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Meadow Argus
The meadow argus (''Junonia villida'') is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae, commonly found in Australia and Nelsons Island. It is also known as Albin's Hampstead eye in the United Kingdom, where it has occurred only as an accidental import. Description The meadow argus has two brownish wings, each covered with two distinctive black and blue eyespots as well as white and orange marks that appear on the edge of the wings. The eyespots are a defense mechanism that are not only used to frighten predators away, but also to confuse the predators into thinking that the eyespots are the target, allowing the butterfly to escape with only a small part of the wing being lost. The underside of the wings are mainly unmarked, except the lower part of the forewing has similar markings as the upperside. The wingspan measures 4 centimetres (1.6 in) in males and 4.3 centimetres (1.7) in females. As the butterfly rests, it can sit in four different positions depending on the current si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johan Christian Fabricius
Johan Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is considered one of the most important entomologists of the 18th century, having named nearly 10,000 species of animals, and established the basis for the modern insect classification. Biography Johan Christian Fabricius was born on 7 January 1745 at Tønder in the Duchy of Schleswig, where his father was a doctor. He studied at the gymnasium at Altona and entered the University of Copenhagen in 1762. Later the same year he travelled together with his friend and relative Johan Zoëga to Uppsala, where he studied under Carl Linnaeus for two years. On his return, he started work on his , which was finally published in 1775. Throughout this time, he remained dependent on subsidies from his father, who worked as a consultant at Frederiks Hospita ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuvalu
Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Vanuatu, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, and north of Fiji. Tuvalu is composed of three reef islands and six atolls. They are spread out between the latitude of 5th parallel south, 5° and 10th parallel south, 10° south and between the longitude of 176th meridian east, 176° and 180th meridian, 180°. They lie west of the International Date Line. Tuvalu has a population of 10,507 (2017 census). The total land area of the islands of Tuvalu is . The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesians, according to well-established theories regarding a History of the Polynesian people, migration of Polynes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pupae
A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages thereof being egg, larva, pupa, and imago. The processes of entering and completing the pupal stage are controlled by the insect's hormones, especially juvenile hormone, prothoracicotropic hormone, and ecdysone. The act of becoming a pupa is called pupation, and the act of emerging from the pupal case is called eclosion or emergence. The pupae of different groups of insects have different names such as ''chrysalis'' for the pupae of butterflies and ''tumbler'' for those of the mosquito family. Pupae may further be enclosed in other structures such as cocoons, nests, or shells. Position in life cycle The pupal stage follows the larval stage and precedes adulthood (''imago'') in insects with complete metamorphosi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gentianaceae
Gentianaceae is a family of flowering plants of 103 genera and about 1600 species. Etymology The family takes its name from the genus '' Gentiana'', named after the Illyrian king Gentius. Distribution Distribution is cosmopolitan. Characteristics The family consists of trees, shrubs and herbs showing a wide range of colours and floral patterns. Flowers are actinomorphic and bisexual with fused sepals and petals. The stamens are attached to the inside of the petals ( epipetalous) and alternate with the corolla lobes. There is a glandular disk at the base of the gynoecium, and flowers have parietal placentation. The inflorescence is cymose, with simple or complex cymes. The fruits are dehiscent septicidal capsules splitting into two halves, rarely some species have a berry. Seeds are small with copiously oily endosperms and a straight embryo. The habit varies from small trees, pachycaul shrubs to (usually) herbs, with ascending, erect or twining stems. Plants are usually ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Verbenaceae
The Verbenaceae ( ), the verbena family or vervain family, is a family of mainly tropical flowering plants. It contains trees, shrubs, and herbs notable for heads, spikes, or clusters of small flowers, many of which have an aromatic smell. The family Verbenaceae includes 32 genera and 800 species. Phylogenetic studies have shown that numerous genera traditionally classified in Verbenaceae belong instead in Lamiaceae. The mangrove genus ''Avicennia'', sometimes placed in the Verbenaceae or in its own family, Avicenniaceae, has been placed in the Acanthaceae. Economically important Verbenaceae include: * Lemon verbena (''Aloysia triphylla''), grown for aroma or flavoring * Verbenas or vervains (''Verbena''), some used in herbalism, others grown in gardens Taxonomy Tribes and genera in the family and their estimated species numbers: Casselieae (Schauer) Tronc. * '' Casselia'' Nees & Mart. - 6 species * '' Parodianthus'' Tronc. - 2 species * ''Tamonea'' Aubl. - 6 species Ci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compositae
The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae were first described in the year 1740. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger family is unclear as the quantity of extant species in each family is unknown. Most species of Asteraceae are annual, biennial, or perennial herbaceous plants, but there are also shrubs, vines, and trees. The family has a widespread distribution, from subpolar to tropical regions in a wide variety of habitats. Most occur in hot desert and cold or hot semi-desert climates, and they are found on every continent but Antarctica. The primary common characteristic is the existence of sometimes hundreds of tiny individual florets which are held together by protective involucres in flower heads, or more technically ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Convolvulaceae
Convolvulaceae (), commonly called the bindweeds or morning glories, is a family of about 60 genera and more than 1,650 species. These species are primarily herbaceous vines, but also include trees, shrubs and herbs. The tubers of several species are edible, the best known of which is the sweet potato. Description Convolvulaceae can be recognized by their funnel-shaped, radially symmetrical corolla; the floral formula for the family has five sepals, five fused petals, five epipetalous stamens (stamens fused to the petals), and a two-part syncarpous and superior gynoecium. The stems of these plants are usually winding, hence their Latin name (from ''convolvere'', "to wind"). The leaves are simple and alternate, without stipules. In parasitic Cuscuta (dodder) they are reduced to scales. The fruit can be a capsule, berry, or nut, all containing only two seeds per one locule (one ovule/ovary). The leaves and starchy, tuberous roots of some species are used as foodstuffs (e.g. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scrophulariaceae
The Scrophulariaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the figwort family. The plants are annual and perennial herbs, as well as shrubs. Flowers have bilateral (zygomorphic) or rarely radial (actinomorphic) symmetry. The Scrophulariaceae have a cosmopolitan distribution, with the majority found in temperate areas, including tropical mountains. The family name is based on the name of the included genus ''Scrophularia'' L. Taxonomy In the past, it was treated as including about 275 genera and over 5,000 species, but its circumscription has been radically altered since numerous molecular phylogenies have shown the traditional broad circumscription to be grossly polyphyletic. Many genera have recently been transferred to other families within the Lamiales, notably Plantaginaceae and Orobanchaceae, but also several new families. - on linhere/ref> Several families of the Lamiales have had their circumscriptions enlarged to accommodate genera transferred from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plantago
''Plantago'' is a genus of about 200 species of flowering plants in the family Plantaginaceae, commonly called plantains or fleaworts. The common name plantain is shared with the unrelated cooking plantain. Most are herbaceous plants, though a few are subshrubs growing to tall. Description The leaves are sessile or have a poorly defined petiole. They have three or five parallel veins that diverge in the wider part of the leaf. Leaves are broad or narrow, depending on the species. The inflorescences are borne on stalks typically tall, and can be a short cone or a long spike, with numerous tiny wind-pollinated flowers. Species The boundaries of the genus ''Plantago'' have been fairly stable, with the main question being whether to include ''Bougueria'' (one species from the Andes) and ''Littorella'' (2–3 species of aquatic plants).Albach, D. C., Meudt, H. M. & Oxelman, B. 2005Piecing together the "new" Plantaginaceae ''American Journal of Botany'' 92: 297–315. There are a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caterpillars
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Symphyta) are commonly called caterpillars as well. Both lepidopteran and symphytan larvae have eruciform body shapes. Caterpillars of most species eat plant material ( often leaves), but not all; some (about 1%) eat insects, and some are even cannibalistic. Some feed on other animal products. For example, clothes moths feed on wool, and horn moths feed on the hooves and horns of dead ungulates. Caterpillars are typically voracious feeders and many of them are among the most serious of agricultural pests. In fact, many moth species are best known in their caterpillar stages because of the damage they cause to fruits and other agricultural produce, whereas the moths are obscure and do no direct harm. Conversely, various species of caterpilla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The larva's appearance is generally very different from the adult form (''e.g.'' caterpillars and butterflies) including different unique structures and organs that do not occur in the adult form. Their diet may also be considerably different. Larvae are frequently adapted to different environments than adults. For example, some larvae such as tadpoles live almost exclusively in aquatic environments, but can live outside water as adult frogs. By living in a distinct environment, larvae may be given shelter from predators and reduce competition for resources with the adult population. Animals in the larval stage will consume food to fuel their transition into the adult form. In some organisms like polychaetes and barnacles, adults are immobil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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