Several lists of the plants of the GVD have been prepared as a result of Friends' activities. They include non-flowering and flowering plants. Please follow the links below to view any which might interest you.
The Hilda Hewitson Herbarium contains over 250 plant specimens and is kept by the Friends as a reference tool. Duplicates of all these specimens have been supplied to the State Herbarium and are kept there. This link leads to a spreadsheet listing of the specimens in the form of an extract from the State Herbarium catalogue.
Plant List 2007. The 46 specimens collected by Marlene Friebe in the Great Victoria Desert parks in May and June of 2007. These specimens have been identified by the SA State Herbarium.
Combined Plant List 1995-2001. The 159 specimens collected by Hilda Hewitson and Marlene Friebe between 1995 and 2001 and identified by the State Herbarium.
No specific plant lists for the South Australian parks and reserves in the GVD have been produced by the Department of Environment and Heritage (DEH). However, the department's superb eFlora SA database is maintained by the State Herbarium. eFlora SA's Census of SA Plants, Algae and Fungi 'provides a summation of the current state of scientific knowledge of the flora of South Australia, as reviewed by the taxonomic botanists and research associates of the State Herbarium of South Australia'. It can give you a fair idea of what plants you will find in the GVD area. Go to eFlora SA and search for all plants in the NW (north-west) region. You will not believe how many there are.
The little halophytic (salt-loving) plants known collectively as 'samphires' have given us a bit of grief on field trips as they are very difficult to identify. Recent work on these plants by botanists Kelly Shepherd and Paul Wilson has resulted in the genus Tecticornia being enlarged to include a number of plants from older genera like Halosarcia. While this won't make it any easier for us amateurs to separate the different species in the field, at least we now only have to remember one genus name. The changes are listed in Changes in Samphire Nomenclature from the State Herbarium.
A selection of our plant photos appears below. They are in the public domain, so they may be used with the acknowledgement 'Friends of the Great Victoria Desert'.
To see more plant photos, go to Friends of the GVD on Picasa Web Albums.
Click an image to enlarge it
