have come from Miller.
Rafinesque (1833)"*"5> included Ward in a
list of “Professors and Doctors” who had “add-
ed to my N. Amer. herbals.” And then in his
New Flora and Botany of North America, Vol.
2, Rafinesque (1837, pp. 9, 13)5°> mentioned
Dr. Ward twice, first in a list of botanical
friends and collectors from whom he had “re-
ceived much help by gifts or exchanges of
specimens, new facts and observations,” and
then in a list of the botanists “who have fallen
victims to their zeal in arduous travels, or from
diseases contracted by their labors.” This last
item of information would seem to coincide
with Rafinesque’s (1836)°°°*°° reference to
“the late Dr. Ward of Indiana” as the source
of the Delaware pictographs.
As mentioned earlier, none of the candi-
dates suggested by researchers is a perfect
match for “Dr. Ward” as described by Rafin-
esque. In the standard critical edition of the
Walam Olum, Weer (1954) presented what
was known of the biography of Dr. John Rus-
sell Ward (?-1834), who resided in Kentucky
at Cynthiana, Harrison County, as early as
1808, and then at Carlisle, Nicholas County,
from 1816 to 1829. Rafinesque wrote in his
Life of Travels (1836b, p. 71) that in 1824,
“My friend Mr. Ward took me to Cynthiana in
a gig, where I surveyed other ancient monu-
ments, and found a fine locality of fossils.” A
writer less cautious than Weer might have as-
sumed that this “Mr. Ward” and the Nicholas
County physician were one and the same.
However, Boewe (1987b) has presented evi-
dence to suggest that the gig-driver was the
Lexington Episcopal clergyman John Ward,
the brother-in-law of Rafinesque’s late patron
John D. Clifford. This individual may well be
the same Ward of whom Rafinesque, as su-
perintendent of the Transylvania Botanical
Garden, would have occasion to write in 1825,
“Received many presents of seeds and plants
from Messrs. Clay, Ward, Fowler and Mego-
wan” (Harrison 1913; Weer 1954), although
the generic term “Messrs.” might possibly
have subsumed the more specific title “Doc-
tor.” From Carlisle, Dr. John Russell Ward
moved to Missouri, where he died at Fulton,
Callaway County.
132
Another suggestion is William Ward, from
Mason County, Kentucky, who was a medical
student at Transylvania University from 1823
to 1826 and earned his medical degree just 2
months before Rafinesque permanently left
Lexington (Boewe 1987b). Little else is known
of William Ward, and Boewe was unable to
find specific instances of direct connections or
written communications with Rafinesque.
Malthus A. W. Ward (1794-1863) would be
the ideal candidate were it not for the fact that
Rafinesque described his “Dr. Ward” as “late”
in 1836. Various attempts have been made to
read this adjective as referring to Ward's place
of residence, that is, as “lately” of Indiana, or
perhaps as referring to Ward's profession, that
is, as no longer practicing medicine, but Raf-
inesque’s (1837)** allusion to Ward as one of
the botanists “who have fallen victims to their
zeal in arduous travels, or from diseases con-
tracted by their labors” strongly suggests that
Rafinesque believed him to be dead.
According to Barlow and Powell (1986),
Malthus Ward
.. was born at Haverhill, New Hampshire, in 1794.
After studying under a local physician and attending
the Medical Institution at Dartmouth College, he set-
tled in Kittanning, Pennsylvania, in 1815, then moved
to Pittsburgh in 1816. In 1819 he located to Hindos-
tan, a pioneer Indiana village on the east fork of the
White River near the contemporary town of Shoals,
in Martin County [where he probably remained until
late 1822]. Ward's lengthy and detailed letters written
during this period reveal his interest and erudition in
both botany and zoology. His interests in these two
sciences developed during his student days from
1812 to 1814 at Middlebury College, Middlebury,
Vermont.
After receiving his medical degree at the Med-
ical School of Maine in 1823, Ward practiced
medicine and continued his interest in botany
and natural history throughout the remainder
of his life. He lived at Salem, Massachusetts,
from 1823 to 1832 and at Athens, Georgia,
where he was appointed professor of natural
history. He died in Athens in 1863 (Barlow
and Powell 1977, 1978a, 1978b, 1986). Mal-
thus Ward appears never to have mentioned
Rafinesque in his letters or manuscript notes
(Boewe 1987b).
Rafinesque very possibly interacted with
two or more Wards, at least one from Ken-
tucky and one from Indiana, whose discrete
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
identities were lost when he failed to record
anything other than their last names. This
speculation becomes all the more plausible by
noting that references to the various candi-
dates provide no indication that any one of
them had both a Kentucky connection and an
interest in floristic botany, the isolated ex-
change of 1825, as cited by Harrison (1913),
being horticultural rather than botanical.
When acknowledging other persons, Rafin-
esque characteristically used their last names
only, and therefore the name “Dr. Ward”
could easily, but misleadingly, apply to more
than one person.
* OK OK
The relationship between Rafinesque and
Dr. Daniel Drake (1785-1852), early Cincin-
nati’s preeminent physician, educator, and sci-
entist, was not a particularly productive one.
By 1818, at age 33, Drake held undisputed
leadership as a scientist and botanist of the
Ohio Valley. He was the first Ohio Valley res-
ident to publish information on local vascular
plants in his books, Notices Concerning Cin-
cinnati (Drake 1810-1811) and Picture of Cin-
cinnati and the Miami Country (Drake 1816).
On 8 May 1818, in Cincinnati, he was appar-
ently the first to give public lectures on botany,
a venture that proved to be of great interest,
with 40 subscribers enrolling in his initial
course (Horine 1961, p. 153). Thomas Nuttall
visited Drake at Cincinnati in 1816 and 1818
and later referred to him as “one of the most
scientific men west of the Allegheny Moun-
tains” (Nuttall 1821). Drake was also involved
in organizing Cincinnati's Western Museum
Society, established in 1818.
Rafinesque’s letter of 8 July 1820 was his
earliest known contact with Drake (Horine
1961, p. 141). Addressed to Drake as the sec-
retary of the Western Museum Society, the
letter offered marine shells, botanical speci-
mens, and publications in exchange for
mounted birds and quadrupeds of the West.
Although Drake reportedly replied on 29 Au-
gust, the assumption is that nothing came of
the proposal, for Rafinesque wrote in a let-
ter’? of 7 January 1821 to Bory St. Vincent,
in an apparent reference to these kinds of sci-
entific institutions, “Many of their puffs are
mere tricks, for instance, they have established
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
a Museum, which has issued proposals of ex-
change; but when applied to, they had nothing
to give, but were very greedy to receive!” In
this same letter, Rafinesque addressed himself
more specifically to the subject of Drake by
saying that he “has shown himself an author
of capability in his first work called Picture of
Cincinnati; although that work is not free
from defects and even errors: but he has not
published anything since, except small rhetor-
ical pamphlets; he aims at knowledge however,
and if he does not know how to reach it, it is
perhaps because he has a share of the unfor-
tunate shortsight.”
Drake’s biographer, Emmet Field Horine
(1961, pp. 141-144, 195-196), described other
non-scientific interactions and caustic com-
ments exchanged between the two individuals
in literary publications. Horine pointed out
that, although Drake taught materia medica
and botany in the Medical Department at
Transylvania from 1823 to 1825, he seems to
have had little contact with Rafinesque, who
taught in the Academic Department. Both
men were members of the Kentucky Institute
and read papers‘ before that scientific and
literary organization in Lexington in 1823.
Drake was a subscriber to Rafinesque’s
short-lived Transylvania Botanical Garden in
1824 (Peter 1905, p. 38). Upon leaving Tran-
sylvania to return to Philadelphia in 1826, Raf-
inesque passed through Cincinnati, sought out
Drake, and visited Joseph Dorfeuille’s West-
ern Museum with him on 9 May (Rafinesque
1987, p. 19). Rafinesque’s final mention of
Drake came some years later, in the passing
acknowledgements at the beginning of the
Medical Flora (1828).>>*
ok OK Ok
In an account of his botanical collections,”**
Rafinesque also noted that several ladies, in-
cluding Mrs. Mary (Austin) Holley, wife of
Transylvania University President Horace Hol-
ley, and Miss Jane Short, half-sister of Dr.
Charles W. Short, contributed to his herbari-
um. In a letter of 15 June 1820 to Dr. Short,
Rafinesque wrote from Lexington: “Your sister
gave me sometime ago a fine Trillium collect-
ed near Hopkinsville, which differs from. T.
sessile by having petiolated leaves, yet it is not
the Tr. petiolatum of Pursh. I should like to
133
have more of it.” He described it further as “a
beautiful species differing from Tr. sessile, by
its petiolated leaves, reflexed calyx and pale
purple petals,” as he commented in a letter®”!
of 1 December 1820 to DeCandolle. The
plant on which Rafinesque based his Trillium
reflexcum was a specimen he had obtained
from Jane Short (1803-1841), who in 1839
married James Weir of Greenville, Kentucky.
Rafinesque’s letter to DeCandolle was pub-
lished in 1821 in his Western Minerva (Raf-
inesque 1820b) with the identical diagnosis as
in the letter. Fox (1900), in his synopsis of Raf-
inesques Western Minerva, quoted Rafin-
esque’s diagnosis verbatim, thereby validating
the plant's name. Because the Western Miner-
va was suppressed during printing and no cop-
ies were placed in circulation, it would follow,
according to an item in the Botanical Gazette
(Anonymous 1900) and according to the Code
of Botanical Nomenclature, that valid publi-
cation of Rafinesque’s Trillium reflexum was
not attained until his diagnosis appeared in the
article by Fox (1900). The taxonomic status of
this Rafinesque species in the flora continues
to remain in doubt, as this entity was not dis-
cussed in the most recent study of the sessile-
flowered trilliums (Freeman 1975).
7k OK OK
A member of one of the most aristocratic
families in early Kentucky, Dr. Samuel Brown
(1769-1830) could claim to be the first pro-
fessor of medicine west of the Alleghenies,
having been named to the chairs of surgery,
anatomy, and chemistry and pharmacy at
Transylvania in 1799 (Peter 1905). However,
medical classes at the University did not meet
on a regular basis for another 20 years. Dr.
Daniel Drake thought enough of Brown’s tal-
ents to offer him a professorship at Cincin-
nati’s newly founded Medical College of Ohio
in 1818, but Brown chose to remain in Lex-
ington, where he served as Professor of The-
ory and Practice of Medicine until his retire-
ment from public life in 1825 (Horine 1961,
pp. 157-159, 206).
Brown's interest in botany appears to have
been mostly with useful plants, especially
commercial ginseng. Ewan (1967a) summa-
rized Brown’s botanical correspondence with
Thomas Jefferson, who described him as
134
“more conversant in Botanical researches”
than Jefferson.
Rafinesque must have befriended Brown at
a fairly early date, as indicated by the fact that
in 1818 he listed Brown as one of the residents
of Lexington through whom plants might be
forwarded to him while on his first trip to
Kentucky (Perkins 1938). He acknowledged
Brown on at least three occasions. In 1821, in
an article’! in the Western Minerva, Rafin-
esque wrote:
Dr Samuel Brown having procured and shown me
the plant which is said to occasion in Kentucky the
Milk Fever, I have ascertained that it is the Ewphor-
bia peploides (E. peplus of Pursh, not Linnaeus),
which is not uncommon on the cliffs and rocky sit-
uations in Kentucky. When eaten by cows through
chance, it gives them a fever, and their milk becomes
poisonous, producing the milk fever in those who
drink it.
Rafinesque expressed his indebtedness to
Brown, among others, in his Medical Flora
(1828). In 1830, in his American Manual of
the Grape Vines, Rafinesque named Brown
in his inventory of Americans who were at-
tempting to practice viticulture on a large
scale.
GROWTH OF RAFINESQUE’S
WESTERN HERBARIUM
Rafinesque’s zeal for field botany is readily
shown in the rapidity with which he collected
plants and assembled an herbarium of western
plants. The growth of his herbarium is well
documented in his letters to Zaccheus Collins
(Pennell 1942) and Charles W. Short (Perkins
1938) as well as in his publications. The first
indications of this effort are contained in the
letters he wrote to Collins in the summer of
1818, during his first trip into the Ohio Valley.
On 12 August 1818, while visiting Audubon at
Henderson, he commented: “In Botany, my
discoveries are really extensive, I have collect-
ed or seen nearly 600 sp[ecies] of plants with-
in 2 months, among which are about 20
N[ew]. Splecies].” Writing to Short on 27 Sep-
tember 1818 from Lexington, he added: “And
in Botany I have collected more than 600 sp.
of Plants of which one tenth part at least are
new.” In his first published paper?” on west-
ern botany, a letter to editor Samuel L. Mitch-
ill, dated 20 July 1818, Rafinesque wrote:
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
The vegetation of the Western States has some pe-
culiar features—the most striking is its monotony, a
few species being spread by millions over large tracts
of country, while but few spots rich in a variety of
plants are to be met with. I have collected, however,
a rich herbarium both on the Ohio and in crossing
the Alleghany mountains.
In a later published letter,” dated 5 October
1818, Rafinesque added: “I have collected
about 700 species of plants in the western
states, while only 200 had been stated to be
found there.” On 25 August 1823, Rafinesque
noted in a letter to Collins that he had “col-
lected nearly 2,000 specimens” of western
plants that season. A memorandum at the
Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia,
dated 1 January 1824, reveals that his herbar-
ium of North American plants consisted of
5,000 species and 23,050 specimens (Pennell
1942, p. 29; Merrill 1949, p. 34). In 1826, the
year in which he left Lexington, Rafinesque
wrote in a letter of 12 January to Collins: “I
have the finest herbarium in the United
States, upwards of 25,000 specimens.” This
figure is in agreement with a later report™* in
his Herbarium Rafinesquianum (1833), where
he stated: “My own herbals contain now about
4,200 N[orth]. American species, 5,000 varie-
ties, and 25,000 specimens, nine tenths of
which have been collected by myself, and after
exchanging or selling already 10,000 speci-
mens.
While living in Kentucky, Rafinesque also
built an extensive herbarium of foreign plants.
He boasted of this achievement in an article**!
in the Kentucky Gazette for 4 April 1822:
My rich herbarium has . . . been lately increased with
about 3,000 foreign specimens, and this is I believe
the first instance of such valuable vegetable collec-
tions being brought to the western country, where I
hope that it may become the foundation of the most
extensive botanical collection in the United States, if
it is not so already.
He credited large numbers of specimens to
the following sources: 500 specimens of
French plants from Prof. A.P. DeCandolle of
Geneva, 810 specimens of English plants from
Adrian Hardy Haworth (1788-1833) of Lon-
don, 300 species of European plants from Wil-
liam Swainson of Liverpool, 200 from Prof.
William J. Hooker (1785-1865) of Glasgow,
several hundred from the Imperial Museum
of Vienna, and 748 German plants from “Prof.
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
Schultze” of Augsburg, probably Josef August
Schultes (1773-1831), Professor of Natural
History and Botany at the University of Lands-
hut in Bavaria from 1809 to 1831 (fide Charles
Boewe, pers. comm.). An item by “Reporter”
(1823) appeared in the Western Monitor for
30 December 1823, and contained the notice
that Dr. C.G.D. Nees von Esenbeck (1776—
1858), Professor of Natural History in the
University of Bonn, Germany, had sent to Raf-
inesque “a splendid collection consisting of
500 plants from Egypt—100 from Palestine—
700 from Greece and Crete—600 from Bo-
hemia—and 600 from Austria and Hungary,
making in all 2,500 specimens.” In the article
in Herbarium Rafinesquianum (1833),"*° Raf-
inesque added: “My foreign herbals contain
about 3,000 species and 8,000 specimens from
Europe, Asia, Africa, Polynesia, South Amer-
ica and Mexico.”
Rafinesque’s entire herbarium of domestic
and foreign plants consisted of 12,745 species
and 37,740 specimens, as recorded in his
memorandum of 1 January 1824 (Pennell
1942, p. 29; Merrill 1949, p. 34), and about
10,000 species and 40,000 specimens as noted
in his First Catalogues ... of the Botanical
Garden of Transylvania University
(1824).4°° Toward the end of his life, Rafin-
esque estimated in his New Flora and Botany
of North America (1836-[1838])°* that his
herbarium totaled about 50,000 specimens.
After he left Lexington, Rafinesque’s her-
barium was placed in storage in Philadelphia,
where it remained from 1827 until the end of
1831. To his friend John Torrey of New York,
Rafinesque wrote on 2 January 1832: “I find
upon an average one tenth of the plants lost
or Spoiled, but not many of my new or rare
ones.” He sought to enlist Torrey’s help in
finding buyers in New York for his specimens,
and offered him a present of “all my western
Grasses which I have put aside; they are 5 or
600 Species, mostly not determined; many
may be new or very rare... . Meanwhile I will
be very busy this Winter in surveying, labelling
& putting up.” Writing to the Moravian cler-
gyman-botanist Lewis David von Schweinitz
on 26 March 1833, Rafinesque complained of
having to label his plants, saying that it “is a
mechanical labor too great. It took me 2 days
to label those 117 I sent you . . . .” These state-
ments reflect the poor condition and lack of
135
organization of Rafinesque’s herbarium. As
noted above, Charles W. Short had nothing
positive to say about Rafinesque’s specimens.
Short did not hesitate to speak harshly of their
quality, and perhaps some of these unkind
comments reached Rafinesque through Torrey
or other of Short’s correspondents. Rafinesque
tried to justify his situation and the quality of
his specimens to Short, to whom he wrote on
5 August 1834, “You probably botanize in a
good Carriage with a press for the plants while
I had, like a Pioneer, to botanize on foot &
carry my plants on my shoulders.”
The history of Rafinesque’s herbarium, like
many facets of his life, is a pathetic one. The
story has been told in detail by Merrill, in the
introduction to the Index Rafinesquianus
(Merrill 1949, pp. 33-37). During Rafin-
esque’s later years and after his death in Sep-
tember 1840, his herbarium was stored in a
garret, and rats destroyed part of it. In 1841,
Elias Durand, curator of the herbarium at the
Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia,
purchased the collection and proceeded to
discard virtually all of the specimens as trash
because they were damaged, not well pressed,
very poorly prepared, or lacked labels with the
names of the plants. Pennell (1942, 1945) and
Stuckey (197la, 1971b) have added other de-
tails of this history. Rafinesque certainly de-
serves credit for realizing the importance of
assembling dried plant specimens for purposes
of study and documentation even though he
used very poor judgment in drawing conclu-
sions from the specimens and did not give
proper care to their maintenance and perma-
nent preservation.
RAFINESQUE’S CONTRIBUTIONS TO
THE FLORA, PHYTOGEOGRAPHY, AND
IDEA OF PLANT SUCCESSION IN
KENTUCKY
Rafinesque was the first individual to study
thoroughly the plant life of Kentucky, the first
state west of the Allegheny Mountains. Based
on his extensive field work, his catalogues of
the flora, outlines of phytogeographical
regions, and discussion of plant succession in
the limestone region were the first efforts at
these kinds of botanical studies for Kentucky.
Writing Local Floras
A flora in its simplest form is a list of plants.
In North America, the Rev. Manasseh Cutler
136
(1742-1823) of Ipswich, Massachusetts, was
among the first to compose a local flora, for
the plants of New England (Cutler 1785). Pri-
or to 1800, the Rev. Henry Muhlenberg
(1753-1815) of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, pre-
pared floras of his neighborhood. Muhlenberg
was convinced that knowledge of the entire
flora of North America could best be assem-
bled through the production of local floras by
botanists working in their own neighborhoods
(Youmans 1894, 1896). He had several follow-
ers who accepted this viewpoint and published
their own local floras. Rafinesque visited
Muhlenberg in Lancaster in 1803, but it is not
known if Muhlenberg influenced the young,
self-educated botanist to prepare local floras.
By his own admission, Rafinesque’s first es-
says on North American plants, prepared in
1804, were catalogues‘ of the plants of the
District of Columbia and the State of Dela-
ware (Little 1943; Tucker and Dill 1989). But
after submission and announcement for pub-
lication, these works were suppressed by Ben-
jamin Smith Barton (1766-1815), editor of the
Philadelphia Medical and Physical Journal
(Barton 1805). Rafinesque’s first published flo-
ra was his controversial Florula Ludoviciana
(1817),?°’ which he created by assigning sci-
entific names to a list of common names of
carefully described plants that the French
clergyman and explorer Claude C. Robin
(1750-1794) had appended as a “Flore Louis-
ianaise” to a book in which he recounted his
travels made during 1802-1806 along the Gulf
Coast from present-day Louisiana to western
Florida. Rafinesque thus named 30 “new gen-
era” and 169 “new species.” However, the
naming of new taxa without having seen her-
barium specimens or visiting the region to see
the living plants was totally unacceptable to
the larger botanical community, and for this
armchair effort Rafinesque suffered severe
criticism in letters and reviews (Mitchill 1818;
Ewan 1967b; Stafleu 1968; Stuckey 1968).
This publication became a major source of dif-
ficulty in his relationships with other botanists
and editors of journals. As noted above, Raf-
inesque claimed to have written florulas of
Missouri and Ohio, but apparently these were
never published.
Early Catalogues of the Flora of Kentucky and
the Ohio Valley
At the time of Rafinesque’s arrival in the
Ohio Valley, very little published material ex-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
isted on the botany of the region. Dr. Daniel
Drake had published floral calendars of the
local spring plants and some notes on medic-
inal plants in his Notices of Cincinnati (Drake
1810-1811) and Picture of Cincinnati and the
Miami Country (Drake 1816). In the latter
book, Drake listed 61 genera and 102 species
of woody plants growing in the Miami River
Valley.
Rafinesque’s first effort at preparing a local
flora in the Ohio Valley may have been the
“Florula Louisvillensis” (1819),2% a list of 400
genera and 600 species of the plants growing
in the vicinity of Louisville. Arranged alpha-
betically by scientific name with each corre-
sponding common name, this catalogue ap-
peared as part of a 255-page book describing
the town of Louisville, written by Dr. Henry
McMurtrie (1793-1865), first historian and
promoter of the town (Thomas and Conner
1969). Some question exists as to who pre-
pared the plant catalogue. In the Western Re-
view and Literary Magazine for 1820, a re-
viewer inscribed only as “B.” wrote that
McMurtrie (1819) was “indebted to Rafin-
esque for most [of the names] ..., or at least
for their proper determination and classifica-
tion.” This reviewer has now been identified
as the Reverend Mr. Birge (1797-1820), an
Episcopal minister of Lexington, from a letter
of 25 February 1820 by Horace Holley
(Charles Boewe, pers. comm.). The reviewer
criticized the work because some of the plants
listed did not occur within 30 or even 50 miles
of Louisville, others were listed twice under
different names, and distinctions should have
been made as to which ones grew in Indiana
and which ones in Kentucky, or on the Silver
Hills, in the Barrens, and on the flat plain sur-
rounding the Falls of the Ohio River (Birge
1820). In 1821, in Rafinesque’s Western Mi-
nerva, a notice’ of McMurtrie’s book ap-
peared with the following statement: “An un-
couth compilation full of errors; the new facts
are so drowned in them that they cannot easily
be perceived.” This statement, which makes
no specific reference to the “florula” itself, was
probably written by Rafinesque even though
it is signed “W.M.” [=Western Minerva].
Rafinesque’s “Florula Kentuckiensis”
(1824),*°* which encompassed the entire state
of Kentucky, was one part of a 3-part brochure
that described a projected botanical, agricul-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
tural, and medical garden for Transylvania
University. The “Florula” was indeed more
than a simple list of plants. It was divided into
three lists or sub-catalogues: (1) the principal
trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants; (2) use-
ful plants, shrubs, and trees, whether medici-
nal, tinctorial, or economical; and (3) orna-
mental, fragrant, or “singular” plants, shrubs,
and trees. The first group, which is the flora
of Kentucky and the only group discussed in
detail here, contained the new, rare, or pecu-
liar plants to be offered by the botanical gar-
den to the public, whereas the second and
third groups were plants wanted for the gar-
den. Rafinesque arranged the lists in the sub-
catalogues alphabetically, but in the first he di-
vided the plants into two further groups of 43
species of trees and shrubs and 269 species of
herbaceous plants. He noted all of the genera
and species he had already named or was plan-
ning to name, with the abbreviation “Raf.” or,
if the genus was new, with “N. G. Raf.” Of the
43 woody plants listed, he marked the genera
Cardiolepis and Cladrastis and 17 species as
new, and of the 269 herbaceous plants listed,
he noted 10 genera and 154 species as new.
He had already validly published some of the
taxa and others were later validly published.
Other new names are known only from this
list as nomina nuda and have no validation in
botanical nomenclature. Rafinesque did not
provide names of the authors for the other
taxa listed. The “Florula Kentuckiensis” can be
considered a working list of those Kentucky
plants that Rafinesque considered to be new
to science, but it also provided an index to the
scope of his floristic knowledge of the state
after 5 years of residence there.
Rafinesque immediately criticized the next
known flora of Kentucky, published by Short,
Peter and Griswold (1833-1837), as “very de-
ficient.” He made this comment to Short in a
letter of 5 August 1834, when he also wrote:
“Are you aware that I printed one in 1820 |[ac-
tually 1819] and another in 1824 where you
will find many things you have omitted.”
Short’s reply of 7 September 1834 showed
some surprise, but he defended his own pub-
lication.
I was certainly not apprized of your having published
a catalogue of Kentucky plants, much less two of
them; In that which we made out, and to which you
137
refer, we did not pretend to give a perfect list, but
one of those plants only which we had actually met
with here, intended for the convenience of our cor-
respondents in making out a list of their desiderata.
Where are your catalogues to be had, I should like
much to possess them?
In his letter of 25 October 1834, Rafinesque
answered that his “Botany of Kentucky,” °°
which was actually a phytogeographic essay al-
though Rafinesque called it a “flora,” had been
published in the first volume of the Western
Review in 1819, and that his “Florula Ken-
tuckiensis” (1824),*°%* had appeared as a part
of the circulars of the botanical garden in Lex-
ington.
In a wider geographical perspective, Rafin-
esque was the first to take inventory of the
prairie flora of central North America, in a
work entitled “Florula Centralis or Illinoen-
sis,"*'' which appeared as part of the Herbar-
ium Rafinesquianum (1833)° and listed
... 171 new plants from the Central Region, around
the junction [the mouths?] of the Rivers Missouri,
Illinois, Ohio, Wabash, Cumberland, Tennessee, and
Arkansas, including West Kentucky and West Ten-
nessee, East Arkansas and East Missouri, the South
of Indiana and nearly the whole of Illinois. This Re-
gion is one of Plains and Glades called Western prai-
ries and barrens, with some knobby hills: it has the
same vegetation throughout, with many Southern and
Western plants.
“Nearly all” of these 171 plants had been col-
lected by Rafinesque between 1818 and 1826;
“some” had been contributed by Drs. Miiller,
Short, and Ward.
Rafinesque’s Florula Wasiotana (1833)>™
was a list of 33 “new plants” that he collected
on the western slopes of “the Wasioto or Cum-
berland mts. of West[ern] Virginia, East Ken-
tucky, and East Tennessee.” Those names Raf-
inesque considered as new species have no va-
lidity, as no descriptions are associated with
any of the names. The plant list was prepared
primarily to advertise specimens for sale, at $7
per set.
Phytogeographical Regions of Kentucky
Although described as a floristic catalogue
in his letter of 5 August 1834 to Short, Raf-
inesque’s paper on the principal features of
the “Botany of Kentucky ...” (1819)°° is in
reality an outline of the major phytogeograph-
ical or vegetational regions of the state. He
138
divided Kentucky into four natural sections, or
botanical regions, each distinguished by some
floristic peculiarities. They were: (1) the flu-
viatile region comprising all the valleys and
floodplains of the large rivers, a tract rich in
species of trees; (2) the central region, com-
prising the limestone area between the valley
of the Ohio River and the hilly ridges and
knobs, a section remarkably poor in the num-
ber of plants, perhaps no more than 500 spe-
cies; (3) the hilly region, comprising the hills
and ridges dividing the waters of the Ken-
tucky, Green, Licking, Cumberland, and Big
Sandy rivers, a section rich in plants similar,
so he had been told, extending to the Alle-
gheny regions of Virginia and Pennsylvania;
and (4) the barrens, comprising an open, ex-
tensive range, particularly in the western and
southern parts of the state, with “islands” scat-
tered among the central and hilly regions, des-
titute of trees, or with few scattered small
ones, but thickly covered with a luxuriant
growth of herbaceous plants. For each vege-
tational region, Rafinesque listed both the sci-
entific and common names of representative
or characteristic species as used in Kentucky.
The most striking feature of the vegetation of
Kentucky, compared with the vegetation of
eastern United States, was, according to Raf-
inesque, the “propensity which many [herba-
ceous] plants and trees exhibit of growing in
a social state, to the almost total exclusion of
every other .... Many extensive spaces of
ground are covered with one or a few crowded
species, to the exclusion of many others ... .”
Rafinesque’s letter of 25 October 1834 to
Short largely repeated this phytogeographic
outline, indicating that Rafinesque’s ideas on
the subject were basically unchanged since
1819 (Perkins 1938).
Rafinesque’s efforts in describing the botan-
ical regions of Kentucky were related to pres-
ent-day vegetational studies in a recent paper
by Bryant (1997). He considered Rafinesque’s
publication to be of great ecological signifi-
cance but thought it unfortunate that Rafin-
esque did not engage in further study before
the rush of settlement.
Rafinesque’s 1819 paper on the “Botany of
Kentucky ...” was reprinted by Stuckey and
Pringle (1997), as part of a larger study toward
understanding Rafinesque’s botanical work in
the Ohio Valley. The Stuckey-Pringle paper fo-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
cused on the comparative value of common
names of plants appearing in pioneer floristic
and vegetational studies published by natural-
ists and botanists in early 19th-century eastern
North America, and those names applied to
plants now. Without direct evidence, it can be
inferred that Rafinesque’s common names
were provided to him by established residents
or that he created them himself. To make Raf-
inesque’s paper more useful to present-day
botanists, Stuckey and Pringle supplied the
currently accepted Latin names and added the
common names now in use. Pringle wrote no-
menclatural notes for 14 of the species.
As noted earlier, Short wanted the names of
the Kentucky localities from which Rafinesque
had obtained new plants, but he never re-
ceived specific information on them. In his let-
ter of 25 October 1834, Rafinesque replied:
“Instead of the localities of some few plants, I
am going to give you a general acc[oun|]t of
the best localities of Kentucky to my knowl-
edge.” Rafinesque probably could no longer
remember sites for certain species, but he did
remember well the general botanical geogra-
phy, even though he had been gone from the
state for 8 years. Referring to his paper’? in
the Western Review for 1819, Rafinesque
again outlined the state’s four botanical
regions: (1) mountains and sandstone hills, (2)
barrens and glades, (3) limestone basin, and
(4) alluvial tracts, and he noted that each re-
gion had “peculiar rare plants.” His descrip-
tion of each region mentioned the names of
specific mountains, rivers, creeks, and towns
and a few of the distinctive plants he recalled
finding at these places. The treatment is an-
other good general outline of the phytogeo-
graphic regions. It can be used to augment the
earlier published paper and should aid the
present-day geographer of Kentucky plants.
From Short’s point of view, the outline must
have been less than he had hoped, since Raf-
inesque urged him to visit these places and
find the rare plants himself, as well as more
new ones. Rafinesque told Short that he could
publish any of the sketch if he so chose, but
“give me ‘credit for it ..\. .7
Plant Succession in the Limestone Region of
Kentucky
Rafinesque briefly sketched the four botan-
ical regions in a popular article, “The Cos-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
monist-No. 8. On the botany of the western
limestone region,”‘! published in the Ken-
tucky Gazette for 4 April 1822. Because Raf-
inesque knew relatively more about the flora
of this western limestone region, where the
town of Lexington is located, he described its
flora in greater detail than that of the other
three regions. One of the most remarkable
features was the paucity of species, of which
no more than 600 grew within 15 miles of
Lexington, while a similarly sized circle
around Philadelphia would yield about three
times as many, or 1800 species. Ferns, mosses,
lichens, and members of the orchid and lily
families also had few species. To compensate,
he noted the large numbers of a few kinds of
plants, such as grasses, deep-rooted herbs, and
trees, each of which grew in “compact social
clusters, covering many acres of ground, and
with the utmost luxuriance.” According to
him, the vegetation of this region “may be as-
cribed [as] having been covered formerly with
an extensive growth of Canes (Miegia arun-
dinaria) |=Arundinaria gigantea (Walt.)
Chapm.] forming almost a general canebrake
under the forests, where but few plants could
take a stand.” He continued by stating that
another remarkable feature ... is the casual change
of the prevailing [herbaceous] plants and trees upon
many peculiar spots of grounds. It has been observed
by the ancient settlers that the following plants have
followed each other in succession in many plants [i.e.,
places] as the prevailing growth.
The Canes, or Miegia arundinaria.
The Butterweed, or Eupatorium urticefolium
[= E. rugosum Houtt.].
The Ironweed, or Vernonia prealta.
The Nimblewill, or Panicum dactylon.
The Hardgrass, or Panicum glaucum.
the wild Camomile, or Anthemis cotula, &c.
There is therefore a kind of natural perennial change
of vegetation; when a species has exhausted the soil
of a peculiar nutrition which it requires, it gives way
to another for a series of years. &c.
These statements present a very clearly stated
concept of ecological succession, and repre-
sent a very early, if not the first, appearance
of this idea in the North American literature.
RAFINESQUE’S BOTANICAL WORK AT
TRANSYLVANIA UNIVERSITY
Botanical Instruction
As the first professor of botanical science
west of the Allegheny Mountains, Rafinesque
139
was in a most enviable position to promote
study of the science and to make known all
aspects of the region’s original flora. He came
to this situation after visiting his long-time ac-
quaintance John D. Clifford, who had a pri-
vate museum of natural history in Lexington.
Here Rafinesque became thoroughly occupied
in study during a 3-week stay in early fall of
1818. Clifford, a local merchant, distinguished
citizen, and trustee at Transylvania University,
secured the professorship for Rafinesque dur-
ing the winter of 1818-1819. Rafinesque ac-
cepted the appointment as professor of botany
and natural history on 25 April 1819. Although
the appointment was without salary, he had
the privilege of free room, board, firewood,
and candles at the University’s Commons and
was permitted to obtain whatever remunera-
tion he could through paid subscriptions to his
courses of lectures. Subscribers were to pay
$10 for his courses, and he invited ladies and
gentlemen from the community and students
from the Academic and Medical departments
in the University. To provide appeal to medical
students, he added some lectures on medical
botany to the botany course and lowered the
price to $5. He also attached general botanical
lectures to other lecture series, as, for exam-
ple, those on theory of knowledge, the human
mind, natural science, materia medica, and
medical botany. He believed women “capable
of higher education without risk to their deli-
cate minds” (Boewe 1983) and so encouraged
them to attend his classes in botany.
Rafinesque arrived at Transylvania Univer-
sity to begin work in the fall of 1819. He took
his oath of office on 18 November (Bradford
1993, p. 242) and during December was much
involved in writing his lectures, as document-
ed from his letters to Collins and Short. An
undated broadside,” outlining his two courses
of 20 lectures each on natural history and bot-
any, apparently circulated in the early autumn
of 1819. The lectures were to be delivered be-
tween noon and | p.m., beginning the first
week of November, the ones on natural history
on Mondays and those on botany on Thurs-
days. Tickets for each course of lectures sold
for $10. Much of this same information ap-
peared in an advertisement** in the Kentucky
Reporter for 6 October 1819, with the added
note that the lectures were available not only
to students in the Academic Department but
140
also to medical students and to ladies and gen-
tlemen of the community. This announcement
suggests that Rafinesque’s courses were not a
part of the university's regular curriculum be-
cause they were available to anyone willing to
pay to attend them. For some unknown rea-
son, as stated in a letter of 21 December 1819
to Short and later noted in the Life of Travels
(1836, p. 61),°° the course of lectures on bot-
any was delayed until the spring of 1820.
The titles of the lectures on botany, as taken
from the broadside, are listed below:
1. Introductory. On Botany in general and its
uses.
2. On the organs of Plants, Roots, Stems,
Trees, &c.
3. On the organs of Leaves.
4. On the organs of Flowers.
5. On the organs of Fruits and Seeds.
6. On the physiology and anatomy of Plants.
7. On Vegetable elements & productions.
8. On the qualities & diseases of Plants.
9. On Agriculture & Horticulture, or the cul-
tivation of Plants.
10. On the Geography of Plants.
11. On botanical history, writers & works.
12. On botanical classifications.
13. On the Linnean System.
14. On the natural arrangement of Plants.
15. On the properties of Plants.
16. On botanical names or nomenclature.
17. On the Botany of North America.
18. On the practical study of Plants.
19. Demonstration of American Plants.
20. Valedictory. On the means of cultivating
& fostering the study & science of botany.
The spectrum of titles suggests a very full
course covering the entire discipline in both
its scientific and applied aspects. By today’s
standards, the outline of topics touched upon
the broad array of a discipline now expanded
in North American universities into many
courses within a single department of botany
or biology, or into several departments. Raf-
inesque’s handwritten outlines and notes of 12
of these lectures survive in a small bound
book, Lectures on Various Subjects, owned by
the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadel-
phia but on permanent loan to the library of
the American Philosophical Society. Boewe
(1983) edited and published the full text of
Rafinesque’s “First Lecture On Botany,” with
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
an introduction and notes, for the bicentennial
commemoration of Rafinesque’s birth, held at
Transylvania University on 21 October 1983
(Rafinesque, Reynaud, and Reynaud 1984). In
addition to serving as a souvenir of that oc-
casion, the published lecture aids in the un-
derstanding of Rafinesque as a pioneer teach-
er of botany.
Rafinesque (1820a) aimed in his first lecture
to convince his listeners that plants were
pleasing objects for contemplation. He began
by discussing human knowledge and reducing
it to three kinds of science: (1) rational, ar-
rived at through man’s sensations within his
mind without the need for natural objects; (2)
testimonial, arrived at through man’s experi-
ences with other people who have made ob-
servations and statements; and (3) experimen-
tal, arrived at through man’s own reasoning,
experiences, and personal observations and
through previous observations and testimoni-
als of others. Natural history is a science that
is derived from experimental knowledge; it is
the individual history of any living body exist-
ing in the natural world. Rafinesque further
defined the essential functions of living organ-
isms. They are nutrition, which allows for
plants to live and grow; reproduction, which
allows for the perpetuation of the individual
organism; and death, which comes to every in-
dividual organism. Similar kinds of organisms,
however, collectively have a kind of immortal-
ity and continue to remain on earth. Plants, he
stated, possess a kind of passive life, as com-
pared to the active or mobile life of animals.
His comparisons between plants and animals
revealed many obvious differences, although
many organisms, especially the “lower” ones,
showed connecting links between the two
groups.
Rafinesque continued by defining various
terms that apply to plants. Botany, or phytol-
ogy, is the name given to the “entertaining
study of all the vegetable bodies; and of all
their numberless faculties, properties, and
phenomena.” Mankind is indebted to plants
for food, vestments, and dwellings, “besides
the remedies which relieve our diseases.” Bot-
any is studied both for amusement or for in-
struction in the usefulness of plants to man-
kind; Rafinesque gave examples of plants in
both of these groupings.
As an academic study, botany is further di-
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
vided into other sub-units, as follows: (1) Tax-
onomy refers to the alphabet of the science,
the laws of order, or the classification system,
the Linnaean System being the preferred sys-
tem of organization by botanists at Rafin-
esque’s time. (2) Glossology refers to technical
language used in describing plants. (3) No-
menclature refers to the naming of plants. (4)
Synonymy refers to the names given by dif-
ferent authors to the same plants. (5) Phytog-
raphy refers to the descriptions of plants com-
posed of the terms from Glossology. (6) Pho-
tocreny refers to the practical use of plants
through the investigation of their qualities and
properties. They provide
(a) the food and drink for mankind:
(b) clothing, buildings, fuel, furniture,
weapons, dyes, and many others;
(c) remedies or palliatives for human dis-
orders; and
(d) food for domestic animals and wild an-
imals.
Rafinesque concluded that botany can be
studied “as an amusement or as a temporary
occupation” and that it should be accom-
plished through “zeal and satisfaction.”
Rafinesque continued to give lectures on
natural history and botany, but he also taught
French, Italian, and Spanish. In 1821, he be-
gan presenting public lectures, in Lexington,
on botany, “elements of useful knowledge,”
geometry, map-drawing, phrenology, and cra-
niology, as noted by Dupre (1945, pp. 16, 30-
33) from announcements in the Kentucky Re-
porter and from dated manuscripts of selected
lectures. Rafinesque, however, was not the
first to present public lectures in botany in the
Ohio Valley. That enterprise, as noted above,
had been inaugurated in Cincinnati by Daniel
Drake in May 1818 (Horine 1961, p. 153).
At Transylvania University, the curriculum
was divided among the Academic, Medical,
and Law departments. Rafinesque, whose ap-
pointment was in the Academic Department,
sought the Medical Department's chair of ma-
teria medica and medical botany when it be-
came available. As noted by Rafinesque in the
Life of Travels (1836, p. 65),°°° President Hor-
ace Holley (1781-1827) denied him that op-
portunity because he did not have a medical
degree. Rafinesque persisted, as noted in let-
ters of 1 and 12 February 1822 to Short, by
141
offering to develop a botanical garden and
museum for the University, on the condition
that it would annex his existing professorship
to the Medical Department. The chair of ma-
teria medica and medical botany went to Dr.
Daniel Drake, who had already held it in 1817
and 1818 and now occupied it again from 1823
to 1825, after which he was transferred to the
chair of theory and practice and to a simulta-
neous deanship of the Medical Department
until his resignation in 1827. Dr. Charles W.
Short was elected to the chair of materia med-
ica and medical botany in August 1825 and
continued in that position until his resignation
in 1837, simultaneously serving as dean from
1828 until 1837.
By some unknown arrangement, Rafinesque
gave a course on medical botany to a class of
medical students in 1822. On 1 February
1822, he wrote to Short that he was currently
delivering a course on medical botany and that
he would give another course on botany in the
spring. In an advertisement“* in the Kentucky
Gazette for 17 October 1822, Rafinesque in-
vited medical students to attend his course of
lectures on medical and systematic botany to
be given twice a week at convenient hours
during the coming medical session. In his Life
of Travels (1836, p. 73),5° he wrote that his
first course of lectures on medical botany be-
gan in the winter of 1823-1824 and included
an exhibition of specimens of useful medicinal
plants he had obtained through his own col-
lecting and from friends or pupils from Mis-
souri, Illinois, and Arkansas. By employing this
technique of demonstration and display, Raf-
inesque was pioneering in the methods of
teaching materia medica and botany. In Feb-
ruary 1824 he was lecturing on botany to 108
medical students. His medical lectures contin-
ued through the winter of 1825-1826.
The lectures of Drake and Short were also
held during the winter months and coincided
with those of Rafinesque, and yet no evidence
is available to reveal that Rafinesque was in
contact with these individuals at those times.
He had earlier corresponded with both gen-
tlemen, had botanized with Short as they trav-
eled between Lexington and Cincinnati in
1821, and had visited Short at his home in
Hopkinsville in 1823. Even though much has
been written on the association of Rafinesque
with Transylvania University’s Academic De-
142
partment and on the history of its distin-
guished Medical Department, little if any in-
teraction appears to have existed between
these two components of this great university
(Peter and Peter 1896; Peter 1905; Dupre
1945; Sonne 1939; Jennings 1955; Wright
1975; Gobar and Hamon 1982). Apparently
these departments were largely content to ig-
nore each other during the 1820s but began
to function cooperatively in the 1830s, after
Transylvania’s finest days were past (Christian-
son 1981).
Little is known of the quality of Rafin-
esque’s lectures and of the response from stu-
dents and townspeople to the lectures. No
reportorial or editorial notices of them ap-
peared in local newspapers (Call 1895, p. 46).
Call did quote from a letter by George W.
Jones, one of Rafinesque’s former students,
who wrote that Rafinesque “often lectured to
the students in the College and in a most en-
tertaining manner to the great delight of his
audiences,” and who then proceeded to de-
scribe an entertaining lecture about ants (Call
1895, p. 43). Another letter came from Johan-
na Peter, daughter of the Robert Peter (1805—
1894) who served in the Medical Department
as librarian, teacher of chemistry and phar-
macy, dean, and writer of its history. She de-
scribed Rafinesque’s lecture room as “the
scene of the most free and easy behavior,
made possible by the total absorption ... of
the lecturer, who was always totally oblivious
to his surroundings when occupied with his
favorite pursuits.” Those pursuits included
botany, of which “he was an enthusiast” (Call
1895, p. 63). Judge Belvard J. Peters, of
Mount Sterling, Kentucky, must have consid-
ered Rafinesque a kind of “ecologist.” He
wrote: “... I think Botany was his favorite
study. He spent much time in the mountains
of Kentucky . . . investigating the quality of the
different soils and their adaptability to the
production of various plants, vegetables, etc.”
(Call 1895, p. 67).
Little is known of any students who may
have studied botany with Rafinesque. Al-
though no records of contacts have been lo-
cated, Josiah Hale (ca. 1791-1856), a Louisi-
ana botanist and graduate of the Medical De-
partment of Transylvania University in March
1822, is supposed to have been a private pupil
of Rafinesque’s, and “imbibed from him his
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
passion for botany” (Ewan 1977). In arti-
cles*?!“°! in the Western Minerva, Rafinesque
also acknowledged receiving information on
the medicinal properties of two _liliaceous
plants “communicated by Mr. Crockett, a
medical student.” Several valuable additions to
his herbarium were also made by a “Mr.
Crockett.” This individual may have been Dr.
G.J.H. Crockett of Hendersonville, Scott
County, Kentucky, who purchased one share
of stock in the Transylvania Botanical Garden
and who later practiced medicine at Frankfort,
where he was located when Rafinesque
thanked him for information used in the Med-
ical Flora (1828).>°*4
The Transylvania Botanical Garden
Having been acquainted with botanical gar-
dens at universities in Europe and with the
private gardens of John Bartram and Hum-
phrey Marshall near Philadelphia, Rafinesque
desired to establish a botanical garden at Tran-
sylvania University. There he could assemble
native and exotic plants for scientific study and
practical research. His master plan for the
project included several attached buildings for
operation of a greenhouse, a museum, and a
library. As described in his Life of Travels
(1836, p. 72),5° he went to Frankfort to solicit
financial aid from the State Legislature. This
aid was approved by the Senate but not the
Representatives. Though disheartened by this
action, he did not relinquish the idea of a gar-
den, and so to divert his attention away from
it, he was appointed Librarian of the Univer-
sity and Keeper of the Museum where the late
John Clifford’s natural history collections were
kept.
Despite these political actions, Rafinesque
assembled a group of university officials and
private citizens of Lexington who petitioned
the General Assembly for a charter for the es-
tablishment in or near Lexington of a public
botanical, agricultural, and medical garden to
be known as “The Botanical Garden of Tran-
sylvania University.” The charter, approved on
7 January 1824 by Govemor John Adair, pro-
vided for a corporation with stockholders, the
details of which were explained in a published
Prospectus, By-Laws & Charter (1824).*° The
garden would offer a number of advantages,
according to the Prospectus. First, to the town
of Lexington, it would be a pleasant and
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
healthful resort where citizens and visitors
could take walks while observing living plants
in an educational setting. Second, to the farm-
ers of Kentucky, as well as all other citizens of
the western country, it would provide a labo-
ratory for experimentation with and improve-
ment of fruit trees, garden produce, and grain-
crops. Third, for the University’s medical stu-
dents, the opportunity would be available to
study “the Medical plants of North-America
and Europe, and acquire thereby an accurate
knowledge of them; while the sons of our
farmers will witness experiments and success-
ful cultivation, receive instruction on the prac-
tical and scientific principles of husbandry and
gardening, imbibing thus a taste for an im-
proved cultivation of our bountiful soil.”
Fourth, the shareholders would receive finan-
cial dividends, for it was expected that “the
single article of Opium, might it [be] needful,
[could] be made to cover all the annual ex-
penses of the garden.”
The garden was to be planted with trees,
shrubs, and herbaceous plants procured by
collection, exchange, or purchase. Among
them were fruit trees, useful ornamental or
medicinal plants, and economic vegetable and
grain crops. The entire grounds, not to exceed
25 acres at first or 50 ultimately, were to be
divided into an ornamental garden, orchard,
shrubbery, groves, nursery, medical and agri-
cultural garden, meadow, and park. The struc-
tures mentioned were houses, halls, galleries,
stores, cabins, walls, fences, gates, pavements,
cisterns, wells, fish-ponds, aviaries, and em-
bellishments. A museum would house dried
specimens of all the plants cultivated in the
garden, and a library would include books on
agriculture, gardening, domestic economy,
veterinary medicine, botany, mineralogy, and
natural resources. Lectures and practical dem-
onstrations were to be given on these subjects.
Students and visitors had access to all of these
facilities although they were to be charged a
small fee of 25 cents per day or one to five
dollars per year for daily access to it. At spec-
ified times, plants would be sold for distribu-
tion throughout the state or country.
The by-laws section of the Prospectus
(1824)*°° of the Transylvania Botanic-Garden
Company provided for the formation of a
Board of Directors, to which Dr. William H.
Richardson (?-1845), professor of obstetrics in
143
Transylvania’s Medical Department, was
named as president, and to which Rafinesque
was named as secretary. The by-laws also pro-
vided for capital stock, sold by subscription at
$50 per share, with payments made in $10 in-
stallments over a period of 4 years. In his
handwritten Subscription Book (1824b), Raf-
inesque included the date, signature, and
number of shares purchased by each share-
holder. Thirty of the subscribers were resi-
dents of Lexington, and 37 were from else-
where in Kentucky. Rafinesque purchased five
shares, President Holley one share, and Pro-
fessor Richardson three shares. Ohio Valley
botanists whose names appeared on the list
were Dr. Daniel Drake, who was subscribed
for two shares by Richardson, and Nicholas
Longworth (1782-1863), a wealthy Cincinnati
lawyer turned horticulturist, who was to pay
for his six shares in “trees, plants & seeds.”
The book records that 97 shares were sold. In
a public notice,*° Rafinesque calculated that
the sale of 100 shares would put the institution
into operation and that the stock would be-
come profitable because it was “contemplated
to cultivate in the garden, many valuable prod-
ucts suitable to the climate, such as Opium,
Castor Oil, Ginseng, Vines, Madder, &c. be-
sides all kinds of Fruit trees, Ornamental trees
and plants, medical roots, &c.”
Rafinesque was to be superintendent and
director of the garden. As defined in the by-
laws,‘ the superintendent “shall act as man-
ager of the garden, secretary and clerk of the
board of directors, architect of the buildings
and improvements, keeper of the museum, li-
brarian, professor of the Institution, agent for
collecting subscriptions and collector of ob-
jects for the garden.” He also had to hold five
shares of stock and could be removed from
the position only by vote of three-fourths of
the Board of Directors.
To advertise and explain the work of the
garden, Rafinesque had printed a 24-page
pamphlet titled First Catalogues and Circulars
of the Botanical Garden (1824).° It consisted
of three parts: first, a three-page “Circular of
the Directors” written in both English and
French, which described the contemplated ac-
tivities of the garden and requested donations
of living plants and other gifts for the museum
and library; second, a three-page “Circular of
C. S. Rafinesque,” also in English and French,
144
to his friends and correspondents in America
and Europe, describing his own professional
pursuits and including places traveled, num-
bers of new species discovered and described,
number of plants in his herbarium, and the
extent of his manuscripts written or published;
third, the “Florula Kentuckiensis,” being a cat-
alogue of the principal trees, shrubs, and her-
baceous plants of Kentucky, as described
above. This catalogue consisted of three sub-
catalogues. The first was the checklist of the
plants of Kentucky, as described earlier; the
second, an alphabetical list of scientific names
of the useful plants, shrubs, and trees medical,
tinctorial, or economical wanted for the gar-
den; and the third, an alphabetical list of sci-
entific names of the ornamental, fragrant, or
singular herbaceous plants, shrubs, and trees
wanted by the Botanic Garden.
Another advertisement for assistance in de-
veloping the garden appeared in the Kentucky
Gazette for 3 February and 10 February 1825
(Rafinesque 1825a), and listed six tasks that
needed to be completed:
To Grub and plough about 7 acres of ground.
To pave about 60 square yards with flat stones.
To lay about 100 Cubic yards of a stone fence.
To put up a Board fence 7 feet high, around part of
the ground.
To Cart Tan bark and other objects by the day by the
load.
To procure and plant One Thousand young trees,
Shrubs and Vines, from the woods.
An account of the early development of the
garden was published by Harrison (1913),
whose information was based primarily on
minutes of meetings of the Board of Directors
and on a manuscript journal of garden-related
activities kept by Rafinesque (1825b). Harri-
son quoted from most of the daily journal en-
tries from 15 March through 20 April 1825.
Although published as if the entries were
quoted verbatim, a comparison with the orig-
inal text reveals that some words and phrases
were omitted from Harrison’s published ver-
sion. The garden itself had become a reality
by September 1824, with the purchase from
one Joseph Megowan of a lot of about 10 acres
on East Main Street, for $1000, payable in 5
years.
As recorded in the journal, Rafinesque
(1825b), as superintendent, began developing
the garden in the spring of 1825. On 15 March
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
he engaged James Stuart as gardener for a
month at $20, in addition to two other workers
who were set to work pulling corn stalks. The
journal gives a nearly daily account of clearing
ground and planting trees, among which were
cherries, weeping willows, locusts, and ashes.
On 14 April, on an acre of ground, castor oil
beans were planted and seeds of marsh mal-
lows, chamomile, anise, and other medicinal
plants were sown later. On 19 April, the day
before the journal ended, Rafinesque received
“200 valuable fruit trees and shrubs, and 27
pots from Mr. Nicholas Longworth,” which
were all planted the next day. In June 1825,
Rafinesque departed from Lexington for
Washington, D.C., leaving the garden in the
care of Joseph Ficklin. During his absence,
the garden must have been neglected, and fi-
nancial difficulties arose when several sub-
scribers did not pay their installments.
As noted in his Life of Travels (1836, p.
75),°° Rafinesque made this trip east primarily
to seek new employment, for he was finding
it “impossible to struggle against the influence
of the foes of science.” Upon returning to
Kentucky in the fall of 1825, he learned while
in Frankfort that Holley had reassigned one of
his two rooms to students and had heaped his
books and scientific collections together in the
other room. Holley also deprived him of his
position as Librarian and his board at the Col-
lege. Rafinesque then took lodging in the
town. He abandoned the botanical garden
“since the company would not support it prop-
erly, and thus it has been destroyed” (Life of
Travels, 1836, pp. 78-79).5° The minutes for
March 1826 stated that the property was to be
sold and the proceeds divided proportionally
among those shareholders who had paid their
installments. Rafinesque officially retained his
professorship and gave his course of lectures
on medical botany in the winter. In the spring
of 1826, he left Transylvania University and
made Philadelphia his permanent base of op-
eration.
The Botanical Garden of Transylvania Uni-
versity was a grandiose undertaking for a small
school on the western frontier of the United
States and for a community that was not ready
to understand, accept, use, and support it. It
was another of Rafinesque’s plans that was
ahead of its time in that the ideas embodied
in the undertaking became realities with the
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
development of agricultural and horticultural
programs in the midwestern land-grant uni-
versities later in the century.
THE KENTUCKY INSTITUTE
The Kentucky Institute, a scientific and lit-
erary society organized in Lexington in Janu-
ary 1823, consisted initially of 24 members,
half of whom were professors at Transylvania
University and the others residents of the
town (Venable 1891, p. 169). According to Raf-
inesque’s Life of Travels (1836, p. 72),°° this
organization grew out of a literary club that
had formed a year earlier. The institute met
weekly, and at least one essay or paper was
read and discussed at each meeting. An arti-
cle*! in the Cincinnati Literary Gazette for 13
March 1824 listed the titles of 13 essays and
the names of the lecturers. Among these were
three lectures by Rafinesque: “History and
traditions of the Shawanoe [or Shawnee] Na-
tion,” “American Population,” and “Geology of
Kentucky.” Daniel Drake had lectured on the
“Influence of climate upon the character of
man,” and Horace Holley had also given two
lectures. Holley was president of the organi-
zation, and Rafinesque served as secretary. Raf-
inesque gave another lecture entitled “On a
new medical plant Prenanthes opicrina and a
new kind of opium—Opicrine” before the In-
stitute on 11 February 1824. This lecture‘
was published in the Cincinnati Literary Ga-
zette for 10 July 1824. Rafinesque listed seven
of his lectures, mostly on the subject of ge-
ography, in a Catalogue of his principal works
sent to Thomas Jefferson on 15 February 1824
(Betts 1944). The lecture on Prenanthes opi-
crina was the only one on a botanical subject.
The Kentucky Institute was supposedly “the
first scientific society formed within the state,
and one of the first, if not the first, west of
the Alleghenies” (Call 1895, p. 35). The or-
ganization had a short existence, but the date
of its last meeting has not been learned. In
the Life of Travels (1836, p. 72),5° Rafinesque
contended that his communications to the
Kentucky Institute were “too learned,” and
thus he had “to become a Poet... .”
AN AMERICAN CALENDAR OF FLORA,
AN UNFINISHED PROJECT
Rafinesque’s total involvement with all as-
pects of botany in the Ohio Valley naturally
145
resulted in some contemplated projects he
never began or never completed. A very pop-
ular approach to botanical study during the
first half of the 19th century, as noted from
the large number of papers appearing in sci-
entific, literary, and medical journals, was the
preparation of floral calendars. These calen-
dars recorded the phenological events in se-
lected species on a daily, weekly, or monthly
basis. Usually they were prepared during
spring, when plants were breaking dormancy.
Among items noted were the times when buds
began to swell, leaves appeared, flowers
opened, and fruits formed. The Rev. Henry
Muhlenberg, who promoted the preparation
of local floras, also suggested to Dr. Jacob Big-
elow (1787-1879) of Boston that much infor-
mation on the changes of climate in the Unit-
ed States could be acquired by recording in-
formation on the flowering times of common
fruit trees and other plants. Bigelow issued a
circular in which he requested that such ob-
servations be made during the spring of 1817
in various parts of the United States; a year
later he published the results of these obser-
vations (Bigelow 1818a, 1818b). Rafinesque
was unable to respond to Bigelow’s request in
1817, but in Silliman’s Journal in 1818 he pub-
lished an article?” recording the daily progress
of vegetation from 20 February through 20
May of 1816 for the Philadelphia area. This
paper had obvious usefulness in the fields of
agriculture and gardening but was also a con-
tribution toward a local vernal flora of the area
and the much larger endeavor of compiling an
“American calendar of flora.”
Upon Rafinesque’s arrival west of the Alle-
gheny Mountains, the only known floral cal-
endars for the area were those of Dr. Daniel
Drake, who had published observations for
the spring seasons of 1809 and 1815 in his
books Notices Concerning Cincinnati (Drake
1810-1811) and Picture of Cincinnati ...
(Drake 1816), respectively. Rafinesque, in-
tending to compile a floral calendar for the
western states, begged information for it from
Dr. Short, as recorded in his letter of 21 De-
cember 1819 from Lexington:
Since you mean to watch your vegetation closely next
year, I would advise you and even beg, that you may
at the same time keep a kind of Journal of the prog-
ress of vegetation in the blossom’g, budding, folia-
tion, &c of your plants, shrubs & trees, noticing when
146
you shall first see in blossom every plant. I am going
to keep the same kind of Journal here. I have already
two such Journals from near Pittsburg & the banks
of the Wabash kept by Dr. Muller; and from all those
I hope to be enabled to draw a comparative Vernal
calendarium of the Western States. You know that
such Journals are very interesting in many points of
view, & particularly in acquiring a comparative
knowledge of climates. I invite you to begin yours in
January, carry it as far as the end of May, and then
throughout the whole year oc[c]asionally; if it is use-
ful to know the first flowers of Spring, it is not less
to know the last ones of Autumn.
Short probably never complied with this re-
quest, and Rafinesque’s contemplated western
floral calendar, although it may have been par-
tially assembled or even written, has never
been discovered in manuscript or listed as a
published contribution.
WHY RAFINESQUE LEFT
TRANSYLVANIA UNIVERSITY
Transylvania University professors Gobar
and Hamon (1982, pp. 21-22) have attempted
to summarize the reasons for which Rafin-
esque left the school in 1826. First, Rafin-
esque had hoped to establish a museum of
natural history that would contain his exten-
sive herbarium, but the Trustees would not
fund it. Second, his prolonged absences from
the campus, even though many of his excur-
sions were to study and obtain specimens of
plants and animals in the field, strained his
relationship with President Holley, who, ac-
cording to Rafinesque’s perception, was not in-
terested in supporting science. Third, his “for-
eign” demeanor made him an easy target for
prejudice, and his personal faults did not help
his reputation, already subject to mistrust and
suspicion among his contemporaries. And
fourth, as an author he was expansive and al-
lowed his interest in novelty to lead him ev-
erywhere, creating the impression that he was
at times a dabbler.
Huntley Dupre (1961, pp. 82-83), formerly
a Professor of History at Transylvania, wrote
the following of Rafinesque’s leaving that uni-
versity:
Rafinesque felt himself to be unappreciated in
Lexington and he became increasingly frustrated and
disappointed. He felt that he was surrounded by foes
of science, among whom he came to number Presi-
dent Holley ....
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
William Leavey, a contemporary [and strong sup-
porter of Holley], very likely reflected the opinions
of the substantial citizens of the community in these
words: “Though learned and enthusiastic in Botany
and the Sciences he professed, Professor Rafinesque
was esteemed generally a visionary man. He was
wholly unsuccessful in all his undertakings, and left
Lexington with scarcely any means,—subscriptions
were raised for him by friends on his leaving.’
SUMMARY
More has been written to describe and an-
alyze the life and work of Rafinesque than of
any other North American naturalist. Versa-
tile, enthusiastic, eccentric, and egotistical he
was; but “mad,” “crazy,” or “insane” he was
not, as judged simply on the basis of his pro-
ductivity. To his botanical contemporaries and
their immediate followers, he was extremely
controversial and thus for the most part they
ignored him, but to the taxonomic botanists of
the following century his contributions were
objects that had to be evaluated. An individual
with truly remarkable native mental ability and
tremendous energy, he too frequently dem-
onstrated a lack of appreciation of the realities
of life. Rafinesque considered himself a trav-
eler, and to him all of his scientific, linguistic,
and historical pursuits were episodes within
his larger life’s joumey (Boewe 1988). Of the
sciences, he made it known that botany was
his favorite, and he studied it more intensely
and thoroughly than any of his other interests.
Everywhere Rafinesque went he discovered
“new” plants. He sorted out minute morpho-
logical variations as indications of distinct en-
tities. In an era in which naturalists often
achieved recognition through describing what
was new, Rafinesque wasted no time in mak-
ing known his newly discovered plants. Con-
sequently, he proposed new names for about
2,700 genera and 6,700 species—more than
any other botanist. Simultaneously, he pub-
lished discussions of new systems of classifi-
cation, nomenclatural procedures, and_pro-
cesses of gradual changes in plants through
time. Contemporary botanists and their im-
mediate followers, led by Asa Gray, were quick
to criticize Rafinesque and his innovative ap-
proaches. With reference to his new taxa, he
was accused of not having made necessary
comparisons with related or similar plants, of
not having reviewed or cited the literature,
and of not having the specimens to support
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey
his conclusions. Yet examination of many of
his publications, particularly his earlier ones,
reveals that indeed he did make comparisons
with related taxa. He did use the literature;
citations are given to European and American
authors and their works. Furthermore, he had
written extensive reviews criticizing and mak-
ing numerous corrections to eight of the major
contemporary taxonomic botanical works of
North America. He had the largest herbarium
of any contemporary botanist, Bat it was lack-
ing in organization; his plants were insuffi-
ciently labeled and apparently were not ar-
ranged into any usable system.
Rafinesque firmly believed that his desig-
nations of new taxa and his nomenclatural
changes were valid contributions to science,
but no botanist during his lifetime or for a
century later could actually make the proper
evaluations, as the world’s flora was not suffi-
ciently known and the definitive literature was
not at hand. However, evaluation became nec-
essary with the adoption, in 1867, and gradual
refinement of the International Code of Bo-
tanical Nomenclature. It then followed that all
of Rafinesque’s proposed names had to be in-
dexed, their descriptions read and compared
with other taxa, and the specimens docu-
menting these names located, if possible. This
process of determining the validity and prior-
ity of plant names is often a frustrating task
and will continue to be so. Surviving copies of
Rafinesque’s publications were few in number,
widely scattered, or difficult to obtain, at least
before reprinting processes became available.
Nearly all of his herbarium was discarded as
trash, and so it has been necessary for bota-
nists to seek documentation from the herbaria
of botanists to whom he sent specimens (Pen-
nell 1942, 1945; Merrill 1949; Stuckey 1971b).
Rafinesque’s botanical pursuits in the Ohio
Valley are those of an active 8-year period dur-
ing the middle of a very busy life. As the re-
gion’s premier resident professor-naturalist,
Rafinesque was the first to investigate all as-
pects of its natural history, but his botanical
publications were the most varied and exten-
sive. His discoveries of new plant taxa from
the region were actually very few even though
he named at least 612 taxa. For that series of
poor judgments he deserves little praise. As
the first resident professor of botany at a uni-
versity in the Ohio Valley, he had the oppor-
147
tunity to expand and diffuse botanical knowl-
edge through lectures, field work, and publi-
cations. Some may contend that he also failed
in these efforts, but he must be considered a
pioneer, some of whose accomplishments in
these areas have not yet been fully evaluated
or understood. He was the first to prepare
checklists of the vascular-plant flora of Ken-
tucky and of the prairies and barrens of the
lower Ohio Valley. He was the first to outline
and describe the phytogeographic regions of
Kentucky and to list their characteristic spe-
cies. He was the first to write an account of
plant succession, now a fundamental tenet of
plant ecology. Unfortunately, these innovative
contributions, like so many of his publications,
appeared in obscure scientific, literary, or pop-
ular journals, and thus they have been ig-
nored, overlooked, and forgotten. Even Asa
Gray (1841) admitted that he had not seen
some of Rafinesque’s publications printed in
Kentucky, for they were marked as “unknown”
to him. Rafinesque’s efforts at establishing a
botanical garden, although ending in failure,
showed that he had the considerable foresight
to plan and establish an elaborate facility for
the general appreciation, study, and improve-
ment of medicinal, horticultural, and agricul-
tural plants. While he interacted personally
with many of the botanists in the Ohio Valley,
he begged and appropriated from them for his
personal use all the information that he could
obtain.
Rafinesque evidently lacked social skills and
leadership qualities and had difficulty in work-
ing with associates. When editors of the more
reputable scientific journals rejected his pa-
pers, when his own Western Minerva was
“suppressed,” and when his lectures before
the Kentucky Institute were not well received,
he claimed in all of these instances that the
papers were “too learned.” He admitted that
his Atlantic Journal (1833)"5> “was too
learned” for the common reader but boasted
that it was “chiefly patronized by enlightened
or learned men... .” This “reason” was a nat-
ural product of the self-centered personality
that alienated so many of Rafinesque’s associ-
ates. Many of his papers, however, contained
new ideas that were considered unorthodox
and were judged by some editors and publish-
ers to be unworthy of publication. In many
instances, Rafinesque’s pioneering efforts were
148
not ready for acceptance, nor were his readers
prepared to grasp or see the relevance of the
new information being provided. Actually, in
many respects he was distinctly ahead of the
botanical writers of his time.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Grateful appreciation is given to the follow-
ing individuals who helped in various capaci-
ties to complete this study: David Armstrong,
Carol and Jerry Baskin, Charles Boewe, Wil-
liam R. Burk, David Campbell, J. Perry Ed-
wards, Joseph Ewan, John W. Frederick, Gary
Kirkpatrick, Dorothy I. Lansing, James S.
Pringle, Marvin L. Roberts, the late Emanuel
D. Rudolph, Nancy Ryan, Alfred E. Schuyler,
Ay Ee Spreitzer, David Stansbery, John W.
Thieret, Edward Toth, Edward G. Voss, and
Judith Warnement.
REFERENCES CITED
The references cited are arranged into two
groups:
The first group lists all of the cited papers
that Rafinesque wrote and that have corre-
sponding numbers in Fitzpatrick (1911) or in
Boewe (1982). These numbers appear as su-
perscripts throughout the text where refer-
ence is made to Rafinesque’s own publications.
A repetitive Boewe number is indication of a
reprinting.
The second group lists all other citations.
Specifically, it contains (1) papers and manu-
scripts written by Rafinesque that do not have
assigned numbers and are not listed in Fitz-
patrick (1911) or in Boewe (1982), (2) letters
written to or by Rafinesque, and (3) secondary
publications about Rafinesque and his work.
References to Rafinesque’s Publications Cited
with the Numbers of Fitzpatrick (1911) or
Boewe (1982)
Fitzpatrick 4. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1805. [Announcement
of a catalogue of the plants of the State of Delaware
and of the District of Columbia.] The Philadelphia
Medical and Physical Journal 2(1):177.
Fitzpatrick 5. | Rafinesque, C. S.] 1806. Additions to Mi-
chaux’s Flora of North-America. In a letter from Mr.
Rafinesque, to Dr. Mitchill, dated Palermo, in Sicily, Sth
August, 1805. The Medical Repository, second hexade,
3:422-423.
Fitzpatrick 8. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1808. Prospectus of
Mr. Rafinesque Schmaltz’s two intended works on
North-American botany; the first on the new genera
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
and species of plants discovered by himself, and the
second on the natural history of the funguses, or mush-
room-tribe of America. The Medical Repository, second
hexade, 5:350-356.
Fitzpatrick 9. Rafinesque Schmaltz, C. G. [S.] 1808. Es-
sential generic and specific characters of some new gen-
usses and species of plants observed in the United
States of America, in 1803 and 1804. By Mr. C. G.
Rafinesque Schmaltz. In a communication to Dr.
Mitchill, dated Palermo, Sept. Ist, 1807. The Medical
Repository, second hexade, 5:356-363.
Fitzpatrick 10. Rafinesque Schmaltz, C. S. 1808. Notice
on the medical properties of some North-American
plants: addressed to Dr. Mitchill by C. S. Rafinesque
Schmaltz. The Medical Repository, second hexade, 5:
493-424.
Fitzpatrick 19. Rafinesque Schmaltz, C. [S.] 1810. Prog-
ress in American Botany. By a letter from C. Rafinesque
Schmaltz, Esq., of Palermo, in Sicily, to Dr. Mitchill,
dated May 30, 1809, the following botanical information
is received. The Medical Repository, third hexade, 1:
197 [297].
Fitzpatrick 21. Rafinesque Schmaltz, C. S. 1811. An es-
say on the exotic plants, mostly European, which have
been naturalized, and now grow spontaneously in the
Middle States of North America. The Medical Reposi-
tory, third hexade, 2:330-345. (Reprinted, 1978. In
Ronald L. Stuckey, ed. Essays on North American Plant
Geography from the Nineteenth Century. Arno Press,
New York.) Boewe Bibliography 21.
Fitzpatrick 22. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1811. Botanical in-
formation concerning two families of Plants. I. Species
of the genus Callitriche. 11. North American species of
the genus Potamogeton. The Medical Repository, third
hexade, 2:407-409.
Fitzpatrick 230. Rafinesque-Schmaltz, C. S. 1814. Precis
des Decouvertes et Travaux Somiologiques entre 1800
et 1814 ou choix raisonne de ses principales Decouver-
tes en Zoologie et en Botanique, pour servir
dintroduction A ses ouvrages futurs. Palerme. 56 pp.
(Reprinted with editorial remarks, 1814. Desvaux’s
Journal de Botanique 4:268-276. [=Fitzpatrick 231))
(Reprinted, 1948. With foreword by Elmer D. Merrill.
Peter Smith, New York. [=Boewe Bibliography 230])
(Reprinted, 1990. In Constantine Samuel Rafinesque
Schmaltz on Classification: A Translation of Early
Works by Rafinesque with Introduction and Notes.
Translated by Arthur J. Cain. Tryonia No. 20. Depart-
ment of Malacology, The Academy of Natural Sciences
of Philadelphia. 240 pp.)
Fitzpatrick 237. R[afinesque], C. S. 1817. [Review of]
Flora Philadelphica Prodromus, or Prodromus of the
Flora Philadelphica, exhibiting a list of all the plants to
be described in that work which have as yet been col-
lected. By Dr. William P. C. Barton. Philadelphia. 1815.
100 pp. The American Monthly Magazine and Critical
Review 1:356—359.
Fitzpatrick 241. R[afinesque], C. S. 1817. [Review of] A
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey 149
Manual of Botany for the Northern States, comprising
generic descriptions of all Phenogamous and Cryptog-
amous plants to the north of Virginia, hitherto de-
scribed, &c. &c. Compiled by the Editor of Richard’s
Botanical Dictionary. Albany. Webster & Skinners.
1817. 164 pp. The American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review 1:426—430.
Fitzpatrick 249. |Rafinesque, C. S.] 1817. First decade
of undescribed American plants, or Synopsis of new
species, from the United States. The American Monthly
Magazine and Critical Review 2:43-44.
Fitzpatrick 251. R[afinesque, C. S.] 1817. Survey of the
progress and actual state of natural sciences in the Unit-
ed States of America, from the beginning of this century
to the present time. The American Monthly Magazine
and Critical Review 2:81—89. (Reprinted, 1974. Edited
by Keir B. Sterling. Amo Press, New York.) Boewe
Bibliography 251.
Fitzpatrick 252. Rafinesque, C. S. 1817. Description of
the Ioxylon pomiferum, a new genus of North American
tree. The American Monthly Magazine and Critical Re-
view 2:118—119.
Fitzpatrick 253. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1817. Second de-
cade of undescribed American plants. The American
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review 2:119-120.
Fitzpatrick 256. R[afinesque], C. S. 1817. [Review of]
Descriptio uberior Graminum et Plantarum Calamari-
arum Americae septentrionalis, indigenarum et cicu-
rum. By D. Henrico Muhlenberg. 1 vol., 295 pp. Sol.
W. Conrad, Philadelphia. 1817. The American Monthly
Magazine and Critical Review 2:143-144.
Fitzpatrick 257. Rafinesque, C. S. 1817. Florula Ludoy-
iciana; or, a flora of the state of Louisiana. Translated,
revised, and improved, from the French of C. C. Robin,
by C. S. Rafinesque .... C. Wiley & Co., New York.
178 pp. (Facsimile ed., 1967. With introduction by Jo-
seph Ewan. Hafner Publishing Co., New York and Lon-
don. xl, 178 pp.) Boewe Bibliography 257.
Fitzpatrick 258. R{afinesque], C. S. 1818. [Review of]
Flora Americae Septentrionalis, or a systematic ar-
rangement and description of the plants of North
America, &c. By Frederick Pursh, 2 vols. with 24 en-
gravings, London, 1814. The American Monthly Mag-
azine and Critical Review 2:170-176.
Fitzpatrick 264. Rlafinesque], C. S. 1818. [Review of]
Flora Americae Septentrionalis, or a systematic ar-
rangement and description of the plants of North
America, &c. By Frederick Pursh, 2 vols. with 24 en-
gravings, London, 1814. The American Monthly Mag-
azine and Critical Review 2:265-269.
Fitzpatrick 265. R[iafinesque], C. S. 1818. [Review of]
Florula Bostoniensis. A collection of plants of Boston
and its environs, with their generic and specific char-
acters, synonymes, descriptions, place of growth, and
time of flowering, and occasional remarks. By Jacob
Bigelow, M. D. Boston, 1814. 280 pp. The American
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review 2:342-344.
Fitzpatrick 267. R[afinesque], C. S. 1818. [Review of] A
Sketch of the Botany of South-Carolina and Georgia.
By Stephen Elliott, Esq. &c &c. Charleston, 1817. 100
pages, with some plates; to be continued. The American
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review 3:96-101.
Fitzpatrick 270. Rafinesque, C. S. 1818. Discoveries in
natural history, made during a journey through the
western region of the United States, by Constantine
Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. Addressed to Samuel L.
Mitchill, president and the other members of the Ly-
ceum of Natural History, in a letter dated at Louisville,
Falls of Ohio, 20th July, 1818. The American Monthly
Magazine and Critical Review 3:354-356.
Fitzpatrick 272. Rafinesque, C. S. 1818. Farther account
of discoveries in natural history, in the westem states,
by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. communicated
in a letter from that gentleman to the editor. The Amer-
ican Monthly Magazine and Critical Review 4:39-42.
Fitzpatrick 275. Rafinesque, C. S. 1818. A journal of the
progress of vegetation near Philadelphia, between the
20th of February and the 20th of May, 1816, with oc-
casional zoological remarks. By C. S. Rafinesque. The
American Journal of Science 1:77-82.
Fitzpatrick 279. Rafinesque, C. S. 1818. Memoir on the
Xanthium maculatum, new species from the state of
New-York, &c. by C. S. Rafinesque, Esq. The American
Journal of Science 1:151-153.
Fitzpatrick 281. Description of a new genus of American
grass. Diplocea barbata, by C. S. Rafinesque, Esq. The
American Journal of Science 1:252-254.
Fitzpatrick 284: Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Description and
natural classification of the genus Floerkea, by C. S.
Rafinesque. The American Journal of Science 1:373-
376.
Fitzpatrick 285. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Descriptions of
three new genera of plants, from the state of New-York.
Cylactis, Nemopanthus, and Polanisia, by C. S. Rafin-
esque. The American Journal of Science 1:377-379.
Fitzpatrick 286. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Notice on the
Myosurus shortii. The American Journal of Science 1:
379-380.
Fitzpatrick 288. R[afinesque], C. S. 1819. [Review of]
The Genera of North-American plants and a catalogue
of the species to the year 1817. By Thomas Nuttall, F.
L. S. &c. &c. 2 vols. Philadelphia. 1818. The American
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review 4:184-196.
Fitzpatrick 289. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Result of the
botanical discoveries made in the western states by C.
S. Rafinesque. The American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review 4:207-208.
Fitzpatrick 291. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. On some new
genera of American plants. Extract of the third letter
of C. S. Rafinesque, to Mr. Decandolle, Professor of
Botany at Ginevra [Geneva], and author of the new
Species Plantarum, dated Philadelphia, 25th Feb. 1819.
Translated from the French. The American Monthly
Magazine and Critical Review 4:356-358.
Fitzpatrick 292. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. On the intro-
duction and cultivation of the tea-plant, in three letters
150
from C.S. Rafinesque, Esq. to the Hon. S. L. Mitchill.
Read before the Lyceum of Natural History, Feb. §,
1819. Letter I. The American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review 4:382-383.
Fitzpatrick 293. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Letter II. On
the several species of tea, their discriminating charac-
ters, and their places of growth. The American Monthly
Magazine and Critical Review 4:383—384.
Fitzpatrick 294. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Letter HI. To
Dr. Samuel L. Mitchill, on the cultivation of tea in the
United States. The American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review 4:384.
Fitzpatrick 295. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Letter to the
editor of the American Monthly Magazine, on the date-
tree, or palm. The American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review 4:465—467.
Fitzpatrick 298. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1819. Florula Louis-
villensis, sive Plantarum Catalogus, vicinitate urbis.
Henrico M’Murtrie, M. D. &c. (Reprinted, 1969. With
epilogue, pp. I-15. G. R. Clark Press, Louisville, Ken-
tucky. )
Fitzpatrick 300. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Prodrome des
nouveaux genres de plantes observés en 1817 et 1818
dans lintérieur des états-Unis d’Amérique. Par C. S.
Rafinesque, Professeur de Botanique et d'Histoire na-
turelle dans Université de Lexington. Journal de Phy-
sique, de Chemie, d'Historie Naturelle et des Arts 89:
96-107. (Reprinted, 1820, Litterarischer Anzeiger
(Jena) ? :236-244. [=Fitzpatrick 338])
Fitzpatrick 303. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Miscellany. Bot-
any of Kentucky. On its principal features, by C. S. Raf-
inesque, Professor Botany and Natural History in Tran-
sylvania University. The Western Review and Miscel-
laneous Magazine 1:92-95, 128 [errata]. (Reprinted
with annotations, 1997. In Ronald L. Stuckey and James
S. Pringle. Common names of vascular plants reported
by C. S. Rafinesque in an 1819 descriptive outline of
four vegetation regions of Kentucky. Transactions of the
Kentucky Academy of Science 58:9-19.)
Fitzpatrick 305. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Remarques cri-
tiques et synonymiques sur les Ouvrages de MM.
Pursh, Nuttall, Elliott, Jorrey [Torrey], Barton, Muhl-
enburg, etc., sur les plantes des Etats Unis. Journal de
Physique, de Chemie, d’Histoire Naturelle et des Arts
89:256-261.
Fitzpatrick 307. Rafinesque, C. S. 1819. Botany. De-
scriptions of two new shrubs from Kentucky, &c. by C.
S. Rafinesque, Professor Botany, &c. in Transylvania
University. The Western Review and Miscellaneous
Magazine 1:228-230.
Fitzpatrick 340. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Prodrome d'une
monographie des rosiers de !Amerique septentrionale,
contenant la description de quinze nouvelles especes et
vingt varietes. Par M. C. S. Rafinesque, Professor de
botanique de d’hist. nat. dans Universite Transylvane
de Lexington en Kentucky... Annales Générales des
Sciences Physiques 5:210-220. (Reprinted, 1820. De
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
l'Imprimere de Weissenbruch pére, a Bruxelles.
[=Fitzpatrick 362))
Fitzpatrick 341. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Sur le genre
Houstonia et description de plusieurs especes nouvelles,
etc. Annales Générales des Sciences Physiques 5:224—
227. (Reprinted, 1820. De lImprimere de Weissen-
bruch pére, a Bruxelles. [=Fitzpatrick 362])
Fitzpatrick 345. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Remarques sur
les rapports naturels des genres Viscum, Samolus et Vi-
burnum. Annales Générales des Sciences Physiques 5:
348-351.
Fitzpatrick 346. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Tableau analy-
tique des ordres naturels, familles naturelles et genres,
de la classe endogynie, sous classe corisantherie. Par C.
S. Rafinesque, Professeur de botanique a Lexington.
Annales Générales des Sciences Physiques 6:76—89.
(Reprinted, 1820. De lImprimere de Weissenbruch
peére, a Bruxelles. [=Fitzpatrick 364])
Fitzpatrick 350. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1820. [Remarques
sur le genre Jeffersonia.| Annales Générales des Sci-
ences Physiques 7:18.
Fitzpatrick 351. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1820. [Sur le nou-
veau genre Enemion.| Annales Générales des Sciences
Physiques 7:15—19.
Fitzpatrick 353. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1820. [Nouveau car-
actere de lIrillium sessile = Trillium sessile.| Annales
Générales des Sciences Physiques 7:19.
Fitzpatrick 356. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Sur les genres
Tridynia, Steironema, Lysimachia, etc. avec la descrip-
tion d'une nouvelle espece. Par M. Rafinesque, prof. a
lUniv. de Lexington. Annales Générales des Sciences
7:192-193. (Reprinted, 1820. De
l'Imprimere de Weissenbruch pére, a Bruxelles.
| =Fitzpatrick 367])
Fitzpatrick 359. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1820. Botanique;
genres Chetyson, Enemion et Stylypus. Annales Génér-
Physiques
ales des Sciences Physiques 7:387.
Fitzpatrick 368. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Description
dun nouveau genre de plantes, Enemion, et remarques
botaniques; par M. C. S. Rafinesque, Professeur de Bo-
tanique et d'Histoire naturelle dans l'Universite de Lex-
ington en Kentucky, et membre de plusieurs societes
savantes, etc. Journal de Physique, de Chemie,
d Histoire Naturelle et des Arts 91:70-72.
Fitzpatrick 370. Rafinesque, C. S. 1820. Annals of nature
or annual synopsis of new genera and species of ani-
mals, plants, &c. discovered in North America. Printed
by Thomas Smith, Lexington, Kentucky. 16 pp. (Re-
printed, 1908. With foreword by T. J. Fitzpatrick. Pri-
vately by T. J. Fitzpatrick, Iowa City, Iowa. |=Fitzpat-
rick 939])
Fitzpatrick 374. Rafinesque, C. S. 1821. Remarques sur
les Convolvulacees, etc. Par M. Rafinesque, prof. a
PUniv. de Lexington. Annales Générales des Sciences
Physiques 8:268-272.
Fitzpatrick 375. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1821. Western Mi-
nerva, or American Annals of Knowledge and Litera-
ture, un peu de tout. food for the mind. first volume.
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey 151
for 1821. Published for the editors, by Thomas Smith.
Lexington, Kentucky. 88 pp.
Fitzpatrick 390. 1821. Original scientific intelligence, or
discoveries and remarks on natural sciences; extracted
from a letter of Dr. John Torrey, vice-president of the
Lyceum of Nat. History of New-York, to Professor Raf-
inesque. Western Minerva 1(1):38—40.
Fitzpatrick 391. Rlafinesque], C. S. 1821. Botany. Bo-
tanical discoveries made in Kentucky in 1820, by Prof.
Rafinesque, extracted and translated from a letter to
Prof. Decandolle of Geneva in Switzerland, author of
the New Species Plantarum, &c. Western Minerva (1):
40-42.
Fitzpatrick 392. Rafinesque, C. S. 1821. On the several
species of the genus Clintonia, addressed to Dr. Samuel
L. Mitchell, in a letter dated 26th September, 1819.
Western Minerva 1(1):42—-43.
Fitzpatrick 401. Rlafinesque], C. S. 1821. Notices of ma-
teria medica, or new medical properties of some Amer-
ican plants. Western Minerva 1(1):58—59.
Fitzpatrick 406. “W. M.” [C. S. Rafinesque]. 1821. West-
ern literature. Works published in the western states in
1820. Western Minerva 1(1):66-67.
Fitzpatrick 413. Rafinesque, C. S. 1821. Fragments of a
letter to Mr. Bory St. Vincent at Paris (member of the
Academy of Sciences of Paris, author of travels in the
islands of Africa, &c.) on various subjects —Translated
from the French. Western Minerva 1(1):72—76.
Fitzpatrick 432. [Rafinesque, C. S. 1821. Notice of the
suspension of The Western Minerva.]| The Kentucky
Reporter (Lexington), 28 January.
Fitzpatrick 441. Rafinesque, C. S. 1822. The cosmon-
ist—no. VII. On the botany of the western limestone
region. Kentucky Gazette, new series, 1(14):2-3. 4
April.
Fitzpatrick 442. Rafinesque, C. S. 1822. The cosmon-
ist—no. IX. On two new genera [Enemion and Styli-
pus] of vernal plants from Kentucky. Kentucky Gazette,
new series, 1(15):3. 11 April.
Fitzpatrick 447. Rafinesque, C. S. 1822. The cosmon-
ist—no. XIV. On the roses of the United States. Ken-
tucky Gazette, new series, 1(32):3. 8 August.
Fitzpatrick 448. Rafinesque, Prof. [C. S.] 1822. [An-
nouncement of a course of lectures on medical and sys-
tematic botany and natural history in] Transylvania Uni-
versity. Kentucky Gazette, new series, 1(42):2. 17 Oc-
tober.
Fitzpatrick 452. Rafinesque, C. S. 1824. Neophyton, No.
1. On a new tree of Kentucky forming a new genus
Cladrastis fragrans. The Cincinnati Literary Gazette 1:
60.
Fitzpatrick 453. Rafinesque, C. S. 1824. Neophyton, No.
II. On the genus Collinsia, and two new species of it.
The Cincinnati Literary Gazette 1:54—85.
Fitzpatrick 454. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Kentucky In-
stitute. The Cincinnati Literary Gazette 1:86—87.
Fitzpatrick 455. | Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Botanical Gar-
den of Lexington. The Cincinnati Literary Gazette 1:
87.
Fitzpatrick 463. Rafinesque, C. S. 1824. Neophyton, No.
HI. On a new medical plant, Prenanthes opicrina, and
a new kind of opium—Opicrine. (Read before the Ken-
tucky Institute, Feb. 11.) The Cincinnati Literary Ga-
zette 2:10-11.
Fitzpatrick 464. Rafinesque, C. S. 1524. Neophyton, No.
IV. On the new genus Lophactis. The Cincinnati Lit-
erary Gazette 2:28.
Fitzpatrick 468[a]. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Circular of
the directors of the botanic garden, pp. 2-5. In First
Catalogues and Circulars of the Botanical Garden of
Transylvania University at Lexington in Kentucky for
the year 1824. Printed for the Botanical Garden Com-
pany, by John M. M’Calla, Lexington, Ky. (English ver-
sion, pp. 2, 4: French version, pp- 3, 5.)
Fitzpatrick 468[b]. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Circular of
C. S. Rafinesque to his friends and correspondents in
America and Europe, pp. 4-11. In First Catalogues and
Circulars of the Botanical Garden of Transylvania Uni-
versity at Lexington in Kentucky for the year 1824.
Printed for the Botanical Garden Company, by John M.
M’Calla, Lexington, Ky. (English version, pp. 4, 6, 8,
10; French version, Pp: oss. 9, Tals)
Fitzpatrick 468[c]. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Florula
Kentuckiensis. Catalogue of the principal trees, shrubs,
and plants of Kentucky, pp. 12-16. In First Catalogues
and Circulars of the Botanical Garden of Transylvania
University at Lexington in Kentucky for the year 1824.
Printed for the Botanical Garden Company, by John M.
M’Calla, Lexington, Ky.
Fitzpatrick 469. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1824. Prospectus,
By-Laws & Charter, of the Transylvania Botanic-Gar-
den Company, Lexington, Ky. 16 pp.
Fitzpatrick 474. Rafinesque, C. S. 1825. Neogenyton, or
indication of sixty-six new genera plants of North Amer-
ica. By C. S. Rafinesque, Professor of Botany and Nat-
ural History in the University of Lexington, in Ken-
tucky. Dedicated to Professor Decandolle, of Geneva.
[Published by the author, Lexington, Kentucky.] 4 pp.
Fitzpatrick 554. Rafinesque, C. S. 1828. Medical Flora;
or, Manual of the Medical Botany of the United States
of North America. Containing a selection of above 100
figures and descriptions of medical plants, with their
names, qualities, properties, history, &c.: and notes or
remarks on nearly 500 equivalent substitutes. Vol. 1.
Printed and published by Atkinson & Alexander, Phil-
adelphia. xii, 268 pp. + 52 pls. (Reprinted, 1841, under
the title, Manual of the Medical Botany of the United
States; containing a description of fifty-two medical
plants, with their names, qualities, properties, history,
&c. with remarks on nearly 500 substitutes and fifty-
two coloured plates. [Published by the author], Phila-
delphia. xii, 259 + 52 pls. [=Fitzpatrick 925] Boewe
Bibliography 554.
Fitzpatrick 557. Rafinesque, C. S. 1830. Medical Flora;
or Manual of the Medical Botany of the United States
152
of North America. Containing a selection of above 100
figures and descriptions of medical plants, with their
names, qualities, properties, history, &c.: and notes or
remarks on nearly 500 equivalent substitutes. Vol. 2.
Published by Samuel C. Atkinson, Philadelphia. 276 pp.
+ pls. 53-100. Boewe Bibliography 557.
Fitzpatrick 558. Rafinesque, C. S. 1830, American Man-
ual of the Grape Vines and the Art of Making Wine:
including an account of 62 species of vines, with nearly
300 varieties. Printed for the author, Philadelphia. vi,
66 pp. + 2 pls.
Fitzpatrick 609. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Visit to Big-
Bone Lick, in 1821. The Monthly American Journal of
Geology and Natural Science, conducted by G. W.
Featherstonhaugh 1:355-358. (Facsimile ed., 1969. In-
troduction by George W. White. Hafner Publishing Co.,
New York and London.)
Fitzpatrick 623. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Selection of
twenty-four out of one hundred new species of plants
of North America, sent to Europe in 1828. Atlantic
Journal and Friend of Knowledge 1:16-18.
Fitzpatrick 661. Rafinesque, C. S. [ed.] 1832. Botany
and Horticulture. Extracts of a letter from Dr. John
Torrey of New York, to Prof. Rafinesque of Philadel-
phia, March 1832. Atlantic Journal and Friend of
Knowledge 1:78.
Fitzpatrick 727. R[afinesque], C. S. 1832. On 3 sp[ecies]
of Typha. Atlantic Journal and Friend of Knowledge 1:
148-149.
Fitzpatrick 728. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1832. Two new gen-
era of Umbelliferous plants from Kentucky. Atlantic
Journal and Friend of Knowledge 1:149.
Fitzpatrick 729. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. On 12 N[ew]
Splecies] of plants from Illinois, &c. Atlantic Journal
and Friend of Knowledge 1:149-151.
Fitzpatrick 731. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Vernasolis a
new genus. Atlantic Journal and Friend of Knowledge
1152:
Fitzpatrick 732. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Lophactis
Niew] G[enus]. Atlantic Journal and Friend of Knowl-
edge 1:152-153.
Fitzpatrick 749. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Account of the
botanical collections of Professor C. S. Rafinesque. At-
lantic Journal and Friend of Knowledge 1:167—170.
Fitzpatrick 757. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1832. G[enus] Do-
decatheon or Meadia. Atlantic Journal and Friend of
Knowledge 1:179-180. (Reprinted, 1833. Pp. 26-29. In
Herbarium Rafinesquianum. [=Fitzpatrick 795))
Fitzpatrick 779. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832. Chronological
index of the principal botanical works and discoveries
published by C. S. Rafinesque. Atlantic Journal and
Friend of Knowledge 1:206—208. (Reprinted, 1833. Pp.
[33]-37. In Herbarium Rafinesquianum. [=Fitzpat-
rick 800])
Fitzpatrick 785. Rafinesque, C. S. 1832-1833. Atlantic
Journal and Friend of Knowledge: Containing about
160 original articles and tracts on Natural History and
Historical Sciences, the Description of about 150 New
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Plants ... by C. S. Rafinesque. [Published by the au-
thor], Philadelphia. [iv], 212 pp. (Published in 8 num-
bers, with an extra of number 3 and of number 6; the
latter, paged separately (pp. 1-80), titled Herbarium
Rafinesquianum. |=Fitzpatrick 786]) (Reprinted,
1946. Armold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain.) Boewe Bib-
liography 785.
Fitzpatrick 786. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Herbarium Raf-
inesquianum. Prodromus—pars prima. rarissim. plant
nov. herbals; or botanical collections of C. S. Rafin-
esque, Professor of Botany, &c. &c. &c. [Published by
the author], Philadelphia. 80 pp.
Fitzpatrick 788. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Account of the
botanical collections of Professor C. S. Rafinesque.
Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 3-10.
Fitzpatrick 795. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Glenus] Dode-
cathon or Meadia. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 26-—
29.
Fitzpatrick 797. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. G[enus] Kuhn-
ia, revised. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 29-30.
Fitzpatrick 798. Rafinesque, C. S$. 1833. Genus] Heli-
chroa, Raf. 1825. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 30-
32.
Fitzpatrick 800. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Chronological
index of the principal botanical works and discoveries
published by C. S. Rafinesque. Herbarium Rafines-
quianum, pp. 33-37.
Fitzpatrick 802. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Monograph of
the species of Glenus] Samolus, in my herbarium. Her-
barium Rafinesquianum, pp. 41-43.
Fitzpatrick 803. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Genus Cypri-
pedium. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 43-44.
Fitzpatrick 804. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Genus Spiran-
thes. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 44-45.
Fitzpatrick 805. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. G[enera] Jef-
fersonia and Podophyllum. Herbarium Rafinesquianum,
p. 46.
Fitzpatrick 811. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Florula Cen-
tralis or Illinoensis. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp.
59-63.
Fitzpatrick 814. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. Florula Wasi-
otana. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 66-67.
Fitzpatrick 817. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. New genera of
Orchideous [orchids]. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp.
70-74.
Fitzpatrick 818. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. New species of
Nforth] Amerlican] Orchideons [orchids]. Herbarium
Rafinesquianum, pp. 74-77.
Fitzpatrick 819. Rafinesque, C. S. 1833. New Umbeli-
fera. Herbarium Rafinesquianum, pp. 77-7.
Fitzpatrick 858, 859. Rafinesque, C. S. 1836. The Amer-
ican Nations; or, Outlines of their General History. 2
vols. [Published by the author], Philadelphia. [iv], 260
pp.; [4], 5-292 pp. (Reprinted, 1974, University Micro-
films, Ann Arbor.) Boewe Bibliography 858, 859.
Fitzpatrick 863. Rafinesque, C. S. 1836. A Life of Trav-
els and Researches in North American and South Eu-
rope, or outlines of The Life, Travels and Researches
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey 153
of C. S. Rafinesque, A.M. Ph. D. Printed for the author, printed, 1942. Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain.)
by F. Turner, Philadelphia. 148 pp. (Reprinted, 1944. Boewe Bibliography 897.
With foreword, critical index and explanatory comments Boewe Bibliography 948. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1819. Lec-
by Elmer D. Merrill. Chronica Botanica 8:291-360. tures on Natural History and Botany. Kentucky Re-
[=Boewe Bibliotheca 378, 417]) (Facsimile ed., porter (Lexington), 6 October.
1978. In Rafinesque: Autobiography and Lives. With Boewe Bibliography 949. Rafinesque, C. S. [Undated].
introduction by Keir B. Sterling. Amo Press, New Prospectus of Two Courses of Lectures on Natural His-
York.) Boewe Bibliotheca 480; Boewe Bibliography tory and Botany, to be delivered at the Transylvania
863. University by professor C.S. Rafinesque. Broadside, |
Fitzpatrick 868. Rafinesque, C. S. “1836” [1836-1838]. page. Copy seen in the Library, Transylvania University.
New Flora and Botany of North America or a Supple- Boewe Bibliography 958. [Rafinesque, C. S.] 1820. [Re-
mental Flora, additional to all the Botanical Works on view of] Archaeologia Americana: Transactions and Col-
North America and the United States. Containing 1000 lections of the American Antiquarian Society ... Vol-
New or Revised Species ... in rota parts. I. Lexicon ume 1. Western Review and Miscellaneous Magazine
3:89-112.
and Monographs. II. Neophyton &c. IH. New Sylva &c.
IV. Neobotanon &c.—with Introductions, Sketches,
Notes, Indexes, &c. [Published by the author], Phila-
delphia. (Reprinted, 1946. Amold Arboretum, Jamaica
Plain.) Boewe Bibliography 868.
Fitzpatrick 873. Rafinesque, C. S. “1836” [1837-1838].
Flora Telluriana Centur. I-XIJ. Mantissa Synoptica
2000 Nlew] Ord[ers|-N[ew] Genlera]—N[ew] Splecies].
Plantarum in Orbis Tellurianum. [Published by the au-
thor], Philadelphia. (Reprinted, 1946. Amold Arbore-
tum, Jamaica Plain.) Boewe Bibliography 873. Atwater, Caleb. 1818. On the prairies and barrens of the
Fitzpatrick 883. Rafinesque, C. S. 1838. Alsographia West. American Journal of Science and Arts 1:116-125.
Americana, or an American Grove of new or revised Atwater, Caleb. 1820a. Description of the antiquities dis-
Other References Cited, Including Letters
and Publications by Rafinesque Not Cited in
Fitzpatrick (1911) or Boewe (1982)
[Anonymous]. 1817-1818. Remarks by the Publishing
Committee. Journal of the Academy of Natural Sci-
ences of Philadelphia 1:485-486.
[Anonymous]. 1900. [Discovery of a unique copy of Raf-
inesque’s Western Minerva.] Botanical Gazette 30:216.
trees and shrubs of the genera Myrica, Calycanthus,
Salix, Quercus, Fraxinus, Populus, Tilia, Sambucus, Vir-
burnum, Cornus, Juglans, Aesculus &c., with some new
genera, monographs, and many new sp[ecies]. in 330
articles, completing 1405 G[enera] and Splecies] as a
covered in the State of Ohio and other western states.
Archaeologia Americana [Transactions and Collections
of the American Antiquarian Society] 1:105-267. (Re-
printed, 1833. In The Writings of Caleb Atwater. Co-
lumbus.)
Atwater, Caleb. 1820b. Letter to Isaiah Thomas, 12 Oc-
tober, from Circleville. Holograph at American Anti-
quarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. (Selected
portions quoted in The Kentucky Review 7:46. 1987.
Charles Boewe.)
Atwater, Caleb. 1827. Prairies in Ohio. Western Journal
of Medicine and Physical Science 1:85-92.
Atwater, Caleb. 1831. Prairies in Ohio, pp. 211-217. In
Remarks made on a tour to Prairie du Chien; thence
to Washington City, in 1829. Isaac N. Whiting, Colum-
bus, Ohio. 296 pp.
Atwater, Caleb. 1838. Prairies in Ohio, pp. 25-30; Botany,
pp. 71-92. In A History of the State of Ohio, Natural
continuation of the Sylva Telluriana and North America
Trees & Shrubs, by C. S. Rafinesque, A. M.—Ph. D.
[Published by the author], Philadelphia. 76 pp.
Fitzpatrick 885. Rafinesque, C. S. 1838. Sylva Telluriana.
Mantis, synopt. new genera and species of trees and
shrubs of North America, and other regions of the
earth, omitted or mistaken by the botanical authors and
compilers, or not properly classified, now reduced by
their natural affinities to the proper natural orders and
tribes. By C. S. Rafinesque, AM—Ph.D. Printed for
the author and publisher, Philadelphia. (Reprinted,
1943. Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain.) Boewe Bib-
fiosraphy, 885. ; psi» and Civil. Stereotyped by Glezen & Shepard, Cincin-
Fitzpatrick 894. Rafinesque, C. S. 1839. American Man- nati, 407 pp. (Reprinted, without change, as 2nd ed.,
ual of the mulberry trees. Their history, cultivation, 1838.)
properties, diseases, species and varieties &c, with hints
on the production of silk from their barks &c. by C. S.
Rafinesque, A. N. Ph. D. [Published by the author],
Philadelphia. 96 pp.
Audubon, John James. 1832. The eccentric naturalist, pp.
455460. In Ornithological Biography, Vol. 1. Judah
Dobson and H. H. Porter, Philadelphia.
Barlow, William, and David O. Powell. 1977. Malthus A.
Fitzpatrick 897. Rafinesque, C. S. 1840. Autikon Botan- Ward, frontier physician, 1815-1823. Journal of the
ikon or Botanical Illustrations of 2500 New, Rare or History Medicine and Allied Sciences 32:280-291.
Beautiful Trees, Shrubs, Plants, Vines, Lilies, Grasses, Barlow, William, and David O. Powell. 1978a. Frontier
Ferns, &c, of all regions, but chiefly North America, medicine and life: Kittanning, Pennsylvania, in 1815
with Descriptions &c. and 2500 self figures or speci- and 1816. Western Pennsylvania Historical Magazine
mens .... [Published by the author], Philadelphia. (Re- 61:17-30.
154
Barlow, William, and David O. Powell. 1978b. The early
life of a University of Georgia professor: Malthus A.
Ward, M.D., 1794-1831. Atlantic Historical Journal 22:
68-71.
Barlow, William, and David O. Powell. 1986. “The late
Dr. Ward of Indiana”: Rafinesque’s source of the Walam
Olum. Indiana Magazine of History $2:185-193.
Barnhart, John Hendley. 1921. Biographical notices of
persons mentioned in the Schweinitz-Torrey correspon-
dence. Memoirs of the Torrey Botanical Club 16(3):
290-300.
Barton, Benjamin Smith. 1805 [“1806"]. Miscellaneous
facts and observations No. 25. Philadelphia Medical and
Physical Journal 2(1):177.
Betts, Edwin M. 1944. The correspondence between Con-
stantine Samuel Rafinesque and Thomas Jefferson. Pro-
ceedings of the American Philosophical Society §7:368—
380.
Bigelow, Jacob. 1818a. Facts serving to shew the compar-
ative forwardness of the spring. Memoirs of the Amer-
ican Academy of Arts and Sciences 4:77-85.
Bigelow, Jacob. 1818b. On the comparative forwardness
of the spring, in different parts of the United States, in
1817. American Journal of Science and Arts 1:76-77.
Blirge]. 1820. [Review of] Sketches of Louisville and its
environs, including, ... a Florula Louisvillensis. West-
ern Review and Literary Magazine 2:86—90.
Boewe, Charles. 1961. Rafinesque and Dr. Short. Filson
Club History Quarterly 35:28-32.
Boewe, Charles. 1980. Editing Rafinesque holographs:
The case of the Short letters. Filson Club History Quar-
terly 54:37-49,
Boewe, Charles. 1982. Fitzpatrick’s Rafinesque: A Sketch
of His Life with Bibliography. Revised and enlarged. M
& S Press, Weston, Massachusetts. 327 pp.
Boewe, Charles. 1983. Introduction and notes, pp. i-viii.
In C. S. Rafinesque “First Lecture on Botany” (1820).
The Whippoorwill Press, Frankfort, Kentucky. viii, 19
PP-
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Department of Malacology, The Academy of Natural
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Call, Richard Ellsworth. 1895. The Life and Writings of
Rafinesque. Filson Club Publication No. 10. John P.
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York.)
Christianson, Eric H. 1981. The conditions for science in
the Academic Department of Transylvania University,
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Society 79:305-325.
Cutler, Manasseh. 1785. An account of some of the veg-
etable productions, naturally growing in this part of
America, botanically arranged. Memoirs of the Ameri-
can Academy of Arts & Sciences 1:396—493. (Reprinted,
1903, under the title “An account of some of the veg-
etable productions, naturally growing in this part of
America, botanically arranged by the Rev. Manasseh
Cutler, F.A.A. and M.S. and member of the Philosoph-
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brary, Reproduction Ser. 4, 7:396—493.)
Davies, P. Albert. 1945. Charles Wilkins Short, 1794—
1863, botanist and physician. Filson Club History Quar-
terly 19:131-155, 208-249.
Davies, P. Albert. 1949. An unpublished Rafinesque letter.
Filson Club History Quarterly 23:199-201.
Drake, Daniel. 1810-1811. Notices concerning Cincin-
nati. John W. Brown & Co., Cincinnati. (Reprinted,
1908. Quarterly Publication of the Historical and Philo-
sophical Society of Ohio 3:1—60, i-vi.) (Reprinted, 1970.
Pp. 5-56. In Henry D. Shapiro and Zane L. Miller, eds.
Physician to the West: Selected Writings of Daniel
Drake on Science and Society. University Press of Ken-
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Drake, Daniel. “1815” [1816]. Natural and _ Statistical
View, or Picture of Cincinnati and the Miami Country,
Illustrated by Maps. With an Appendix Containing Ob-
servations on the Late Earthquakes, the Aurora Bo-
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D. Shapiro and Zane L. Miller, eds. Physician to the
West: Selected Writings of Daniel Drake on Science
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Dupre, Huntley. 1945. Rafinesque in Lexington 1819-
1826. Kentucky Monographs IH. Bur Press, Lexington.
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Ewan, Joseph. 1967a. A bibliography of Louisiana botany.
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Ewan, Joseph. 1967b. Introduction, pp. i-xl. In C. S. Raf-
inesque. Florula Ludoviciana, or, A Flora of the State
of Louisiana. Facsimile ed. Hafner Publishing Co., New
York. 178 pp.
Ewan, Joseph. 1977. Josiah Hale, M.D., Louisiana bota-
nist, Rafinesque’s pupil. Journal of the Society for the
Bibliography of Natural History 8:235-243.
Fernald, Merritt L. 1932. Some genera and species of Raf-
inesque. Rhodora 34:21—28.
Femald, Merritt L. 1944a. Overlooked species, transfers
and novelties in the flora of eastern North America.
Rafinesque in the Ohio Valley—Stuckey 155
Rhodora 46:1-21, 32-57 + pls. 807-816. (Reprinted,
1944. Contributions from the Gray Herbarium No. CL:
Si ate pls. 807-816.)
Fernald, Merritt L. 1944b. Two of Rafinesque’s species of
Tradescantia. Rhodora 46:310-311.
Fernald, Merritt L. 1946. Technical studies on North
American plants. I. Some species in Rafinesque’s “Her-
barium Rafinesquianum.” Rhodora 48:5-13 + pls. 993—
994. (Reprinted, 1946. Contributions from the Gray
Herbarium No. CLX:5-13 + pls. 993-994.)
Femald, Merritt L. 1950. Gray’s Manual of Botany. 8th
ed. American Book Co., New York. Ixiv, 1632 pp. (Re-
printed, 1970. D. Van Nostrand Co., New York.)
Fitzpatrick, T. J. 1911. Rafinesque: A Sketch of His Life
with Bibliography. The Historical Department of Iowa,
Des Moines. (Reprinted, 1978. In Keir B. Sterling, ed.
Rafinesque: Autobiography and Lives. Amo Press, New
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Ford, Bruce A. 1997. Enemion Rafinesque ..., pp. 246—
249. In Flora of North America North of Mexico, Vol.
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Fox, William J. 1900. Rafinesque’s Western Minerva; or,
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new series 12:211]—215.
Freeman, John D. 1975. Revision of Trillium subgenus
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ies 10:144-152.
Friesner, Ray C. 1953. Rafinesque and the taxonomy of
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Gobar, Ash, and J. Hill Hamon. 1982. C. S. Rafinesque,
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156
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adelphia. Holographs in Charles W. Short Manuscript
Collection, Library, The Filson Club, Louisville, Ken-
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known. (Published in Western Minerva 1:40-42. 1821.
C.S.R.) | =Fitzpatrick 391]
Rafinesque, C. S. 1821. Letter to Bory St. Vincent, 7 Jan-
uary, from Lexington. Holograph not known. (Published
in Western Minerva 1:72-76. 1821. C.S.R.) [=Fitzpat-
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J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(2):158—-167. 1998.
Scientists of Kentucky
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers:
Simon and Abraham Flexner of Louisville, Kentucky
SIMON FLEXNER (1863-1946)
It is rare to find within one family individ-
uals as important to the sciences as were
Simon and Abraham Flexner. The first of this
talented duo arrived as the fourth child of
Morris and Esther Flexner in Louisville, Ken-
tucky, on 23 March 1863.* Starting out as a
Jewish immigrant peddler, Morris Flexner
eventually became a prosperous wholesaler in
the lively river community, allowing him to
give his children a reasonably sound educa-
tion.
Simon Flexner (Figure 1) attended Louis-
ville public schools until apprenticing himself
to a druggist. His advanced studies began at
the Louisville College of Pharmacy; he grad-
uated there in 1882. He followed up his ed-
ucation by studying medicine at the University
of Louisville. Calling it an “old-fashioned med-
ical school,”” Flexner had little opportunity for
formal laboratory work. Nonetheless, he ob-
tained a microscope and began studying
pathological tissues for physicians who fre-
quented his older brother's pharmacy.
In 1890 he followed his younger brother
Abraham’s suggestion to remove to Baltimore
and attend the progressive Johns Hopkins
University. It was a decision that would change
his life forever. There he met William Henry
Welch (1850-1934), one of the founders of
that university's outstanding medical school.
Through Welch and his coterie of colleagues
trained in the more advanced bacteriological
laboratories of Europe, Flexner was intro-
duced to systematic pathology and to the con-
tributions of Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur’s
germ theory of medicine.
Simon quickly became one of Welch's prize
students. In 1892 he received a fellowship and
became first assistant in the pathology depart-
ment. There he found the working conditions
and collegial atmosphere fostered under
Welch’s watchful eye stimulating and condu-
cive to independent study. “If a student who
listened to him possessed the soul of an in-
vestigator,” Flexner recalled, “sooner or later
some problem would catch his imagination
and all by himself he would get down to work.
Then Welch would come to his assistance; a
lead found, Welch kept the interest at white
heat and guided the work into the most re-
warding channels. He was alert and helpful,
and always encouraging.”© These early days
with Welch at Johns Hopkins would foster a
lasting friendship.
Under Welch’s guidance Flexner blossomed
into a mature scientific investigator. His edu-
cation was furthered with a trip to Europe in
1893 where he was introduced to the work of
leading scientists like the German pathologist
Friedrich von Recklinghausen (1833-1910).
Upon his return to the United States, Flexner
again joined the pathology department at
Johns Hopkins Hospital where by 1899 he
achieved the rank of full professor.
That year saw the close of the Spanish-
American War with official cession of the Phil-
ippine Islands to the United States on 6 F eb-
ruary. This conflict resulted in 5462 deaths,
only 379 of which were due to combat.‘ Dys-
entery, malaria, and typhoid fever devastated
American troops stationed in Cuba, Puerto
Rico, and the Philippines. Such losses prompt-
ed interest on the part of bacteriologists to in-
vestigate the etiology of these illnesses, and
Flexner spent several months in Manila study-
ing various pathogens for the newly created
U.S. Army’s board for the investigation of
tropical diseases. His patient investigations
were rewarded with the isolation of what he
originally called “the Bacillus Dysenteriae,” a
lapse in nomenclature to which Welch quickly
responded: “‘I notice you usually write it the
Bacillus Dysenteriae. It should be Bacillus dy-
senteria, leaving out the ‘the’, and having the
generic names always begin with a capital, and
the specific one with a small letter.’ Welch was
a purist concerning nomenclature. He con-
sulted [Walter] Migula in this case and noted
that he had given the name I used to Ogata’s
bacillus, and if he had done so before Shiga
wrote, his name would be the one to stand,
158
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers—Flannery 159
Figure 1. Simon Flexner. Photo credit: The Alan Mason Chesney Medical’ Archives of the Johns Hopkins Medical
Institutions.
but Migula wrote in 1900 and Shiga in 1898,
so that the form Welch suggested was cor-
rect. ©
Later this was further corrected by naming
this Gram-negative bacterium Shigella dysen-
teriae after its rightful discoverer, Japanese
bacteriologist Kiyoshi Shiga (1870-1957).
Nonetheless, it is still often referred to as the
“Flexner bacillus.”!
Upon his return to the United States, Flex-
ner accepted an offer to organize a pathology
department at the University of Pennsylvania.
While there he surrounded himself with
young, promising students like Hideyo Nogu-
chi (1876-1928), who began investigations
into snake venoms and later isolated Lepto-
spira icteroides as the bacterium responsible
for yellow fever.‘
In 1901 John D. Rockefeller had tentatively
established what would become the Institute
for Medical Research that would bear his
name. Toward that end a director was sought.
First Dr. Theobald Smith (1859-1934), who
had performed pathfinding studies on Texas
fever in cattle, was asked to head the Institute,
but Smith declined, suggesting that the re-
search facility envisioned by Rockefeller
should encompass “the study of infectious dis-
eases from all points of view.” Smith added
that his “interest for years in animal pathology
. might give an impress to the work of the
laboratory which might eventually arouse ad-
verse criticism.” Welch, who had been in-
volved in the Rockefeller Institute from the
beginning, then wrote to his old friend Dr. T.
Mitchell Prudden (1849-1924), who was vice
president of the Institute's board of directors:
“T think that Flexner is inclined to consider an
offer such as we made to Smith, and if he
could be secured I believe we could not find
a better man.”
Flexner accepted the position in June 1902
and left his tenured faculty post at the Uni-
versity of Pennsylvania for the uncertainty of
heading up a fledgling laboratory devoted
solely to research. Although entering the new
job with some understandable misgivings, he
160
led the Rockefeller Institute with his charac-
teristic “vision and audacity.)
Here Flexner battled a host of human
scourges. In 1906 he produced a serum
against cerebrospinal meningitis that re-
mained the treatment of choice until the de-
velopment of sulfanilamide compounds (so-
called sulfa drugs) in the 1930s.‘ Four years
later he responded to a polio epidemic in New
York City by successfully transferring the po-
liomyelitis virus between monkeys through
their infected mucosa. As insignificant as this
might seem, it represented a real break-
through in the fight against polio. Not only did
it prove that the virus could be found in na-
sopharyngeal mucosa, thus demonstrating the
possibility of respiratory transmission of the
disease, but this method of perpetuating the
virus was later replicated less expensively in
hens’ eggs, leading ultimately to the develop-
ment of protective polio vaccines in the 1950s.
In addition, Flexner made great strides in ep-
idemiology by observing “mouse-villages”
where he carefully noted outbreaks of infec-
tion and the phenomenon of mass immunity
response. He found that epidemics in the “vil-
lage” could be triggered by the reintroduction
of newly infected individuals or “susceptibles”
into the group!
Besides his research work, Flexner also ed-
ited the important Journal of Experimental
Medicine, a task he took over from the found-
ing editor William Henry Welch in 1902 and
held for the next 15 years.
Furthering the work of the Rockefeller In-
stitute for Medical Research remained Flex-
ner’s passion until his retirement in 1935.
Shortly thereafter he began work on the bio-
graphical tribute to his mentor, William Henry
Welch. Originally published in 1941, the book
has been described as “a fitting final volume
for his life history as [well as] for the great
leader of his age.”™
Simon Flexner married Helen Whitall Tho-
mas in 1903. They had two sons: William
Welch, who became a physicist, and James
Thomas, who with his father co-authored Wil-
liam Henry Welch and went on to become an
important historian of American culture.
Flexner’s work in bacteriology and com-
municable diseases remains an important con-
tribution to the fields of pathology and medi-
cine. Upon his death on 12 June 1946, a long
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
line of illustrious eulogizers including John D.
Rockefeller Jr., Judge Learned Hand, and Dr.
Herbert Gasser gave testimony to the keen
mind and gentle spirit of Simon Flexner.
Among those who mourned the loss was
Simon’s younger brother Abraham. He too
contributed mightily to the field of medicine,
but in a very different and more controversial
way.
ABRAHAM FLEXNER (1866-1959)
On 13 November 1866 Abraham Flexner
(Figure 2) was born in Louisville into a home
that stressed the importance of education and
a strong work ethic. It is little wonder, then,
that Abraham exhibited the same taste for
learning and tenacity of purpose as his older
brother Simon. In high school he sent articles
to The Nation and by 1883 the precocious 17
year old was attending Johns Hopkins Univer-
sity, preceding his older brother Simon there
by 7 years." Abraham earned his bachelor’s de-
gree in just 2 years but not before he became
familiar with William Welch, who was busy as-
sembling the famous Johns Hopkins medical
department.
In 1886 Abraham returned to Louisville
where he regaled his family with stories of the
brilliant, German-trained faculty at Johns
Hopkins. He encouraged Simon to go to that
university. By 1893 the enterprising young
Abraham had started his own school in the
bustling Kentucky river town, a venture that
was successful enough to send his brother Ja-
cob to medical school.
In 1905 Abraham Flexner sold his school
and used the proceeds to attend Harvard.
While in Germany for 2 years of additional
study he wrote his first book, The American
College: A Criticism (1908); in it he empha-
sized the importance of critical scholarship
over the functional didactic techniques prev-
alent in America.
This early work formed the foundation
upon which Abraham Flexner would build his
most famous and enduring legacy. He was
urged by Dr. Henry Pritchett (who was im-
pressed by Flexner’s first book) to initiate a
comprehensive study of medical colleges
across the country for the Carnegie Founda-
tion. Flexner agreed; the result was the foun-
dation’s bulletin number four, the now famous
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers—Flannery 161
Figure 2. Abraham Flexner. Photo credit: The Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives of the Johns Hopkins Medical
Institutions.
(or infamous) Medical Education in the United
States and Canada (1910) (Figure 3).
Flexner described in detail how in 1908 he
began the arduous task of assessing the status
of American medical education, and he left no
doubt about his standard of comparison:
Having finished my preliminary reading, I went to
Baltimore—how fortunate for me that I was a Hop-
kins graduate!—where I talked at length with Drs.
Welch, Halsted, Mall, Abel, and Howell, and with a
few others who knew what a medical school ought to
be, for they had created one. I had a tremendous
advantage in the fact that I became thus intimately
acquainted with a small but ideal medical school em-
bodying in a novel way, adapted to American condi-
tions, the best features of medical education in En-
gland, France, and Germany. Without this pattern in
the back of my mind I could have accomplished little.
With it I began a swift tour of medical schools in the
United States and Canada—155 in number, every
one of which I visited. I had no fixed method of pro-
cedure. I have never used a questionnaire. I invari-
ably went and saw the schools and talked with teach-
ers of medicine and the medical sciences and their
students.°
There is little doubt that Flexner visited
these schools with Johns Hopkins as the pre-
conceived benchmark of comparison. There is
also no question that the report was issued
with the expressed purpose of eliminating a
sizeable portion of America’s degree-granting
institutions. In Flexner’s opinion the number
162
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
MEDICAL EDUCATION
IN THE
UNITED STATES AND CANADA
A-REPORT LO
THE CARNEGIE FOUNDATION
FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF TEACHING
ABRAHAM FLEXNER
WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY
HENRY S: PRICCHETS
PRESIDENT OF THE FOUNDATION
BULLETIN NUMBER FOUR
576 FIFTH AVENUE
NEW YORK CITY
Figure 3. Title page of Abraham Flexner’s Medical Education in the United States and Canada (1910).
needed to be reduced from 155 to 31 with an
average annual graduating class for each
school set at about 70.P
Flexner’s chief complaint was against the
large number of proprietary schools that had
proliferated throughout the country during
the 19th century. Operating essentially on a
for-profit basis, these proprietary schools in his
opinion represented a harmful “commercial
treatment of medical education” that fostered
crass promotional schemes abounding “in ex-
aggeration, misstatement, and half-truths” de-
signed to encourage enrollment and, ultimate-
ly, overproduction of physicians. Indeed he
suggested that many of the deans of such
schools “know more about modern advertising
than about modern medical teaching.”*
Although undeniably true, this sweeping in-
dictment is overly simplistic and belies the his-
torical context for the development of propri-
etary medical schools. “As of 1800,” wrote not-
ed medical historian John Duffy, “it was ob-
vious that the number of graduates from the
existing medical colleges was hopelessly inad-
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers—Flannery
equate for America’s burgeoning population
.... Under these conditions, the traditional
concept of professional medical training had
no validity. Entrance requirements were vir-
tually eliminated, and the emphasis was placed
upon practical skills and knowledge. Many of
the professors were themselves products of
the apprentice system, and they could see lit-
tle value in laboratories or libraries. The cali-
ber of these schools varied widely,” Duffy add-
ed, “depending upon the educational back-
ground and conscientiousness of the profes-
sors, but ... in even the best schools it was
possible to acquire an easy degree.”
Nevertheless, Flexner was correct in char-
acterizing the general state of medical educa-
tion in the early 1900s as “ill manned and
poorly equipped.” In some of the schools,
conditions were bad almost beyond descrip-
tion. For example, Flexner described the in-
dependent Maryland Medical College thus:
The school building is wretchedly dirty. Its so-
called laboratories are of the worst existing type: the
neglected and filthy room is set aside for bacteriology,
pathology, and histology: a few dirty test-tubes stand
around in pans and old cigar boxes. The chemical
laboratory is perhaps equal to the teaching of ele-
mentary chemistry. The dissecting-room is foul. This
description completely exhausts its teaching facilities.
There is no museum or library and no teaching ac-
cessories of any sort whatsoever.'
Shutting down institutions like the Mary-
land Medical College became Flexner’s special
mission. After another of his visits, this time
to the Medical School of Maine, Flexner con-
cluded that that entire operation was “a dis-
graceful affair.” When Dr. William Thomas
Councilman (1854-1933) of Harvard Univer-
sity, who had recently toured the Maine facil-
ity and praised it highly, read Flexner’s report
he predicted that “even Flexner will break
down when it comes to Louisville.” Faithfully
following his Johns Hopkins University stan-
dard, Flexner did not break down even with
his brother’s old alma mater, calling the Uni-
versity of Louisville medical department a
school riddled with “radical defects for which
there is no end in sight.” Assessing the con-
ditions in Kentucky, Flexner stated that “the
situation is a simple one. The homeopathic
school is without merit. Its graduates deserve
no recognition whatsoever, for it lacks the
most elementary teaching facilities. The Uni-
163
versity of Louisville has a large, scattered
plant, unequal to the strain which numbers
place upon it.” On the whole Flexner con-
cluded, “The outlook [for Kentucky] is not
promising.’
The Flexner Report was not the first or only
effort at assessing medical schools in America.
As Robert P. Hudson pointed out, the Amer-
ican Medical Association (AMA) “had educa-
tional reform as the principal raison d’étre
from its beginnings in 1848.” Despite its de-
sires to fashion medical education in its own
image, the AMA made little progress in estab-
lishing nationally recognized standards of
training for physicians. In 1890, however, the
newly reorganized American Medical College
Association (AMCA) began to press for
change. By 1904 the AMA established a stand-
ing Council on Medical Education, a body that
began to actively inspect and grade various
schools. In 1907 the Council gave its first re-
port, causing the overly optimistic chairman
Arthur Dean Bevan to proclaim a great “wave
of improvement” in the state of America’s
medical colleges.* These earlier efforts have
caused some historians like Howard S. Berli-
ner to conclude that the Flexner Report “has
received attention far out of proportion to its
actual contribution to medical education and
the constant dwelling on the report serves only
to mask the real dynamics of the period.”
But most historians disagree. Thomas Ne-
ville Bonner pointed out that “the history of
American medical education would surely
have been different without Flexner .... Not
only did he use philanthropy more imagina-
tively than any of this contemporaries, he built
an enduring model of national policy-mak-
ing.”” Unlike the brief and only moderately ef-
fectual forays by the AMA and the AMCA
against inadequate—even fraudulent—propri-
etary schools, Flexner’s report represented
more than a mere raiding party in the attack
for substantive educational reform in Ameri-
can medicine. This report had power behind
it. With his brother Simon well positioned
within the Rockefeller Foundation, Abraham
had access to the inner circle of that wealthy
and influential organization. In fact it was the
association of Abraham Flexner’s study with
the equally impressive Carnegie Foundation
that opened a number of college doors to his
whirlwind survey. Many administrators, lured
164
by the carrot of grant dollars, were more than
willing to show Flexner around. “While the
Flexner report would undoubtedly have cre-
ated a stir,” insisted John Duffy, “it might well
have aroused a brief flurry of attention and
then faded away had it not been that Flexner
was able to persuade the Rockefeller Foun-
dation to make grants that eventually totaled
almost 50 million dollars to those schools that
Flexner considered worthwhile. Rockefeller’s
contributions in turn stimulated other philan-
thropists to support medical education, with
most money going to those institutions desig-
nated by Flexner as worthy of support.”** An-
other historian even called the report “the
manifesto of a program that by 1936 guided
91 million dollars from Rockefeller’s General
Education Board (plus millions from other
foundations) to a select group of medical
schools.”>»
In attempting to establish medical educa-
tion on what he considered a sound scientific
basis, Flexner was unquestionably influenced
by the same forces that helped develop Johns
Hopkins into a leader of both medical edu-
cation and modern graduate training. In the
main these new currents in academic educa-
tion were coming from Europe, especially
Germany. Specifically in medicine they
stressed clinical training and laboratory re-
search over older didactic classroom methods.
In emphasizing this new scientifically based
curriculum, it is not inaccurate to consider
Flexner an educational elitist more interested
in making medicine a rigorous discipline
weathered by only a few of the nation’s best
and brightest than in ensuring that medicine
remained a field of egalitarian opportunity
open to all. In this sense it is easy to appre-
ciate Robert Hudson's description of this sig-
nificant report as “Flexner’s genteel thunder-
bolt.”
Flexner’s impact was and is unmistakable.
While it is true that invigorated state licensing
boards and increased economic pressures
were closing the more marginal proprietary
schools and forcing others to be absorbed into
area universities prior to 1910, the report
caused closures to accelerate. By 1915, only
96 of Flexner’s original 155 medical schools
survived; by 1920 the number had fallen to 85;
and 10 years later the number stood at 76.“
This was still short of Flexner’s desired goal of
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
31, but by 1930 the report had clearly done
its intended job.
Looking strictly at the course of events,
there is the temptation to see Flexner as the
hired gun of a collusion between the founda-
tion behemoths of industrial America and an
AMA anxious to strengthen and consolidate its
power over the medical profession. But this
conspiracy theory fails on closer examination.
Flexner held very specific ideas of what a good
medical education should be; the animating
spirit of his report was that “all colleges and
universities, whether supported by taxation or
by private endowment, are in truth public ser-
vice corporations, and that the public is enti-
tled to know the facts concerning their admin-
istration and development .. . .”"
It may come as a surprise to some that Flex-
ner had no special love for the AMA. By the
1920s he was revealing his disdain for the Chi-
cago-based organization in private correspon-
dence to the Rockefeller Foundation’s secre-
tary, Edward Embree, calling it the “advertis-
ing center in medical education” that “for
years tried to make the world think that Chi-
cago was the medical center of this country.”%%
In fact, there is some indication that by 1921
Flexner’s enthusiasm for the Johns Hopkins
medical school had considerably moderated;
astonishingly, he referred to it in at least one
letter to Embree as “a rather pitiful institu-
tion.” These privy communications, however,
were never reflected in Flexner’s public state-
ments. Years later Flexner saw himself as an
integral player in what he and his brother
Simon viewed as the “heroic period in Amer-
ican medicine.”"
The truth is that the Flexner Report lies
somewhere between the extremes of a nefar-
ious plot out to destroy the allopathic (regular)
profession’s competition and America’s official
declaration of medical excellence. This report
was needed. Certainly by the 20th century the
proprietary model had long outlived its use-
fulness as a method for training America’s
health care professionals. The increasing fi-
nancial demands of acquiring and maintaining
an expensive laboratory overhead and clinical
apparatus forced many marginal institutions
out of existence; Flexner’s report merely has-
tened the inevitable, and rightfully so.
Yet Flexner’s work was not flawless. There
is a nagging sense that he forced, whether in-
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers—Flannery
tentionally or not, American medical educa-
tion into an inflexible mold fashioned after the
image of the allopathic Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity. When Flexner did come upon a sec-
tarian (irregular) institution worthy of the des-
ignation “medical school,” he was prone to dis-
miss it out of hand. For example, he admitted
that the Eclectic Medical Institute (EMI) of
Cincinnati did justice to its own creed of using
botanical medicines but he castigated that
creed as “drug mad.” So in the end it was in
fact not just the state of the facilities and fac-
ulty that mattered (he admitted that the Cin-
cinnati eclectic school had “a new and attrac-
tive building, thus far meagerly outfitted”),
but it was also the philosophical underpin-
nings of the school itself that in some measure
determined the verdict. The problem is that
Flexner’s own allopathic preferences made the
mere prospect of financial assistance to a po-
tentially worthy sectarian school virtually out
of the question. With the flow of foundation
dollars to institutions essentially of Flexner’s
own choosing, his dismissal of the EMI as the
bastion of a “drug mad” minority ensured that
the “meagerly outfitted” buildings would in-
deed remain “meagerly outfitted.” His asser-
tion that the eclectics were overly dependent
upon their pharmaceutical armamentarium
was at its heart a medical and scientific opin-
ion rendered by a layman; Flexner would have
been ill-equipped to defend it on clinical
grounds. He had overstepped his bounds; he
was not by training or background competent
to allege that any group of medical practition-
ers was “drug mad.”
Be that as it may, the Flexner Report had
another more far reaching flaw: its influence
caused medical schools to concentrate in the
major metropolitan centers of America, cre-
ating an increasing disparity in the quality of
health care between rural and urban America.
“Flexner insisted in his report that a kind of
‘spontaneous dispersion’ would spread the
graduates of the top medical schools to the
four winds. On this matter,” wrote Paul Starr,
“he was quite wrong. Doctors gravitated
strongly to the wealthier areas of the country.
A 1920 study by the biostatistician Raymond
Pearl showed that the distribution of physi-
cians by region in the United States was close-
ly correlated with per capita income.” The
reduced production of physicians encouraged
165
by the Flexner Report certainly aggravated
this situation.
In the final analysis the report presents a
mixed picture. On the one hand it served to
provide a workable national standard upon
which modern medical science could build.
On the other hand the wholesale closure of
sectarian schools reduced the nation’s thera-
peutic choices; the fallout of the report was
not beneficial for all Americans, especially
those dependent upon country doctors for
their primary care. Only recently has the role
of alternative and complementary medicine
been seriously revisited. The establishment of
the Office of Alternative Medicine under the
aegis of the National Institutes of Health in
1992 and the work of important researchers
like David M. Eisenberg at Beth Israel Dea-
coness Medical Center in Boston have moved
therapies previously deemed unworthy of con-
sideration back within the realm of respecta-
ble investigation and discussion."
Despite the problems created by Flexner’s
report, these costs were not immediately ap-
parent. Taken in its entirety, health care in
America became better for it. “Flexner did not
so much instigate reform,” wrote John Haller,
“as provide a rationale for what should be, as
well as what already existed in the form of im-
proved medical instruction and the gradual
elimination of marginal schools. His report
produced a landmark policy statement that
served as a catalyst for medical reform in the
years to come."
Today its historical significance is under-
scored by the fact that, like most examples of
literature that have become classics in their
respective fields, it is more often cited than
read. This is unfortunate because Medical Ed-
ucation in the United States and Canada is a
window into the state of American medicine
at the beginning of this century unparalleled
in its detail and singular influence upon the
profession. It represents an unusually frank (if
imperfect) assessment of American medicine
from an outside observer.
Following the publication of his magnum
opus, Flexner remained in the forefront of
American education. In 1913 he became
secretary of the Rockefeller Foundation’s
General Education Board, rising in 1925 to
the position of board director. In 1930 he
expanded his critique of American education
166
to encompass all of academia in a book titled
Universities—American, English, German.
That same year he established the Institute
for Advanced Study at Princeton University,
a project he directed until his retirement in
1939.
When Abraham Flexner died on 21 Sep-
tember 1959 at Falls Church, Virginia, Amer-
ican medicine lamented the loss of the last of
two remarkable brothers who gave their all in
pursuit of better medicine. The Flexners left
an indelible mark on the medical profession.
Kentucky can be proud that their formative
years were spent in Louisville and that this city
on the Ohio River provided them with the ini-
tial opportunities that would ultimately make
them both famous.
Michael A. Flannery
Lloyd Library and Museum
917 Plum Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
ENDNOTES
a. Biographical information on Simon Flexner is avail-
able in George W. Corner, s.v. “Flexner, Simon,”
Dictionary of Scientific Biography, ed. Charles
Coulston Gillispie (New York, Charles Scribner's
Sons, 1972); and S. Bayne-Jones, s.v. “Flexner,
Simon,” The American Philosophical Society Year
Book, 1946 (Philadelphia: The Society, 1947). Addi-
tional autobiographical material is presented in
Simon and James Thomas Flexner’s William Henry
Welch and the Heroic Age of American Medicine
(1941; Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993).
b. Qtd. in Flexner, William Henry Welch, p. 160.
c. Flexner, William Henry Welch, p. 165.
d. Richard B. Morris, ed., Encyclopedia of American
History (New York: Harper & Row, 1976), p. 345.
e. Flexner, William Henry Welch, p. 246.
f. Shiga’s discovery occurred in 1897. Flexner’s date of
1S98 must refer to Shiga’s published results, not his
actual discovery. See Kiyoshi Shiga, Sekiri byogen
Kenkyu hokoku [Report on the bacterial studies re-
lating to the origin of dysenteries] (Tokyo: Densen-
byo Kenkyusho, 1898). For Flexner’s work on dys-
entery see his “On the Etiology of Tropical Dysen-
tery.” Johns Hopkins Hosp. Bull. 11 (1900):231-242.
g. For Flexner and Noguchi’s work on snake venom see
their “Snake venom in relation to haemolysis, bac-
teriolysis, and toxicity,” J. Exp. Med. 2 (1909): 277—
301. Biographical information is available on Nogu-
chi in Claude E. Dolman, s.v. “Noguchi, Hideyo,”
Dictionary of Scientific Biography. \
h. Qtd. in Flexner, William Henry Welch, p. 280.
i. Qtd. in Flexner, William Henry Welch, p. 280.
m.
lal
u.
W.
(oley,
Joumal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Bayne-Jones, American Philosophical Society, p. 293.
This new class of antibacterial agents was heralded
in by the German chemist-pharmacologist Gerhard
Domagk (1895-1964) in 1935 when he discovered
the specific compound responsible for Prontosil’s an-
tibacterial action against streptococcal infections. See
Kremers and Urdang’s History of Pharmacy, rev. ed.
Glenn Sonnedecker (Phildelphia: Lippincott, 1976),
pp- 50-56; and Eric Posner, s.v. “Domagk, Gerhard,”
Dictionary of Scientific Biography. For Flexner’s ce-
rebrospinal meningitis antiserum see his article
“Concerning a Serum Therapy for Experimental In-
fection with Diplococcus intracelluraris,” J. Exp.
Med. 9 (1907):168-1S5: and Simon Flexner and
James Wesley Jobling, “Serum Treatment of Epi-
demic Cerebro-spinal Meningitis,” J. Exp. Med. 10
(1908):141—203.
Bayne-Jones, American Philosophical Society, p. 295.
See also Simon Flexner and Paul A. Lewis, “Exper-
imental poliomyelitis in monkeys: active immuniza-
tion and passive serum protection,” JAMA 54 (1910):
1780-1782.
S. Bayne-Jones, American Philosophical Society. p.
296.
David Banta, “Abraham Flexner—A reappraisal,”
Soc. Sci. & Med. 6 (1971):655-661.
Abraham Flexner, Abraham Flexner: An Autobiog-
raphy (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1960), pp. 74—
75. Originally published in 1940 as I Remember: An
Autobiography.
Abraham Flexner, Medical Education in the United
States and Canada: A report to the Carnegie Foun-
dation for the Advancement of Teaching, Bulletin 4
(New York: Carnegie Foundation, 1910), p. 151.
Flexner, Medical Education, pp. 18-19.
John Duffy, From Humors to Medical Science: A His-
tory of American Medicine, 2nd ed. (Urbana: Uni-
versity of Illinois Press, 1993), pp. 133-134.
Flexner, Medical Education, p. xii.
Flexner, Medical Education, p. 237.
Flexner, Abraham Flexner: An Autobiography, p. 81.
Flexner, Medical Education, pp. 230-231.
Robert P. Hudson, “Abraham Flexner in Historical
Perspective,” in Beyond Flexner: Medical Education
in the Twentieth Century, Barbara Barzansky and
Norman Gevitz, eds. (New York: Greenwood Press,
1992), p. 6.
Qtd. in Howard S. Berliner, “New Light on the Flex-
ner Report: Notes on the AMA-Caregie Founda-
tion Background,” Bull. Hist. Med. 51 (Winter 1977):
604.
Berliner, “New Light on the Flexner Report,” p. 608.
Thomas Neville Bonner, “Abraham Flexner and the
Historians,” J. Hist. Med. & Allied Sci. 45 (1990):7.
Duffy, From Humors to Medical Science, p. 209.
Paul Starr, The Social Transformation of American
Medicine (New York: Basic Books, 1982), p. 121.
Robert P. Hudson, “Abraham Flexner in Perspective:
dd.
ee.
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers—Flannery
American Medical Education, 1865-1910.” Bull.
Hist. Med. 46 (November/December 1972): 545.
Hudson, “Abraham Flexner in Historical Perspec-
tive,” p. 8.
This has been suggested more than once, not only
by proponents of alternative medicine but also by
some revisionist historians. See, for example, Paul
Bergner, foreword to Official Herbs: Botanical
Substances in the United States Pharmacopoeias,
1820-1990, by Wade Boyle (East Palestine, OH:
Buckeye Naturopathic Press, 1991). p. xv: George
Cody, “History of Naturopathic Medicine,” in A
Textbook of Natural Medicine, Joseph E. Pizzorno
Jr. and Michael T. Murray, eds. (Seattle: Bastyr
University Press, 1993). pp. 6-7: and Gerald Mar-
kowitz and David Rosner, “Doctors in Crisis: A
Study of the Use of Medical Education Reform to
Establish Modem Professional Elitism in Medi-
cine,” Am. Q. 25 (1973):53-90.
ff.
gg.
bh.
bs
mm.
167
Flexner, Medical Education, p. ix.
Qtd. in Daniel M. Fox, “Abraham Flexner’s Unpub-
lished Report: Foundations and Medical Education,
1909-1928.” Bull. Hist. Med. 54 (Winter 1980):493.
Qtd. in Fox, “Flexner’s Unpublished Report.” 495.
Flexner, Medical Education, p. 163.
Flexner, Medical Education, p. 162.
Starr, The Social Transformation of American Medi-
cine, p. 125.
See David M. Eisenberg. “Unconventional Medicine
in the United States,” New Engl. J. Med. 325 (Jan.
28, 1993):246-252: and David M. Eisenberg, “Ad-
vising Patients Who Seek Alternative Medical Ther-
apies,” Ann. Int. Med. 127 (July 1, 1997):61-69.
John S. Haller Jr., American Medicine in Transition,
1840-1910 (Urbana: University of Illinois Press,
1981), p. 229.
List of Reviewers for Volume 59 of Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science
Carol C. Baskin
Jerry M. Baskin
Charles Boewe
David M. Brandenburg
William S. Bryant
Michael A. Flannery
J.D. Jack
Edmund D. Keiser
Robert F.C. Naczi
Brainard L. Palmer-Ball
Debra K. Pearce
James S. Pringle
Craig Seither
Thomas C. Rambo
Jerry W. Warner
Richard White
J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(2):168-173. 1998.
Winter-bird Communities in a Western Mesophytic Forest and Two
Proximate Urban Habitats
David L. Hedeen
Department of Entomology and Applied Ecology, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19717
and
Stanley E. Hedeen
Department of Biology, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio 45207
ABSTRACT
Winter-bird communities in Cincinnati, Ohio, were compared along 500 m transects in three habitats: a
Western Mesophytic Forest remnant, a residential area with lawns holding scattered shrubs and trees, and
a railroad corridor with a railway track bordered on each side by strips of herbaceous vegetation, seral
woodland, and backyard lawns. Bird surveys were conducted between 9 Nov and 3 Feb for four winters,
1990-1994. Compared to the forest, the residential area held fewer bark-feeding individuals and more
ground-feeding birds, most of which were non-natives. The high populations of non-natives caused the
residential area to have a larger abundance of birds than the forest but also a lower Simpson index of species
diversity. Species richness totaled 31 in the forest, 34 in the residential area, and 41 in the railroad corridor.
Of the three habitats, the railroad corridor supported the greatest abundance of birds, probably due to its
greater variety and amount of food-producing vegetation.
INTRODUCTION
The Western Mesophytic Forest Region,
covering the western two-thirds of Kentucky
and Tennessee, extends from northern Missis-
sippi and Alabama north to southern Illinois,
Indiana, and Ohio (Braun 1950). Changes in
land use have vastly influenced the region’s bi-
otic community. For example, the avifauna of
the Cincinnati metropolitan area in northern
Kentucky and southwestern Ohio has been al-
tered by deforestation and urbanization (Kem-
sies 1948; Trautman 1977). Beissinger and Os-
borne (1982) documented that the summer-
bird community of a residential district near
Cincinnati is significantly different from that
of a local climax forest.
Urbanization also might change the struc-
ture of the region’s winter-bird communities.
Although there have not been previous studies
of such alterations in any deciduous forest re-
gion, winter avian populations in natural and
urban habitats have been compared in a coast-
al sage-scrub zone in California (Guthrie
1974), a coniferous forest area of Washington
(Gavareski 1976), and a southeastern pine re-
gion in Georgia (Yaukey 1996). Our objective
in this study in Cincinnati, Ohio, was to con-
trast the winter-bird community of a Western
Mesophytic Forest remnant with such com-
munities in a city residential area and an urban
railroad corridor.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Our study was conducted in the southeast
quarter of Section 21, Fractional Range 2,
Township 4, City of Cincinnati, Hamilton
County, Ohio. At the time of Cincinnati's set-
tlement, this 65-ha area was covered by decid-
uous forest (Gordon 1966). A 15-ha_ old-
growth forest remains within the city park that
occupies the southern portion of the study
area. Braun (1950) gave a detailed account of
this Ault Park woodland as a typical example
of a Western Mesophytic Forest stand. The
structure and tree species composition of this
climax forest show little evidence of past hu-
man or natural disturbance (Bryant 1987).
The northern portion of the study area was
cleared and developed as a residential area.
Most of the residences are detached single-
family homes built during the 1920s. Original
forest vegetation was replaced by lawns with
scattered shrubs and trees.
The residential area is bisected by a 30-m
wide east-west railroad right-of-way cleared in
the 1880s. The infrequently used train route
ends in a nearby industrial area. Chemical
168
Winter-bird Communities—Hedeen and Hedeen
sprays and flail mowers maintain a ca. 10-m
wide herbaceous community centered on the
train track at the middle of the right-of-way.
Secondary succession has reestablished shrubs
and trees along the ca. 10-m wide margins of
the right-of-way. The backyard lawns border-
ing the outside edges of the right-of-way com-
plete the railroad corridor.
We established a 500-m census transect in
the climax woodland. The small size of the for-
est remnant precluded the establishment of
more than one transect in the stand. Two oth-
er 500-m transects were established: one along
a city street in the residential area and one
along the train track in the railroad corridor.
Between 1100 and 1500 on a count day, we
walked together at a speed of 1 km/hr to cen-
sus a transect in 30 min. This pace allowed all
three transects to be censused within a 2-hr
period. Except for gulls and waterfowl flying
over the transects, all birds seen or heard were
counted. Due to the winter absence of leaves,
lines of sight and sound were equivalent along
all three transects. The recorded species were
assigned to one of 10 winter foraging guild
categories defined by DeGraaf et al. (1985). A
foraging guild is composed of species with
similar habitat-use patterns as defined by pri-
mary food, feeding substrate, and feeding be-
havior.
Because patterns of diversity and abun-
dance may vary within a season (Kricher
1975), 10 counts were made over the course
of a winter, with an average span of 10 days
between counts. Because winter-bird popula-
tions and communities also may vary from
year to year due to numerous factors (Block
and Brennan 1993; Smith 1984; Weins 1989),
counts were conducted over four consecutive
winters from 1990-1991 through 1993-1994.
The census dates varied from one winter to
the next, but all counts were completed be-
tween 9 Nov and 3 Feb to minimize the ef-
fects of food shortages later in the winter that
may cause movement to feeders (Rollfinke
and Yahner 1990).
Species diversity for each transect was cal-
culated by using Simpson’s index of diversity
(Brower et al. 1990; Simpson 1949). This in-
dex incorporates the number of species (index
of species richness) and the equitability of bird
numbers among the species (index of species
evenness).
169
RESULTS
The 10 feeding guilds were not equally rep-
resented in all three habitats (Table 1). The
forest, for example, supported more insectiv-
orous bark gleaners and fewer seed-eating
ground foragers. Overall, the greatest number
of bark feeders and the least number of
ground feeders were recorded in the forest
(Figure 1).
Compared to the forest, the residential area
held about twice as many individual birds,
while the railroad corridor supported about
three times as many. The larger bird popula-
tions in the urbanized habitats were largely
due to increased numbers of exotic birds.
Non-native rock doves, European starlings,
house finches, and house sparrows together
averaged 65.6 birds in the residential area,
65.9 birds in the railroad corridor, and 5.9
birds in the forest. Of the total individuals in
each habitat, the proportion of non-natives
was 68% in the residential area, 48% in the
railroad corridor, and 12% in the forest.
The forest had the least species richness
and the most evenness of bird numbers among
its species (Table 2). The forest’s species di-
versity index was significantly greater than that
of the residential area (t,, = 2.08, P < 0.05),
but was not significantly different from the in-
dex of the railroad corridor (t., = 0.62, NS).
DISCUSSION
The site of Cincinnati was entirely covered
by deciduous forest when it was initially sur-
veyed in 1788 (Gordon 1966; Symmes 1926).
Two centuries later, urban development has
reduced the old-growth forest to a few rem-
nants such as the stand in Ault Park (Bryant
1987). In contrast to the climax woodland,
trees in Cincinnati's residential neighborhoods
are widely dispersed, existing only where they
provide shade, privacy, landscape scenery, or
some other benefit to the human residents.
In our study, the sparsely wooded residen-
tial area supported fewer bark-feeding birds
than did the adjacent climax forest (Figure 1).
Species associated with woody plants typically
decrease in abundance as forested areas un-
dergo housing development (Beissinger and
Osborne 1982; DeGraaf and Wentworth 1981;
Lancaster and Rees 1979). This downward
trend is the opposite of what occurs during
170 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Table 1. Foraging guilds and mean number of each species detected along a 500 m transect in each of three winter
habitats in Cincinnati, Ohio, 9 Nov—3 Feb, 1990-1994.
Species Climax forest Residential area Railroad corridor
Insectivorous Bark Excavator
Pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) 0.48 0.03 0.08
Insectivorous Bark Gleaners
Red-bellied woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus ) 2.43 0.38 0.95
Yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) 0.45 0.10 0.13
Downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) 2.15 0.55 1.40
Hairy woodpecker (Picoides villosus) 0.90 0.05 0.18
Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) — 0.03 —
White-breasted nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 1.35 0.15 0.50
Brown creeper (Certhia americana) 1.23 0.03 0.25
Omnivorous Crown Foragers
Northern flicker (Colaptes auratus ) 0.10 0.03 0.18
Carolina chickadee (Parus carolinensis) 8.08 4.35 e238)
Tufted titmouse (Parus bicolor) 2.40 0.83 1.58
Insectivorous Crown Gleaners
Carolina wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 2.30 0.33 2.30
Golden-crowned kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 0.48 0.18 0.20
Ruby-crowned kinglet (Regulus calendula) 0.05 — 0.03
Blackpoll warbler (Dendroica striata) = — 0.03
Frugivorous Crown Foragers
Northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) a 1.25 1.28
Cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) 0.90 0.33 0.98
Seed-eating Crown Gleaner
Pine siskin (Carduelis pinus) == Le 0.30
Omnivorous Ground Foragers
Rock dove (Columba livia) 1.05 1.80 4.75
Blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 0.58 0.50 1.03
American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 4.63 2.63 4.65
Swainson’s thrush (Catharus ustulatus) 0.03 _ a
Hermit thrush (Catharus guttatus) — 0.03 =
American robin (Turdus migratorius) 7.38 5.50 10.58
European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 3.15 33.20 32.33
Rufous-sided towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) 0.03 = 0.15
Common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 0.03 0.10 0.03
Insectivorous Ground Gleaner
Winter wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) == — 0.03
Carnivorous Ground Hawkers
Sharp-shinned hawk (Accipiter striatus) 0.03 — 0.13
Cooper's hawk (Accipiter cooperii) — 0.05 0.05
Red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 0.20 0.03 0.23
American kestrel (Falco sparverius) = = 0.03
Barred owl (Strix varia) = — 0.03
Seed-eating Ground Foragers
Mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) — 2.05 5.75
Northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 2.20 2.08 13.78
Fox sparrow (Passerella iliaca) — — 0.03
Song sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 0.08 0.15 1.83
White-throated sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) 0.40 — 6.45
Dark-eyed junco (Junco hyemalis) 0.50 1.38 4.63
Red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) — 0.63 0.03
Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) 0.03 2.98 1.60
House finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) 1.65 6.90 18.63
American goldfinch (Carduelis tristis) 1.95 2.60 3.63
House sparrow (Passer domesticus) = 23.73 10.23
Total 47.22 96.69 138.24
Winter-bird Communities—Hedeen and Hedeen
WW
=
<
oc
5 RESIDENTIAL AREA
ee Bark # 1.3
(ap) Crown Ee
O Ground §
=
O
= RAILROAD CORRIDOR
Oo Bark Bf 3.5
a Crown |
Ground §
fal
MEAN NUMBER OF BIRDS PER 500 M TRANSECT
Figure 1.
residential development in deserts, grasslands,
and shrublands, where the propagation of ar-
tificially watered woody vegetation increases
the arboreal avifauna (Emlen 1974; Guthrie
1974).
The winter abundance of ground-feeding
birds is positively associated with the density
of non-woody vegetation (Tilghman 1987). In
more open tree stands, the fuller development
of the herbaceous layer provides more seeds
that persist in winter for ground foragers. The
association of open terrain with ground-feed-
ing species was evident in our study where the
proportion of birds that were ground feeders
rose from 51% in the Ault Park forest to 89%
in the lawn-dominated residential area (Figure
1). DeGraaf (1991) reported similar figures
from Amherst, Massachusetts, where the pro-
portions of winter ground feeders were 45%
in a suburban woodland and 92% in a suburb
with large lawns and few shrubs or trees.
Summarizing several breeding and non-
breeding season studies on avifaunal change
caused by urbanization, Cicero (1989) con-
cluded that natural habitats have higher spe-
cies richness than do nearby urban neighbor-
Table 2. Bird community indices in three winter habitats
in Cincinnati, Ohio, 9 Nov—3 Feb, 1990-1994.
Climax Residential Railroad
Index forest area corridor
Species diversity 11.65 5.18 9.43
Species evenness 0.37 0.15 0.23
Species richness 31 34 4]
Bird abundance by foraging substrate in three winter habitats in Cincinnati, Ohio, 9 Nov—3 Feb, 1990-1994.
hoods. However, in a study of the winter avi-
fauna of neighborhoods in Amherst, Massa-
chusetts, DeGraaf (1991) found that the
number of species was smaller in a wooded
zone (24 species) than in either of two resi-
dential areas with lower tree densities (26 spe-
cies each). The slightly lower avian species
richness in natural woodland also was the pat-
tern found in our study (Table 2), perhaps re-
flecting a less heterogeneous flora in the
closed Ault Park forest than in the landscaped
yards of the residential area.
Although the residential area had a slightly
greater species richness than the climax forest,
it nonetheless had a significantly smaller index
of species diversity due to its much lower spe-
cies evenness. Species evenness typically de-
clines in urban areas because the extensive
habitat modification associated with urbaniza-
tion allows the proliferation of exotic species
(Cicero 1989; Williamson and DeGraaf 1980).
In our study (Table 1), the non-native Euro-
pean starlings, house sparrows, house finches,
and rock doves represented 12% of the resi-
dential area’s total species and 68% of its total
individuals. In contrast, exotics constituted
10% of the forest’s species and 12% of the
forest’s individuals.
The European starling alone composed
one-third of the total of the birds in the resi-
dential area. The residential area’s lawns pro-
vided the species with large expanses of grass,
the starling’s preferred foraging habitat (Feare
1984). A quarter of the birds in the residential
area were house sparrows, a species not found
172
in the Ault Park forest. The absence of house
sparrows from woodlands also has been re-
corded in Columbia, Maryland, and Vancou-
ver, British Columbia, although they are abun-
dant in the residential areas of these cities
(Geis 1974; Lancaster and Rees 1979).
Throughout the world, the house sparrow has
an affinity for developed areas (Summers-
Smith 1963).
The introduced rock dove and house finch
also had populations that were higher in the
residential area than in the forest. These two
birds are like the European starling and house
sparrow in that they are ground-foraging om-
nivorous and seed-eating species that are ev-
erywhere associated with the built environ-
ment (Gilbert 1989; Guthrie 1974; Williamson
1974). Goldstein-Golding (1991), summarizing
several studies on the effect of urbanization on
birds, concluded that the dramatic population
increases of exotic species cause urban areas
to have a greater density of individuals than
do nearby natural areas. In our study, the
abundance of non-native individuals in the
residential area resulted in a total bird count
that was double the total found in the forest.
In comparison to the forest and residential
area, the railroad corridor supported the
greatest bird abundance and species richness,
reflecting its vegetation structure. The herba-
ceous plant community along the train track
at the center of the right-of-way is bordered
on each side by a seral woodland community.
Beyond the wooded margins of the right-of-
way are located the lawns of adjacent back-
yards. Due to increased light penetration
through the open spaces above the train track
and the fringing lawns, the shrub and herba-
ceous layers are more fully developed below
the trees in the right-of-way than they are in
the closed climax forest or in the mowed and
manicured residential area.
The increased volume and diversity of fo-
liage probably were responsible for the greater
avian abundance and larger number of species
occurring in the railroad corridor. In North
American deciduous forests, increased growth
in the fruit- and seed-producing shrub and
herbaceous layers during the growing season
leads to a greater density and variety of winter
bird life (McComb and Moriarity 1981; Quay
1947; Tilghman 1987). Elevated avian abun-
dance and higher bird species richness also
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
have been noted in the heterogeneous vege-
tation of railroad corridors in Britain (Gilbert
1989).
Our study’s findings must be considered as
preliminary, as it only was possible to establish
single transects in each of the three locally re-
stricted habitat types. However, the results
suggest that urbanization alters the size and
composition of the winter-bird community in
a deciduous forest region.
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J. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(2):174-177. 1998.
Observations of Forest-interior Bird Communities in Older-growth
Forests in Eastern Kentucky
Michael J. Lacki and Michael D. Baker
Department of Forestry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40546
ABSTRACT
Quantitative data on the composition of forest-interior bird communities in older-growth forests of eastern
Kentucky are needed to assess the status of potential source populations of birds for an increasingly frag-
mented-forest landscape. We surveyed forest-interior bird communities in Robinson Forest, Breathitt Coun-
ty, and Lilley Comett Woods, Letcher County, Kentucky, in May and June 1994 and 1995. Red-eyed vireo
(Vireo olivaceus), ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapillus), black-throated green warbler (Dendroica virens), and
acadian flycatcher (Empidonax virescens) in that order were the four species most frequently recorded. Two
additional species, solitary vireo (V. solitarius) and common raven (Corvus corax), were observed in Breathitt
County, where breeding populations of these species have not been reported. Although only a single brown-
headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) was noted in surveys, it does indicate that this species enters intact blocks
of forest in eastern Kentucky; a need exists for information on nest success and parasitism levels by brown-
headed cowbirds in such forests in eastern Kentucky.
INTRODUCTION
Conservation of habitat for forest-interior
birds has focused on identification and protec-
tion of intact blocks of older-growth forest
(i.e., core areas with mature timber +70 years
in age; Hagan 1995) to provide for source pop-
ulations of forest-interior birds occurring in
heavily fragmented landscapes (Donovan et al.
1995; Hagan et al. 1996; Robinson et al. 1995).
Fragmentation of forests has reduced nesting
success of forest-interior birds through habitat
loss (Hagan et al. 1996; Robbins et al. 1989;
Temple and Cary 1988), increased nest pre-
dation (Gates and Gysel 1978; Wilcove 1985;
Yahner and Scott 1988), increased parasitism
by brown-headed cowbirds (Brittingham and
Temple 1983; Hoover and Brittingham 1993;
Robinson et al. 1995), and disruption of pair-
ing success and habitat selection (Porneluzi et
al. 1993; Van Horne et al. 1995; Villard et al.
1993). The required size of forest blocks and
the landscape context necessary for fragments
of forest to support source populations of for-
est-interior birds remains largely unresolved
(Brawn and Robinson 1996; Donovan et al.
1995). Because requirements are likely to vary
among physiographic regions (Robinson et al.
1995), information on status of breeding-bird
communities and forest conditions is needed
from interior forests representing a variety of
forest types and physiographic locations.
Eastern Kentucky is a predominantly for-
ested landscape comprised of rich mesophytic
forest, giving way to mixed pine-hardwoods at
southerly latitudes and on ridges (Braun 1950;
Palmer-Ball 1996). Because of its extensive
forests, eastern Kentucky may be a conserva-
tion area for forest-interior birds inhabiting
these forest ecosystems. Logging, surface min-
ing, and clearing of land for agriculture and
settlement continue to alter forests in eastern
Kentucky, and many locations now support
second-growth forest or early successional
vegetation (Palmer-Ball 1996). Historical pat-
terns of land use in eastern Kentucky suggest
that fragmentation of forests can be expected
to continue; thus, identification and protection
of forest blocks containing older-growth forest
and associated bird communities are necessary
to ensure the long-term conservation of forest-
interior birds in this region. We present data
on forest-interior bird communities from two
older-growth forests in eastern Kentucky, with
an emphasis on species composition and the
occurrence of the brown-headed cowbird.
STUDY AREA
Robinson Forest, which covers ca. 5,000 ha
in Breathitt, Knott, and Perry counties, Ken-
tucky, is owned in trust by the University of
Kentucky. This tract is an island of second-
growth forest surrounded by both active and
reclaimed surface coal mines. Logging ceased
on the forest in 1923; stands chosen for our
surveys have been undisturbed since 1915 and
were ca. 79 years in age at the start of surveys.
174
Forest-interior Birds in Kentucky—Lacki and Baker
Lilley Cornett Woods is a 104-ha tract of vir-
gin timber situated in Letcher County, Ken-
tucky, with protected status as a Kentucky
state forest (Martin 1975). This tract is sur-
rounded by a combination of secondary forest,
small areas of cultivated land, and surface coal
mining operations. Both forests have steep
slopes and narrow ridges and valleys, have el-
evations ranging from 244 to 588 m, and sup-
port a mixed mesophytic vegetation complex
(Braun 1950). Vegetation is characterized by
American beech (Fagus grandifolia), sugar
maple (Acer saccharum), yellow-poplar (Liri-
odendron tulipifera), eastern hemlock (Tsuga
canadensis), white oak (Quercus alba), north-
em red oak (Q. rubra), cucumber tree (Mag-
nolia acuminata), basswood (Tilia spp.), and
upland hickories (Carya spp.) in the overstory.
Understories are comprised of flowering dog-
wood (Cornus florida), spicebush (Lindera
benzoin), sassafras (Sassafras albidum), haw-
thorns (Crataegus spp.), eastern hophornbeam
(Ostrya virginiana), American hornbeam
(Carpinus caroliniana), redbud (Cercis cana-
densis), serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.), and
rhododendron (Rhododendron spp.). At least
69 species of woody plants are known to occur
in Lilley Cornett Woods (Martin and Shep-
herd 1973).
METHODS
Birds were surveyed in Robinson Forest on
17 May and 14 June 1994 and on 13 May and
10 June 1995. Surveys in Lilley Cornett
Woods were conducted on 18 May and 15
June 1994 and on 12 May and 9 June 1995.
Four representative stands (i.e., no history of
fire or recent disturbance) were selected for
sampling in each forest. Each stand was sur-
veyed at one point in both May and June dur-
ing both years of the survey. A modified, fixed-
radius point-count method (Hutto et al. 1986)
was used to survey birds, primarily of singing
males, with data partitioned into <50 m and
>50 m concentric distance bands. All survey
points were >200 m apart and >150 m from
any forest edge. All birds seen or heard during
surveys were recorded. Surveys were con-
ducted between 0630 and 0930 EDST. Survey
periods were 12 minutes long. We waited 3
minutes from the time of arrival at the survey
point before collecting data to permit dis-
turbed birds to resume normal singing activity.
175
Surveys took place only when the weather was
favorable.
Data provided an estimate of the relative
abundance of species and were organized into
two community indices: abundance (number
of individual birds/point) and richness (num-
ber of species/point). Forests were compared
using community indices derived from data
for the <50-m distance bands. Comparisons
were based on Student's t-tests, with differ-
ences considered significant at p<0.05.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A total of 44 species of birds was recorded,
36 in Robinson Forest and 34 in Lilley Cor-
nett Woods (Table 1). In general, avifaunal
composition was comparable with 26 species
found at both forests. Notable differences
were the presence of a common raven (Cor-
vus corax) and a solitary vireo (Vireo solitar-
ius) in Robinson Forest. The raven was heard
flying over Deadman’s Hollow on 10 June
1995 shortly after 0630. Historically, this spe-
cies was a resident on the Cumberland Plateau
but was presumed extirpated from the region
by the 1950s (Mengel 1965). A recent obser-
vation in Leslie County, Kentucky (Palmer-
Ball 1996), and the location of a nest site in
Letcher County, Kentucky (Fowler et al.
1985), suggest that common ravens are in-
creasing in frequency in this state. Our obser-
vation, the first modern record from Breathitt
County, suggests that this species is beginning
to extend its range to the northwest. The com-
mon raven is presently listed as endangered in
Kentucky (KSNPC 1996). The solitary vireo is
believed to be a summer resident only at high-
er elevations in Kentucky and is not docu-
mented in summer from Breathitt County
(Palmer-Ball 1996); however, this species was
recently discovered at many sites across the
Cumberland Plateau and also appears to be
extending its summer range (Palmer-Ball
1996).
The community indices of birds in these
forests were similar. Abundance at Robinson
Forest (x = 14.6 (SE = 0.72)) and Lilley Cor-
nett Woods (x = 13.7 (SE = 0.94)) was not
different (t= 0.79, P = 0.44), and species rich-
ness at Robinson Forest (x = 8.81 (SE =
0.53)) and Lilley Cornett Woods (x = 9.44 (SE
= (0.61)) was not different ({ = 0.77, P =
0.44). For the combined data set, the most
176
Table 1.
dance, recorded by distance from sampling points in two
older-growth forests in eastern Kentucky, 1994 and 1995.
Species and numbers of birds, in order of abun-
Data are based on 16 surveys per site.
Lilley Cormett
Woods
Robinson
Forest
Species <50 m >50m <50m >50m
Vireo olivaceus 51 39 8
Seiurus aurocapillus 40 9
Dendroica virens 16 95 3
Empidonax virescens 28 15
Corvus brachyrhynchos 6 2
Hylocichla mustelina
Dryocopus pileatus
Parus bicolor
Parula americana
Piranga olivacea
Wilsonia citrina
Sitta carolinensis
Colaptes auratus
Melanerpes carolinus
Vireo flavifrons
Mniotilta varia
Polioptila caerulea
Dendroica cerulea
Dendroica magnolia!
Cardinalis cardinalis
Contopus virens i
Catharus ustulatus!
Helmitheros vermivorus
Coccyzus americanus
Parus carolinensis
Dendroica dominica
Setophaga ruticilla
Dendroica pinus
Zenaida macroura
Strix varia 1 ]
Picoides pubescens 2
Picoides villosus 1 ]
Cyanocitta cristata 1 ]
Oporornis formosus 1 ]
Piranga rubra 1 1
Buteo lineatus 1
Meleagris gallopavo ]
Sayornis phoebe 1
Corvus corax ]
Sialia sialis 1
Dumetella carolinensis
Vireo solitarius 1
Seiurus motacilla
Molothrus ater 1
ype
hie =
52)
co
bo bo
=
os
—_— ee
bop & WW We COS WwW
—
NON UHR WEDWHEAO EK
Ww
bo
wb
NWN UU NYBWWKE DB UO
cee
—
bo
Ww
—
' Probable migrant (Palmer-Ball 1996).
frequently recorded species were red-eyed
vireo (Vireo olivaceus), ovenbird (Seiurus au-
rocapillus), black-throated green warbler
(Dendroica virens), and acadian flycatcher
(Empidonax virescens) in that order (Table 1),
with red-eyed vireos and ovenbirds being the
most numerous in each forest. Data on rela-
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
tive abundance of red-eyed vireos and oven-
birds were consistent with historical (Mengel
1965) and recent trends (Palmer-Ball 1996)
for these two species in eastern Kentucky.
The American crow (Corvus brachyrhyn-
chos) was third and the black-throated green
warbler and tufted titmouse (Parus bicolor)
were fourth in relative abundance at Robinson
Forest; most of the crows were recorded at
>50 m from sample points. At Lilley Cornett
Woods, the black-throated green warbler and
the wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) were
third and fourth in relative abundance. Wet-
more (1940) suggested that black-throated
green warblers were locally common in Letch-
er County, Kentucky; however, surveys at Lil-
ley Cormett Woods in the 1970s (Hudson
1971, 1972) produced only four records of
black-throated green warblers. Further, sur-
veys in 1955 along Clemon’s Fork in Robinson
Forest (Barbour 1956) produced few of the
warblers. Palmer-Ball (1996) suggested that
this species has only slightly decreased in
abundance in eastern Kentucky. The abun-
dance of the black-throated green warbler in
our surveys, and in recent surveys in oak-hick-
ory forest further north in Bath County, Ken-
tucky (Baker and Lacki 1997), indicates that
this species is locally common in older-growth
forests in eastern Kentucky.
We heard one male brown-headed cowbird
in the 32 surveys: on 15 June 1994 in Lilley
Cornett Woods within 50 m of the sampling
point. This observation indicates that the
brown-headed cowbird does enter interior por-
tions of smaller forest blocks in eastern Ken-
tucky. Hahn and Hatfield (1995) documented
nest parasitism by cowbirds in a 1,300-ha forest
block in New York and suggested that regional
differences exist in habitat use and selection of
hosts by cowbirds. Given that cowbirds are
known to make use of reclaimed strip mines in
spring and summer in eastern Kentucky (Claus
et al. 1988) and that strip mining continues to
be a major source of habitat fragmentation in
this region, increased pressures on host species
in nearby forest fragments are likely. Claus et
al. (1988) postulated that many cowbirds in-
habiting reclaimed strip mines are unpaired,
non-breeding birds; however, no data exist to
support or refute this hypothesis.
The two species recorded most frequently
in our study, red-eyed vireo and ovenbird, are
Forest-interior Birds in Kentucky—Lacki and Baker
positively correlated with the size of forested
area around survey points in the middle At-
lantic states (Robbins et al. 1989). Further,
rates of nest parasitism of these two species
by cowbirds are also associated with the fre-
quency of detection of cowbirds in Missouri,
Minnesota, and Wisconsin, including both
contiguous and fragmented forests (Donovan
et al. 1995). We recommend studies to assess
the extent that the the cowbird affects nest
success of forest-interior birds in eastern Ken-
tucky, particularly stands in close proximity to
reclaimed strip mines.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This project was funded by the Department
of Forestry, University of Kentucky. We thank
personnel of Robinson Forest and Lilley Cor-
nett Woods for logistical support. B. Palmer-
Ball provided helpful comments on an earlier
draft of this paper. Our investigation (97-09-
10) is connected with a project of the Ken-
tucky Agricultural Experiment Station and is
published with approval of the director.
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Claus, D.B., W.H. Davis, and W.C. McComb. 1988. Bird
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scape scale: cowbirds prefer forests. Conservation Biol.
9:1415-1424.
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ation in cowbird parasitism of wood thrushes. Wilson
Bull. 105:228—238.
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Woods. Kentucky Warbler 47:27-28.
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sity of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky.
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of Lilley Cornett Woods, Letcher County, Kentucky.
Castanea 38:327—335.
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J. Hoover. 1993. Reproductive performance of territorial
ovenbirds occupying forest fragments and a contiguous for-
est in Pennsylvania. Conservation Biol. 7:618—622.
Robbins, C.S., D.K. Dawson, and B.A. Dowell. 1989.
Habitat area requirements of breeding forest birds of
the middle Atlantic states. Wildlife Monogr. 103:1—34.
Robinson, S.K., F.R. Thompson HI, T.M. Donovan, D.R.
Whitehead, and J. Faaborg. 1995. Regional forest frag-
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Temple, S.A. and J.R. Cary. 1988. Modeling dynamics of
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Villard, M., PR. Martin, and C.G. Drummond. 1993.
Habitat fragmentation and pairing success in the ov-
enbird (Seiurus aurocapillus). Auk 110:759-768.
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U.S. Natl. Mus. 88:529-574.
Wilcove, D.S. 1985. Nest predation in forest tracts and
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]. Ky. Acad. Sci. 59(2):178-184. 1998.
Characterization of the Woody Strata in the Xeric-site Chestnut Oak
Forest Community, Northwestern Highland Rim,
Kentucky and Tennessee
Edward W. Chester, Christine E. Harris, and Sandra Gonzalez
Department of Biology, Austin Peay State University, Clarksville, Tennessee 37044
and
Keri K. Denley
Department of Biology, Delta State University, Cleveland, Mississippi 38733
ABSTRACT
Forests dominated by xerophytic oaks, especially chestnut (mountain) oak (Quercus prinus = Q. montana),
occupy many rocky-gravelly, nutrient-poor ridges and upper slopes between the Cumberland and Tennessee
rivers in southwest-central Kentucky (Lyon and Trigg counties)and northwest-central Tennessee (Stewart
County). Those xeric-site remnants that are least disturbed may represent some of the best remaining
examples of pre-settlement forests of the region. We here characterize the woody strata of 10 such forest
stands in the three-county area of Land Between The Lakes. Stands were specifically and non-randomly
selected based on topography and xeric conditions, the presence of numerous and mature chestnut oaks in
the canopy, and lack of recent disturbance. Based on data from 45 0.04-ha plots, all strata are dominated
by Q. prinus, and mesophytic species such as sugar maple are mostly lacking in the understory, suggesting
stability in these remnants.
INTRODUCTION
The eastern deciduous biome is dominated
by temperate hardwood forest types except for
peripheral areas (Abrams 1996; Braun 1950).
In the hardwood-dominated forests, oaks
(Quercus) are most often encountered
(Abrams 1996; Monk et al. 1990). Quercus
prinus (Q. montana), chestnut or mountain
oak, the subject species in this study, ranges
over much of the biome north and west of the
Coastal Plain (Nixon and Muller 1997) and is
one of six oak species of particular significance
because of high dominance in eastern North
America (Abrams 1996). It is a major com-
ponent of two Society of American Foresters
cover types (Eyre 1980) and an important
member of several of the forest regions of
Braun (1950). The considerable significance of
Q. prinus in Kentucky and Tennessee forests
was discussed in Baskin et al. (1987) for Ken-
tucky, in Chester (1989) for Tennessee, and in
the forest region summaries for southeastern
United States in Martin et al. (1993).
In Land Between The Lakes (LBL), the
68,000-ha peninsula between the lower Cum-
berland and Tennessee rivers, many xeric ridg-
es and upper slopes are dominated by chest-
nut oak. Franklin and Fralish (1994), based on
research by Fralish et al. (1991) in southern
Illinois, suggested that such xeric-site oak
stands may best represent pre-European set-
tlement conditions in the region. We have col-
lected considerable data on the composition
and characteristics of successional and mature
chestnut oak forests in LBL. The purpose of
our paper is to present analyses of the woody
strata in 10 non-randomly selected mature
stands.
The Study Area
Land Between The Lakes is within and at
the western edge of the Western Highland
Rim Subsection, Highland Rim Section, In-
terior Low Plateaus Province (Quarterman
and Powell 1978). The landscape is heavily
dissected with narrow ridges (often <10 m
wide and locally referred to as hogbacks),
steep slopes (often >50%), and narrow ra-
vines. Elevations range from ca. 108 to 185 m.
Bedrock is predominantly cherty limestones of
the Mississippian System. Tuscaloosa white
chert gravels and McNairy Sand (Cretaceous)
occur at higher elevations and brown gravels
(Tertiary-Quatemary) and silty loess (Pleisto-
is
Chestnut Oak Forests—Chester et all.
cene) veneer some uplands. Patches of gravel
and conglomerate frequently are exposed on
slopes and ridges. Soils have developed in a
variety of parent materials, especially thin lo-
ess over gravel and chert, and are mostly in-
fertile and droughty (Harris 1988). Vegetation-
ally, LBL is within the transitional Western
Mesophytic Region of Braun (1950) and is
characterized by a mixture of flora and vege-
tation types.
METHODS
Site Selection
Based on the stated objective to character-
ize the woody strata of the most mature chest-
nut oak stands in the area, sites were non-ran-
domly selected based on (1) topography and
xeric conditions, (2) the presence of numerous
and mature chestnut oaks (235-45 cm dbh;
Franklin and Fralish 1994) and (3) few if any
signs of human disturbance. One of the se-
lected sites is in Lyon County, Kentucky; sev-
en are in Trigg County, Kentucky; and two are
in Stewart County, Tennessee.
Field Sampling
During summer 1997, each site was floris-
tically surveyed and sampled by three to six
(total of 45) permanently-marked 0.04 ha (0.1
acre) plots established along the center of
ridges or along mid-slope transects for slopes.
Plots were separated minimally by 10 m and
were placed well within the forest to avoid
edge effects. Within each plot all woody stems
(except vines) with a diameter at breast height
(dbh) =2.54 cm (1 inch) were measured to
the nearest 0.25 cm (0.1 inch) and recorded
by species. Shrubs and woody seedlings (dbh
<2.54 cm) were counted by species within a
circular plot of 0.004 ha (0.01 acre) at the cen-
ter of each 0.04-ha plot; species of Carya,
Quercus, and Vaccinium <2.54 cm were not
separated because of uncertainty in identifi-
cation (oaks were separated into the “white
oak group” and the “red/black oak group”).
Taxa were categorized into three strata based
on dbh: canopy (£10.16 cm), saplings/small
trees (2.54 to 10.15 cm), and seedlings/shrubs
(<2.54 cm). Taxonomy and nomenclature fol-
low Gleason and Cronquist (1991).
9
Data Analyses
Presence (percent of stands in which a spe-
cies occurred) was calculated, and each spe-
cies was assigned to a presence class (Oosting
1956): 1 (rare, occurring in 1-20% of the
stands); 2 (seldom present, 21-40%); 3 (often
present, 41-60%); 4 (mostly present, 61—
80%); 5 (constantly present, 81-100%). Per-
centages were compared with normal distri-
butions (Oosting 1956). Richness (Krebs 1985)
was determined and compared with published
values.
The degree of similarity between stands was
calculated with three indices of community
similarity, comparing the 45 pairwise combi-
nations for canopy species. These included the
Sorenson Index (IS,) based on presence (Bar-
bour et al. 1987; Mueller-Dombois and Ellen-
berg 1974) and the Jaccard Index as modified
by Ellenberg (IS,) for percent density and
percent basal area (Mueller-Dombois and E]-
lenberg 1974).
Species diversity was calculated by the
Shannon-Wiener Index using the equations
from Krebs (1985). This index allowed for
comparison with published index values from
various regions of the Eastern Deciduous For-
est.
Community structure was derived from av-
erage dbh, density, relative density, basal area,
relative basal area, frequency, and relative fre-
quency for species in the canopy and sapling/
small tree stratum. Summation of the relative
values gave an importance value (IV) with a
maximum of 300 (Barbour et al. 1987). Den-
sity, relative density, frequency, relative fre-
quency, and importance value (IV maximum
of 200) were used to characterize the woody
seedling stratum.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Presence and Richness
Nine species (31%), including Amelanchier
arborea, Carya glabra, Cornus florida, Junip-
erus virginiana, Oxydendrum arboreum,
Quercus prinus, Q. velutina, Sassafras albi-
dum, and Vaccinium arboreum, occurred in
presence class 5 (9 or 10 stands). Six species
(21%), including Carya tomentosa, Diospyros
virginiana, Nyssa sylvatica, Quercus alba, Q.
marilandica, and Q. stellata, were in class 4 (7
or 8 stands). Two species (7%), Prunus sero-
180
tina and Ulmus alata, were in class 3 (5 or 6
stands). Class 2 (3 or 4 stands) included 3 spe-
cies (10%) and class 1 (1 or 2 stands) nine
species (31%). Normally, class 1 (rare) will in-
clude about 56% of the species and classes 3,
4, and 5 combined about 28%. Here, only
31% of the taxa occurred in class 1, and classes
3, 4, and 5 accounted for 60%, indicating a
community with a higher than normal per-
centage of species that are regularly to con-
stantly present in representative stands and
fewer than normal percentage of species that
are not regularly encountered.
Richness per stand for all taxa ranged from
12 to 22, average 16.5, total 29. For the shrub/
seedling stratum, the range was 9 to 13 (taxa
of Carya, Quercus, and Vaccinium not differ-
entiated), average 10.5, total 20; and for the
sapling/small tree stratum, the range was 10 to
19, average 14.4, total 25. For canopy species,
richness ranged from 9 to 13, average 11.2,
total 16. This total is comparable for chestnut
oak communities outside of LBL, e.g., 15 for
stands on the Western Highland Rim south of
LBL (Wheat and Dimmick 1987) and 15 for
the dry ridge communities just east of LBL
(Chester et al. 1995). Elsewhere, Condley
(1984) found species numbers to vary from 6
to 17 on ridgetop chestnut oak communities
of the Ridge and Valley Province from Ala-
bama to Vermont.
Community Similarity Indices
Community similarity indices may range
from 0 (complete difference) to 100 (identity)
and any two plots with a value 250 represent
the same association (Barbour et al. 1987).
Our Sorenson Index (IS,), ranged from 25 to
89 with a mean of 66; 6 of the 45 comparisons
were below 50. However, stand similarity is
not only a function of species in common but
also the amount of each species present
(Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg 1974). Jac-
card’s Index as modified by Ellenberg (IS,,) for
percent density ranged from 59 to 95 with an
average of 86. For percent basal area, IS,
ranged from 75 to 98 with an average of 92.
Thus, some site variation occurs in canopy flo-
ristic composition but there is close similarity
in percent density and basal area.
Diversity Indices
The Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index (H’)
is based on two components of diversity: (1)
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
number of species and (2) equitability or even-
ness of allotment of individuals among species
(Krebs 1985). Values may range from 0 for a
community of one species to >7 for very rich
communities (Barbour et al. 1987). In eastern
North America, H’ values for Braun’s nine
regions of the Eastern Deciduous Forest
ranged from 1.84 in the Beech-Maple Region
to 3.40 in the diverse Mixed Mesophytic Re-
gion (Monk 1967). Within the Interior Low
Plateaus, values ranged from 2.49 to 3.09. Our
H’ values of 2.79 (canopy), 3.43 (saplings/
small trees), and 2.33 (seedlings/shrubs) gen-
erally are within the range for the area. The
increase in H’ from seedlings to saplings/small
trees and from seedlings to canopy are indi-
cators that these forest stands are mature or
are in late successional stages (Monk 1967).
Community Structure
A total of 2,017 stems with dbh =2.54 cm
representing 20 genera and 26 species was
measured. About half of these stems (1,007,
49.93%) were in the 2.54 to 10.15 cm dbh size
class; 1,010 stems (50.07%) had a dbh =10.16
cm. The average diameter of all stems was
15.10 cm; for stems 210.16 cm, the average
was 25.37 cm. The largest trees sampled were
individuals of Q. prinus (dbh in cm of 94.7,
81.8, 8 specimens 71 to 81, 4 specimens 61 to
70). Counts of annual rings in 10 freshly cut
chestnut oak stumps from a stand adjacent to
one of our sampling sites in Stewart County,
Tennessee, showed that trees in the dbh range
of 60 to 65 cm were over 100 years old.
The canopy included 16 species within 10
genera (Table 1). Density was 548.9 stems/ha
and basal area 34.6 m?/ha. Dominance was
clearly assumed by Q. prinus (59.2% of IV). A
second and much lower tier of contributing
species included Oxydendrum arboreum
(8.1%), Q. velutina (6.7), Carya glabra (5.1),
Q. marilandica (4.5), Q. stellata (4.2), and Q.
alba (3.6). These 7/16 species accounted for
91.4% of IV. At the generic level, Quercus (6
species) accounted for almost 80% of IV. No
species with canopy-size individuals were
found in floristic surveys that were not found
in the sampling plots.
The sapling/small tree stratum included 25
species representing 19 genera (Table 2).
Density was 547 stems/ha and basal area 1.3
m*/ha. This stratum also was dominated by Q.
Chestnut Oak Forests—Chester et all. 181
Table 1. Species composition and structure of the canopy layer (=10.16 cm dbh) in 10 xeric-site chestnut oak forests,
Northwestern Highland Rim, Kentucky and Tennessee.
Avg. Basal Rel.
No. dbh Density Rel, area basal No. Rel. LV. % of
Taxa stems (cm) (No./ha) density (m2/ha) area plots Freq. freq. (300) LV.
Quercus prinus 699 28.24 379.89 69.21 28676 82.84 45 100.00 25.42 177.48 59.159
Oxydendrum arboreum 85 14.09 46.20 8.42 0.827 9.39 24 53.33 13.56 24.36 8.122
Quercus velutina 43 24.63 23.37 4.26 1.326 3.83 21 46.67 11.86 19.95 6.651
Carya glabra dD 17.24 29.89 5.45 0.851 2.46 13 28.89 7.34 15.25 5.083
Quercus marilandica 8220 Ame i395 23s, 201682 E97. 15) 33:38" 58.47) 13:61 4.538
Quercus stellata 27 22.63 14.67 2.67 0.720 2.08 14 Sy ladUll 7.91 12.66 4,221
Quercus alba 21 28.93 11.41 2.08 0.869 Qe al 24.44 6.21 10.80 3.601
Cornus florida I] 11.91 5.98 1.09 0.067 0.19 9 20.00 5.08 6.37 22.9;
Nyssa sylvatica 12 20.37 6.52 1.19 0.246 OR ai, 15.56 3.95 5.85 1.951
Quercus coccinea ft AT29 3.80 0.69 0.103 0.30 11.11 2.82 3.82 1.272
5
Carya tomentosa 8 20.09 4.35 0.79 0.153 0.44 38 6.67 1.69 2.93 0.976
Juniperus virginiana 3 11.76 1.63 0.30 0.018 0.05 3 6.67 1.69 2.04 0.681
Sassafras albidum oy Ey 1.63 0.30 0.011 0.03 38 6.67 1.69 2.02 0.675
Fraxinus americana 2 15.24 1.09 0.20 0.021 0.06 2 4.44 1.13 1.39 0.463
Liquidambar styraciflua 1h 29:97 0.54 0.10 0.039 Ot QZ 0.56 0.78 0.259
Ostrya virginiana 1 11.68 0.54 0.10 0.006 0.025 el 2.22 0.56 0.68 0.227
Totals 1010 25.35 548.90 100.00 34.615 100.00 100.00 300.00 100.000
prinus (16.5% of IV). Other dominants were These 6/25 taxa accounted for almost 70% of
Vaccinium arboreum (14.2), Carya glabra IV. At the generic level, the six species of
(12.1), Oxydendrum arboreum (10.1), Cornus Quercus accounted for 29.9% of IV and two
florida (8.9), and Sassafras albidum (7.5). species of Carya for 14.2%. Only one taxon,
Table 2. Species composition and structure of the sapling/small tree layer (2.54-10.15 cm dbh) in 10 xeric-site chestnut
oak forests, Northwestern Highland Rim, Kentucky and Tennessee.
Avg. Basal Rel.
No. dbh Density Rel. area basal No. Rel. LV. % of
Taxa stems (em) (No./ha) density (m*/ha) area plots Freq. freq. (300) LV.
Quercus prinus 151 5.97 82.07 15.00 0.263 20.15 39 8667 1450 49.65 16.549
Vaccinium arboreum 249) 93228) 35:88: 9 24:73" OWI25 9.58 22 48.89 8.18 4248 14.161
Carya glabra BASS ile Coe l3:ol- O80 2 aSi79) Pom oD:06 929 3639 12.131
Oxydendrum arboreum 102 5.28 55.43 10.13 0.147 11.26 24 53.33 8.92 30.32 10.105
Cornus florida 71 5.99 38.59 7.05 0.122 935 28 62.22 1041 2681] 8.936
Sassafras albidum 79. 4.37 42.93 7.85 0.079 6:05 23-5111 8.55 22.45 7.483
Quercus velutina 27 5.23 14.67 2.68 0.038 2.91 18 40.00 6.69 12.28 4.095
Quercus alba Ta oS 3.80 0.70 0.121 9.27 6 13.33 2.23 12.20 4.066
Amelanchier arborea 38 4.27 20.65 3.77 0.035 2.68 12 26.67 446 10.92 3.639
Nyssa sylvatica 26 5.49 14.13 2.58 0.038 2.91 12 26.67 4.46 9.95 3.318
Quercus marilandica 17 5.59 9.24 1.69 0.026 1.99 14 31.11 5.20 8.88 2.962
Ulmus alata 36 439 19.57 3.57 0.035 268 7 15.56 2.60 8.86 2.953
Juniperus virginiana 16 4.65 8.70 1.59 0.017 130 11 24.44 4.09 6.98 2.327
Carya tomentosa 14 5.79 7.61 1.39 0.024 1.84 8 17.78 2.97 6.20 2.068
Quercus stellata 12 6.60 6.52 1.19 0.024 IY SG MIREER 2.23 5.26 1.754
Diospyros virginiana Li BOB 3.80 0.70 0.003 0235 7s 6.67 Le, 2.04 0.680
Acer saccharum 6 3.89 3.26 0.60 0.005 OSSirar2 4.44 0.74 EAD, 0.574
Quercus coccinea 3 5.66 1.63 0.30 0.004 OFS, 4.44 0.74 1.35 0.449
Cercis canadensis 4 3.30 2.17 0.40 0.002 0.15 1 QED; 0.37 0.92 0.307
Ostrya virginiana Oy AED 2. 1.63 0.30 0.003 0.23 ] 2b22, 0.37 0.90 0.300
Celtis laevigata I Soul 0.54 0.10 0.004 0.31 1 D2.) 0.37 0.78 0.259
Prunus serotina 1 9.65 0.54 0.10 0.004 0.31 ] Dn22} 0.37 0.78 0.259
Tilia heterophylla 1 9.14 0.54 0.10 0.004 0.31 1 212.9) 0.37 0.78 0.259
Liquidambar styraciflua seo 0.54 0.10 0.001 0.008 1 OR) 0.37 0.55 0.183
Robinia pseudoacacia 1 4.06 0.54 0.10 0.001 0.08 1 ).O)9) 0.37 0.55 0.183
Totals 1007 4.80 547.28 100.00 1.305 100.00 100.00 300.00 100.000
182
Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Table 3. Species composition and structure of the shrub/woody seedling layer (<2.54 em dbh) in 10 xeric-site chestnut
oak forests, Northwestern Highland Rim, Kentucky and Tennessee.
No. Density No. Rel. LV. % of
Taxa stems (No./ha) density plots Freq. freq. (200) LV.
Quercus/whites 1430 7945.08 33.65 45 100.00 16.67 50.32 25.16
Vaccinium spp. 1477 §206.21 34.76 37 82.22 13.70 48.46 24.2.3
Quercus/blks.-reds 482, 2677.99 11.34 44 97.78 16.30 27.64 13.82
Sassafras albidum 450 2500.20 10.59 29 64.44 10.74 ies 10.67
Carya spp. 146 811.18 3.44 32 71.11 11.85 15.29 7.65
Amelanchier arborea 123 683.39 2.89 25 59.06 9.26 12.15 6.08
Diospyros virginiana 24 133.34 0.56 12 26.67 4.45 5.01 2.51
Oxydendrum arboreum 45 250.02 1.06 10 22.29, 3.70 4.76 2.38
Nyssa sylvatica 27 150.01 0.64 8 17.78 2.96 3.60 1.80
Prunus serotina 8 44.45 0.19 6 13.33 229.9; 2.41 1.21
Ulmus alata 16 88.90 58) 5 11.11 1.85 DOR) 1.12
Cornus florida 7 38.89 0.16 4 8.89 1.48 1.64 0.82
Juniperus virginiana 4 29722, 0.09 4 8.89 1.48 1.57 0.79
Cercis canadensis 3 16.67 0.07 2 4.44 0.74 0.81 0.41
Acer saccharum 2, 11.11 0.05 5) 4.44 0.74 0.79 0.40
Ceanothus americanus ] 5.56 0.02 ] DOW) 0.37 0.39 0.20
Fraxinus americana 1 5.06 0.02 1 p22} 0.37 0.39 0.20
Liriodendron tulipifera I 5.56 0.02 1 a2) 0.37 0.39 0.20
Rhus copallina 1 5.56 0.02 1 D229) 0.37 0.39 0.20
Robinia pseudoacacia 1 5.56 0.02 1 SXO8) 0.37 0.39 0.20
Total 4249 23,607.46 100.00 100.00 200.00 100.05
Malus angustifolia (crabapple), was found in
floristic studies that did not appear in sam-
pling plots.
The shrubAvoody seedling stratum included
20 taxa or taxa groups (Carya, Quercus, Vac-
cinium) (Table 3); 4,249 stems were counted,
giving a density of 23,607 stems/ha. Domi-
nants included Quercus-white oak group
(25.16% of IV), Vaccinium spp. (V. arboreum
mostly with some V. pallidum, V. stamineum;
rarely Gaylussacia baccata) (24.23%), Quer-
cus-black/red oak group (13.82%), and Sassa-
fras albidum (10.67%); these taxa accounted
for 74% of IV. Taxa limited to this stratum
were Ceanothus americanus, Liriodendron tu-
lipifera, and Rhus copallina.
Successional Status and Stability
Numerous recent literature accounts sug-
gest (1) that fire was a major factor in main-
taining oak dominance in eastern United
States before European settlement and (2)
that many current oak forests in eastern North
America are being replaced by other, mostly
more mesophytic species (Abrams 1992, 1994,
1996; Fralish et al. 1991: Lorimer 1989:
McGee 1986; Olson 1996; Parker 1989). Lor-
imer (1989) summarized the principal causes
of oak regeneration failure as the sluggish
growth of oak seedlings, allowing them to be
over-topped by other species, primarily be-
cause a lack of fire allows shade-tolerant com-
petitors to thrive. In addition, the dramatic
rise in numbers of white-tailed deer (Odocoi-
leus virginianus), which selectively browse oak
seedlings, may exacerbate the oak regenera-
tion problem (Abrams 1996). Thus, most oak-
dominated forests at the time of settlement
were successional in nature or a disturbance
climax maintained by fire. An exception may
be those on xeric or nutrient-poor sites that
are an edaphic climax (Abrams 1992, 1994).
Thus, most literature supports the conclusion
of Abrams (1996) that fire exclusion this cen-
tury has facilitated the invasion of most oak
understories by later successional species,
which are over-topping seedlings, and that a
major loss of oak dominance should be antic-
ipated in the next century.
The Northwestern Highland Rim clearly is
an area where fire and other factors have been
important in current vegetation patterns and
the successional nature of most oak forests in
the absence of fire is documented (Fralish et
al. 1993; Franklin et al. 1993). Annual burning
by Native Americans was apparently practiced
throughout the area (Baskin et al. 1994; Ches-
ter et al. 1997; Franklin 1994; Olson 1996).
Chestnut Oak Forests—Chester et al.
Lightning-caused fires in some cases (Olson
1996) and large herds of herbivores (bison,
deer, elk) had some impact through trampling
and grazing (Chester et al. 1997; Franklin
1994). After settlement, woodland fires con-
tinued to be commonplace in the LBL region
for a number of reasons, including land-clear-
ing, controlling “broomsedge” (Andropogon
spp.), and hunting. In addition, wildfires fre-
quently resulted from iron manufacturing
(charcoal production and blast furnaces), se-
creted whiskey stills, “plantbeds” for tobacco
seedlings (woodland areas burned for weed
control in which tobacco seedlings were then
grown), and numerous others (Schibig and
Chester 1988; Franklin 1994; Wallace 1988,
1992). However, over the past 100 years fires
were not an annual occurrence in many wood-
lands because the farmers in the mostly agrar-
ian region recognized the importance of forest
fire prevention. Fires have been virtually ab-
sent since the early 1960s.
Since the onset of fire suppression the oak-
dominated woodlands have apparently under-
gone significant changes. Extensive studies in
LBL, summarized by Fralish et al. (1993) and
Franklin et al. (1993), pointed out that most
mesic sites currently dominated by oaks are
being replaced by mesophytic species, notably
sugar maple. Upland, xeric landscapes, as
studied here, that were more open (Olson
1996) and may have been savanna and/or bar-
ren-like and dominated by prairie grasses with
only scattered oaks “have succeeded to closed
forest with a depleted herbaceous layer”
(Franklin 1994; Franklin and Fralish 1994).
The question of stability in the xeric-site
chestnut oak stands is not clear. Wheat and
Dimmick (1997), referencing stands on the
Western Rim in Tennessee, noted that “the
importance of chestnut oak in all forest strata
suggests stability in this community”; Fralish
and Crooks (1988, 1989) expected chestnut
oak to dominate such sites indefinitely. Cer-
tainly, the importance of chestnut oak in all
strata, and the scarcity of sugar maple and oth-
er mesophytic species in the understory, as re-
vealed in this study, suggest compositional sta-
bility. Yet Abrams (1992, 1994) pointed out
that oaks are being replaced even in some
communities containing a substantial number
of oak seedlings. Also, Abrams (1996) ob-
served that while oak forests on xeric and nu-
183
trient-poor sites (as in our study) may repre-
sent an edaphic climax, “they may alternatively
be exhibiting slow rates of successional re-
placement and thus not have long-term sta-
bility in the absence of fire.” Our permanent
plots in 10 such stands will provide an excel-
lent opportunity for us (and others) to docu-
ment compositional changes in publicly-
owned, fire-controlled stands over an extend-
ed time frame.
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7,12 dimethylbenzanthracene
apoptosis in livers of rats receiv-
ing, 106
proliferation in livers of rats re-
ceiving, 106
Abstracts, 93-110
Acadian flycatcher, 174
Acalypha rhomboidea, 125
Acanthocephalus dirus, infection of
Lirceus lineatus, 108
Accipiter
cooperii, 170
striatus, 170
Acer, 96
rubrum, 97
saccharum, 175, 181, 182
Afrocrania, 96
Agelaius phoeniceus, 170
Agricultural science, 93-94
Agrostis palustris, 93
cv. Cato, 93
cv. Crenshaw, 93
cv. Penncross, 93
cv. Pennlinks, 93
Alnus serrulata, 97
American bullfrogs, effects of argi-
nine vasotocin on, 106
Ameiurus
melas, 57
natalis, 57, 70
nebulosus, 57
Amelanchier
arborea, 179, 181, 182
sp., 175
American beech, 175
American crow, 170
American goldfinch, 170
American hornbeam, 175
American kestrel, 170
American robin, 170
Amia calva, 54
Amiidae, 54
Ammonoid fauna
from the Boyle Dolomite, 103
from the Middle Devonian (Giv-
etian), 103
Amorpha
canescens, 129
tomentosa, 129
ANDERS, CONSTANCE M., 94
Andropogon, 96, 183
Aneura maxima, 97
Anopsilana crenata
comparison of feeding patterns,
108
comparison of growth patterns,
108
Anthemis cotula, 139
INDEX TO VOLUME 59
Compiled by Varley Wiedeman
Antioxidant activity, of resveratrol,
105
Antioxidant effects, of tamoxifen,
105
ANTONIOUS, GEORGE F., 93
Aphredoderidae, 58
Aphredoderus sayanus, 58
Aplodinotus grunniens, 60
Arginine vasotocin, effects on devel-
oping American bullfrogs, 106
ARNSPERGER, A., 106
Aronia melanocarpa, 97
Arundinaria gigantea, 139
Asbury College, 37
Astrophysics, radio frequency, 76—
92
Atherinidae, 58
BADIKA, NDOFUNSU M.., 101
Bahalana geracei
comparison of feeding patterns,
108
comparison of growth patterns,
108
BAKER, MICHAEL D., 174
BARNETT, GLEN C., 103
Barred owl, 170 -
BARTON, CHRISTINE K., 23
Bass
largemouth, 59
spotted, 59
white, 58
yellow, 58
Basses, temperate, 58
Basswood, 175
Bath County, 97
Bentgrass
creeping,
as turf and fairway grasses, 93
Berea College, 33
Bermudagrass, 93
BETTENHAUSEN, LORI, 99
Betula rupestris, 122
BEZOLD, TODD N., 94, 95
Bidens, 96
Bigmouth buffalo, 57
Biological sciences, undergraduate
research in, in Kentucky, 1-50
Biology Field Station, Thomas More
College, 12-14
Bird communities
in eastern Kentucky, 174-177
in older-growth forests, 174-177
Black buffalo, 51, 57
Black bullhead, 57
Black crappie, 59
Black redhorse, 57, 61
Black-throated green warbler, 174
BLACKBURN, CODY, 102
185
186 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Blackpoll warbler, 170
Blackside darter, 59, 61
Blackspotted topminnow, 58
Blackstripe topminnow, 60
BLANK, SARAH M., 109
Blue jay, 170
Bluegill, 58
Bluntnose darter, 59
Bluntnose minnow, 56
Body weight
effects of dietary energy restric-
tion, 104
effects of exercise, 104
of female rats, 104
Bombycilla cedrorum, 170
Bone mineral content
effects of dietary energy restric-
tion, 104
effects of exercise, 104
in Fischer 344 rats, 104
BORTHS, CHRISTOPHER J., 101
BORUSKE, V., 107
Botanical insecticides, 93
BOTANY & MICROBIOLOGY,
94-97
Bowfins, 54
Bradburya, 126
BRENGELMAN, RUSSELL, 76
Brook silverside, 58
Broomsedge, 183
Brown bullhead, 57-58
Brown creeper, 170
Brown-headed cowbird, 170, 174
BRUSHABER, JOHN A., 37
BRYANT, DANIEL S., 102
BRYANT, WILLIAM S., 12
Bryophyte flora, of Hog Hollow
Seeps, 97
Buffalo
bigmouth, 57
black, 51, 57
smallmouth, 57
Bullhead catfish, 57
Bullhead minnow, 56
Bullhead
black, 57
brown, 57-58
yellow, 57
BURR, BROOKS M.., 64, 110
Buteo
jamaicensis, 170
lineatus, 176
BUTTERFIELD, D. ALLAN, 99
Butterweed, 139
BYERS, MATTHEW E., 93
Callitriche, 115
terrestris, 115
Camassia scilloides, 125
Camomile, 139
Campostoma anomalum pullum, 55
Canes, 139
Canis
familiaris, detection of hybridiza-
tion with Canis latrans, 109
latrans, detection of hybridization
with Canis familiaris, 109
Carassius auratus, 55
Carex, 94
Cardinalis cardinalis, 170, 176
Cardiolepis, 137
Carduelis
pinus, 170
tristis, 170
Carex
atlantica subsp. atlantica, 97
crinita, 97
debilis, 97
lurida, 97
seorsa, 97
seorsa X C. atlantica, 97
CARGER, J., 107
Camivorous ground hawkers, 170
Carolina chickadee, 170
Carolina larkspur, 97
Carolina wren, 170
Carp
common, 55
grass, 59, 61
CARPENTER, JERRY H., 108
Carpinus caroliniana, 175
Carpiodes
carpio, 56
cyprinus, 56
Carpodacus mexicanus, 170
Carps, 55
Carpsucker, river, 56
CARRICO, BRIAN A., 51
CARTER, J., 106
CARTER
JENNIFER, 76
JULIA H., 39
Carya, 179
glabra, 179-181
spp., 175, 182
tomentosa, 179, 181
Caryophyllaceae, 97
Catalpa speciosa, 128
Catfish bullhead, 57
Catfish, channel, 58
Catharus
guttatus, 170
ustulatus, 170, 176
Catonotus, 73
Catostomidae, 56
Catostomus commersoni, 56
Ceanothus americanus, 182
Cedar waxwing, 170
Cell-cell cross-linker, 101
CELLULAR & MOLECULAR BI-
OLOGY, 97
Celtis laevigata, 181
Central stoneroller, 55
Centre College, 23
Centrarchidae, 58
Centrarchus macropterus, 58
Cercis canadensis, 175, 181, 182
Certhia americana, 170
CHANG, EDWARD C., 107
Channel catfish, 58
CHD gene, sex in house sparrows,
101
CHEMISTRY, 101
Chemosignals
role of in female odor-prefer-
ences, 109
role of in social-preferences, 109
CHESTER, EDWARD W.,, 178
Chestnut oak, 178
Chestnut oak forest community,
178-184
Chub
creek, 56
silver, 55
Chubsucker, creek, 57
Cirolanidae, 108
Cladrastis, 124, 137
fragrans, 124
kentuckea, 124
kentukea, 124
lutea, 124
CLARK, ROSS C., 44
Clintonia, 125
Clupeidae, 55
Coal spoils
plant succssion on, 96
soil changes on, 96
Coccyzus americanus, 176
COHEN, WILLIAM S., 20
Colaptes auratus, 170, 176
Colcium homeostasis, in the adoles-
cent male rat, 107
COLLIER, DIANE S., 39
Collinsia, 124, 129
alba, 124
bicolor, 124
purpurea, 124, 129-131
verna, 124, 129, 130
Columba livia, 170
COMBS, MICHAEL, 76
Common carp, 55
Common grackle, 170
Common raven, 174
Constructed wetland
onsite demonstration, 93-94
for water quality improvement,
Contopus virens, 176
Convolvulaceae, 122
COOK, R. FRANK, 100
Cooper's hawk, 170
Coreopsis, 124
Cornaceae, 96
Cornus, 96
florida, 175, 179, 181, 182
obliqua, 122
phylogenetic placement of Afri-
can, 96
volkensii, 96
Corvus
brachyrhynchos, 170, 176
Index to Volume 59
corax, 174, 176
COX, JOHN J, 109
Coyote, detection of hybridization
with the domestic dog, 109
CPSase, allosteric regulation of, 97
Crabapple, 152
Crappie
black, 59
white, 59
Crataegus spp., 175
Creek chub, 56
Creek chubsucker, 57
Creeping bentgrass
as turf and fairway grasses, 93
CROWLEY, PHILIP H., 20
CS1 course
effect of closed lab on achieve-
ment, 105
effect of closed lab on retention,
105
Ctenopharyngodon idella, 55
Cucumber tree, 175
Cuscuta
aphylla, 129
glomerata, 129
CUTTS, DAVID, 76
Cyanocitta cristata, 170, 176
Cynodon dactylon, 93
as turf and fairway grasses, 93
cv. 419, 93
cv. Quicksand, 93
cv. Vamont, 93.
Cyperaceae, 94
Cyprinella
lutrensis, 55
spiloptera, 55
whipplei, 55
Cyprinidae, 55
Cyprinodontidae, 58
Cyprinus carpio, 55
Cystaster stellatus, 103
Danthonia, 96
Dark-eyed junco, 170
Darter
blackside, 59, 61
bluntnose, 59
mud, 59, 61
river, 60
slough, 59
DAVIDSON, JEFF, 97
DAVIS, MICHAEL, 93
Delphinium carolinianum, 97
DEMOSS, D.L., 107
Dendroica
cerulea, 176
dominica, 176
magnolia, 176
pinus, 176
striata, 170
virens, 174, 176
DENLEY, KERI K., 178
Deoxynucleotidyl transferase, 99
DERTING, TERRY L., 109
187
188 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Diospyros virginiana, 179, 181, 182
Dodecatheon angustifolia, 121
angustifolium, 129
Dogwood, 96, 175
Domestic dog, detection of hybrid-
ization with the coyote, 109
Dorostoma
cepedianum, 55
petense, 55
DOTSON, P., 93
Downy woodpecker, 170
DRAKE, JENNIFER, 99
Drosophila melonogaster, 98
spermatogenesis, 98
x-linked male-sterile insertional
mutations, 98
Drum, freshwater, 60
Drycopus pileatus, 176
Dryocopus pileatus, 170
Dumetella carolinensis, 176
Duskytail darter
in Big South Fork of the Cum-
berland River, 110
status of survey, 110
Dysphoria
relations to coping, 107
relations to adjustmant, 107
relations to appraisals, 107
Eastern hemlock, 175
Eastern hophornbeam, 175
Echinacea purpurea, 129
Edwardsiella
ictaluri, 95
lux homologues of Vibrio fischeri
in, 95
EISENHOUR, DAVID J., 110
Emerald shiner, 56
Empidonax virescens, 174, 176
Enemion, 122, 124, 125
biternatum, 122, 123, 124
Environmental education, support
for mandatory, 107
Equine infectious anemia virus, Wy-
oming strain, 100
Erimyzon oblongus, Dit
Eriophorum virginicum, 97
Escherichia coli, 98
Esocidae, 58
Esox americanus vermiculatus, 58
ESTILL, JAMES C., 97
Etheostoma
asprigene, 59
chienense, 64—75
distribution of, 64-75
federally endangered, 64-75
in Bayou du Chien, 64-75
population estimates of, 64-75
chlorosomum, 59
gracile, 59
percnurum, 110
in Big South Fork of the Cum-
berland River, 110
status of survey, 110
squamiceps, 73
subgenus catonotus, 64
ETTENSOHN, FRANK R., 103
Eupatorium
rugosum, 139
urticefolium, 139
European starling, 170
EVANS, MARC, 103
Fagus grandifolia, 175
Falco sparverius, 170
FANNIN, ARLINDA J., 102
Faresol, utilization for protein iso-
prenylation, 100
Fathead minnow, 56, 61
FERNER, JOHN W,, 12
Fishes
distributional records for, 51-63
in westem Kentucky, 51-63
of Ballard and McCracken coun-
ties, 51-63
of the Coastal Plain Province, 51—
63
Flexner
Abraham, 160-166
Simon, 158—160
Flier, 58, 61
FLUKER, WILLIAM J., 99
Forest sedges, 94
Forest-interior bird communities,
174-177
Forestiera ligustrina, 97
Fossil cephalopod
hard parts from the Lower Mis-
sissippian, 102
mineral composition of, 102
Fox sparrow, 170
Fraxinus americana, 181, 182
Freckled madtom, 58
Freshwater drum, 60
Frugivorous crown foragers, 170
FULTZ, M.E., 106
Fundulus
notatus, 60-61
olivaceus, 58
Gambusia affinis, 58
Gar
longnose, 54
shortnose, 54
spotted, 54
GARLAND, B. NICHOLAS, 103
Gaylussacia baccata, 182
GEARNER, GEOFFREY W., 95
Gentiana
puberulenta, 97
saponaria, 127
shortiana, 127
GEOLOGY, 102
Geranylgeraniol, utilization for pro-
tein isoprenylation, 100
Geum vernum, 124
Gizzard shad, 55
Glucocorticoids, 98
Glyceria striata, 97
Glycosylation
effects of on cardiac sodium
channels, 106
effects of on skeletal muscle, 106
Gnathodus typicus, 102
Golden redhorse, 57, 61
Golden shiner, 55
Golden-crowned kinglet, 170
Goldfish, 55
GONZALEZ, SANDRA, 178
Grass carp, 55, 61
Grass pickerel, 55
Grass-endophyte symbioses
bio-protective alkaloid in, 99
genetics of, 99
Green sunfish, 58
GRISE, WILLIAM, 76
Hairy woodpecker, 170
HALE, KERRY L, 97
HALELY, BOYD E., 101
HALPIN, EMILY M., 101
HAMMONDS, JASON, 98
HAMPTON, C. TONY R., 94, 95
Hardgrass, 139
HARRIS, CHRISTINE E., 178
HARTIG, M., 106, 107
HAUBNER, AARON, 97
Hawthorns, 175
HAYES, ROBERT, 76
HEALTH SCIENCES, 104
HEDEEN
DAVID L., 168
STANLEY E., 168
HEEG, LORI A., 94, 97
Helichroa
crocea, 129
fuscata, 129
Heliconia
imbricata, 94, 96
latispatha, 94-96
extrafloral nectar, 94
morphological comparisons of, 95
Heliconiaceae, 94, 95
Helmitheros vermivorus, 176
HENDERSON, DREW, 76
Hermit thrush, 170
Herpestis, 130
Herrings, 55
Hickories, upland, 175
Histosols, Kentucky's missing, 103
HOEL, ERIC, 108
Hog Hollow Seeps, 97
HOGSTRAND, CHRISTER, 98
HOLTSBERG, RICK W., 99
House finch, 170
House sparrow, 101, 170
Houstonia, 122
HULLUR, VIJU, 76
Human prostate cancer cells, Ta-
moxifen inhibits, 107
HURST, B., 106
Hybognathus nuchalis, 55
Index to Volume 59
Hylocichla mustelina, 176
Hypericum wardianum, 131
Hypoxia, a stimulus for age-depen-
dent induced hatching, 109
Ictaluridae, 57
Ictalurus punctatus, 58
Ictiobus
bubalus, 57
cyprinellus, 57
niger, 51, 57
Ilex verticillata, 97
Insecticides
botanical, 93
synthetic, 93
Insectivorous bark excavator, 170
Insectivorous bark gleaners, 170
Insectivorous crown gleaners, 170
Insectivorous ground gleaner, 170
Interleukin-6, 98
Ironweed, 139
Isopod, marine cave, 108
Isopoda, 108
Isopyrum biternatum, 124, 125
ISSEL, CHARLES J., 100
JACOBS, EDWARD TODD, 95
Jeffersonia, 122
JENSEN, MARK C., 95
Junco hyemalis, 170
Juniperus virginiana, 179, 181, 182
JUST, JOHN J., 106, 109
KARATHANASIS, A. (TASOS), 103
KAUL, KARAN, 29
Kentucky State University, 29
Kentucky's missing histosols, 103
Killifishes, 58
Kinderhookian age-AA fauna, range
extensions, 104
Kinderhookian-Osage boundary
based on odonts, 102
in southeastern Ohio, 102
KINGSOLVER, ROBERT W.,, 15
KOPPAL, TANUJA, 99
KRUTH, JEFF, 76
Labidesthes sicculus, 58
LACKI, MICHAEL J., 174
Land drainage, comparison with
joint systems, 102
Largemcuth bass, 59
Lepisosteus
oculatus, 54
osseus, 54
platostomus, 54
Lepomis
cyanellus, 58, 70
gulosus, 58
humilis, 58
macrochirus, 58
megalotis, 59
microlophus, 59
miniatus, 51, 59
punctatus, 59
189
190 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Leptospira icteroides, 159
LEWIS, BRIAN, 76
LIERMAN, R. THOMAS, 102
Lindera benzoin, 97, 175
Liquidambar styraciflua, 181
Lirceus lineatus, 108
altered protein compositon of,
108
infected by Acanthocephalus di-
rus, 108
Liriodendron, 96
tulipifera, 175, 182
EUS E.'93
Livebearers, 58
Logperch, 59, 61
Longear sunfish, 59
Longnose gar, 54
Lophactis, 124, 131
uniflora, 124, 129, 131
LUBBERS, ANNE E., 23
LUKEN, JAMES O., 1
Lysimachia, 122
Lysophoshatidic acid, 99
Lythrurus
fumeus, 55
umbratilis, 55
Macrhybopsis storeiana, 55
Madtom
freckled, 58
tadpole, 58
Magnolia acuminata, 175
MAGRANE, D.T, 105, 106
MALLORY, ALLISON C., 99
MALPHRUS, BENJAMIN, 76
Malus angustifolia, 152
Marine cave isopod, 108
MASON, CHARLES E., 102-104
MATHEMATICS, 105
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers,
158-167
MEISENHEIMER, JOHN L., 101
Melanerpes carolinus, 170, 176
Meleagris gallopavo, 176
Melospiza melodia, 170
Metallothionein gene transcription,
98
Micropterus
punctulatus, 59
salmoides, 59
Middle ordovician
edrioasteroid firmground, 103
paleoecology of, 103
taphonomy of, 103
Miegia arundinaria, 139
Mimus polyglottos, 170
Minnow
bluntnose, 56
bullhead, 56
fathead, 56, 61
Mississippi silvery, 55
pugnose, 60
suckermouth, 56
Minnows, 55
Minytrema melanops, 57
Mississippi silvery minnow, 55
Mniotilta varia, 176
Molothrus ater, 170, 174, 176
Momordica, 120
balsamina, 120
minimus, 12]
Moniliformis
moniformis, 109
effects of omentectomy on, 109
Morehead radio telescope, 76-92
design of, 7-92
fabrication of, 76—92
for student research, 7-92
for undergraduate faculty re-
search, 76-92
in radio frequency astrophysics,
76-92
Morone
chrysops, 58
mississippiensis, 58
Mosquitofish, western, 58
Mountain bog soils, 103
Mountain oak, 178
Mourning dove, 170
Moxostoma
duquesnei, 57
erythrurum, 57
Mud darter, 59, 61
MURRELL, ZACK E, 94, 96, 97
MYERS, SCOTT A., 96
Myosurus
minimus, 127
shortii, 121, 127
N, N’-bis(1-naphthylmethylidene)-
alpha, omega-diaminoalkanes,
101-102
Na+, K+-ATPase
role in antennal gland osmoregu-
latory role in the crayfish, 106
role in gill osmoregulatory role in
the crayfish, 106
NACZI, ROBERT E.C., 94, 97
Neurospora crassa, 98
biochemical analysis of, 98
functional analysis of, 95
Nevrosperma, 120
cuspidata, 120
NGF-differentiated PC6 cells, 99
Nimblewill, 139
Northern cardinal, 170
Northern flicker, 170
Northern mockingbird, 170
Northern red oak, 175
Notemigonus crysoleucas, 55
Notropis
atherinoides, 56
blennius, 56
stramineus, 56
volucellus, 56
Noturus
gyrinus, 58
nocturnus, 58
Index to Volume 59 191
Nyssa sylvatica, 97, 179, 181, 182 Pickerel, grass, 58
Picoides
Odontoschisma, 97 pubescens, 170, 176
Oenothera pilosella, 114, 125 villosus, 170, 176
OETINGER, DAVID F., 15, 108, Pikes, 58
109 Pileated woodpecker, 170
Omentectomy, effects on ectopic PILLAR, KYLE R., 64
Moniliformis moniformis, 109 Pimephales
Omnivorous crown foragers, 170 notatus, 56
Omnivorous ground foragers, 170 promelas, 56
Oporonis formosus, 176 vigilax, 56
Opsopoeodus emiliae, 60 Pine siskin, 170
Orangespotted sunfish, 58, 61 Pipilo erythrophthalmus, 170
Orconectes putnami, 106 Piranga
Na+, K+-ATPase role in, 106 olivacea, 176
ORZALI, J, 106 rubra, 176
Osmunda Pirate perch, 58
cinnamomea, 97 Plagiomnium ciliare, 97
regalis, 97 Plant succession, on coal spoils, 96
Ostrya virginiana, 175, 181 Plantago
OTTE, ELIZABETH, 101 atrofusca, 131
OUSLEY, JACK R., 97 gonophylla, 131
Ovenbird, 174 Platanus, 96
Oxydendrum arboreum, 179-182 Pleuridium palustre, 97
Poeciliidae, 58
Polioptila caerulea, 176
Pallavicinia lyellii, 97 pagieee
Panicum
dactylon, 139 annularis, 59
ea: 139 nigromaculatus, 59
5 )
Parula americana, 176 Potamogeton, 115
Parus petiolaris, nS
bicolor, 170, 176 Prairie gentian, 97
Prairie voles, role of male chemosig-
: nals in female preferences, 109
Passer domesticus, 101, 170 PREECE, DARA. 76
Passerella iliaca, 170
PC6 cells, 99 ee ae
PELFREY, JOHN, 76 crepidinea, 12
opicrina, 124
Pentagramma, 95 é : : :
; E } se cae Professional Geologist Registration
infrageneric relationships in, 95 5
carolinensis, 170, 176
mode of speciation in, 95 BGs ie : ;
Ree etional biology aa o5 PRP3SP, in spliceosome maturation,
ve 101
Perca flavescens, 59 Prunus serotina, 179, 181, 182
ce PSYCHOLOGY, 107
pirate, 58 eee eee
yellow, 59 teridaceae, 9!
PUCKETT, DANIEL, 76
Pugnose minnow, 60
PULLIAM, CHAD, 76
Percichthyidae, 58
Percidae, 59
Percina
caprodes, 59
maculata, 59 Quercus, 179
shumardi, 60 alba, 175, 179-181
Peroxynitrite black-red oak group, 182
effects on cytosolic proteins, 99 coccinea, 181
effects on membrane proteins, 99 marilandica, 179-181
PFEIFFER, BRENT J., 98 MOueaNa, 178
Pharciceras prinus, 178-181
n. sp., 103 rubra, 175
tridens, 103 stellata, 179-181
Phenacobis mirabilis, 56 velutina, 179-181
PHILLEY white oak group, 182
JOHN C., 104 Quillback, 56
MELISSA L., 98 Quiscalus quiscula, 170
PHYSIOLOGY & BIOCHEMIS-
TRY, 105 Radio frequency astrophysics, 76-92
192 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
Radio telescope, Morehead, 76-92
Rafinesque’s botanical pursuits in
the Ohio Valley, 111—157
Rafinesquina “alternata,” 103
Rainbow trout, 98
RAMBO, ELINOR E., 94, 95
RAMBO, THOMAS C., 94, 95
Rana catesbeiana, 106
effects of arginine vasotocin on,
106
Rat bone density, measured by dual-
energy X-ray absorptiometer,
105
RATLIFF, BOB, 76
RAWLS, JOHN, 98
Raymond Athey Barrens State Na-
ture Preserve, vascular flora of,
97
Red shiner, 55
Red-bellied woodpecker, 170
Red-breasted nuthatch, 170
Red-eyed vireo, 174
Red-tailed hawk, 170
Red-winged blackbird, 170
Redbud, 175
Redear sunfish, 59
Redfin shiner, 55
Redhorse
black, 57, 61
golden, 57, 61
Redspotted sunfish, 51, 59
REEDER, BRIAN C., 6
REES, P., 107
Regulus
calendula, 170
satrapa, 170
Research, undergraduate, in biolog-
ical sciences in Kentucky, 1-50
Resveratrol, antioxidant activity of,
105
REZNIK, RICHARD B., 37
Rhododendron, 175
Rhus copallina, 182
Ribbon shiner, 55
RILEY, JOHN T., 96
RISK, ALLEN C., 96, 97
River carpsucker, 56
River darter, 60
River shiner, 56
ROBERTS, BRIAN, 76
Robinia pseudoacacia, 181, 181
Rock dove, 170
Rosa, 122
virginiana, 124
viscida, 124
Rosaceae, 94
ROSEN, RONALD B., 33
Rubus, 96
Ruby-crowned kinglet, 170
Rufous-sided towhee, 170
RYMOND, BRIAN, 101
RYON, MICHAEL G., 51
Samolus, 122
Sand shiner, 56
Sassafras, 175
albidum, 175, 179, 181, 182
SATIN, J., 106
Sauger, 60
SAXON, D. J, 105
Sayornis phoebe, 176
SCHARDL, C.L., 99
Sciaenidae, 60
Sedges, forest, 94
Seed-eating crown gleaner, 170
Seed-eating ground foragers, 170
Seiurus
aurocapillus, 174, 176
motacilla, 176
Semotilus atromaculatus, 56
Serviceberry, 175
Setophaga ruticilla, 176
Shad
gizzard, 55
threadfin, 55
SHARP, DAMON, 104
Sharp-shinned hawk, 170
SHERIDAN, J., 107
SHIBER, JOHN G., 107
Shigella dysenteriae, 159
Shiner
emerald, 56
golden, 55
mimic, 56
red, 55
redfin, 55
ribbon, 55
river, 56
sand, 56
spotfin, 55
steelcolor, 55
Shortia, 127
dentata, 127
Shortnose gar, 54
Sialia sialis, 176
SCIENCE EDUCATION, 107
Silene stellata, 97
taxonomic status of, 97
var. scabrella, 97
var. stellata, 97
Silphium, 124, 131
sp., 129
Silver chub, 55
Silverside, brook, 58
Silvery minnow, Mississippi, 55
Siphonodalla isosticha, 102
Sitta
canadensis, 170
carolinensis, 170, 176
Skeletal participation, in calcium
homeostasis, 107
Slough darter, 59
Smallmouth buffalo, 57
Soil changes, on coal spoils, 96
SOLBERG, D.I., 93
Solidago, 96
Solitary vireo, 174
Song sparrow, 170
SPECK, D., 106
SPENCER, MICHAEL L., 99
Spermatogenesis, analysis of, 98
Sphagnum
cuspidatum, 96
morphometric studies of, 96
lescurii, 97
magellanicum, 97
mississippiense, 96
trinitense, 96
Sphyrapicus varius, 170
Spicebush, 175
Spiraea virginiana, 94
genotypic variation in, 94
phenotypic variation in, 94
Spliceosome maturation, role of
Prp38p, 101
Spotfin shiner, 55
Spotted bass, 59
Spotted gar, 54
Spotted sucker, 57
Spotted sunfish, 59
STANLEY, RODNEY, 76
Starry campion, taxonomic status of,
97
Steelcolor shiner, 55
STEINER, SHELDON M., 99
Steironema, 122
STERGIOU, ANGELO, 109
Stizostedion
canadense, 60
vitreum, 109
hypoxia as a stimulus for age-de-
pendent hatching, 109
Stoneroller, central, 55
Strix varia, 170, 176
STRUNK, DANIEL R., 107
STUCKEY, RONALD L., 111
Sturnus vulgaris, 170
Stylypus vernus, 123
Sucker, 56
spotted, 57
white, 56
Suckermouth minnow, 56
Sugar maple, 175
Sunfish, 58
green, 08
longear, 59
orangespotted, 58, 61
redear, 59
redspotted, 51, 59
spotted, 59
Swainson’s thrush, 170
Synthetic insecticides, 93
Tadpole madtom, 58
Tamoxifen
and growth of DUI45 human
prostate cancer cells, 107
antioxidant effects of, 105
apoptosis in livers of rats receiv-
ing, 106
proliferation in livers of rats re-
ceiving, 106
Index to Volume 59 193
Telaranea nematodes, 97
Telescope, Morehead radio, 76-92
Temperate basses, 58
THAI, LONG B., 100
The thing that makes science make
sense, 2-22
Thomas More College Biology Field
Station, 12-14
THOMAS, ERIC, 76
THOMPSON, RALPH L., 33
Threadfin shad, 55
Thryothorus ludovicianus, 170
Thuidium delicatulum, 97
Tilia
heterophylla, 181
spp., 175
TIMMONS, TOM J., 47
Topminnow
blackspotted, 58
blackstripe, 60
Tornoceras n. sp., 103
Tradescantia
canaliculata, 116
ohiensis, 116, 125
rupestris, 129
virginiana, 129
Tridynia, 122
Trillium, 122
reflexum, 133
Troglodytes troglodytes, 170
Tsuga canadensis, 175
TUERK, CRAIG, 99, 109
Tufted titmouse, 170
Turdus migratorius, 170
Ulmus alata, 180-182
Undergraduate research in Ken-
tucky: Biological Sciences, 1—
50
a developmental approach, 15-19
at an independent cancer re-
search institute, 39-43
at Asbury College, 37-38
at Berea College, 33-36
at Centre College, 23-28
at Hancock Biological Station,
47-50
at Kentucky State University, 29-
32
at Murray State University, 47—50
at Thomas More College Biology
Field Station, 12-14
encouraging new biologists, 44—
46
facilitating, 2-5
University-level teaching tool, 6-11
using water quality monitoring,
6-11
Upland hickories, 175
Upland-privet, 97
Vaccinium, 179
arboreum, 179, 181, 182
pallidum, 182
194 Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science 59(2)
spp., 182
stamineum, 182
Vascular flora, of Hog Hollow
Seeps, 97
Vernonia prealta, 139
Vibrio fischeri, 95
Viburnum, 122
Vireo
flavifrons, 176
olivaceus, 174, 176
solitarius, 174, 176
Virus, equine infectious anemia, 100
Viscum, 122
WAECHTER, CHARLES J., 100
Walleye, hypoxia as a stimulus for
age-dependent hatching, 109
WANT, CHANGZHENG, 104, 105
WARD, RYAN L., 104
Warmouth, 58
WARNER, JERRY W., 2
WARSHAWSKY, D., 106
Water quality, improvement from
constructed wetlands, 93
WEAVER, JEFF, 109
Western mosquitofish, 58
WESTNEAT, DAVID F.,, 101
WESTON, PAUL A., 29
Wetland
onsite constructed, 93-94
constructed, for water quality im-
provement, 93
WHIDDEN, CHARLES, 76
White bass, 58
White crappie, 59
White oak, 175
White sucker, 56
WHITE, DAVID S., 47
White-breasted nuthatch, 170
White-throated sparrow, 170
WHITFORD, O., 106
WIDIASTUTI, ENDANG L., 106
WILED, JENNIFER L., 109
WILKINSON, HEATHER, 99
WILLIAM, BRAD, 100
WILSON, CAROL W.,, 105
Wilsonia cirtina, 176
WINSTEAD, JOE E., 96
Winter wren, 170
Winter-bird communities
and two proximate urban habitats,
168-173
in western mesophytic forest,
168-173
Wisteria, 126
WOODWARD, JASMIHN, 105
Woody strata, in the xeric-site chest-
nut oak forest community, 178—
184
WORK, DAVID M., 103
WRIGHT, G. L., 107
X-linked male-sterile insertional
mutations, 98
X-ray absorptiometer, rate bone
density measure by, 105
Xeric-site chestnut oak forest com-
munity, 178-184
Yellow bass, 58
Yellow bullhead, 57
Yellow perch, 59
Yellow-bellied sapsucker, 170
Yellow-poplar, 175
YOUNG, FRANK, 93
YOUNG, FRANK S. III, 93
Zenaida macroura, 170, 176
ZHANG, YI, 104—106
Zonotrichia albicollis, 170
ZOOLOGY & ENTOMOLOGY,
108
ZOURARAKIS, DEMETRIO P.,
103
PUBLICATION
John Uri Lloyd: The Great American Eclectic, by Michael A. Flannery, has just been published. A hard-
cover book of 234 pages, this biography covers the life of an adopted son of Kentucky who rose from
humble origins in Florence, Boone County, to become a pharmaceutical manufacturer and researcher of
international renown. In addition, Lloyd was the leading founder of the Cincinnati-based library of botany,
horticulture, and pharmacognosy that bears his name. The book, fully indexed, includes five appendices and
14 pages of illustrations. It is available from Southern Illinois University Press, P.O. Box 3697, Carbondale,
IL 62902: ISBN 0-8093-2167-X; price $34.95 plus $3.50 shipping. Phone orders: (618) 453-2281.
CONTENTS
ARTICLES
Special Paper
Rafinesque’s Botanical Pursuits in the Ohio Valley (1818-1826). Ron-
GIDL. Stuckey: iio. b. eee rea tls loakaceenensesdins secceos's stsuvebaddeusecdecssasens 111
Scientists of Kentucky
Medicine’s Remarkable Brothers: Simon and Abraham Flexner of Lou-
isville, Kentucky. Michael A. Flannery .................ccccceccceccccsccccecccees 158
Winter-bird Communities in a Western Mesophytic Forest and Two Proxi-
mate Urban Habitats. David L. Hedeen and Stanley E. Hedeen ........... 168
Observations of Forest-interior Bird Communities in Older-growth Forests
in Eastern Kentucky. Michael J. Lacki and Michael D. Baker ............... 174
Characterization of the Woody Strata in the Xeric-site Chestnut Oak Forest
Community, Northwestern Highland Rim, Kentucky and Tennessee. Ed-
ward W. Chester, Christine E. Harris, and Sandra Gonzalez ............... 178
List of. Reviewers for Volume: 9 o..3220 orbs cco ec ceediced cece ce vedeweudtSeaccosnccecsedece 167
Index to Voltime 598 22 ee es Oe MOORS A MeN eine ates ON 185
HECKMAN ll
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