The Journal of the South Carolina Native Plant...

South Carolina Native Plant Society • Fall 2010 1

The Journal of the

Fall 2010

In this issueBoeing Site Rescues......... 1Exotic Plants ................. 5Plant Identification ......... 6Name That Plant ........... 8

(See Boeing, page 2)

South CarolinaNative Plant Society

InourSummerissuewelearnedsomeofthebasicsofconductingplantres-cues.NowIwanttoshareawonderfulrescuestorywithyou.CharlestonwasblessedtolandthesecondBoeingDreamlinermanufacturingplantlastfall–arealeconomicboostforourcommunity.Forme,theexcitementwastemperedwithdreadbecauseIknewthattheonlyinlandCharlestonCountypopulationofsouthernsugarmaple,seephotoabove(Acer barbatum),quiterareontheCoastalPlain,waslocatedontheBoeingsite,whichisneartheCharlestonair-port.Ifirstdiscoveredthispopulationmorethan10yearsago,whenIstoppedontheroadsidetophotographtheuncommonElliott’saster(Symphyotrichum elliotii).Iturnedmyheadandspottedthemaple.Istaredwithdisbelief–thisisnotaninlandspeciesontheouterCoastalPlain.Weseeitonsaltmarshshellmounds.Butthereitwas,andIwassothrilled!Itwaslatefall,andmyquickdashintothewoodsrevealedlittle.Thisisahabitatthatblossomsinthespring.

Itriedformanyyearstogainaccesstothesiteinthespring,butwasalwaysturnedaway,andIwasneverevenabletodocumentthemapleduetopost9/11security.Ineverlostmyintensecuriositytoknowwhatelsemightbeinthere,though,andwhentheBoeingannouncementwasmade,Iwasabletocontactthem,assistedbyaninterestedPostandCourierreporterwholaterwrote2fantasticarticlesontherescueproject.Tomyutterdelight,Boeinggrantedaccess.Wehadtomovequickly,though!Almostfromonedaytothenext,Iwasgivenpermissiontotakemyplanttaxonomyclasstothesite.Weroamed

Jean Everett, PhDCollege of Charleston Biology Department

Boeing Site Plant Rescues

Greetings, fellow SCNPS mem-bers.InthelastissueIgavesomehighlightsofthe2010symposiumintheLowCountry.Our 2011 Symposium is planned for Saturday, May 14, 2011 in Rock Hill at the Museum of York County.Detailsarestillbeingworkedout,butwewillhaveaone-dayevent,withseveralspeakersinthemorning,startingat10:00,followedbyfieldtripsandworkshopsessionsintheafternoon.Fieldtripswillincludetherockyshoalsspiderliliessite.TheYorkCountyregionishometosomeveryinterestingnativeplantcommunities,includingremnantpiedmontprairies.

TheMuseumhasbeenalong-termpartnerwiththePiedmontChapter.Overthelast5years,theMYCOandthePiedmontChapterhaveplannednativeplantsales,fieldtripsandvari-ousprogramsthatfocusedonnativeplantsandcommunities,suchasthepiedmontprairies.TheMYCOfeaturesaraingardenthatwasinstalledatthe2007SymposiumandaCarolinaFenceGardenthatismaintainedbySCNPSmembers.

So,pleasesavethisdateonyourcalendar,andlookforregularupdatesontheSCNPSlist-serveandwebsite,andinnewsletters.

JeffBeacham,President

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Boeing, from page 1

thehundredacresinawe–besidesthesugarmaplewefoundtherarebasswood(Tilia americana var. heterophylla)andnutmeghickory(Carya myristici-formis).Americanbeech(Fagus gran-difolia)waspres-ent,butoddlynotcommon.Thesitewascarpetedwithcrane-flyorchid(Tipularia dis-color),Christmasfern(Polystichum acrostichoides)andwildginger(Hexa-stylis arifolia).WealsofoundIndianpink(Spigelia marilandica, Fig2.),squawroot(Conopholis americana),ournativehoneysuckle(Lonicera sempervirens),stripedgentian(Gen-tiana villosa,anodd,green-floweredspecies),Jackinthepulpit(Arisaema triphyllum),witchhazel(Hamamelis virginiana),redbuckeye(Aesculus pavia)andmanyotherspeciestypicalofhigh-calciumhabitats.

ThatwasonaMonday.OnThursday,at6a.m.,IgotadelayedemailfromBoeingtosaythatIcouldtakeacrewofnomorethan10,thatdayonly,torescueasmanyofthesespecialplantsaspossible.GroundbreakingwasFriday.Iquicklyacti-vatedmynetwork,andwiththehelpofLowcountrymemberJeffJackson,oneofhishelpers,andagreatcrewfromtheCollegeofCharleston,we

workedmostofthedaytodigupplants.Itwasperfecttransplantingweather–coolandmistyallday.We

potteduphun-dredsofplants–notjusttherarespecies,butmanyotherferns,shrubsandsmalltrees.Itwasbreathtaking,butheartbreakingaswell.Justafewdayslaterthesitewascompletelyrazed.

Theconstruc-tionofthemanu-facturingplantrequiresthereloca-

tionofAviationAvenue,leavingtwosmallstripsoflandoneithersideofthenewAviationAvenueundis-turbedandinconservationzones.InFebruary,IcontactedBoeingagaintoseeifwecouldsurveythoseprotectedstrips.JeffandIwentoutoneFridayafternoon,andwereonceagaindelightedbywhatwefound.Mostofthespeciesfoundonthenowclearedplantsitewerepresent,includingthemaple,andalsovastpatchesofMayapples(Podophyllum peltatum Fig3.),mottledtrillium(Trillium maculatum)andatamascolily(Zephy-ranthes atamasco)!Wealsofoundtworarespringorchids,thespringcoralroot(Corallorhiza wisteriana)andsoutherntwayblade(Listera australis).Manyspecieswerecomingbackupinthenewlyclearedroadbed,andonceagainBoeingallowedustorescue

fromthedisturbedpartofthesite.WithawonderfulcrewofLowcoun-trymembers,werescuedhundredsmorerareplants.

Inbothrescueevents,theplantswerepottedup,andthenmanyofthemweretransplantedthatsamedaytotheirnewhomes.Somewereheldinpotsforlatertransplanting.Alltherescuersthathadsuitablehabitatwereabletotakesomeplantshome,butmostplantswenttopublicgardens.TheCollegeofCharleston,CharlestowneLanding,andaSCDNRnativespeciesgardenwereallrecipients.WestillhopetohavesomeplantstransplantedtothenativespeciesgardenatHamptonParkandtotheSCAquarium.Thesuccessofthetransplantsisamaz-ing,consideringtherocky,rootysoilandthespeedofremovals–wewereliterallyyankingorchidsoutoftheground!Itwassurreal.

Whywassuchawonderfulandrareplantcommunitylocatedatthissite?Itallcomesdowntosoilsandgeology.ThesoilsintheCoastalPlaindevelopexclusivelyfromde-positedparentmaterials.TheentireCoastalPlainwasunderseawaterformanymillionsofyears,andduringthistimesedimentsthaterodedoffhighlandstothenorthandwestweredepositedinthemarineenviron-mentstotheeast.Marineorgan-ismsandchemicalprecipitateswerealsodeposited.Theoriginsofthesediments,thedepositionalenviron-ment,andseawaterchemistrylargelycontrolledthenatureofthedeposits.Sedimentsdepositedinhigh-energycoastalenvironmentswereprimarilycoarsetexturedandlowinnutrientcontent–similartomodernbarrierislandsands.Sedimentsdepositedinlow-energyoffshoreandestuarineenvironmentswerefinertexturedandtheirnutrientcontentreflectstheoriginofthesediments–highlyvari-able(Figure4).

Sealevelfellbeforelithification(rockformation)occurred,expos-inglargelyunconsolidatedsedimentsthatdevelopedintoourmodern

Figure2.Indianpink(Spigeliamarilandica).

Figure3.Mayapple(Podophyllum peltatum)andmottledtrillium(Trillium maculatum)

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soils.Sealeveldroppedinstages;asclimatecooledinpulses,sealeveldropped,thenstabilizedforatime,thendroppedagain,leavingbehindsevenorphanedbarrierisland-estuarineterracesthatoverlaytheoldersediments.ThemodernOuterCoastalPlain(southeastofaboutOrangeburg)consistsofthisseriesofterraces–theleadingedgerepresent-ingthebarrierislandsofthetime,andtheterracetothewestrepresent-ingtheestuaryofthetime.Moreminorsealevelfluctuationsresultedinare-workingofsedimentsinriverchannels,resultinginamorecom-plexgeologyalongthesedrainages(Figure5).

Forthemostpart,theyoungerterracescompletelycontrolthemod-ernsoils,butsometimesthoseolder,underlyingsedimentspeekthrough.Thisisespeciallytruealongdrainag-

Figure4.TheseCretaceousandTertiarysedimentsarelargelyoverlainbyPleistoceneterracesthatweredepositedassealeveldropped.Insomecases,however,theunderlyingsedimentsaffectthesurfacesoils.

es,whereminorsealevelfluctuationshadamajorimpact.TheBoeingsiteisonanarrowpeninsulabetweentwomajordrainages–theAshleyandCooperRivers.

Thismeansthattheolder,un-derlyingsedimentsaremuchclosertothesurfaceintheareaneartheairportthaninotherpartsoftheLowcountry.

Theolderformationneartheairportiswellknownanddescribed–theHawthornePhosphaticSandandClayFormation,depositedduringtheMioceneEpoch,mid-TertiaryPeriod,about20-somemillionyearsago(Fig-ure4).TheformationextendsdownintoFlorida,andhasbeenminedoffandonforover100years,startinginthe1870’s.Theairportareawasmined–wecanstillseesomeofthetrenches.Infact,Charlestonwasonceamajorworld-widesupplierof

phosphatefertilizer!Moreinforma-tiononthisfascinatingpartofourhistorycanbefoundathttp://nation-alregister.sc.gov/SurveyReports/hy-phosphatesindustryLowcountry2SM.pdf.

TheHawthorneformationoverliesthelimeyCooperMarl,andthecalciumcarbonatesinthemarlinteractedwiththehighphosphatecontentoftheseawatertoformcal-ciumphosphateswhichprecipitatedintonodules.Phosphorusprecipi-tatesreadilywithavarietyofminer-alstoformwhatareessentiallyrocks.Rocks!AlmostunheardofintheLowcountry.Theseweretheminedmaterials.Apparentlytheywerescoopedrightoutofthemudinsomeoftheearlyminingefforts!Wedon’tknowentirelywhyseawaterhadsuchahighphosphatecontentatthetime,butitwaspartlybecauseofthe

Figure6.Alargenoduleofprecipitatedcalciumphosphatefromthesite

Figure7.Remnantsofhistoricphosphatemining.

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largeamountsoforganicsedimentsthatwashedinfromtheadjacentuplands.

Weatheringoftheseoldersedi-mentshasresultedinaclayey,highpHsoilthatisrichincalcium,phos-phorousandmagnesium–allimpor-tantplantnutrients.Inaddition,theclayeysoiltextureensuresthatnutrientcations(positivelychargedions)areheldinthesoil,ratherthanbeingleachedawayasiscommonin

sandiersoils.Claysaremostlynega-tivelychargedandthustendtoholdcationsinplace–includingcalciumandmagnesium(andwater,sinceit'spolar).Phosphorousisusuallyinan-ionic(negativelycharged)form,butthenodulesareslowtodissolveandthere'ssomuchphosphorusinthisformationthatit'shighlyavailable.ThistypeofsoilisrareintheLow-country,andthustheadaptedplantcommunityisalsorare.Mostofthe

Figure5.Theareaneartheairportisonthemostrecentlyexposedter-race,thePamlico,showninyellow.NotetheHawthorneformation,inlightblue,andtheadjacent(andinsomecasesunderlying)Coopermarlindarkgreen.

Figure8.Rescuingplantsbyboat.

Figure9.Thebulldozedsite

speciespresentarenotgloballyrare,buttheyarerareintheLowcountry.

Mostoftheplantcommunityonthesitewasdestroyedtoclearforthemanufacturingplant(Figure9).However,thestripsofpreservedlandoneithersideofthefutureAviationAvenueremainextremelyvaluableremnantsofthecommunityanddeserveprotectionandrestoration.Thereiscurrentlyalotoftrashonthesite,andamassiveinfestationofinvasivespeciesthatarechokingouttherarespecies.Theseincludethenativebutpestilentpoisonivy(Toxicodendron radicans)andthenon-nativeinvasivespeciesJapanesehoneysuckle(Lonicera japonica),Chineseprivet(Ligustrum sinense)andpopcorntree(Triadica sebifera).Boeingreceivedaninternalconser-vationawardforallowingtherescues,andtheyhaveexpressedagreatdealofinterestinpreservingandbutterflypearestoringtheseareas,andotherareasonthesite.TheyhavestartedworkingwithTheNatureConser-vancy,includingformerLowcountryChapterPresident,ColetteDeGa-rady,onthisprocess.I’dlovetoseeaSCNPSpartnershipdeveloptohelp.Weareallhopefulthatatleastsomeofthisincrediblyspecialplantcom-munitywillbepreserved.Regardless,andeventhoughmanyplantsweresadlydestroyed,someoftheseplantswillpersistinpublicandprivategardensthroughoutCharleston,dueinlargemeasuretothevalianteffortsofvolunteersfromtheSCNPS!

All photos courtesy of the author.

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Bahamas,exoticplants;it'swhatyouexpect,right?But,invasiveexoticsareamajorproblemforthisenticingislandcountry.HeresomeexamplesseenduringanEarthWatchExpedition,"CoastalEcologyoftheBahamas",ledbyKathleenSullivanSealeyinJanuaryandMarch,2010.Thisispartofalong-termprojectgatheringbaselinedataonselectedislandsaboutwaterquality,fishandalgaediversityinnear-shorewaters,andcoastallanduse--plants.Ifirstparticipatedin2009onLongIsland.Currently,ontheislandofExuma,theprojecthasprogressedtomitiga-tion,includingplantingnativeplantsthathelpprotecttheenvironment.

Theverdanttropicalvegetationhereispredominantlyexoticspecies.ThelacyCasuarina equesitifoliatree,suc-culentappearingScaevolasericea,andtheweedylegume,Leucaena leucocephalaareallproblems(Fig.1).Thebrightredbougainvilleasareplantedeverywhereinthetropics,butarenotvillains.Casuarinacausesmajordamage,inFloridaaswellastheBahamas.Whereitgrows,nothinggrowsunderit,anditisthefirstthingtosproutupinadisturbedarea.Thereallybadpartofthisisthattherootsdonotholdsandaswellasmanyofthedisplacednativeplantswill,sowheretheygrowalongbeaches,coastal

Invasive Plants in Exotic IslandsDiane Coiner

Figure1.Invasiveexotics;Casuarina, Scaevola, Leucaena

Figure2.BeachhousewithCasuarinaanderosion

Figure3.Invasiveexotic,Scaevola sericea

Figure4.Endangerednative,Scaevola plumieri

(See Exotic, page 12)

erosionbecomesaproblem.CasestudiesshowthatwhereCasuarinatreesareremovedandnativesreplanted,theprotectivedunesactuallyrebuild.HereyouseeabeachhouseabouttofallinassandwashesawayfromtheCa-suarinarootssurroundingthehouse(Fig.2).Theownerofthishousesays,"ThosetreeshavebeentheresinceIwasakid"!Indeedtheyhave,asthetrees,alsoknownasAus-tralianpine,rapidlyspreadfromFloridawheretheywereplantedbytherailroadtycoon,FlaglerandtheRinglingsofcircusfame.

Someotherobviousproblemplantsinclude,fastgrowingScaevola sericeafromthePacific,widelyusedbydevelopersinlandscaping(Fig.3).ThenativeScaevola plumieri(Fig4)isconsideredthreatened.Bothspecies,alsoknownasInkBerry,havethecharacteristicfanshapedflowershown.Theinvasivehasnoticeablylargerleavesandwhiteberries,whilethemorepolitenativehasblackberries.

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Asweallknow,orshould,havingtheaccuratenameforaplantopensupaworldofinformationaboutit–especiallynowintheageoftheInternet!Plantidentificationisbothanartandascience.Itisnotlimitedto‘professionals’,andsoanyonecanbecomeanexperiencedplantidentifier.Thegreatestassetisexperi-ence.Certainlyawillingnesstolearnisex-tremelyvaluable,andafanaticismisevenbetter.WhenIwasakid,IwantedtoknowthenamesofeverythingIsaw.Thatisfa-naticism!Istillknowalotofanimalnamesaswellasplantnames,butmyexperiencefordecadeshasbeenmostlywithplants.Aninterestedamateur,withexperience,canalsonameaboutasmanyplantsastheyhaveseenorbeentaught,whethertheyknowthetechnicalcharactersoftheplantornot.Thosewithsomeeducation[self-taughtornot]shouldbeabletouseanidentificationkeyinamoretechnicalandcompleteflorapublicationtobesureoftheiridenti-fication,eveniftheyhaveneverseentheplantpreviously.

Asateenagerandbefore,Istartedoutwithplantpicturebooks.Mostpeopledo.Thereisnothingwrongwiththisatall.However,themoreplantsonelearnsandsees,themoreitbecomesobviousthattherearenocompletepicturebooksforthegeneralorcultivatedflora.So,you

The challenge of plant identification!Dr. Steven R. Hill

mayormaynotbecorrectinyouridentificationusingapicturebook.Iquicklylearnedtheimportanceofleafarrangementonthestem,stipules,

compoundvs.simpleleaves,fruittypes,andsoon–fea-turesneededtoidentifymostunknownplants.Mov-ingintothisfieldofbotanyincollegewasapleasure,andgreatlyexpand-edmyhorizonsandexpertise.

Ihavelivedinseveralstates,includingSouthCarolina.Forover30years,inthe8stateswhereIhavelived,ithas

beenpartofmyjobtoidentifyplants,andIenjoylearninganewflora.Themoreplacesonetravels,themoreplantsonelearns.Butthatisnotall.Toreallylearnplantswell,onemustgrowthem,fromseedifpos-sible,tolearnthedifferentstagesoftheplantsothatonecanidentifyevenseedlingsandimmatureveg-etativeplantsandnotjustthosewithflowersonthem.Ofcourse,havingflowersmakesitmucheasier,butIlikeachallenge.Anyonewhogar-

denslearnstorecognizewhichplantsarekeepersandwhichareweeds,evenatayoungstage.SoIencour-agepeopletogrowplantstolearnthem.Ifyoudon’tknowwhatitis,letitgrowuntilitcanberecognized.Ifyouhaveaverysmallamountofland,youcanalwaysreplacetheplantswithothersasyoulearn,tomakeroom,oryoucangardenwithsome-oneelseontheirland.

Okay–soinOctoberof2007,BillStringersentmeanemailandaskedmeifIwouldbewillingtotakeoverplantidentificationsforSCNPSon-line.HeknewIhadbeencuratoroftheHerbariumatClemsonsomeyearsback,andhewasfamiliarwithmybotanicalknowledgethroughSCNPSandelsewhere.Iwashappytodoso,especiallywhentoldthatHarryDaviswouldpostresultsonthewebforme.Ithasbeenaninteresting3yearsorso.Mostpeoplehavebeenpoliteandhavesentingreatimagesformetolookat.Icanusuallyidentifyplantsfromagoodimage.SometimesImustaskthesendertosendsomemoredetails,orevengivehim/heragoodguesswithhintsonhowtobesure

Dwarf-floweredheartleafHexastylis naniflora.Photocourtesyofauthor.

BunchedArrowheadSagittaria fasciculata.PhotocourtesyofKevinSargent

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South Carolina Native Plant Society • Fall 2010 7

ofwhatitis,usuallywhenitcomesintoflower.WhenIcan,IincludeInternetlinkswithmoreinformation.OneofmyfavoriteswasanexchangebackinMarchof2008withacoupleintheAikenareathatwhosentmeseveralniceimagesofgood-sizedandinteresting-lookingtreesontheirproperty.Ijustcouldn’tIDit.Ihadseveralspeciesinmind,andsenttheimagesaroundtobotanistfriendsinSC,IL,NCandFL,andIalsoaskedthesendersformoreinformation.Onehadbeencutandhadabout120rings!Theideascameback,includingKalmia, Symplocos,andCyrilla,andIconsideredthem.Fordifferentreasons,allhadtheirprosandcons.Finally,IaskedBillyandGinaB.[whosentitin]togotoseeBobMcCartneyatWoodland-ers,thewell-knownnativeplantnurseryinAiken.BobwascertainitwasCyrilla,andsoitwas.Butthesetreeswerehuge–largerthananyCyrillaIhadseeninSC.Ire-memberedseeingthesamespecies,Cyrilla racemiflora,ontheislandofDominicaintheWestIndies,ofallplaces,thatwasabout50fttallandwithatrunkalmost3ftwide,andsoIhadnoproblemdecidingacceptingthefactthatthesegood-sizedtreesweretheTi-Ti,asitiscalled.FromthatIalsoconcluded

thatthisnicewetlandhabitatwasspecialandprobablyhadnotbeendisturbedforquiteawhile.ThewholeIDprocesswasveryinteresting.

Andthenthereistheschoolteacher,LauraL.,nearSpartanburgwhowasmakinganaturetrailforherschool.Theim-agescamein,andtwoofthemsurprisedme–bothfederallylistedspecies–thebunchedarrowhead[federallyendangered],andthedwarf-flowerheartleaf[federallythreat-

ened].Thesiteturnedouttobeextraspecialwiththeseandotherrareplants,anditwasexcitingtobuildupaspecieslistwithLaura,andtohaveanewlocationfortheserareplants.

PerhapsthemostmemorableimagescameinAprilofthisyearfromBobG.whohadbeenhuntingneartheWatereeRiverSwampandfoundaplanthehadnotseenbefore.ItwasatrilliumthatIhadneverseen.Ihavegrowntrilliumsforyears,

andhaveawonderfulbookonthembyFred&RobertaChase,andbutthisplantwastotallynewtome.Ithoughtitmightbeanewspeciesandstartedtheballrollingbycontactingfellowsoutheasternbotanistswiththeimages.IsoonfoundoutthatIwasnotuptodate–thatthistrillium,Trillium oostingii,hadbeendescribedasanewspeciesonly2yearsprevi-ouslybyDr.ChickGaddy.Iwastoolate!Butitshowsthatonemustkeepupwiththeliteraturebecausenewspeciesarestilloutthere,andperhapsotherswillbefoundinSC!

BeingontheInternet,Ialsoreceiveimagesfromsuchfar-flungplacesasAustralia,Pakistan,andelsewhere.Icansometimesiden-tifythese,becausetheyaremostlyhorticulturalplants,butthenetworkofbotanists,worldwide,issometimestappedforitsexpertisewhenIamstumped.

Allinall,thishasbeenfun,andIhopethatSCNPSmembersandotherswillcontinuetosendinniceimagesofplantsforidentificationandthattheywillalsoconsultthegreatInternetsiteputtogetherasajointeffortbytheSsocietywheremanyofyourquestionswillbeanswered!

Dr. Steven R. Hill is a botanist and plant systematist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign-Urbana, IL

Trillium oostingii.PhotocourtesyofBobGriffeth

Swamptiti(Cyrilla racemosa)flowers.PhotocourtesyofTedBodner,SouthernWeedScienceSociety,Bugwood.org

The Journal of theSouth Carolina

Native Plant SocietyPublishedquarterlyEditor:BillStringer

Design Editor:CharleneMayfieldUpstate Chapter-Greenville

Lowcountry Chapter -Charleston

Midlands Chapter-ColumbiaPiedmont Chapter-RockHill

South Coast Chapter-Beaufort

www.scnps.org

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8 South Carolina Native Plant Society • Fall 2010

Finally,hereisanativeRedMangrove(Fig5),whosestiltrootsformhabitatforyoungfishandcrabswhilestabi-lizingtheshoreline.But,intheupperleftofthepicture,anothervillianiscrowdingin,cork-tree,Thespesia popul-nea,probablyfromthePacific.

Thehopefulpartofthisstoryofinvasiveexoticplantsisthatthenativesaregettingsomehelp.RedmangrovesandothercoastalnativespeciesarebeingplantedbyanEarthWatchteamfromAlaska(Fig.6)tostabilizethistidalareainGeorgeTown,Exuma.Thismitigationworkwillcontinuealongwithdatacollectionwhenfurtherteamsarescheduledin.

Anothergreatpartofthejobafteramuckymorn-ingplanting:fishandalgaesurveysinthewonderfulblueBahamianwaters(Fig.7).

Figure 6. Building revetment and planting native red mangrove.

Exotic, from page 3

Can’ttellusapart?Lookalittlecloser.We’rebothlatesummerbloominglegu-minousplantsalongroadsidesandforestedges.I’mtheoneontheleft,andIamaveryvineyplant.Mylook-alikeontherightisnotasviney.Ourflowersarelargeandsimilarinsize.Webothhavebean-likepods,butmine(ontheleftagain)arelonger.Wehavedifferentgenusandspeciesnames,aswellasdifferentcom-monnames,butsomefolksassignthesamecommonnametousboth.Somefolksde-scribeourflowersaspapillionaceous,whichmightgiveyouahintastothecommonnameweshare.Sorrytobesomysterious,butagirlcan’ttellallhersecrets!

Figure 7. Another great part of the job after a mucky morning planting: fish and algae surveys in the wonderful blue Bahamian waters.Figure 5. Red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle)crowded by cork-

tree, Thespesia populnea

Name Those Native Plants

The common name answer is embedded in the text somewhere in this newsletter.

PhotocourtesyofBillStringer PhotocourtesyofDanTenagliaofwww.missouriplants.com

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