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How to Use this Page
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Purpose
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This page allows a user to search for species by
scientific name. A search looks for names in the plant name library first,
and then resolves these names with the Calflora species table.
The results are similar to a
Species Query. The page can show synonyms and current names
according to various nomenclature authorities, and explains
which authorities recognize each name.
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Fields
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taxon |
Enter a complete name or a partially specified name using %
as a wildcard character. You may enter % more than once.
The field is case-sensitive, as genus names are capitalized.
Names of Hybrid Species:
Binomial names of hybrid species are properly rendered with an
× (ascii 215, the multiplication sign)
before the specific epithet.
For instance,
Because
× (ascii 215)
is difficult to type, Calflora stores
these names with an uppcase X instead.
To search for such a name,
type an uppercase X directly before the specific epithet:
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display |
To see only current names, uncheck the
Synonyms box.
To see names that do not resolve to a Calflora species record, uncheck the
Names with a Calflora species record box.
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reference |
Calflora follows four nomenclature authorities
for wild plants in California:
- The 1993 Jepson Manual
(JM93)
and subsequent work
at the Index of California Plant Names
(ICPN).
- USDA PLANTS.
- The CNPS Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants.
This is a list of about 2100 rare plants. It does not include
synonyms, but recognizes as current certain names which
the other authorities do not.
- XWALK,
Fred Hrusa's California Plant Synonymy as
contributed to Calflora and adapted for database use by Calflora staff.
This resource is the best
way to resolve pre-1993 names with names treated in
JM93.
Altogether there are more than 31,000 records of
current and past scientific names from the four authorities.
Contradictory Interpretations.
ICPN and PLANTS endeavor to cover the entire spectrum of wild plants,
including both synonyms and current names.
While these two do agree on most names,
there are cases in which they present contradictory interpretations.
For instance, in ICPN, Berberis aquifolium is a current name
and Mahonia aquifolium is a synonym of it. In PLANTS,
Mahonia aquifolium is a current name and
Berberis aquifolium is a synonym of it.
Choosing a Reference Authority:
Choose a reference authority from the drop down list.
If you choose a single authority, the search will only
consider records from that source.
Choosing a Package:
Several reference packages are also available.
If you choose a package, the search will consider records
from multiple sources. But, as mentioned above, the
sources may contradict one another as to what name
is current and what is a synonym.
Choose
ICPN, XWALK, and CNPS,
and if the relevant records are contradictory,
the search will
attempt to eliminate a contradiction by giving
priority first to records from CNPS, then to records from ICPN.
(This is the default value for many Calflora queries.)
Choose
PLANTS, XWALK, and CNPS, and
the search will
attempt to eliminate any contradiction by giving
priority first to records from CNPS, then to records from PLANTS.
Choose
ALL,
and the search will return records from all four sources
without attempting to resolve any contradiction.
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Results
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In the results, this page will show each name that
matches the specified name pattern.
For each name, it will show which authorities consider the
name to be current, and which authorities consider it
to be a synonym of some other name.
When a value such as
PLANTS
+ ICPN
appears in the REFERENCE column, it means that
PLANTS and ICPN agree on this particular interpretation.
JM93
means that the name was treated in the 1993 Jepson Manual,
and is a link to the online Jepson Manual page.
If a Calflora species record is available,
then clicking on the Scientific Name
will go a Calflora species report.
Otherwise,
clicking on the Scientific Name
will go to a name status page about that name.
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About the Expanded Plant Name Library
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Search Mechanism:
It is Calflora's policy to assimilate
new plant observation
data without changing the original scentific name.
When a user enters a scientific name in a plant observation
query, the search
uses a table
to translate the entered name into all relevant synonyms
and spelling variants,
and then searches observation data for each of those names.
In effect, the translation table
acts as an interpretation of the observation data.
A recent feature of the Plant Name Library is
to allow a user to choose how this interpretation is made.
Effect on apparent distribution:
When performing an observation query, a user
can 1. enter a scientific name and 2. choose an interpretation
(single reference or reference package)
of the observation data. The choice of reference has an effect
on the apparent distribution of various species.
The widest interpretation of distribution will be the
one with the most synonyms, and the narrowest interpretation
will be the one with the least.
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Other Queries
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To find species by their characteristics, use
the Species Query or
the Advanced Species Query.
To query the observation data
from the point of view of a particular reference,
use Search for Plant Observations
or the Advanced Observation Query.
To see just the status of scientific names
according to various nomenclature authorities, use the
Name Status query.
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