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Acacia Ligulata
''Acacia ligulata'' is a species of ''Acacia'', a dense shrub widespread in all states of mainland Australia. It is not considered rare or endangered. Common names include sandhill wattle, umbrella bush, marpoo, dune wattle, small coobah,Cunningham, G. M., Mulham, W. E., Milthorpe, P. L., & Leigh, J. H. (1992). Plants of western New South Wales. Melbourne & Sydney, Australia: Inkata Press. p. 365. watarka, and wirra.Moore, P. (2005). A guide to plants of inland Australia. Sydney, Australia: New Holland Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd. p. 331. The genus ''Acacia'' is derived from the Greek ''akakia'', referring to sharp thorns. The shape of the phyllodes named the species ''ligulata'', meaning strap-like or with a small tongue in Latin.Simmons, M. H. (1988). Acacias of Australia, vol. 2. Ringwood, Australia: Penguin Books Australia Ltd. p. 166. Description ''Acacia ligulata'' grows as an erect or spreading shrub, 2 to 4 meters tallHarden, G. J.. (2002). Flora of New South Wales.V ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allan Cunningham (botanist)
Allan Cunningham (13 July 1791 – 27 June 1839) was an English botany, botanist and List of explorers, explorer, primarily known for his travels in Australia to collect plants. Early life Cunningham was born in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, Surrey, England, the son of Allan Cunningham (head gardener at Wimbledon Park House), who came from Renfrewshire, Scotland, and his English wife Sarah (née Juson/Jewson née Dicken). Allan Cunningham was educated at a Putney private school, Reverend John Adams (educational writer), John Adams Academy and then went into a solicitor's office (a Lincoln's Inn Conveyancer). He afterwards obtained a position with William Townsend Aiton superintendent of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Kew Gardens, and this brought him in touch with Robert Brown (Scottish botanist from Montrose), Robert Brown and Joseph Banks, Sir Joseph Banks. Brazil and Australia (New South Wales) On Banks' recommendation, Cunningham went to Brazil with James Bowie (botani ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Witchetty Grub
The witchetty grub (also spelled witchety grub or witjuti grub) is a term used in Australia for the large, white, wood-eating larvae of several moths. In particular, it applies to the larvae of the cossid moth ''Endoxyla leucomochla'', which feeds on the roots of the witchetty bush (after which the grubs are named) that is widespread throughout the Northern Territory and also typically found in parts of Western Australia and South Australia, although it is also found elsewhere throughout Australia. The term may also apply to larvae of other cossid moths, ghost moths (Hepialidae), and longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae). The term is used mainly when the larvae are being considered as food. The grub is the most important insect food of the desert and has historically been a staple in the diets of Aboriginal Australians. Terminology The Arabana term for the grub is (with emphasis on initial syllables); means grub, and refers to the shrub, not the grub itself. Similarly, Ngalea p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duboisia Hopwoodii
''Duboisia hopwoodii'' is a shrub native to the arid interior region of Australia. Common names include pituri, pitchuri thornapple or pitcheri. Description The species has an erect habit, usually growing to between 1 and 3 metres in height, with long, narrow leaves. Flowers are white and bell-shaped with violet-striped throats. These appear between June and November in the species' native range followed by purple-black, rounded berries which are 3 to 6 mm in diameter. Like other members of the Solanaceae family such as tobacco, ''D. hopwoodii'' contains nicotine. Pituri Indigenous Australians mix the dried leaves of a small population of ''D. hopwoodii'' growing around the Mulligan River with wood ash to make a variety of pituri, the traditional Aboriginal chewing mixture. ''D. hopwoodii'' plants from this region are high in nicotine and low in nornicotine, whereas those found in some other parts of Australia can have very high levels of nornicotine and are sometimes use ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples of the Australian mainland and Tasmania, and the Torres Strait Islander peoples from the seas between Queensland and Papua New Guinea. The term Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples or the person's specific cultural group, is often preferred, though the terms First Nations of Australia, First Peoples of Australia and First Australians are also increasingly common; 812,728 people self-identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in the 2021 Australian Census, representing 3.2% of the total population of Australia. Of these indigenous Australians, 91.4% identified as Aboriginal; 4.2% identified as Torres Strait Islander; while 4.4% identified with both groups. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Revegetation
Revegetation is the process of replanting and rebuilding the soil of disturbed land. This may be a natural process produced by plant colonization and succession, manmade rewilding projects, accelerated process designed to repair damage to a landscape due to wildfire, mining, flood, or other cause. Originally the process was simply one of applying seed and fertilizer to disturbed lands, usually grasses or clover. The fibrous root network of grasses is useful for short-term erosion control, particularly on sloping ground. Establishing long-term plant communities requires forethought as to appropriate species for the climate, size of stock required, and impact of replanted vegetation on local fauna. The motivations behind revegetation are diverse, answering needs that are both technical and aesthetic, but it is usually erosion prevention that is the primary reason. Revegetation helps prevent soil erosion, enhances the ability of the soil to absorb more water in significant rain event ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myrmecochory
Myrmecochory ( (sometimes myrmechory); from grc, μύρμηξ, mýrmēks ("ant") and ''khoreíā'' ("circular dance") is seed dispersal by ants, an ecologically significant ant–plant interaction with worldwide distribution. Most myrmecochorous plants produce seeds with elaiosomes, a term encompassing various external appendages or "food bodies" rich in lipids, amino acids, or other nutrients that are attractive to ants. The seed with its attached elaiosome is collectively known as a diaspore. Seed dispersal by ants is typically accomplished when foraging workers carry diaspores back to the ant colony, after which the elaiosome is removed or fed directly to ant larvae. Once the elaiosome is consumed, the seed is usually discarded in underground middens or ejected from the nest. Although diaspores are seldom distributed far from the parent plant, myrmecochores also benefit from this predominantly mutualistic interaction through dispersal to favourable locations for germina ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meat Ants
The meat ant (''Iridomyrmex purpureus''), also known as the gravel ant or southern meat ant, is a species of ant endemic to Australia. A member of the genus ''Iridomyrmex'' in the subfamily Dolichoderinae, it was described by British entomologist Frederick Smith in 1858. The meat ant is associated with many common names due to its appearance, nest-building behaviour and abundance, of which its specific name, ''purpureus'', refers to its coloured appearance. It is among the best-known species of ant found throughout Australia; it occurs in almost all states and territories except for Tasmania. Its enormous distribution, aggression and ecological importance have made this ant a dominant species. The meat ant is monomorphic (occurs in a particular form), although there is evidence that certain populations can be polymorphic. It is characterised by its dark-bluish body and red head. It is a medium to large species, measuring . The workers and males are approximately the same si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wattlebird
''Anthochaera'' is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family. The species are endemic to Australia and include the little wattlebird, the red wattlebird, the western wattlebird, and the yellow wattlebird. A molecular phylogenetic study has shown that the regent honeyeater also belongs in this genus. Description Of the five species in the genus only the yellow wattlebird (''Anthochaera paradoxa'') and the red wattlebird (''A. carunculata'') have the wattles of their common name. These are bare fleshy appendages, usually wrinkled and often brightly coloured, hanging from the cheeks, neck or throat, and presumably serving for display. A common name for species of the genus is wattlebird, a term also used for unrelated avian species. Taxonomy The genus ''Anthochaera'' was introduced in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield. The name is derived from the Greek ''anthos'' meaning flower or bloom and ''khairō'' meaning to enjoy. The type species was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diaspores
In botany, a diaspore is a plant dispersal unit consisting of a seed or spore plus any additional tissues that assist dispersal. In some seed plants, the diaspore is a seed and fruit together, or a seed and elaiosome. In a few seed plants, the diaspore is most or all of the plant, and is known as a tumbleweed. Diaspores are common in weedy and ruderal species. Collectively, diaspores, seeds, and spores that have been modified for migration are known as ''disseminules''. Role in dispersal A diaspore of seed plus elaiosome is a common adaptation to seed dispersal by ants (myrmecochory). This is most notable in Australian and South African sclerophyll plant communities. Typically, ants carry the diaspore to their nest, where they may eat the elaiosome and discard the seed, and the seed may subsequently germinate. A diaspore of seed(s) plus fruit is common in plants dispersed by frugivores. Fruit-eating bats typically carry the diaspore to a favorite perch, where they eat the fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Acacia Ligulata Seeds
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus name is New Latin, borrowed from the Greek (), a term used by Dioscorides for a preparation extracted from the leaves and fruit pods of ''Vachellia nilotica'', the original type of the genus. In his ''Pinax'' (1623), Gaspard Bauhin mentioned the Greek from Dioscorides as the origin of the Latin name. In the early 2000s it had become evident that the genus as it stood was not monophyletic and that several divergent lineages needed to be placed in separate genera. It turned out that one lineage comprising over 900 species mainly native to Australia, New Guinea, and Indonesia was not closely related to the much smaller group of African lineage that contained ''A. nilotica''—the type species. This meant that the Australasian lineage (by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Herbivores
A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthparts adapted to rasping or grinding. Horses and other herbivores have wide flat teeth that are adapted to grinding grass, tree bark, and other tough plant material. A large percentage of herbivores have mutualistic gut flora that help them digest plant matter, which is more difficult to digest than animal prey. This flora is made up of cellulose-digesting protozoans or bacteria. Etymology Herbivore is the anglicized form of a modern Latin coinage, ''herbivora'', cited in Charles Lyell's 1830 ''Principles of Geology''.J.A. Simpson and E.S.C. Weiner, eds. (2000) ''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. 8, p. 155. Richard Owen employed the anglicized term in an 1854 work on fossil teeth and skeletons. ''Herbivora'' is derived from Latin ''herba' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kangaroos
Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern grey kangaroo, and western grey kangaroo. Kangaroos are indigenous to Australia and New Guinea. The Australian government estimates that 42.8 million kangaroos lived within the commercial harvest areas of Australia in 2019, down from 53.2 million in 2013. As with the terms "wallaroo" and "wallaby", "kangaroo" refers to a paraphyletic grouping of species. All three terms refer to members of the same taxonomic family, Macropodidae, and are distinguished according to size. The largest species in the family are called "kangaroos" and the smallest are generally called "wallabies". The term "wallaroos" refers to species of an intermediate size. There are also the tree-kangaroos, another type of macropod, which inhabit the tropical rain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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