This project is located at the UC Davis Center for Plant Diversity. Its product is web-based information on the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae), including identification keys, images, specimen records, and publications. The spurge family in its broad sense is one of the largest families of flowering plants; identifying its species is difficult. The project will provide electronic resources for three large genera: Croton (1,250 species); Euphorbia (2,200 species); and Phyllanthus (1,270 species), as well as the genus Dalechampia (100 species). The Center for Plant Diversity has an excellent spurge collection, due to the work of the late Dr. Grady Linder Webster (1927-2005), Professor of Botany at UC Davis. At the time of his death, Dr. Webster was working on numerous projects in the spurge family. This project provides funds to organize and curate his specimens, curate older electronic specimen records, scan well-identified specimens of selected species, and provide electronic versions of spurge publications. Several well-known experts on the spurge family will assist in this project.
Electronic specimen label data secured during this project will be available through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility portal and added to the Missouri Botanical Garden TROPICOS database. The specimen data and scanned images will be available to researchers worldwide, including the countries where the specimens originated. The availability of Dr. Webster's unpublished and published identification keys and monographs will facilitate research on the spurge family. The project provides training opportunities for UC Davis undergraduates, volunteers, and international students.
