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From: bernhap2@slu.edu<BR>To: Michael.Arduser@mdc.mo.gov,
adafni@research.haifa.ac.il, ewinkler11@stlcc.edu, Andrew.Brown@dec.wa.gov.au,
paul@ethnomedicine.org, amille75@slu.edu, ahuber@eou.edu,
jrakeroyd@dsl.pipex.com, david.bogler@mobot.org, berrycl@slu.edu,
beemonitoring@yahoogroups.com, barberjc@slu.edu,
Deborah.Lalumondier@mobot.org, Blanche.Wagner@mobot.org,
pollinator@lists.sonic.net, sobralia@flmnh.ufl.edu, adomicri@slu.edu,
elma.kay@gmail.com, josephfortier@gmail.com, Kathy.Farris@mobot.org,
florian.schiestl@systbot.uzh.ch, roman.kaiser@givaudan.com,
frankie@nature.berkeley.edu, flannerm@stjohns.edu, camilogr@slu.edu,
pgoldblatt@oregoncoast.com, poinarg@science.oregonstate.edu,
ghrankenstein@yahoo.com, a.gaskett@auckland.ac.nz,
george.yatskievych@mobot.org, holger.perner@gmail.com, hliu@fiu.edu,
PETER.HOCH@mobot.org, inouye@umd.edu, Ihsan.Al-Shehbaz@mobot.org,
izzy11566@yahoo.com, inds1jam@police.nsw.gov.au, bolla1@mindspring.com,
gtolmiep@aol.com, jknouft@slu.edu, nicolas.vereecken@ulb.ac.be,
james.seago@oswego.edu, jim.cane@ars.usda.gov, ackerman.upr@gmail.com,
luoyb@ibcas.ac.cn, yan.liang@ibcas.ac.cn, lumer.cecile@gmail.com,
lthien@tulane.edu, canopymeg@aol.com, rmeier3@gmail.com, Bob.magill@mobot.org,
knkrakos@gmail.com, vancenan@gmail.com, MoneyNP@muohio.edu,
aspinwalln@slu.edu, zodonnell@gmail.com, mjoseph6@slu.edu,
Sophie.Petit@unisa.edu.au, Marc.satterwhite@louisville.edu,
Chip.Tynan@mobot.org, wood2@slu.edu, robert-cruden@uiowa.edu, wxiao@slu.edu,
rpemberton5@gmail.com, claire.michenau@ulb.ac.be, claire.micheneau@ulb.ac.be,
S.Hopper@kew.org, j.alcock@asu.edu, johnsonsd@ukzn.ac.za,
phh4@leicester.ac.uk, hnonnenm@pittstate.edu, hwang7@slu.edu,
Ladadams@aol.com<BR>Sent: 4/19/2011 8:11:17 A.M. Pacific Daylight
Time<BR>Subj: Fwd: Tornados and Orchids<BR></DIV>
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<DIV class=gmail_quote>Dear Colleagues:
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<DIV>While Saint Louis escaped the cluster of 250 tornados that hit the
American south a couple of days ago we may have serious problems today as
violent thunderstorms will pass through the city area and suburbs over the
daylight hours. Hail stones are reported to be ping pong ball to egg
sized. I wanted to contact you now as the power could go out. As
St. Louis University is Catholic (Jesuit) we will be closed April 21-25
reopening the morning of April 26 so don't worry about a long silence.
</DIV>
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<DIV>The attached paper appeared on Monday in the "Proceeding of the National
Academy of Science." Please forgive the title, I could not resist the
word play (my paternal grandfather had a brief career in vaudeville).
The association with the Kunming Botanical Institute (see their online
site, very impressive) occurred when I was contacted by Ren Zong-Xin who was
trying to finish his PhD 15 months ago and had only one more season of
fieldwork. His results were not "adding up" as the flower-insect
interactions were not typical of the "mushroom mimicry" reported in the
Australian helmet orchids (Corybas). I suggested a new course of field
techniques based on some recent literature. As new data came in I
suggested he coat his flies with gold and put them under the scanning electron
microscope to see if they carried germinating fungal spores as well as orchid
pollen. It became clear that this orchid was "pretending to be sick"
after I went to the library at the Missouri Botanical Garden and read up about
how infectious fungi make nectar and special odors to lure flies onto diseased
leaves to carry away their spores. Ren's study reminded me of the famous
poem by WIlliam Blake (below) but, this time, the flower exploits the "dark
secret love" of the invisible worm. </DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>For your information, "Science" and "Nature" refused to send our
manuscript out for review. Ren received his PhD a couple of months ago
and is now working for the Kunming Institute in a new department.
Sometimes there are positive endings. <BR>
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<H1 style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 10px 0px 3px; FONT: 24px Georgia; PADDING-TOP: 0px">The
Sick Rose</H1></DIV><SPAN style="DISPLAY: inline-block; TEXT-TRANSFORM: uppercase; COLOR: rgb(77,73,63); LETTER-SPACING: 0.05em">BY <A title=http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/william-blake style="COLOR: rgb(4,61,110); TEXT-DECORATION: none; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; outline-color: initial" href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/william-blake" target=_blank>WILLIAM BLAKE</A></SPAN>
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<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">O Rose, thou art sick!</DIV>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">The invisible worm</DIV>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">That flies in the night,</DIV>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">In the howling storm,</DIV><BR>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">Has found out thy bed</DIV>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">Of crimson joy:</DIV>
<DIV style="PADDING-LEFT: 1em">And his dark secret
love</DIV></DIV></DIV></SPAN>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 16px; COLOR: rgb(80,80,80); LINE-HEIGHT: 24px; FONT-FAMILY: Georgia">Does
thy life destroy.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 16px; COLOR: rgb(80,80,80); LINE-HEIGHT: 24px; FONT-FAMILY: Georgia"></SPAN>Sincerely,
Peter <BR>
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