Micromorphology of DFW Metroplex Fern and Lycophyte Spores

Micromorphology of DFW Metroplex Fern and Lycophyte Spores

This article was written by Ivan Rosales, 2019 BRIT Summer Intern and student at University of Texas at Arlington. Ivan interned with Dr. Alejandra Vasco, working on fern diversity and anatomy. Who Would Have Thought to Look? The Micromorphology of DFW Metroplex Fern and Lycophyte Spores Anthony van Leeuwenhoek was a scientist from the Netherlands who discovered and described…

BRIT® Receives $1.5M Award from National Science Foundation

BRIT® Receives $1.5M Award from National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently awarded the Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT®) $1.5 million over four years to digitize its 355,000 herbarium specimen collections from Texas and Oklahoma.  The prestigious grant is part of a larger project that brings together 46 collaborating herbaria from across these two states and elsewhere to digitize the data from nearly…

Saga of the Texas Prairie

Saga of the Texas Prairie

This article was written by Edward Bickett, 2019 BRIT Summer Intern and student at University of Texas at Arlington. Edward interned with Dr. Brooke Best and Resident Research Associate Dan Caudle, working with the All Saints Episcopal School Biodiversity Assessment Project within the Prairie Research Program (PReP). “What hidden treasures lie within this sea of grass?” Part One: The Lonesome Road The Lonesome…

Summer in Paradise: Preserving Plant Genomes across Texas

Summer in Paradise: Preserving Plant Genomes across Texas

This article was written by GGI-Gardens Summer 2019 Fellow, Seth Hamby. Texas is a state that you can drive through for 7 hours and still be in Texas, believe me we did it this summer! Because of its geographic location, geology, and rainfall gradient, Texas supports tons of different ecoregions, ecotones, and microhabitats that foster…

Rows (and Rose) of Wood!

Rows (and Rose) of Wood!

This summer the BRIT Herbarium began investigating and curating a unique collection of specimens comprised mostly from the Houston Public Museum (HPM) (now known as the Houston Museum of Natural History) collection acquired in 2001. In addition to the 10,000 sheets of herbarium specimens, HPM donated its microscope slides, glass photographic slides, and a wood collection – or xylarium. …

My Research Internship: An education beyond expectations

My Research Internship: An education beyond expectations

This article was written by Erin Flinchbaugh, 2019 BRIT Summer Intern and student at University of Texas at Arlington. Erin interned with Conservation Botanist Kim Taylor, working with the NatureServe Conservation Status Ranks and Mapping Rare Plants on Roadsides projects within the Texas Plant Conservation Program. Beginning my internship at BRIT, I expected many of my passions to be shared by the people surrounding…

Botanists Amidst the Texas Flora: A GGI Summer Fellowship

Botanists Amidst the Texas Flora: A GGI Summer Fellowship

This article was written by GGI-Gardens Summer 2019 Fellow, Farahnoz Khojayori. Climbing up the Tobe Spring Trail over 7,000 feet elevation past rattlesnakes, tall evergreens, and countless thistles and shrubs I was not prepared for the view before me. With Mt. Livermore, to my left, as a tall indelible shadow providing shade against the hot…

Peter Fritsch Reporting on Field Research in the Philippines

Peter Fritsch Reporting on Field Research in the Philippines

The first expedition to the Philippines has been going splendidly, with many hundreds of collections, photographs, DNA samples, and associated field data being collected by the team. The four areas to be surveyed are Mount Marilog, Mount Limbawon, and Mount Hamiguitan, all on the island of Mindanao, and several peaks on Camiguin Island just off the…

A Natural Nature Networker

A Natural Nature Networker

The annual Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Convention was held at the Fort Worth Convention Center at the end of March. The associated trade show was open to the public, and there were more than 200 exhibitors/vendors offering giveaways and information at various booths. Our own Dan Caudle, Resident Research Associate, worked several booths on behalf of…