The sun’s golden rays seep through the sparkling glass of the conservatory. Bright colors compliment the room; reds, blues and yellows take flight soaring in the sky. More than 10 thousand butterflies can be seen flittering their wings at the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens impressing even the most ignorant observer. Species like the Blue Morpho indigenous to the tropics flies nearer to the top to absorb the light while the Paper Kite enjoys the damp leaf of the Lantana. Each one, different in size and purpose, represents an important component in the education system of North Texas; a system one organization is adamant in preserving.
The month of March recognizes many celebrations and holidays and this year, downtown Fort Worth has added one more reason. The Botanical Research Institute of Texas is hosting ”Butterflies in the Garden,” a well-known exhibit featuring live and exotic butterflies from around the World. This event represents the commitment within the education system that BRIT has successfully developed with high expectations for the future.
With plans to relocate to the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens, the onsite facility will be state-of-the-art and should be open as of 2010, according to www.brit.org. Originally created in 1987 to house the Southern Methodist University Herbarium and botanical library, BRIT has expanded its collection to almost one million specimens in the 20 years of existence.
”All our specimens, whether from regions of Texas or the tropics in South America, are important,” said Pat Harrison, Head of Education and Assistant Director of BRIT. ”The process to collect and preserve these often rare and extinct plants is just as exciting as the specimen itself.”
Harrison joined BRIT on an educational grant to develop research in the field of botany. She previously taught middle school science and said she wanted to create an education system to compliment outside growth with growth in the classrooms. Along with area-wide events like the butterfly exhibit, BRIT also offers one-on-one classes as well as lecture series.
The organization, while currently limited in space, does not appear to be lacking in resources and opportunities for botanists and field researchers to expand their research. One of the most recognized and acclaimed projects, according to Harrison, are the field trips to South America and Australia. BRIT has direct representatives as well as sister organizations that team up to explore and investigate into the growth and habitat preferences of various plants.
”Our mission is to locate red listed plants whether endangered or extinct and study them,” said Keri McNew, project manager for the New Guinea expedition.
McNew is one of many young Master’s students who volunteer and are employed at BRIT. According to McNew, the organization sees almost 40 volunteers continually walking through their doors. Retired adults, former botanists or interested learners come to help file specimens, attend to research documents and write academic papers and journals.
Iridos, BRIT’S publication, is published twice a year and is sent out to all supporters and contributors. Recently awarded a Silver Addy Award for their 2007 issue, Iridos is managed by Robert George, a botanist who specializes in coordinating academic books. George is currently the data collector for many regional plant publications and helped Iridos go from a newsletter to an award-winning publication in the botanical world.
”My recent contribution was to this book, Illustrated Flora of East Texas, and it generally takes five to six years to publish work of this extensive and thorough.”
BRIT also houses multiple volumes and issues of journals which are alphabetized with 100 new titles arriving every month. Gary Jennings, librarian, said he is in charge of monitoring and organizing the incoming publications as well as documenting their age.
”The oldest journal we have is called Discordeis and it is dated back to 1549,” said Jennings. ”However, we have 2008 editions that we are proud of as well.”
Noteworthy contributors like Edward P. Bass donate time and money to BRIT which is monumental in allowing such organizations to stay alive. Membership dues start at 100 dollars to join as a partner and extend to the highly generous five thousand dollar donation as a member of the Director’s Circle. In May, the organization is honoring Peter Raven, Director of the Missouri Botanical Garden, with the 2008 International Award of Excellence in Conservation.
The future looks bright and hopeful for BRIT and its employees. Harrison said she has been involved with the organization for more than 10 years and is always learning something new.
”After the butterfly exhibit ends in March, our plans are to continue packing to get ready for our exciting move,” said Harrison, head of education. ”We are looking forward to the change.”
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