268 BRITTONIA [VOL.

34

apocarpy in the Alismatiflorae reflects survival of a primitive feature (as usually

supposed), or an evolutionary reversal from a syncarpous ancestry within the
monocots. Certainly their views must be taken seriously. They are in as good a
position as anyone to indulge in phylogenetic speculation about the group, and
in a far better position than most.
The authors have succeeded very well in what they set out to do. Their
book will be an indispensable reference for anyone concerned with the taxonomy
and phylogeny of monocotyledons.
I must also point out what the book is not. It is not a general taxonomic
treatment of monocots. There are no keys, and no descriptions of families.
The authors, both eminent taxonomists, are indeed curiously casual about some
of the more formal aspects of taxonomy and nomenclature. It is jarring to see
(on p. 24) the Magnoliophyta, Pinophyta, Ginkgophyta, and Cycadophyta ex-
plicitly designated as names of classes. In the International Code of Botanical
Nomenclature the ending -phyta is reserved for divisions.
The book is neither a cladistic nor a numerical analysis. After some un-
enthusiastic comments (on p. 333-4) about Hennigian cladistics, the authors
indicate on p. 345 that Clifford intends to proceed with a numerical analysis,
and Dahlgren with a cladistic one. They concede that "these may each lead to
slightly different conclusions from those presented above." Collaboration must
at times have been a trial to both authors.--ARnc,vR CRONQUIST,
New York Botanical Garden.

An Integrated System of Classification of Flowering Plants. Arthur Cronquist.

1262 pp. 1981. ISBN 0-231-03880-1. Columbia University Press, New York,
NY. $100.00, hardbound.
This monumental volume puts meat on the bones of the system of classification
that Arthur Cronquist outlined in his 1968 book, The Evolution and Classifica-
tion of Flowering Plants. It comprises full descriptions of the division Magnolio-
phyta and of all the classes, subclasses, orders, and families that Cronquist
recognizes. Synoptical keys are used to compare the families, orders, and sub-
classes. Extensive lists of selected references are provided for each order and
higher taxon, with emphasis on references less than 50 years old. Cronquist
has tried to incorporate in his descriptions all the relevant information available
to him, so they include not only the usual gross morphological features, but
also chemical, anatomical, palynological, embryological, cytological, and paleo-
botanical data. He gives the approximate size and distribution of each family,
and adds discursive notes of varying length to most treatments, including his
reasons for classificatory decisions and phylogenetic speculations. Most of the
larger families and many smaller ones are beautifully illustrated, with the typical
plate comprising a detailed illustration of one representative species. The index
is restricted to the names of plants (both scientific and common) and people.
The book is well printed on off-white, acid-free paper, which is handsomer and
more permanent than the enameled white-white paper used for most botanical
publications these days. The paper is thin enough to make the volume manageable
in spite of its length; however, sometimes the print on the other side of the page
shows through enough to be slightly distracting. The running head gives the
current subclass and order, but not the number of the order, which would make
it much easier to go quickly from the synopsis of a subclass to a particular
order. 1 found a number of typographical errors in sporadic reading, not a great
many but more than I expected in a book by this author from this press.
1982] BOOK REVIEWS 269

The descriptive content seems to me to be quite good, to the extent that

I can judge it prior to extensive and intensive use. The descriptions are nicely
crafted, easy to follow, and reasonably parallel. In most cases one has no way
of knowing which data are original observations and which come from cited
sources or the many specialists consulted, but it is clear that Cronquist has
achieved a spectacular compendium of solid, useful information. He adopts a
moderately conservative attitude toward families, avoiding their division in
most cases where the resulting segregate families would clearly be closely re-
lated. In this course he is in tune with most North American taxonomists.
I was disappointed to see that leaf-margin is given slight and uneven attention
in the family descriptions, considering the detail accorded other morphological
features. For example, nowhere in the descriptions of the order Fabales or its
families do I find the fact that the leaves or leaflets of legumes are almost
never toothed (Trifolium and its close relatives are the only exceptions I know
of). Surely this constitutes a conservative character that is relevant to any
attempt to derive legumes from rosalean families, where dentate margins are so
common. I suspect that the leaf-margin is an anatomical character with consid-
erable potential for phylogenetic exercises and hope to see it receive more
attention in the future.
The illustrations merit special comment. They are extraordinarily good, beauti-
fully drawn and mostly very well reproduced with just a little loss of detail in a
few. Most of the species selected are reasonably representative of their families,
an effort has obviously been made to enlarge diagnostic details, and most of
those details seem to be accurately shown. These drawings harken back to the
high standards of 150 years ago, and we should thank Cronquist and his artists,
especially W. S. Moye and Robin Jess, for giving us beauty with utility. My
only disappointment with the illustrations stems from the lack of any for the
following fairly large and important families: Dipterocarpaceae, Begoniaceae,
Connaraceae, Podostemaceae, Loranthaceae, Icacinaceae, Burseraceae, Ruta-
ceae, Pandanaceae, Velloziaceae, and Burmanniaceae.
Cronquist often adds, after the description of an order, a paragraph in which
he discusses his inability to perceive the selective significance of the features
characteristic of that order. I see little point to these sections. Cronquist's
inability to divine from his armchair in New York the selective significance of
features of groups with which he is only superficially familiar is neither sur-
prising nor interesting. Fifteen years ago one might well have pointed to the
calyx glands and clawed petals of the Malpighiaceae as a syndrome of charac-
teristics for which no selective significance could be deduced. Now, thanks to the
elegant studies of Stefan Vogel, we know quite well what their adaptive signifi-
cance is. The space devoted to these paragraphs throughout the book could
have been better used, perhaps for illustrations of the Dipterocarpaceae et al.
Many will consult this book as an exposition of the "Cronquist system,"
and they will be especially interested in the author's discussions of the bases
for specific decisions and speculations. In this area one must give Cronquist
credit for being always straightforward and honest. When he does not know
or is uncertain, he says so. When a decision includes a large measure of ar-
bitrariness, he admits it. When he disagrees with another author whose opinion
merits consideration, he often summarizes the points on both sides. Given the
limited space available in an already lengthy book, he probably does about as
well as could be expected. Nevertheless, 1 find this aspect of the work often
unsatisfactory. Comments on relationships and probable origins tend to be
presented in vague, rather general terms that do not facilitate critical evaluation,
so one must ~'take it or leave it" on faith unless ready to do some real
270 BRITTONIA [VOL. 34

digging to turn up more objective bases for appraisal. As an example consider

the discussion (pp. 1027-1028) in which Cronquist concludes that "the ancestry
of the Asteraceae probably lies in or near the Rubiaceae . . . . " Few positive
bases for such a conclusion are given. Rather, he seems to reason that (1) the
Asteraceae surely belong with other "asterid" families; (2) it would be very
difficult to postulate their origin in any other "asterid" family; so (3) the RuN-
aceae are the only source left. Now let us consider some characteristics of the
two families. The Rubiaceae have mostly paracytic stomates; those of Aster-
aceae are mostly anomocytic. The leaf-margin is always entire in Rubiaceae,
often toothed in Asteraceae. Hairs are never glandular in Rubiaceae (the
"'glandular shaggy hairs" of some authors are not hairs at all, they are reduced
colleters), often glandular in Asteraceae. Rubiaceae always have stipules, usually
with colleters; Asteraceae are completely estipulate. Endosperm development is
usually nuclear in the Rubiaceae, cellular or less often nuclear in the Asteraceae.
The head found in some Rubiaceae is a condensed cyme, whereas the head of
Asteraceae is a condensed raceme, in which each flower probably represents
(in my opinion) a cyme reduced to one flower. None of this means that the
Asteraceae could not have originated in the Rubiaceae. By selecting the proper
character-states from different Asteraceae one could probably postulate an an-
cestor that resembled some members of the Rubiaceae. However, at least prima
facie the data given above make such an origin seem unlikely. Obviously,
Cronquist could not have discussed every question of putative ancestry in such
detail, but in the absence of documented arguments his judgments seem to me
to possess only modest value for other students.
Is this book worth the investment of $100? Hutchinson's two-volume work,
Families of Flowering Plants, is the only thing available in English that is really
comparable to Cronquist's book, and it is now probably nearly as expensive.
Its illustrations are greatly inferior to these, the system is bizarre, the families
are finely split, and there is far less information contained in the descriptions.
On the other hand, its concise descriptions with the diagnostic features italicized
are easier to consult quickly, and its key to families is a real key that works
fairly well. On balance, I would say that Cronquist's work is much the better of
the two, and compared to other scientific books being published now the price
is reasonable, especially given its length and fine physical qualities. Neverthe-
less, $100 is a lot of money and many who need this book will not be able
to buy it.
Arthur Cronquist has produced a truly magnificent work, which will un-
doubtedly be a standard reference for a long time. It is distinguished by the
wealth, accuracy, and organization of its detail, and the illustrations are its
crowning glory. Moreover, Cronquist has explained, at least in general terms,
the bases for his phylogenetic system. I congratulate him and Columbia Uni-
versity Press on the completion and publication of this fine piece of scholar-
ship.--WILLIAM R. ANDERSON, University of Michigan Herbarium, Ann Arbor,
MI 48109.

The Biological Aspects of Rare Plant Conservation. Hugh Synge, editor. 558 pp.
1981. ISBN 0471-28004-6. John Wiley & Sons, One Wiley Drive, Somerset,
New Jersey 08873. $71.50, hardbound.
This book attempts to organize and coordinate the biological, social and eco-
nomic aspects of rare plant conservation in the world today. The book con-
tains the proceedings of an international conference held at King's College,
Cambridge, England, which was sponsored by the Linnean Society of London