Collecting

[Stephan Helfer]

Dear all
Any taxonomy is only as good as its voucher specimens, and I suspect
any floristic account equally if not more so. And what are
environmental impact assessments, other than floristic (sorry
zoologists: or faunistic) accounts of a particular area? Having said
this, I have made taxonomic statements without vouchering (in my
younger days) because I "believed" to know anyway, so why vouchering.
The problem comes when you or anybody else wants to check out.
Vouchers make taxonomy a reproducible science.

My 2p.
Best wishes

Stephan Helfer
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh

http://www.rbge.org.uk
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"With the destruction of each component of wild life one
more piece of evidence for human ignorance is removed."