A grant has been awarded to the University of Montana under the direction of Drs. Lila Fishman and Elizabeth Crone for partial support of a web-searchable database of the Montana Flora based on the specimen collections of The University of Montana Herbarium (MONTU). MONTU is a unique resource for scientists, managers and educators in Montana and nationwide. It has the largest collection of vascular plant specimens from the Northern Rocky Mountain region and is a unique repository of historical, taxonomic, biogeographical and ecological information about Montana plants. The proposed project will enhance the utility of the UM Herbarium collection to both scientists and the wider public. The project will transfer the georeferenced label data from MONTU's 72,000 Montana vascular plant specimens into a powerful database program, integrate the specimen data with photo archives and dynamic distribution maps, and present the integrated information in a simple and flexible online format.
The development of a web-searchable database of the MONTU specimens will improve management of the collection, accelerate an ongoing effort to write an illustrated Flora of Montana monograph, add valuable missing information to regional and national databases of biotic diversity, and enhance taxonomic, ecological and evolutionary research at UM and nationwide. The databasing project also provides new opportunities for integration of the Herbarium into teaching and training at the University level. The online accessibility of specimen locality data enlarges the utility of the Herbarium from botany/plant identification to a range of ecology and conservation classes across multiple Divisions. In addition, the databasing project will provide training for students in data entry, georeferencing, collections curation and plant taxonomy, provide computer databasing and web design training for undergraduate students, and provide curatorial, plant taxonomy and mentoring experience to graduate students.
The MONTU vascular plant database will be a valuable resource for the management of federal, state tribal and private lands throughout the region. Managers of public lands, which make up the majority of Montana's area, currently rely heavily on plant taxonomy and distribution information from the UM Herbarium. The specimen database and interactive maps will greatly increase the accessibility of specimen data to these established users and will broaden access to a larger audience. By combined specimen data with maps and photos, the online Montana flora database will also be an excellent resource of K-12 education, creating the opportunity for classroom research projects using Herbarium data to generate and test hypotheses about the local flora. To ensure the greatest awareness of Herbarium database and train potential users, the project also includes two workshops in the final year. One will demonstrate uses of the MONTU and similar databases to tribal land managers from throughout the state and one will introduce the database and Herbarium-related classroom projects to local teachers.
