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Fouquieriaceae
''Fouquieria'' is a genus of 11 species of desert plants, the sole genus in the Family (biology), family Fouquieriaceae. The genus includes the ocotillo (''Fouquieria splendens, F. splendens'') and the Boojum tree or cirio (''Fouquieria columnaris, F. columnaris''). They have semisucculent stems with thinner spikes projecting from them, with leaf, leaves on the bases spikes. They are unrelated to cactus, cacti and do not look much like them; their stems are proportionately thinner than cactus stems and their leaves are larger. Taxonomy Taxonomic history ''Fouquieria'' species do not have a particularly close resemblance to any other sort of plants; genetic evidence has shown they belong in the Ericales. Before this, they had been variously placed in the Violales or their own order, Fouquieriales. The Seri people identify three species of ''Fouquieria'' in their area of Mexico: ''jomjéeziz'' or ''xomjéeziz'' (''Fouquieria splendens, F. splendens''), ''jomjéeziz caacöl'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fouquieria Diguetii
''Fouquieria diguetii'', known by the common names Adam's tree and palo Adán, is a plant in the family Fouquieriaceae native to the southern half of the Baja California Peninsula, and the coasts of Sonora and Sinaloa. It is a semi-succulent and deciduous plant related to the ocotillo and the Boojum tree. It is distinguished by its bright red, tubular flowers, a shrub to small tree habit, and conical, paniculate inflorescences. Description Morphology This plant is a deciduous shrub arising from a short, thick trunk with branches covered in spines. It grows between 1.8 to 3 meters tall. The leaves are dark green and elliptic, and can be up to 2 cm long. The flowers are bright red in color, and attract hummingbirds. File:Fouquieriadiguetii.jpg, Detail of the trunk File:Fouquieria diguetii 173723655.jpg, Flowering among deciduous stems File:Fouquieria diguetii 27367459.jpg, Detail of inflorescence File:Fouquieria diguetii 27367456.jpg, Plants with leaves Taxonomy Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boojum Tree
''Fouquieria columnaris'', the Boojum tree or ''cirio'' () is a tree in the ocotillo family,(Fouquieriaceae) whose other members include the ocotillos. Some taxonomists place it in the separate genus ''Idria''. It is nearly endemic to the Baja California Peninsula (both the northern and southern states), with only a small population in the Sierra Bacha of Sonora, Mexico. The plant's English name, Boojum, was given by Godfrey Sykes of the Desert Laboratory in Tucson, Arizona and is taken from Lewis Carroll's poem "The Hunting of the Snark". Description This plant is a columniform, upwardly tapering tree. The central axis of the plant is homologous to the single stem of other species. It has a cortical water-storage network, a feature unique to the family. The ''Fouquieria columnaris'' trunk is up to 24 inches (61 centimeters) thick, off-white in color, with few or no major branches and with numerous thin, twiggy branches sticking out at right angles, all covered with small le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fouquieria Columnaris
''Fouquieria columnaris'', the Boojum tree or ''cirio'' () is a tree in the ocotillo family,(Fouquieriaceae) whose other members include the ocotillos. Some taxonomists place it in the separate genus ''Idria''. It is nearly endemic to the Baja California Peninsula (both the northern and southern states), with only a small population in the Sierra Bacha of Sonora, Mexico. The plant's English name, Boojum, was given by Godfrey Sykes of the Desert Laboratory in Tucson, Arizona and is taken from Lewis Carroll's poem "The Hunting of the Snark". Description This plant is a columniform, upwardly tapering tree. The central axis of the plant is homologous to the single stem of other species. It has a cortical water-storage network, a feature unique to the family. The ''Fouquieria columnaris'' trunk is up to 24 inches (61 centimeters) thick, off-white in color, with few or no major branches and with numerous thin, twiggy branches sticking out at right angles, all covered with small le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Violales
Violales is a botanical name of an order of flowering plants and takes its name from the included family Violaceae; it was proposed by Lindley (1853). The name has been used in several systems, although some systems used the name Parietales for similar groupings. In the 1981 version of the influential Cronquist system, order Violales was placed in subclass Dilleniidae with a circumscription consisting of the families listed below. Some classifications such as that of Dahlgren placed the Violales in the superorder Violiflorae (also called Violanae). The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) system does not recognize order Violales; Violaceae is placed in order Malpighiales and the other families are reassigned to various orders as indicated. * order Violales Perleb 1826 *: family Achariaceae → order Malpighiales *: family Ancistrocladaceae → order Caryophyllales *: family Begoniaceae → order Cucurbitales *: family Bixaceae → order Malvales *: family Caricaceae → orde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ericales
The Ericales are a large and diverse order of dicotyledons. Species in this order have considerable commercial importance including for Camellia sinensis, tea, persimmon, blueberry, kiwifruit, Brazil nuts, Argania, argan, and azalea. The order includes trees, shrub, bushes, lianas, and herbaceous plants. Together with ordinary Photosynthesis, autophytic plants, the Ericales include chlorophyll-deficient mycoheterotrophic plants (e.g., ''Sarcodes sanguinea'') and carnivorous plants (e.g., genus ''Sarracenia''). Many species have five petals, often grown together. Fusion of the petals as a trait was traditionally used to place the order in the subclass Sympetalae. Mycorrhiza, Mycorrhizal associations are quite common among the order representatives, and three kinds of mycorrhiza are found exclusively among Ericales (namely, ericoid, arbutoid and monotropoid mycorrhiza). In addition, some families among the order are notable for their exceptional ability to accumulate aluminum. Er ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fouquieria Shrevei
''Fouquieria shrevei'' is a plant species native to the States of Coahuila and Durango states of northeastern Mexico. It is simply referred to as an ocotillo. It is endemic to some scattered gypsum outcroppings in the Bolsón de Mapimí, where the low rainfall, hot climate and gypseous soil work to create a restrictive environment. It has flowers with short, white corollas that distinguish it from the nearby ''Fouquieria splendens''. Description ''Fouquieria shrevei'' is a shrub up to tall, branching repeatedly near the base but hardly at all above. Leaves are ovate to oblanceolate, up to long and wide, with scarious (thin, dry and brown) margins. Flowers are white, born in short racemes in the axils of the leaves. The board leaves plus the axillary racemes of white flowers make this a distinctive and unusual member of the genus. Etymology Because this species occurs sympatric with ''Fouquieria splendens'', the plant is not distinguished and is simply referred to as an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Succulent
In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meaning "juice" or "sap". Succulent plants may store water in various structures, such as leaves and stems. The water content of some succulent organs can get up to 90–95%, such as '' Glottiphyllum semicyllindricum'' and '' Mesembryanthemum barkleyii''. Some definitions also include roots, thus geophytes that survive unfavorable periods by dying back to underground storage organs may be regarded as succulents. The habitats of these water-preserving plants are often in areas with high temperatures and low rainfall, such as deserts, but succulents may be found even in alpine ecosystems growing in rocky soil. Succulents are characterized by their ability to thrive on limited water sources, such as mist and dew, which makes them equipped to s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carpenter Bee
Carpenter bees are species in the genus ''Xylocopa'' of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant material such as dead wood or bamboo. The main exceptions are species in the subgenus '' Proxylocopa''; they dig nesting tunnels in suitable soil. Etymology The French entomologist Pierre André Latreille described the genus in 1802. He derived the name from the Ancient Greek ''xylokopos''/ξυλοκὀπος "wood-cutter". Characteristics Many species in this enormous genus are difficult to tell apart; most species are all black, or primarily black with some yellow or white pubescence. Some differ only in subtle morphological features, such as details of the male genitalia. Males of some species differ confusingly from the females, being covered in greenish-yellow fur. The confusion of species arises particularly in the common names; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peacock Mite
The peacock mites of the genus ''Tuckerella'' ( the only genus of the mite family Tuckerellidae) are a significant herbivorous pest in the tropics, for example on citrus fruit. Other species dwell in grasses, possibly as root feeders. The peacock mite's name suggests that their feather-like (or leaf-like) setae adorning their backs are evocative of a peacock's plumage. They also have long hair-like setae projecting from rear ( caudal setae) that have been compared to a trailing peacock tail. The 5–7 pairs of caudal setae can be flicked over the body very quickly, so they are used like whips in defense against predators. They may also help in wind-borne dispersal. They are classified in the superfamily Tetranychoidea, being its most ornate members. Species * ''Tuckerella anommata'' Smith-Meyer & Ueckermann, 1997 (South Africa) * ''Tuckerella channabasavannai'' Mallik & Kumar, 1992 (host: ''Saraca indica''; Andhra Pradesh) * ''Tuckerella eloisae'' Servin & Otero, 1989 (host ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuckerella Eloisae
The peacock mites of the genus ''Tuckerella'' ( the only genus of the mite family Tuckerellidae) are a significant herbivorous pest in the tropics, for example on citrus fruit. Other species dwell in grasses, possibly as root feeders. The peacock mite's name suggests that their feather-like (or leaf-like) setae adorning their backs are evocative of a peacock's plumage. They also have long hair-like setae projecting from rear ( caudal setae) that have been compared to a trailing peacock tail. The 5–7 pairs of caudal setae can be flicked over the body very quickly, so they are used like whips in defense against predators. They may also help in wind-borne dispersal. They are classified in the superfamily Tetranychoidea, being its most ornate members. Species * ''Tuckerella anommata'' Smith-Meyer & Ueckermann, 1997 (South Africa) * '' Tuckerella channabasavannai'' Mallik & Kumar, 1992 (host: '' Saraca indica''; Andhra Pradesh) * '' Tuckerella eloisae'' Servin & Otero, 1989 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics around the equator. They are small birds, with most species measuring in length. The smallest extant hummingbird species is the bee hummingbird, which weighs less than . The largest hummingbird species is the giant hummingbird, weighing . They are specialized for feeding on flower nectar, but all species also consume flying insects or spiders. Hummingbirds split from their sister group, the swifts and treeswifts, around 42 million years ago. The common ancestor of extant hummingbirds is estimated to have lived 22 million years ago in South America. They are known as hummingbirds because of the humming sound created by their beating wings, which flap at high frequencies audible to humans. They hover in mid-air at rapid wing-flapping rate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gypsum
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywall. Alabaster, a fine-grained white or lightly tinted variety of gypsum, has been used for sculpture by many cultures including Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Ancient Rome, the Byzantine Empire, and the Nottingham alabasters of Medieval England. Gypsum also crystallizes as translucent crystals of selenite. It forms as an evaporite mineral and as a hydration product of anhydrite. The Mohs scale of mineral hardness defines gypsum as hardness value 2 based on scratch hardness comparison. Etymology and history The word ''gypsum'' is derived from the Greek word (), "plaster". Because the quarries of the Montmartre district of Paris have long furnished burnt gypsum (calcined gypsum) used for various purposes, this dehydrated gypsum became known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
