Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.vq83bk488

Abstract─We analyze knowledge of vascular plant diversity in Crawford County, Kansas, over a 60-year interval (1963–2022) by reporting changes in absolute numbers and percentages. After adjusting for taxonomic and nomenclatural changes and requiring vouchers for all taxa to be included, the number of accepted vascular plant taxa documented for Crawford County increased by 464 unique taxa (+67.0%), or approximately 7.7 per year across 60 years. Detailed familial and generic comparisons are presented for two monocot families (Cyperaceae, Poaceae) and eight relatively species-rich eudicot families (Apiaceae, Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Lamiaceae, Rosaceae), which show pronounced differences in percentages of taxonomic changes and in native versus non-native status. We also compare our results broadly with those documented in the flora of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) over a 45-year period. These comparisons illustrate significant reductions in the Wallacean Shortfall at relatively local (Crawford County) and regional (PNW) scales. We conclude that the Wallacean Shortfall of vascular plants is more pronounced in some areas of North America than generally realized and that additional collecting is not only justified in many US counties, but necessary to continuously monitor the distribution and status of plant species.

Description of the data and file structure

All known (vouchered with herbarium specimens) vascular plant taxa from Crawford County, Kansas, were compared based on knowledge from 1963 and 2022.

Files and variables

File: Snow_et_al_Supplemental_Table_S1.xlsx

Snow, N., S. Y. Pryer, and J. T. Kartesz. 2026. Reducing the Wallacean Shortfall: Six decades of change in the vouchered vascular plant flora of Crawford County (Kansas, USA). Systematic Botany: In press.

The taxonomic and nomenclatural backbone was a beta version of BONAP (Biota of North America) by J. Kartesz (dated 5 May 2023). The cutoff for taxonomic additions to Crawford County was 15 October 2022, coinciding with the end of the field season that year.

Description:

Taxonomy, nomenclature, and voucher specimens.

Variables

The number one (1) in a data field indicates that information applies to the indicated taxon in column R; if not, the field is blank.

“Updated” in column headings refers to the accepted taxonomy of this publication compared to Pryer et al. (2019) and Gibson (1963).

In the column headings and elsewhere, PEA refers to Pryer et al. (2019, plus more recently collected taxa); ESG refers to (Earl Sam) Gibson (1963).

Data columns highlighted in sky blue (C, E, K through P) refer to data from Pryer et al. (2019) and as updated. Columns highlighted in tan (B, D, F–J) refer to Gibson (1963) as updated.

Taxonomic names in Column R: Names in yellow reflect those reported by Gibson (1963) that have had a taxonomic or nomenclatural change; the accepted name is immediately below in green. In some cases (e.g., Ruellia humilis [lines 28 – 30]) more than one synonym is associated with a recognized name. Names in Column R in gray reflect those reported by Gibson (1963) or earlier reports (e.g., Anethum graveolens) for which vouchers were not located.

Column S: Vouchers and their associated herbaria with barcode numbers.

Column Z: Specimens mostly taken from Sperry's residence in Pittsburg, many of which were transplanted from external sources and which cannot be confirmed elsewhere in Crawford County (see also Methods).

Column AA: Vouchers putatively at William Jewell College (Gibson 1963); none have been located.

Column AB: Specimens cited by McGregor (often at KANU) or somewhere else in literature.
Numerical summaries for data columns are tallied in row 1655.

Code/software

Microsoft Excel.

Access information

Other publicly accessible locations of the data:

• Consortium of Northern Great Plains Herbaria

Data was derived from the following sources:

• T.M. Sperry Herbarium; Consortium of Northern Great Plains Herbaria