Feedback request: Polygala amarella (11945)

[Mike d'Apice]

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Specimen #281653

Taxon:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Other name:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amara L.
Filed in taxon folder:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Collected by:	John Cryer
Collection date:	20/6/1903
Locality:	Great Britain, VC64 Mid-west Yorkshire, Grassington, SE06
communicated:	Prof George Stephen West
Institution:	University of Birmingham (BIRM)
Image:
fruits/flowers:	mature flowers
notes:	"P. amara, L. var. according to Kew - not P. amarella. P. amarella. Grantz. according to British Museum authorities.

Inferred details are marked.

Documented by mikedaps on 1^st November 2009.

Specimen #281654

Taxon:	Polygalaceae: Polygala L.
Filed in taxon folder:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Collected by:	H Andrews
Collection date:	5/1883
Locality:	Great Britain, VC64 Mid-west Yorkshire, Grassington, SE06
Institution:	University of Birmingham (BIRM)
fruits/flowers:	mature flowers

Inferred details are marked.

Documented by mikedaps on 1^st November 2009.

Edit history

date	user	change
02/11/2009	mossysal	Deleted locality:
02/11/2009	mossysal	Added locality: GB VC64 Grassington

Specimen #281655

Taxon:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amara L.
Filed in taxon folder:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Collected by:	John Cryer
Locality:	Great Britain, VC64 Mid-west Yorkshire, Grassington, SE06
communicated:	Prof George Stephen West
Institution:	University of Birmingham (BIRM)
fruits/flowers:	mature flowers
notes:	" I have since collected this at Arncliffe ..."

Inferred details are marked.

Documented by mikedaps on 1^st November 2009.

Specimen #281656

Taxon:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Filed in taxon folder:	Polygalaceae: Polygala amarella Crantz ("Dwarf Milkwort")
Collected by:	H Andrews
Collection date:	5/1883
Locality:	Great Britain, VC64 Mid-west Yorkshire, Grassington, SE06
communicated:	Prof George Stephen West
Institution:	University of Birmingham (BIRM)
fruits/flowers:	mature flowers
notes:	H G West I spk. "Clearly one of the 'Rosulata' section - or should have said 'comosa'! - but not being in fruit a clear decision & 'calcarea' & 'austriaca' but not possible. But 'after lights' - outcome of seeing in situ dozens of spec in fruit from same loc., make it difficult to say what would have 'come' naturally to one at time about it. Had I seen it in 1883 when fresh"

Inferred details are marked.

Documented by mikedaps on 1^st November 2009.

Edit history

date	user	change
02/11/2009	mossysal	Deleted note: H G West I spk. "Clearly one of the 'Rosulata' section - or should have said 'comora'! - but not being in fruit a clear decision & 'calcarea' & 'austriaea' but not possible. But 'after lights' - outcome of seeing in situ dozens of spec in fruit from same loc., make it difficult to say what would have 'come' naturally to one at time about it. Had I seen it in 1883 when fresh"
02/11/2009	mossysal	Added note: H G West I spk. "Clearly one of the 'Rosulata' section - or should have said 'comosa'! - but not being in fruit a clear decision & 'calcarea' & 'austriaca' but not possible. But 'after lights' - outcome of seeing in situ dozens of spec in fruit from same loc., make it difficult to say what would have 'come' naturally to one at time about it. Had I seen it in 1883 when fresh"
02/11/2009	mossysal	Deleted locality:
02/11/2009	mossysal	Added locality: GB VC64 Grassington

N.B. reporting of the edit history is currently fairly unclear and misleading. Most edits made to specimens appear as a pair of 'add' and 'delete' entries, which may not be together in the list. There are also often 'minor' edits, which are made automatically (rather than due to user activity), for example to merge synonym names.

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User comments about this sheet

mikedaps wrote

Not sure the transcript of H G West's comments by Andrews, on the bottom right label, make much sense unless "calcerea" "comora" and "austriaea" mean something - can't find any potentially relevant similar names - Any better ideas for what he's written?

[mossysal]

They are all species names: viz Polygala comosa, P. austriaca and P.calcarea - as you can see the taxonomy was (is) very confused. As far as I know P comosa is not found in Britain and P. austriaca is a synonym for P. amarella!
I've edited the comment as far as I can

[Mike d'Apice]

I'm going blind: Missed austriaca and calcarea in the CTW (1962) index ...though even they omit comosa! Taxonomy seems to have been (& remains) a somewhat obscure art. Thanks Mike d'A