Using the Oklahoma Vascular Plants Database for Research
Problems Associated with Using the OVPD
When using the OVPD for research purposes, you should be aware
of the biases associated with this database. It is important
to remember that the OVPD is soley based on herbarium records.
If a botanist has not collected a plant from a particular location
and then deposited a voucher specimen at one of the state herbaria,
it will not appear on the OVPD. Studies utilizing herbarium
records have noted difficulties due to: unequal sampling effort
over time; poor location information; and incorrect identification.
In Oklahoma, we see collection efforts focused on special
places of interest, such as the Arbuckle Mountains or Black
Mesa. We also see the collection of certain species being
emphasized. A botanist researching a particular genus can
disproportionably increase the records of that taxa. We also
see taxa being neglected. Certain cacti found in abundance
in Oklahoma have fewer than two dozen records due to the typically
unpleasant experience in collecting them.“Weedy”
species, while very obvious, are often neglected in botanical
collections.
Consequently, the number of species for some counties are
low. In many cases we actually know of/or suspect the presence
of a species in a county, but it is not listed until a specimen
has been collected. Once a specimen has been deposited in
an herbarium, it will be added to the database.
Citing the OVPD in Your Research
If you use the OVPD in your research we ask you to
use the following citation format in your bibliography:
Hoagland B.W., Buthod A.K., Butler I.H., Crawford
P.H.C., Udasi A.H., Elisens W.J., and Tyrl R.J.
2004. Oklahoma Vascular Plants Database
(http://geo.ou.edu/botanical), Oklahoma Biological
Survey, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA.
Would You Like More Information?
Currently, we only provide basic searches of the OVDP
via the intenet. In the future, we will have a fully searchable
database available for researchers. If you find that you would
like more specific information about certain taxa or locations,
please contact the OVPD databasse administrator, Priscilla Crawford.
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