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Mandrinette
''Hibiscus fragilis'', the mandrinette, is an extremely rare shrub that is endemic to steep slopes of the mountains Corps de Garde and Le Morne Brabant on Mauritius and from two further plants on Rodrigues. The mandrinette is an evergreen plant with flowers 7–10 cm diameter with five bright pink to carmine red petals. The mandrinette looks rather similar to the Chinese hibiscus (''Hibiscus rosa-sinensis'') and the introduction of that to Mauritius as a garden plant is one of the main reasons for the dramatic decline of the mandrinette. Only 46 mature individuals exist in the wild but they are not able to reproduce due to competition from and hybridisation with this invasive ''Hibiscus'' species. There are currently 200 plants in nurseries. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is attempting to reproduce seedlings of the species, with the help of Ex-situ conservation, for reintroduction into the wild now that efforts to remove the invasive hibiscus have been successful. In 1970 An ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Corps De Garde
Corps de Garde (translation: ''Guard Corpse'') is a 720-metre-high mountain of volcanic origin, in the area Palma in the Black River district of Mauritius. The name derived from the fact that a French military post was once established on its slope to control the bands of runaway slaves. This basaltic rock formation has an imposing appearance which is characterized by an abruptly breakup of the slope towards the sea. It is resembling a figure of a guard with its beret sleeping on his abdomen and looking forward. It is also famous for a nature reserve of about 90.33 ha with a very rare flora such as ''Trochetia parviflora'' which was rediscovered on a mountain slope in 2001, '' Pilea trilobata'' which was rediscovered in 2005 and the Mandrinette. On the foot of that hill are the towns of Beau Bassin-Rose Hill and Quatre Bornes Quatre Bornes () also known as ''La Ville des Fleurs'' (The City of Flowers), is a town in Mauritius, located in the Plaines Wilhems District, the western ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Le Morne Brabant
Le Morne Brabant is a peninsula at the extreme southwestern tip of the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius on the western side of the island. It is highlighted by an eponymous basaltic monolith with a summit above sea level. The summit covers an area of over . There are many caves and overhangs on the steep slopes. It is largely surrounded by a lagoon and is a well known tourist attraction. It is also a refuge for two rare plants, the Mandrinette and the Boucle d'Oreille. The peninsula of Le Morne benefits from a micro-climate. The mountain is named after the VOC-ship (Dutch East India Company) ''Brabant'' that ran aground there on 29 December 1783 on the cliffs. Le Morne Brabant Mountain was submitted to the candidate list of the World Heritage Sites in 2003. In 2008, the nomination process concluded when UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage List. Peninsula The peninsula is steeped in cultural "myth and legend" in the early 19th century as a suggested refuge for Maroo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple stems and shorter height, less than tall. Small shrubs, less than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall are sometimes termed as subshrubs. Many botanical groups have species that are shrubs, and others that are trees and herbaceous plants instead. Some definitions state that a shrub is less than and a tree is over 6 m. Others use as the cut-off point for classification. Many species of tree may not reach this mature height because of hostile less than ideal growing conditions, and resemble a shrub-sized plant. However, such species have the potential to grow taller under the ideal growing conditions for that plant. In terms of longevity, most shrubs fit in a class between perennials and trees; some may only last about five y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Invasive Species
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] |
Hibiscus
''Hibiscus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. The genus is quite large, comprising several hundred species that are native to warm temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world. Member species are renowned for their large, showy flowers and those species are commonly known simply as "hibiscus", or less widely known as rose mallow. Other names include hardy hibiscus, rose of sharon, and tropical hibiscus. The genus includes both annual and perennial herbaceous plants, as well as woody shrubs and small trees. The generic name is derived from the Greek name ἰβίσκος (''ibískos'') which Pedanius Dioscorides gave to ''Althaea officinalis'' ( 40–90 AD). Several species are widely cultivated as ornamental plants, notably ''Hibiscus syriacus'' and ''Hibiscus rosa-sinensis''. A tea made from hibiscus flowers is known by many names around the world and is served both hot and cold. The beverage is known for its red colour, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Modern Photography
''Modern Photography'' was a popular American photo magazine published and internationally distributed for 52 years from New York City. An unrelated ''Modern Photography'' magazine was published in Taiwan from 1976. History ''Minicam'' The original magazine, ''Minicam,'' "The Miniature Camera Monthly," was launched September 1937 (Volume 1, No. 1) by the Cleveland publisher, Automobile Digest Publishing Company. By September 1940, the magazine was called ''Minicam Photography'', then, in 1949, ''Modern Photography.'' Minicam was devoted to what was then considered the amateur 35mm "miniature" camera format. It was produced in Cincinnati and appeared only a few months after the launch in 1937 of ''Popular Photography.'' Thenceforth the two publications remained fiercely competitive rivals, though the latter was to achieve about twice ''Minicam's'' 110,000 circulation. ''Minicam'' was first edited by George R. Hoxie (1907–1984), art photographer and portraitist of Basil Rat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationship between artistic expression, advertising, and celebrity culture that flourished by the 1960s, and span a variety of media, including painting, silkscreening, photography, film, and sculpture. Some of his best-known works include the silkscreen paintings '' Campbell's Soup Cans'' (1962) and ''Marilyn Diptych'' (1962), the experimental films ''Empire'' (1964) and ''Chelsea Girls'' (1966), and the multimedia events known as the '' Exploding Plastic Inevitable'' (1966–67). Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Warhol initially pursued a successful career as a commercial illustrator. After exhibiting his work in several galleries in the late 1950s, he began to receive recognition as an influential and controversial artist. His New York studio, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ex-situ Conservation
Svalbard GLOBAL SEED BANK, an ''ex situ'' conservation. ''Ex situ'' conservation literally means, "off-site conservation". It is the process of protecting an endangered species, variety or breed, of plant or animal outside its natural habitat; for example, by removing part of the population from a threatened habitat and placing it in a new location, an artificial environment which is similar to the natural habitat of the respective animal and within the care of humans, example are zoological parks and wildlife safaris. The degree to which humans control or modify the natural dynamics of the managed population varies widely, and this may include alteration of living environments, reproductive patterns, access to resources, and protection from predation and mortality. ''Ex situ'' management can occur within or outside a species' natural geographic range. Individuals maintained ''ex situ'' exist outside an ecological niche. This means that they are not under the same selection pres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 staff. Its board of trustees is chaired by Dame Amelia Fawcett. The organisation manages botanic gardens at Kew in Richmond upon Thames in south-west London, and at Wakehurst, a National Trust property in Sussex which is home to the internationally important Millennium Seed Bank, whose scientists work with partner organisations in more than 95 countries. Kew, jointly with the Forestry Commission, founded Bedgebury National Pinetum in Kent in 1923, specialising in growing conifers. In 1994, the Castle Howard Arboretum Trust, which runs the Yorkshire Arboretum, was formed as a partnership between Kew and the Castle Howard Estate. In 2019, the organisation had 2,316,699 public visitors at Kew, and 312,813 at Wakehurst. Its site at Kew ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Hibiscus
''Hibiscus rosa-sinensis'', known colloquially as Chinese hibiscus, China rose, Hawaiian hibiscus, rose mallow and shoeblack plant, is a species of tropical hibiscus, a flowering plant in the Hibisceae tribe of the family Malvaceae. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant in the tropics and subtropics, but its native range is Vanuatu. Description Tree and leaves ''Hibiscus rosa-sinensis'' is a bushy, evergreen shrub or small tree growing tall and wide. The plant has a branched taproot. Its stem is aerial, erect, green, cylindrical, and branched. Its leaves are simple and petiolate, with alternate ''phyllotaxy''. The leaf shape is ovate, the tip is acute, and the margin is serrated. ''Venation'' is unicostate reticulate, meaning the leaves' veins are branched or divergent. Its surface is glossy. Free lateral stipules are present. Flowers Its flowers bloom in summer and autumn. They are solitary ( axillary) and symmetrical. They are typically red, with fiv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hybrid (biology)
In biology, a hybrid is the offspring resulting from combining the qualities of two organisms of different breeds, varieties, species or genera through sexual reproduction. Hybrids are not always intermediates between their parents (such as in blending inheritance), but can show hybrid vigor, sometimes growing larger or taller than either parent. The concept of a hybrid is interpreted differently in animal and plant breeding, where there is interest in the individual parentage. In genetics, attention is focused on the numbers of chromosomes. In taxonomy, a key question is how closely related the parent species are. Species are reproductively isolated by strong barriers to hybridisation, which include genetic and morphological differences, differing times of fertility, mating behaviors and cues, and physiological rejection of sperm cells or the developing embryo. Some act before fertilization and others after it. Similar barriers exist in plants, with differences in flowering tim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic
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] |
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