BARKLEY, THEODORE M. Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506. - Systematics of the North American Senecioneae: Introduction to the Colloquium.
For nearly a century, American synantherologists were comfortable with
the generic concepts of G. Bentham and O. Hoffman, however, beginning
in the 1960's, abundant new data became available and they were
interpreted in rigorous phylogenetic schemes. The results led to
re-alignments in the placement of numerous species and the realization
that many of the traditional, inclusive genera were no longer tenable.
The super-genus Senecio, for example, must be divided into
segregates to reflect current knowledge and evolutionary theory. New
knowledge and interpretations move to the consumers of botanical
information through summary compendia, particularly floristic works.
The Flora of North America project (FNA) is designed to present
current taxonomic understanding in coherent form, and so the treatment
of the Senecioneae must account for all of these revised taxonomic
concepts. The synthesis of new knowledge for the Senecioneae can
utilize the techniques of informatics, and it may serve as a model for
integrating the taxonomic information in other groups for full utility
in modern floristics.
Key words: Asterceae, floristics, informatics, Senecio, Senecioneae, synthesis