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Knysna Banana Frog
The Knysna banana frog (''Afrixalus knysnae'') is a species of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. It is endemic to South Africa. Habitat Its natural habitats are temperate forests, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, arable land, water storage areas, and ponds. It is threatened by habitat loss. The Knysna banana frog is a species known from around 7 locations at low altitude (< 250 m asl) on the south coast of South Africa on either side of the border between the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces. To the extent of scientists knowledge we know that the occurrence rate is 1,756 km². The area of occupancy has not been formally calculated but is known to be declining as some sites (like Covie) are presumed lost as no adults or tadpoles have been found there for at least three years. Although some sites are pristine, others are threatened by alien vegetation. Banana frogs are native to South Africa (Eastern ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Afrixalus Knysnae - Corne Brink
''Afrixalus'', commonly known as the banana frogs, spiny reed frogs, cat's eye reed frogs, or leaf-folding frogs, is a genus of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. They occur in the Subsaharan Africa. They lay their eggs in vegetation above water, often folding leaves around the eggs for protection—hence the common name "leaf-folding frogs". Species The following species are recognised in the genus ''Afrixalus '': The AmphibiaWeb lists 31 species. It does not include ''Afrixalus "quadrivittatus" ''Afrixalus'', commonly known as the banana frogs, spiny reed frogs, cat's eye reed frogs, or leaf-folding frogs, is a genus of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. They occur in the Subsaharan Africa. They lay their eggs in vegetation above water, ...'', and does not recognize '' Afrixalus brachycnemis'' as a full species. References Hyperoliidae Amphibian genera Amphibians of Sub-Saharan Africa Taxa named by Raymond Laurent Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Hy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Urban Development
Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people with the given name or surname * ''Urban'' (newspaper), a Danish free daily newspaper * Urban contemporary music, a radio music format * Urban Outfitters, an American multinational lifestyle retail corporation * Urban Records, a German record label owned by Universal Music Group Place names in the United States * Urban, South Dakota, a ghost town * Urban, Washington, an unincorporated community See also * Pope Urban (other) Pope Urban may refer to one of several popes of the Catholic denomination: *Pope Urban I, pope c. 222–230, a Saint * Pope Urban II, pope 1088–1099, the Blessed Pope Urban *Pope Urban III, pope 1185–1187 *Pope Urban IV, pope 1261–1264 *Pope ..., the name of several popes of the Catholic Church * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic Amphibians Of South Africa
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, the Cape sugarbird is found exclusively in southwestern South Africa and is therefore said to be ''endemic'' to that particular part of the world. An endemic species can be also be referred to as an ''endemism'' or in scientific literature as an ''endemite''. For example '' Cytisus aeolicus'' is an endemite of the Italian flora. '' Adzharia renschi'' was once believed to be an endemite of the Caucasus, but it was later discovered to be a non-indigenous species from South America belonging to a different genus. The extreme opposite of an endemic species is one with a cosmopolitan distribution, having a global or widespread range. A rare alternative term for a species that is endemic is "precinctive", which applies to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Afrixalus
''Afrixalus'', commonly known as the banana frogs, spiny reed frogs, cat's eye reed frogs, or leaf-folding frogs, is a genus of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. They occur in the Subsaharan Africa. They lay their eggs in vegetation above water, often folding leaves around the eggs for protection—hence the common name "leaf-folding frogs". Species The following species are recognised in the genus ''Afrixalus '': The AmphibiaWeb lists 31 species. It does not include ''Afrixalus "quadrivittatus" ''Afrixalus'', commonly known as the banana frogs, spiny reed frogs, cat's eye reed frogs, or leaf-folding frogs, is a genus of frog in the family Hyperoliidae The Hyperoliidae, or sedge frogs and bush frogs, are a large family of small to me ...'', and does not recognize '' Afrixalus brachycnemis'' as a full species. References Hyperoliidae Amphibian genera Amphibians of Sub-Saharan Africa Taxa named by Raymond Laurent Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Hyp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Environmental Stress
Stress, either physiological, biological or psychological, is an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition. Stress is the body's method of reacting to a condition such as a threat, challenge or physical and psychological barrier. There are two hormones that an individual produces during a stressful situation, these are well known as adrenaline and cortisol. There are two kinds of stress hormone levels. Resting (basal) cortisol levels are normal everyday quantities that are essential for standard functioning. Reactive cortisol levels are increases in cortisol in response to stressors. Stimuli that alter an organism's environment are responded to by multiple systems in the body. In humans and most mammals, the autonomic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis are the two major systems that respond to stress. The sympathoadrenal medullary (SAM) axis may activate the fight-or-flight response through the sympathetic nervous sys ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chemical Pollution
A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., without breaking chemical bonds. Chemical substances can be simple substances (substances consisting of a single chemical element), chemical compounds, or alloys. Chemical substances are often called 'pure' to set them apart from mixtures. A common example of a chemical substance is pure water; it has the same properties and the same ratio of hydrogen to oxygen whether it is isolated from a river or made in a laboratory. Other chemical substances commonly encountered in pure form are diamond (carbon), gold, table salt (sodium chloride) and refined sugar (sucrose). However, in practice, no substance is entirely pure, and chemical purity is specified according to the intended use of the chemical. Chemical substances exist as solids, liquids, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agricultural Expansion
Agricultural expansion describes the growth of agricultural land (arable land, pastures, etc.) especially in the 20th and 21st centuries. The agricultural expansion is often explained as a direct consequence of the global increase in food and energy requirements due to continuing population growth (both which in turn have been attributed to agricultural expansion itself), with an estimated expectation of 10 to 11 billion humans on Earth by end of this century. It is foreseen that most of the world's non-agrarian ecosystems (terrestrial and aquatic) will be affected adversely, from habitat loss, land degradation, overexploitation, and other problems. The intensified food (and biofuel) production will in particular affect the tropical regions. Most modern agriculture relies on intensive methods. Further expansion of the predominant farming types that rest on a small number of highly productive crops has led to a significant loss of biodiversity on a global scale already. More ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Invasive Vegetation
An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native species that become harmful to their native environment after human alterations to its food webfor example the purple sea urchin (''Strongylocentrotus purpuratus'') which has decimated kelp forests along the northern California coast due to overharvesting of its natural predator, the California sea otter (''Enhydra lutris''). Since the 20th century, invasive species have become a serious economic, social, and environmental threat. Invasion of long-established ecosystems by organisms is a natural phenomenon, but human-facilitated introductions have greatly increased the rate, scale, and geographic range of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Afforestation
Afforestation is the establishment of a forest or stand of trees (forestation) in an area where there was no previous tree cover. Many government and non-governmental organizations directly engage in afforestation programs to create forests and increase carbon capture. Afforestation is an increasingly sought-after method to fight climate concerns, as it is known to increase the soil quality and organic carbon levels into the soil, avoiding desertification. Afforestation is mainly done for conservational and commercial purposes. # The rate of net forest loss decreased substantially over the period 1990–2020 due to a reduction in deforestation in some countries, plus increases in forest area in others through afforestation and the natural expansion of forests. A 2019 study of the global potential for tree restoration showed that there is space for at least 9 million km2 of new forests worldwide, which is a 25% increase from current conditions. This forested area could store up ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Habitat Loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby reducing biodiversity and species abundance. Habitat destruction is the leading cause of biodiversity loss. Fragmentation and loss of habitat have become one of the most important topics of research in ecology as they are major threats to the survival of endangered species. Activities such as harvesting natural resources, industrial production and urbanization are human contributions to habitat destruction. Pressure from agriculture is the principal human cause. Some others include mining, logging, trawling, and urban sprawl. Habitat destruction is currently considered the primary cause of species extinction worldwide. Environmental factors can contribute to habitat destruction more indirectly. Geological processes, climate change, introdu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frog
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" ''Triadobatrachus'' is known from the Early Triassic of Madagascar, but molecular clock, molecular clock dating suggests their split from other amphibians may extend further back to the Permian, 265 Myr, million years ago. Frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is in tropical rainforest. Frogs account for around 88% of extant amphibian species. They are also one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. Warty frog species tend to be called toads, but the distinction between frogs and toads is informal, not from Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy or evolutionary history. An adult frog has a stout body, protruding eyes, anteriorly-attached tongue, limb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pond
A pond is an area filled with water, either natural or artificial, that is smaller than a lake. Defining them to be less than in area, less than deep, and with less than 30% emergent vegetation helps in distinguishing their ecology from that of lakes and wetlands.Clegg, J. (1986). Observer's Book of Pond Life. Frederick Warne, London Ponds can be created by a wide variety of natural processes (e.g. on floodplains as cutoff river channels, by glacial processes, by peatland formation, in coastal dune systems, by beavers), or they can simply be isolated depressions (such as a kettle hole, vernal pool, prairie pothole, or simply natural undulations in undrained land) filled by runoff, groundwater, or precipitation, or all three of these. They can be further divided into four zones: vegetation zone, open water, bottom mud and surface film. The size and depth of ponds often varies greatly with the time of year; many ponds are produced by spring flooding from rivers. Ponds may be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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