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Norman Leddy Memorial Gardens
The Norman Leddy Memorial Gardens in Hayes is one of Hillingdon Borough's designated gardens of excellence. In September 2010, the Gardens earned a gold award for ''Best London Small Park'' in the London in Bloom competition. The Gardens, which covers , is situated about south of the Uxbridge Road, at its junction with Grange Road. There are four entrances to the Gardens. The main one is situated at the southern end of the site in Wood End, and gives access into the main part of the Gardens. History The Norman Leddy Memorial Gardens was originally a private residence with a large ornamental garden surrounding the house. A walled vegetable and fruit garden was attached to the Gardens on the west side of the site. In the early 1900s the house and grounds became a private nursing home. When the home closed, the house and grounds were given to Hayes and Harlington Urban District Council, which became part of the London Borough of Hillingdon in 1965. The site was used as the head ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Small Red-eyed Damselfly
The small red-eyed damselfly (''Erythromma viridulum'') is a member of the damselfly family Coenagrionidae. It is very similar to the red-eyed damselfly. Appearance The species is a small damselfly, about long, predominantly black with iridescent blue markings. Its large, spaced eyes are a deep red. Like the red-eyed damselfly, both sexes lack pale spots behind the eyes and have pale brown pterostigmata. The male has a bronze-black top and blue sides. The sides of the female's thorax are yellow, green or blue. The rear edge of the pronotum is rounded. Viewed from the side, the second and eighth segment of the abdomen of the male are mostly blue, which distinguishes it from the red-eyed damselfly where these are mostly black. Breeding This damselfly breeds in ponds, lakes and ditches and, in continental Europe, sluggish rivers. It seems to be well able to tolerate brackish water. It seems to be associated with floating vegetation such as Hornwort and Water Milfoil (''Myriop ... [...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] |
Habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ecological niche. Thus "habitat" is a species-specific term, fundamentally different from concepts such as environment or vegetation assemblages, for which the term "habitat-type" is more appropriate. The physical factors may include (for example): soil, moisture, range of temperature, and light intensity. Biotic factors will include the availability of food and the presence or absence of predators. Every species has particular habitat requirements, with habitat generalist species able to thrive in a wide array of environmental conditions while habitat specialist species requiring a very limited set of factors to survive. The habitat of a species is not necessarily found in a geographical area, it can be the interior ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Veronica Beccabunga
''Veronica beccabunga'', the European speedwell or brooklime, is a succulent herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the flowering plant family Plantaginaceae. It grows on the margins of brooks and ditches in Europe, North Africa, and north and western Asia. It can be found on other continents as an introduced species. It has smooth spreading succulent branches that are often reddish, blunt oblong finely serrate leaves in opposite pairs close to the stem, and small bright blue or pink flowers with four petals. The species name ''beccabunga'' comes from Danish ''bekkebunge'' (literally "brook bunch") or a similar source. Medicinal usage Brooklime was one of three traditional antiscorbutic herbs (alongside scurvy grass and watercress), used in purported remedies for scurvy. However none of these herbs are rich in vitamin C Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dieta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lycopus Europaeus
''Lycopus europaeus'', common names gypsywort, gipsywort, bugleweed, European bugleweed and water horehound, is a perennial plant in the genus ''Lycopus'', native to Europe and Asia, and naturalized elsewhere. Another species, ''Lycopus americanus'' has also been erroneously called ''L. europaeus''. Description Gypsywort is a rather straggly perennial plant with slender underground runners and grows to a height of about . The stalkless or short-stalked leaves are in opposite pairs. The leaf blades are hairy, narrowly lanceolate-ovate, sometimes pinnately-lobed, and with large teeth on the margin. The inflorescence forms a terminal spike and is composed of dense whorls of white or pale pink flowers. The calyx has five lobes and the corolla forms a two-lipped flower about long with a fused tube. The upper lip of each flower is slightly convex with a notched tip and the lower lip is three-lobed, the central lobe being the largest and bearing a red "nectar mark" to attract pollinat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water. They are close relatives of the moorhen. However, the Coot typically appears 'dumpier' and lacks the distinctive red frontal face of the moorhen. Taxonomy and systematics The genus ''Fulica'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. The genus name is the Latin word for a Eurasian coot. The name was used by the Swiss naturalist Conrad Gessner in 1555. The type species is the Eurasian coot. A group of coots are referred to as a ''covert'' or ''cover''. Species The genus contains 10 extant species and one which is now extinct. Extinct species Recently extinct species * ''Fulica newtonii'' Milne-Edwards, 1867 – Mascar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the ostrich. There are about ten thousand living species, more than half of which are passerine, or "perching" birds. Birds have whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have further evolved for swimming. B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate subphylum Vertebrata. Familiar examples of invertebrates include arthropods, mollusks, annelids, echinoderms and cnidarians. The majority of animal species are invertebrates; one estimate puts the figure at 97%. Many invertebrate taxa have a greater number and variety of species than the entire subphylum of Vertebrata. Invertebrates vary widely in size, from 50 μm (0.002 in) rotifers to the 9–10 m (30–33 ft) colossal squid. Some so-called invertebrates, such as the Tunicata and Cephalochordata, are more closely related to vertebrates than to other invertebrates. This makes the invertebrates paraphyletic, so the term has little meaning in taxonomy. Etymology The word "invertebrate" comes from the Latin word ''vertebra'', whi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beck Theatre
The Beck Theatre is a 600-seat theatre in Hayes, in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It was built in 1977 at a cost of £2.5 million. Type The Beck is a community theatre, offering one-night concerts, drama, comedy, dance, musicals, children's shows, films, opera, pantomime, and a children's summer project. History The Beck Theatre was built in 1977 by Hillingdon Borough Council, with a bequest from Councillor Alfred Beck. It was purpose-built as a community-focused theatre, and is set in a parkland aspect adjoining a botanical garden (the Norman Leddy Memorial Gardens). The Beck was one of forty buildings considered for the Royal Institute of British Architects London region award in 1978, and in 2004 won an Access Award from Hillingdon Council for its resources for disabled and elderly people. A fund shortage threatened the theatre's future in 1984, when it was saved by a local petition. It was taken over in 1986 by impresario Charles Vance. The management contract passed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Damselfly
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along the body when at rest, unlike dragonflies which hold the wings flat and away from the body. An ancient group, damselflies have existed since at least the Lower Permian, and are found on every continent except Antarctica. All damselflies are predatory insects; both nymphs and adults actively hunt and eat other insects. The nymphs are aquatic, with different species living in a variety of freshwater habitats including acidic bogs, ponds, lakes and rivers. The nymphs moult repeatedly, at the last moult climbing out of the water to undergo metamorphosis. The skin splits down the back, they emerge and inflate their wings and abdomen to gain their adult form. Their presence on a body of water indicates that it is relatively unpolluted, but the ... [...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] |
Insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes and one pair of antennae. Their blood is not totally contained in vessels; some circulates in an open cavity known as the haemocoel. Insects are the most diverse group of animals; they include more than a million described species and represent more than half of all known living organisms. The total number of extant species is estimated at between six and ten million; In: potentially over 90% of the animal life forms on Earth are insects. Insects may be found in nearly all environments, although only a small number of species reside in the oceans, which are dominated by another arthropod group, crustaceans, which recent research has indicated insects are nested within. Nearly all insects hatch from eggs. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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