Collections
The Stillinger Herbarium consists of four complementary specimen collections — vascular plants, non-vascular plants, lichens and fungi. Together these collections provide a broad sampling of the botanical and mycological diversity in Idaho, and provide a valuable addition to the knowledge of the flora of the Pacific Northwest and the flora of North America. Herbarium Access and Usage Policy.
The specimen collections are available for research use during normal herbarium hours. Interested researchers should contact Dan Turck for more information about using the collections.
- Vascular plant collection — room 16, Mines Building
- Non-vascular plants, lichens, fungi — room 117, Mines Building
In addition to the specimen collections, the Stillinger Herbarium has an extensive botanical library with over 2,000 volumes. The library is housed in the herbarium and is searchable through the University of Idaho Library catalog.
Silica-Preserved Tissue Collection
The Stillinger Herbarium also maintains a collection of vascular plant leaf tissue samples intended for DNA extraction and sequencing to support phylogenetic research. The collection encompasses pteridophytes, gymnosperms and angiosperms, with the majority of samples collected from Idaho. Many species are represented by multiple samples, each from a different site. As of July, 2021, the collection includes 3,541 samples of 1,067 species. Taxonomic coverage is incomplete and weighted towards common native species; not all Idaho species are represented.
Tissue samples are collected in the field along with a pressed voucher specimen. Fresh leaf material removed from the specimen is placed into a teabag and quickly dried in a container filled with silica gel. In the herbarium, the teabags are inserted into labeled coin envelopes and housed within sealed, airtight boxes containing silica gel desiccants. Each tissue sample is tied to the associated voucher specimen housed in the Stillinger Herbarium; most of the vouchers are imaged and can be examined online.
Requests for tissue for phylogenetic research will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Please direct inquiries to herbarium@uidaho.edu, and include a description of your research and a list of species or samples desired.
The following files provide a list of samples contained in the collection: