Q. Tools used in Taxonomy?
Before you plan for a field trip decide the tools and equipment required. Certain, equipments are necessary for plant collection. A collecting pick is required for digging up roots and rhizomes. A strong knife is required for cutting branches and other plant parts. A pair of pruning shears is needed for cutting woody and hard material. A pair of forceps is needed for opening the flower bud to study the stamens and carpels. A vasculum is needed for accommodating collected specimens to be studied and pressed (Fig. 5.2). A plant press together with blotters or newsprint for pressing and keeping the collected specimens (Fig. 5.3). Also, you should carry with you a field book for nothing down the details of collected specimens. Polythene bags in good number are also needed for keeping fresh plant specimens. After storing plants in these bags the mouth of bags should be tightly closed to avoid wilting. For collecting aquatics from ponds and lakes, carry a long rope, and for collecting cones, fruits and fungi specimens carry bottles. Obtain necessary permission from the authorities concerned to visit a forest. Ask for forest guide or any other official assistance. Always keep a copy of all essential documents in your camp. Make proper arrangements for your stay, food, clothing and wear field shoes.
Best period of collection of plants is from February to September. You should know that our motherland is rich in flora and fauna. Look for plants in rocky crevices, sand dunes, marshy regions, mountains, calcareous regions and even on dead and fallen trunks. Observe the nature of the plant, its association with other plants and substrate. Collect complete and perfect material with flowers and fruits. While collecting medicinally valuable plants, collect sufficient quantities of root, shoot, seed and plant part which is of medicinal value. Later on you can sow these seeds in the garden and raise plants to add to your collection. If the size of the plant exceeds the size of mounting board or herbarium sheet bend it in N or U form, but do not break the stem. Collect phytoplanktons by slowly towing a fine net (180 meshed /unit). The small funnel container at the tip collects organisms. Now, preserve the catch in iodine (0.5 g), potassium iodide (0.1 g), glacial acetic acid (4.0 ml), formalin (24.0 ml), and water (400 ml). Collect sea weeds in polythene bags, properly numbered and preserve these in 2.5% formalin alcohol. Collect fungi specimens as a whole, fresh and healthy along with the substratum or host. While collecting lichens note the name of the plant serving as substrate. Preserve liverworts and mosses by drying and cacti and other succulents in liquid preservative. If you collect small fleshy fruits prick them at several places and dip in hot water till whole juice exudes out. Now, you press these specimen . Wrap aquatic plants in damp newspaper and keep them in vasculum until they are pressed. You will also find some economically important algae, both marine and flesh water and also diatoms. Collect these with a pipette consisting of a glass tube and a large suction bulb. Dry blue green algae on paper, spread chara species on newspaper and then shift to herbarium sheet. Prepare a preservative fluid of 50% alcohol and 5% formalin and keep the specimens in the fluid. This will prevent the growth of mould on the plants. If you collect tree ferns and other land plants first keep them in polythene bags and then press these between the folds of newspaper. Keep cones, fruits and needles of gymnospermic plants in polythene bags .
For collecting insects carry bottles and some killing agents like ethyl acetate and chloroform with you and kill the insects immediately without affecting their colour. Label the bottles as "poison" because all these killing agents are deadly poisonous, Do not leave insects in the bottles for longer time and there should be no overcrowding of specimens in the killing bottles. First kill the larvae of insects in boiling water and later on place them in liquid preservative. Use separate killing bottles. Do not keep tough and fragile specimens in the same bottle as these will be damaged by one another.