Tree Diversity
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| The region near Monteverde in the Cordillera de Tilarán of northern Costa Rica supports a complex array of montane forest habitats including seven different life zones. More than 750 species of trees belonging to 104 families occur in this area above 700 m elevation. Linked here are a number of electronic resources that can help identify the tree families of the area. In many cases, the keys reach the genus level. |
Vegetative Key to Families of Trees and Shrubs
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| Using the software tools of the Electronic Field Guide Project of the University of Massachusetts at Boston, I developed a picture key to help identify the families of trees and shrubs from non-reproductive samples. In many instances, the key also arrives at the level of genus or small groups of similar genera. The key presents two visual representations of the data: an html version (viewable with any Internet browser) and a Java version (viewable with a browser, but requiring the Java 1.4.2 plugin). |
Database of Family Pages
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| The family name at the end of a key couplet links to a taxon page for the family created dynamically from an associated database. The family page includes tips on field recognition, a diagnosis based on vegetative characters, and information on local distribution and diversity. The family database can be accessed from a search page view, a list view, or a thumbnail view. |
