Australian Biological Resources Study
Issue 24
Australian Biological Resources Study, June 2001
ISSN 0814 B8880
Marine Plants of Australia by John Huisman
ABRS is proud to announce publication of an important new book on a hitherto neglected part of Australia's biodiversity. In partnership with University of Western Australia Press, ABRS published Marine Plants of Australia by John Huisman on 14 November 2000.
The book provides an illustrated account of over 300 species of macroalgae and seagrasses from all parts of the Australian coast. While the flora of terrestrial habitats is relatively well-known and conspicuous, the equivalent forests and meadows beneath the sea are virtually unknown to all but a few scientists and enthusiastic divers. To most people, seaweed conjures images of rotting plants piled high on beaches, or slithering menacingly around bare ankles in rock pools. In truth the algae contribute the same benefits as land plants: providing carbon sinks and oxygenation, and shelter and food sources at the base of the food chain.
Until now there has been a dearth of introductory texts to this rich and varied flora, although ABRS is moving closer to publication of a new series, Algae of Australia, which will eventually meet this need in the same way that Flora of Australia is providing a uniform overview of the terrestrial vascular flora and Fungi of Australia is treating the fungal biota. In each case, the preparation of the texts involves a major cooperative effort with Australian and overseas scientists, and is a lengthy business. Marine Plants of Australia will provide an invaluable interim guide, pending publication of the more detailed series.
Author John Huisman graduated with a PhD from the University of Melbourne in 1985 and has spent the intervening years photographing and studying the marine plants of his adopted home, Western Australia. He has published numerous scientific papers and served for several years as the president of the Australasian Society for Phycology and Aquatic Botany. For several years he also served on the ABRS Editorial Committee. At present he is a research fellow at Murdoch University. Marine Plants of Australia has been his labour of love for many years, combining as it does his dual passions for phycology and underwater photography.
Marine Plants of Australia has recently been nominated for the prestigious Prescott Award of the Phycological Society of America.
Marine Plants of Australia comprises 312 pages, approx. A4 in size, with over 300 spectacular colour photographs, mostly taken in situ, plus a large number of line drawings of morphological detail. There are introductory chapters on history, morphology, collecting techniques, economic aspects and classification. The main part of the book contains descriptions of the main macroalgal and seagrass genera of the Australian coast, with illustrations, bibliographic data and distributional information on characteristic species. There is a glossary of terms, and a taxonomic index. It is available from University of Western Australia Press, Cnr Mounts Bay Road and Crawley Avenue, Nedlands WA 6907, Australia for $82.50 (incl. GST), or $75 to overseas addresses. Postage is extra - $7.70 within Australia, $29.00 by Economy Air or $19 surface overseas. (UWA Press can also be contacted by phone on +61 8 9380 3670; fax +61 8 9380 1027; e-mail: uwap@cyllene.uwa.edu.au).
Checklist of the Lichens of Australia and its Island Territories
This highly regarded tool from ABRS, first released in late-1999, is now updated (January 2001). The address is: http://www.anbg.gov.au/abrs/lichenlist/introduction.html. This checklist, which is updated annually, includes 2877 species in 378 genera. Genera are listed alphabetically, as are the accepted species under each generic heading. Synonyms are inserted under the appropriate accepted name. Doubtful and excluded names, misapplied names and those reported in error from Australia are also provided. Letters indicate the distribution of species among the States and mainland Territories of Australia, as well as Lord Howe Island, Norfolk Island and Macquarie Island.
'101 Forest Fungi of Eastern Australia' a LucID interactive key by A.M. Young, published in partnership with Knowledge Books & Software, Qld, 2001.
LOOK! SPECIAL DISCOUNT PRICE FOR 101 FOREST FUNGI OF EASTERN AUSTRALIA
The interactive key '101 Forest Fungi of Eastern Australia' has just been published by ABRS in partnership with Knowledge Books and Software, Qld. If you order before 31 July 2001 you can buy the key for the special price of $54.95 (includes GST) + $5.00 postage and packing (total = $59.95). Please include a copy of this article with your order form.
101 Forest Fungi of Eastern Australia is the first interactive identification key for macrofungi to be produced in Australia. It has been designed to be suitable for beginners to advanced students of biology. As an interactive key, the user can choose the characters used and the order in which they are used. The CD has an extensive library of images outlining the characteristics of fungi to assist the user as they progress through the key. Each species is illustrated in colour and has extensive accompanying notes. The images, information and key design were the work of Dr Tony Young, a leading fungal specialist. Buy now and save!
Key to the Genera of Australian Microlichens: Apotheticial Crusts by H.T. Lumbsch, P.M. McCarthy & W.M. Malcolm. Flora of Australia Supplementary Series No. 11. Canberra, ABRS, 2001. This is an identification guide to the 151 genera of apothecial crustose lichens known from Australia. It will also greatly facilitate the identification of microlichens in South-East Asia, Indonesia, P.N.G. and the South Pacific all of which share the majority of their genera with tropical Australia. The key is illustrated with superb 173 colour photographs. Primary diagnostic characters are supplemented with information on morphology, anatomy and chemistry. Diversity, habitats and distribution in Australia are outlined, and literature references are listed for each genus.
Floral Emblems of Australia - Poster
Just in time for the Centenary of Federation, ABRS has published, in partnership with the Australian National Botanic Gardens, a poster depicting the floral emblems of the Australian Commonwealth, States and Territories.
The poster features magnificent original artwork by Sydney artist Marion Westmacott. Copies are being sent to each Australian primary school along with an information kit which contains additional information on the names of the plants, where they grow, and their history. Information from the poster and kits will also be loaded on the ANBG and ABRS websites in the near future. It is hoped that other products using the same artwork will also be developed.
The posters are available from the ANBG Botanical Bookshop for $5 each over the counter. Please contact the bookshop for terms of postal sales (ANBG Botanical Bookshop, PO Box 351, Jamison Centre ACT 2614; E-mail: botanical.bookshop@netspeed.com.au; Phone (02) 6257 3302). The kits are only supplied to schools and other educational institutions.
Launch of Floodplain Flora
As highlighted in the October 2000 issue of Biologue, the Flora of Australia Supplementary Series No. 10: Floodplain Flora was published in partnership with the Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory. The book contains Flora of the coastal floodplains of the Northern Territory, Australia. It describes and illustrates all of the plants found in the seasonally inundated floodplains of the Top End, with keys to their identification. On 2 February 2001, Dr Sharman Stone launched the Floodplains Flora as part of the National Launches on World Wetlands Day at the Wetlands Centre, Newcastle, NSW. The book is still available from ABRS (Publications), GPO BOX 787, CANBERRA ACT 2601, FOR $66 (GST inclusive).
Below is a list of recent publications from ABRS staff members:
Bridgewater, Peter, and Cresswell, I. D. (1999). Biogeography of Mangrove And Saltmarsh Vegetation: Implications for Conservation and Management in Australia. Mangrove and Saltmarsh. 3. 117-125.
Cresswell I.D. (2000). Ecological significance of freshwater seeps along the western shore of Lescehanult Inlet. In: Semeniuk V & Withers P C (eds) The Leschenault Inlet estuary. Special Issue Journal Royal Society of Western Australia 83 (4).
Cresswell I.D., Malafant K., & Semeniuk V., (2000). Mollusc abundance and associations in Lescehanult Inlet estuary. In: Semeniuk V & Withers P C (eds) The Leschenault Inlet estuary. Special Issue Journal Royal Society of Western Australia 83 (4).
Tait, J.T.P., Cresswell, I.D., Lawson, R. and Creighton, C., (2000). How are we managing? Auditing the health of Australia's ecosystems. In: Ecosystem Health, 6 (2): 149-163.
Cresswell, I.D., (2000). The Global Taxonomy Initiative. In Association of Systematic Collections Newsletter, 28(5): 5.
Houston, K. & Thompson, H., (2000). The Australian Biodiversity Information Facility. In: Association of Systematic Collections Newsletter, 28(5): 9.
Hale, P.T., Barreto, A.S. and Ross, G.J.B. (2000). Comparative morphology and distribution of the aduncus and truncatus forms of bottlenose dolphin Tursiops in the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans. Aquatic Mammals 26(2): 101-110.
McCarthy, P. M. (2000) Porina austropacifica (Trichotheliaceae), a new species from Norfolk Island. Australasian Lichenology 46: 21-24.
McCarthy, P. M. & Kantvilas, G. (2000) Additional lichen records from Australia 43.Verrucaria fusconigrescens and V. prominula in Tasmania, with notes on the habitats and biogeographical affinities of Tasmanian Verrucariaceae. Australasian Lichenology 46: 31-35.
McCarthy, P. M. & Elix, J. A. (2000) Additional lichen records from Oceania. 4. Some pyrenolichens in Fiji. Australasian Lichenology 46: 40-42.
McCarthy, P. M. (2000) Key to the saxicolous taxa of Porina. Lichenologist 32: 1-14.
McCarthy, P. M. (2000) Lichens of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, South Pacific Ocean. I: pyrenocarpous taxa. Lichenologist 32: 15-47.
McCarthy, P. M. & Kantvilas, G. (2000) A new bryophilous Porina from Tasmania, and notes on the diversity, habitats and biogeographical affinities of Tasmanian Trichotheliaceae. Lichenologist 32: 247-256.
McCarthy, P. M., Elix, J. A. & Sérusiaux, E. (2000) Kantvilasia (Lecanorales, Ectolechiaceae), a new foliicolous lichen genus from Tasmania. Lichenologist 32:317-324.
McCarthy, P. M. & Kantvilas, G. (2000) Trichothelium meridionale (Trichotheliaceae), a new foliicolous lichen from Tasmania. Australasian Lichenology 47: 5-7.
McCarthy, P. M. (2000) Additional lichen records from Oceania. 5. Miscellaneous new records. Australasian Lichenology 47: 23-25.
McCarthy, P. M. (2000) Additional lichen records from Oceania. 6. Some corticolous pyrenolichens from Vanuatu. Australasian Lichenology 47: 26-29.
McCarthy, P. M. & Kantvilas, G. (2000) A new terricolous Pyrenocollema (lichenized Ascomycotina, Xanthopyreniaceae) from Tasmania. Herzogia 14: 39-42.