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California Hairstreak
''Satyrium californica'', the California hairstreak, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found from British Columbia south to southern California and east to Colorado. The wingspan is 25–32 mm. The upperside is brown with an orange spot on the hindwings. The outer edge of the forewings usually has row of orange spots. The underside is brown-grey with orange crescents and a postmedian band of black spots. Each hindwing has two tails. Adults feed on the nectar of various flowers, including '' Eriogonum'' and ''Asclepias'' species. In Canada, the larvae feed on ''Cercocarpus'', '' Salix'' species, buckbrush (''Ceanothus'' spp.), antelope-brush (''Purshia tridentata''), oaks ('' Quercus'' spp.), cherry ('' Prunus'' spp.), and saskatoon ('' Amelanchier alnifolia)''. Butter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly
Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises the large superfamily (zoology), superfamily Papilionoidea, which contains at least one former group, the skippers (formerly the superfamily "Hesperioidea"), and the most recent analyses suggest it also contains the moth-butterflies (formerly the superfamily "Hedyloidea"). Butterfly fossils date to the Paleocene, about 56 million years ago. Butterflies have a four-stage life cycle, as like most insects they undergo Holometabolism, complete metamorphosis. Winged adults lay eggs on the food plant on which their larvae, known as caterpillars, will feed. The caterpillars grow, sometimes very rapidly, and when fully developed, pupate in a chrysalis. When metamorphosis is complete, the pupal skin splits, the adult insect climbs o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Purshia Tridentata
''Purshia tridentata'', with the common name bitterbrush, is a shrub in the genus '' Purshia'' of the family Rosaceae. It is native to mountainous areas of western North America. Common names include antelope bitterbrush, antelope bush, buckbrush, quinine brush, and less commonly deerbrush, blackbrush, and greasewood. Some of these names are shared with other species. Description ''Purshia tridentata'' is a deciduous shrub growing to a height of . It has many branches and slender green, three- to five-lobed leaves 5–20 millimetres long. It is a nitrogen-fixing plant. The flowers are pale yellow, with five petals 6–8 mm long, and darker yellow anthers. The fruit is a cluster of dry, slender, leathery achenes 0.6–2 centimetres long. Varieties There are two named varieties of the species: *''Purshia tridentata var. glandulosa'' — Eastern Sierra Nevada, Southern California *''Purshia tridentata var. tridentata'' Distribution The plant is found ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Overwintering
Overwintering is the process by which some organisms pass through or wait out the winter season, or pass through that period of the year when "winter" conditions (cold or sub-zero temperatures, ice, snow, limited food supplies) make normal activity or even survival difficult or near impossible. In some cases "winter" is characterized not necessarily by cold but by dry conditions; passing through such periods could likewise be called overwintering. Hibernation and migration are the two major ways in which overwintering is accomplished. Animals may also go into a state of reduced physiological activity known as torpor. Overwintering occurs in several classes of lifeform. Insects In entomology, overwintering is how an insect passes the winter season. Many insects overwinter as adults, pupae, or eggs. This can be done inside buildings, under tree bark, or beneath fallen leaves or other plant matter on the ground, among other places. All such overwintering sites shield the insect fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aesculus Californica
''Aesculus californica'', commonly known as the California buckeye or California horse-chestnut, is a species of buckeye native to California and southwestern Oregon. Description It is a large deciduous shrub or small tree, up to tall, with gray bark often coated with lichens and mosses. It typically is multi-trunked, with a crown as broad as it is high. Trees are long lived, with an estimated lifespan between 250–280 (300 maximum) years. The leaves are dark green, palmately compound with five (rarely seven) leaflets. Each leaflet is long, with a finely toothed margin and (particularly in spring) downy surfaces. The leaves are tender and prone to damage from both spring freezing or snow and summer heat and desiccation. The flowers are sweet-scented, white to pale pink, borne on erect panicles long and broad. The fruit is a fig-shaped capsule long, containing a large, round, orange-brown seed, measuring . The seeds are poisonous and are the largest known of any tem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ceanothus Velutinus
''Ceanothus velutinus'', with the common names snowbrush ceanothus, red root, and tobacco brush, is a species of shrub in the family Rhamnaceae. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California to Colorado, where it grows in several habitat types including coniferous forest, chaparral, and various types of woodland. Description ''Ceanothus velutinus'' grows up to 4 meters tall but generally remains under three, and forms colonies of individuals which tangle together to form nearly impenetrable thickets. The aromatic evergreen leaves are alternately arranged, each up to 8 centimeters long. The leaves are oval in shape with minute glandular teeth along the edges, and shiny green and hairless on the top surface. The plentiful inflorescences are long clusters of white flowers. The fruit is a three-lobed capsule a few millimeters long which snaps open explosively to expel the three seeds onto the soil, where they may remain in a buried seed bank for well o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marrubium
''Marrubium'' (horehound or hoarhound) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae, native to temperate regions of Europe, North Africa, and Asia as far east as the Xinjiang region of western China. A few species are also naturalized in North and South America. ;Species *'' Marrubium alyssoides'' Pomel – Algeria, Morocco *'' Marrubium alysson'' L. – Mediterranean from Spain + Morocco to Palestine *'' Marrubium anisodon'' K.Koch – Greece, Albania, Crimea, southwest Asia from Turkey to Kashmir *'' Marrubium aschersonii'' Magnus – Tunisia *'' Marrubium astracanicum'' Jacq. – Caucasus, Iran, Iraq, Turkey *'' Marrubium atlanticum'' Batt. – Morocco *'' Marrubium ayardii'' Maire – Morocco * ''Marrubium'' × ''bastetanum'' Coincy – Spain ''(M. supinum × M. vulgare)'' *'' Marrubium bourgaei'' Boiss. – Turkey *'' Marrubium catariifolium'' Desr. – Caucasus, Turkey *'' Marrubium cephalanthum'' Boiss. & Noë – Turkey *'' Marrubium cordatum'' Nábelek – ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apocynum Cannabinum
''Apocynum cannabinum'' (dogbane, amy root, hemp dogbane, prairie dogbane, Indian hemp, rheumatism root, or wild cotton) is a perennial herbaceous plant that grows throughout much of North America—in the southern half of Canada and throughout the United States. It is poisonous to humans, dogs, cats, and horses. All parts of the plant are toxic and can cause cardiac arrest if ingested. Some Lepidoptera feed on this plant, such as a hummingbird moth. Description ''Apocynum cannabinum'' grows up to tall. The stems are reddish and contain a milky latex. The leaves are opposite, simple broad lanceolate, long and broad, entire, and smooth on top with white hairs on the underside. It flowers from July to August, has large sepals, and a five-lobed white corolla. The flowers are hermaphrodite, with both male and female organs. Taxonomy Etymology ''Apocynum'' means "poisonous to dogs". The specific epithet ''cannabinum'', and the common names hemp dogbane and Indian hemp refer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amelanchier Alnifolia
''Amelanchier alnifolia'', the Saskatoon berry, Pacific serviceberry, western serviceberry, western shadbush, or western juneberry, is a shrub with an edible berry-like fruit, native to North America. Description It is a deciduous shrub or small tree that most often grows to , rarely to , in height. Its growth form spans from suckering and forming colonies to clumped. The leaves are oval to nearly circular, long and broad, on a leaf stem, margins toothed mostly above the middle. As with all species in the genus ''Amelanchier'', the flowers are white, with five quite separate petals and five sepals. In ''A. alnifolia'', they are about across, with 20 stamens and five styles, appearing on short racemes of 3–20, somewhat crowded together, blooming from April to July. The fruit is a small purple pome in diameter, ripening in early summer in the coastal areas and late summer further inland. Resembling blueberries, it has a waxy bloom. Serviceberries are relatively di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunus
''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds. Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the paleotropics of Asia and Africa, 430 different species are classified under ''Prunus''. Many members of the genus are widely cultivated for their fruit and for decorative purposes. ''Prunus'' fruit are drupes, or stone fruits. The fleshy mesocarp surrounding the endocarp is edible while the endocarp itself forms a hard, inedible shell called the pyrena ("stone" or "pit"). This shell encloses the seed (or "kernel") which is edible in many species (such as almonds) but poisonous in others (such as apricots). Besides being eaten off the hand, most ''Prunus'' fruit are also commonly used in processing, such as jam production, canning, drying, and seeds for roasting. Botany Members of the genus can be deciduous or evergreen. A few species ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quercus
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' Lithocarpus'' (stone oaks), as well as in those of unrelated species such as ''Grevillea robusta'' (silky oaks) and the Casuarinaceae (she-oaks). The genus ''Quercus'' is native to the Northern Hemisphere, and includes deciduous and evergreen species extending from cool temperate to tropical latitudes in the Americas, Asia, Europe, and North Africa. North America has the largest number of oak species, with approximately 160 species in Mexico of which 109 are endemic and about 90 in the United States. The second greatest area of oak diversity is China, with approximately 100 species. Description Oaks have spirally arranged leaves, with lobate margins in many species; some have serrated leaves or entire leaves with smooth margins. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ceanothus
''Ceanothus'' is a genus of about 50–60 species of Actinorhizal plant, nitrogen-fixing shrubs and small trees in the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae). Common names for members of this genus are buckbrush, California lilac, soap bush, or just ceanothus. ''"Ceanothus"'' comes from grc, κεάνωθος (''keanōthos''), which was applied by Theophrastus (371–287 BC) to an Old World plant believed to be ''Cirsium arvense''. The genus is native to North America with the highest diversity on the western coast. Some species (e.g., ''Ceanothus americanus, C. americanus'') are restricted to the eastern United States and southeast Canada, and others (e.g., ''Ceanothus caeruleus, C. caeruleus'') extend as far south as Guatemala. Most are shrubs tall, but ''Ceanothus arboreus, C. arboreus'' and ''Ceanothus thyrsiflorus, C. thyrsiflorus'', both native to California, can be small multi-trunked trees up to tall. Taxonomy and etymology There are two subgenera within this genus: ''Ceanothus' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lycaenidae
Lycaenidae is the second-largest family of butterflies (behind Nymphalidae, brush-footed butterflies), with over 6,000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies. They constitute about 30% of the known butterfly species. The family comprises seven subfamilies, including the blues (Polyommatinae), the coppers (Lycaeninae), the hairstreaks (Theclinae), and the harvesters (Miletinae). Description, food, and life cycle Adults are small, under 5 cm usually, and brightly coloured, sometimes with a metallic gloss. Larvae are often flattened rather than cylindrical, with glands that may produce secretions that attract and subdue ants. Their cuticles tend to be thickened. Some larvae are capable of producing vibrations and low sounds that are transmitted through the substrates they inhabit. They use these sounds to communicate with ants.Pierce, N. E.; Braby, M. F.; Heath, A.; Lohman, D. J.; Mathew, J.; Rand, D. B. & Travassos, M. A. (2002)"The eco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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