[Taxacom] New Interactive Key to Wetland Monocots

[Stinger]

There is a new Interactive Key to Wetland Monocots of the US (ca.2400 taxa) available from PLANTS  (plants.usda.gov). See (http://npdc.usda.gov/technical/plantid_wetland_mono.html) for details.   It is free for use and download and requires no installation or registration etc.

The data set was developed cooperatively by the Missouri Botanical Garden and the USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center and was compiled from numerous and varied sources by Dr. David Bogler of the Missouri Botanical Garden (ca. 1.7 million data points). The automated plant key runs in a new version of SLIKS (www.stingersplace.com/SLIKS) which is free and requires no installation. It lets you identify the monocots known to occur in U.S. wetlands.  The species list in this key is derived from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetland Inventory National List of Vascular Plant Species That Occur in Wetlands: 1998 National List. 

This draft plant character data set is for testing purposes only. For further information, click on the "Instructions, Information, Disclaimers and Policies" link after the application is loaded. 

The version of SLIKS (2.0) used for this particular application was specifically designed for Microsoft Internet Explorer. If you need to use another browser, there are other options available at the SLIKS website  (www.stingersplace.com/SLIKS). 

Agreements for completion of datasets for all US grasses, all US legumes, all US gymnosperms and all US Ericaceae have been made through various CESUs in the CESU (www.cesu.org) network and the data sets should be delivered over the next near. First drafts of the keys for the grasses of Louisiana and Missouri are available now for testing and evaluation by qualified botanists. Please contact me (gerald.guala at la.usda.gov) for copies.    

Cheers,
Stinger Guala, Ph.D.