Taxon pages supported by EPA Office of Water

Development of species pages included collaboration with contributors Ian Bishop, Elizabeth Alexson, Shelly Wu and Lynn Brant. In addition to the microscope laboratory at SCWRS, research facilities at St. Cloud State University, the Institute for Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) and the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory were used for literature and research species morphology. Herbarium collections were accessed from SCWRS, INSTAAR and the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia (ANS) from projects funded by the State of Minnesota, National Park Service, EPA and the U.S. Geological Survey.

In the process of completing these pages, three papers were published to correct nomenclatural and taxonomic issues that came to light during species page preparation—issues that had to be corrected before new species pages could go public. The journal, Notulae Algarum, an electronic journal created by Algaebase founder, Michael Guiry, has a specific focus to rectify nomenclatural issues among algae, is designed for rapid publication, and was a perfect outlet for these works. One of these publications, Rarick et al. (2017), resulted from collaboration of an undergraduate student, teaching assistant, and faculty from the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory Systematics and Ecology of diatoms course.

In addition, we used a unique opportunity through the Science Museum of Minnesota (SMM) to connect citizen science to research. SMM opens its research areas to the general public and museum members several times a year and the SCWRS often lets kids have the experience of viewing the micro-world through research grade microscopes. At one of these events, called Members Behind the Scenes, Mark Edlund and visitors located and measured specimens of Lindavia bodanica and Hannaea superiorensis. As a result, public vistors had the opportunity to contribute images and measurements to construct new species pages.

Related Citations:

Daniels, W.C. and Edlund, M.B. 2016.The valid transfer of Cyclotella bodanica var. intermedia to Lindavia (Bacillariophyceae). Notulae Algarum 14, 1-3.

Edlund, M.B., Burge, D.R.L. and Spaulding, S.A. 2017. The transfer of Navicula cuspidata var. obtusa to Craticula (Bacillariophyceae). Notulae Algarum 19, 1-2.

Rarick, J., Wu. S., Lee, S.S. and Edlund, M.B. 2017. The valid transfer of Stauroneis goeppertiana to Luticola (Bacillariophyceae). Notulae Algarum 29, 1-3.