|
Botany CollectionActing Curator: Dr. Karl Holte
Herbaria are collections of preserved plants with associated documentation. The plants are dried pressed flat and glued to sheets of heavyweight, archival quality paper. When prepared properly and protected from insect damage or physical abuse, herbarium specimens can last for hundred of years. These documented plant specimens are the physical record of botanical diversity, biogeographic distribution, structural and chemical variation, and ecology. In many cases, herbarium specimens are irreplaceable. In 1931, botanist and professor, Ray J. Davis established the herbarium at Idaho State University. For 34 years, Dr. Davis explored Idaho collecting plants and documenting the flora. The Flora of Idaho, published in 1952, is the result of Dr. Davis' dedication. He is also a co-author of A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers (1963). In the mid- 1970s, the herbarium was transferred to the Idaho Museum of Natural History and named in honor of its founder. Today, the Ray J. Davis Herbarium contains about 60,000 mounted specimens and several thousand unprocessed specimens. Approximately 65-75% of the specimens are from Idaho and includes over 3,000 lichens collected by Dr. Lorentz Pearson. The Herbarium serves as a repository for collections from national parklands, such as City of Rocks National Monument and for voucher specimens for ecological and biological research conducted by Idaho State University faculty. Several unique collections held by the herbarium include:
As a repository for botanical diversity, the Herbarium serves a vital role for research and education. Through an active exchange program with other herbaria, the Ray J. Davis Herbarium has developed plant collections from throughout North and South America, Asia and Europe. Faculty and students of Idaho State University utilize these collections for comparative studies and research. The Herbarium and its staff serve as a primary source of information for Idaho citizens, farmers, ranchers and federal, state and local agencies on such issues as identifying invasive plant species, weeds or toxic plants. The herbarium is stored in museum-quality cabinets and organized phylogenetically, which means that specimens are grouped by family according to evolutionary relationships. To borrow specimens for research or to visit the collection, researchers and students and others can make arrangements by contacting one of the Curators or the Museum Registrar.
|