NSF Org:	DBI Division of Biological Infrastructure
Recipient:	UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING
Initial Amendment Date:	August 3, 2017
Latest Amendment Date:	July 31, 2018
Award Number:	1702345
Award Instrument:	Continuing Grant
Program Manager:	Reed Beaman rsbeaman@nsf.gov  (703)292-7163 DBI  Division of Biological Infrastructure BIO  Directorate for Biological Sciences
Start Date:	September 1, 2017
End Date:	August 31, 2021 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount:	$301,352.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date:	$301,352.00
Funds Obligated to Date:	FY 2017 = $246,017.00 FY 2018 = $55,335.00
History of Investigator:	Gregory Brown (Principal Investigator) gkbrown@uwyo.edu Burrell Nelson (Co-Principal Investigator) Lawrence Schmidt (Co-Principal Investigator)
Recipient Sponsored Research Office:	University of Wyoming 1000 E UNIVERSITY AVE LARAMIE WY  US  82071-2000 (307)766-5320
Sponsor Congressional District:	00
Primary Place of Performance:	University of Wyoming WY  US  82071-2000
Primary Place of Performance Congressional District:	00
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI):	FDR5YF2K32X5
Parent UEI:	FDR5YF2K32X5
NSF Program(s):	Digitization
Primary Program Source:	01001718DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT 01001819DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s):	6895
Program Element Code(s):	689500
Award Agency Code:	4900
Fund Agency Code:	4900
Assistance Listing Number(s):	47.074

ABSTRACT

The rugged and expansive terrain of the Southern Rocky Mountains (SoRo) yields the most crucial resource for human existence in western North America: Water. From upper reaches of the high peaks of Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, and surrounding states, the headwaters of numerous major rivers of the West originate and give rise to the highest outflow and freshwater runoff west of the Mississippi River: The Platte, Arkansas, Rio Grande, Colorado, and Green Rivers and portions of the Snake and Missouri Rivers. The cleanliness and reliability of these water resources are in large part attributable to the plant life that forms the basis for all SoRo ecosystems. Plant species from the high peaks and adjacent high plains of the SoRo derive from different geographic origins, evolutionary histories, and ecological affinities. They grow in varied habitats and represent one of the most narrowly adapted floras in the world. This unique and fragile flora is widely documented in natural history collections (i.e., herbaria), but specimens themselves and the scientific data that accompany them remain poorly 'visible' owing to a lack of data in digitized format. The SoRo Herbarium Consortium brings together 38 collaborating institutions (universities, botanical gardens, national parks, Native American Nations) to digitize more than 1.7 million botanical specimens from the study area. The overarching goal of this project is to make these data available to a broad community of users (scientists, educators, government officials, land managers, the general public) via openly accessible, free data portals.

The Southern Rocky Mountains (SoRo) support a diverse and highly adapted flora of species with varied ecologies, ranging from alpine to sagebrush plains to shortgrass prairies. The plant biota of the SoRo shares important evolutionary and geological histories with the adjacent plains and prairies, and together these ecosystems are among the most endangered landscapes in North America. Human demands on these systems are escalating, and risk factors such as fire, development, and environmental change are predicted to grow. Thus, building digital resources to document plant niches in the SoRo is met with a sense of urgency. The proposed work will address a major gap in accessible information among North American natural history collections by digitizing more than 1.7 million botanical collections from the SoRo. Specifically, 38 collaborative institutions (universities, botanical gardens, national parks, Native American Nations) will collaborate to generate these new resources and make them available via data portals, including iDigBio (www.idigbio.org). Additionally, new tools will be developed within the open source Symbiota platform that will allow users to quickly search and compile vetted, herbarium data records that can then be used for analysis in external software applications such as niche modeling packages, or to update source data repositories for subsequent in-house curation.

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

This TCN-digitization grant to the Rocky Mountain Herbarium at the University of Wyoming greatly increased the vascualr plant data now availbale to the research, education, and public communities via our website (http://rmh.uwyo.edu/data/search.php) from the southern Rocky Mountain region.  This will greatly benefit users interested in the mountains and high plains of the southern Rocky Mountain region in documenting: 1. plant distributions, past & present; 2. habitat and habitat change over time; and 3. the spread and impacts of invasive species.

Direct outcomes from the grant work resulted in 366,812 herbarium specimens being digitally imaged, and 297,125 of these specimens also had some of their individual database information updated as well.  Additionally, 43,533 new specimen database entries were completed, and 36,552 also required georeferencing.  Prior to this grant, the Rocky mountain Herbarium had already georeferenced several hundred thousand specimens, thus imaging and databasing of these was our primary focus.  The grant-funded workforce over the course of the grant involved 21 University of Wyoming undergraduate students who had academic majors ns interests in plant diversity, ecology, and evolution, and their work experience helped prepare them for the next phase of their professional aspirations.

The grant was active and also helped the Rocky Mountain Herbarium achieve the milestone of mounting, imaging databasing, and georeferencing our one millionth specimen in January 2019.  This event, coupled with the significance of the TNC grant helped bring significant new recognition to the stature and significance of the Herbarium to the University and the State, and helped us secure two new faculty positions, a new Director, and our first Digital Curator.  This recognition has also helped facilitate physical space expansion for the Herbarium within our current building.

Last Modified: 01/13/2022
Modified by: Gregory K Brown

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