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Pandanus Vandermeeschii
''Pandanus vandermeeschii'' is a species of plant in the family Pandanaceae. It is endemic to the coastal areas of Mauritius. Description A small freely-branching tree of , the ends of its branches can droop downwards. Its leaves are grey-green, and its bark is grey-pink. It can also be distinguished from the several other species of Mauritian ''Pandanus'' by its hanging fruit-heads that each have 250–450 protruding drupes (the upper half of each drupe is free) which contain the pointed seeds. The tip of each drupe is divided by deep clefts. Habitat This species was once common around the coastal lowlands and offshore islets of Mauritius. Its natural habitat is the palm rich forests, where it grows together with ''Pandanus utilis'' (a species which can be distinguished by its whorled darker green leaves). It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Isaac Bayley Balfour
Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour, KBE, FRS, FRSE (31 March 1853 – 30 November 1922) was a Scottish botanist. He was Regius Professor of Botany at the University of Glasgow from 1879 to 1885, Sherardian Professor of Botany at the University of Oxford from 1884 to 1888, and Professor of Botany at the University of Edinburgh from 1888 to 1922. Early life He was the son of John Hutton Balfour, also a botanist, and Marion Spottiswood Bayley, and was born at home, 27 Inverleith Row, Edinburgh. His mother was granddaughter of George Husband Baird. He was the cousin of Sir James Crichton-Browne. Biography Balfour was educated at the Edinburgh Academy from 1864 to 1870. At this early stage his interests and abilities were in the biological sciences, which were taught to him by his father. Due to his father's post as Professor of Botany at Edinburgh, the young Balfour was able to visit the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens, not open to the public at the time. Balfour studied at the University ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus Utilis
''Pandanus utilis'', the common screwpine is, despite its name, a monocot and not a pine. It is native to Madagascar and naturalised in Mauritius and the Seychelles. Description The trunk features aerial prop roots. The leaves are linear and spiny, with a spiral arrangement on the tree. The leaves are also dried out and rolled, and used to make mats in Kerala, India; and Hawaii. Care must be taken when handling the leaves because of their sharp spines. The fruit of ''Pandanus utilis'' is edible, although not flavorful to humans and must be cooked prior to consumption. It attracts mammals such as, in North America, squirrels. Introduction Within the family Pandanaceae, the genus ''Pandanus'' is thought to compose the largest group of plants.M. H. Zimmerman, et al., "Vascular Construction and Development in the Stems of Certain Pandanaceae," ''Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society'' 68:1 (January 1974): 21-41 It is estimated that there are somewhere between 500 and 1,000 sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus Wiehei
''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names include pandan, screw palm, and screw pine. They are classified in the order Pandanales, family Pandanaceae. Description Often called pandanus palms, these plants are not closely related to palm trees. The species vary in size from small shrubs less than tall, to medium-sized trees tall, typically with a broad canopy, heavy fruit, and moderate growth rate. The trunk is stout, wide-branching, and ringed with many leaf scars. Mature plants can have branches. Depending on the species, the trunk can be smooth, rough, or warty. The roots form a pyramidal tract to hold the trunk. They commonly have many thick stilt roots near the base, which provide support as the tree grows top-heavy with leaves, fruit, and branches. These roots are advent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus Rigidifolius
''Pandanus rigidifolius'' is a species of plant in the family Pandanaceae, endemic to Mauritius. Description A low, small, spreading, many-branched tree. It produces many stilt-like roots, along the trunk, but also along the length of the side branches. It can be distinguished by its compact (often trifarious) rosettes of small, rigid, erect, red-spined, deep blue-green leaves. These are usually only 75 cm long and 6 cm wide, folded lengthwise (reduplicate), stiff, erect, and have an abrupt, obtuse leaf tip. The reddish spines are closely set along the margins of the leaves. The small (7–8 cm) fruit head is held erect on a short peduncle, and it is enclosed in three-ranked (trifarious) bracts. Each fruit head is packed with 200–220 small, unilocular drupes, with slightly convex tips. In its appearance, it is most similar to the other dwarf Mauritian species '' Pandanus microcarpus'' as well as the Madagascan species '' Pandanus microcephalus''. Another Maur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus Eydouxia
''Pandanus eydouxia'' is a species of plant in the family Pandanaceae, endemic to Mauritius. Description A tall (10-12m) branching tree that forms a wide, domed canopy. The 20–25 cm wide trunk is grey and cracked, while younger stems bear brown leaf-scars. The stems are lined with many small, sharp knobs. The leaves are long, drooping and glaucous-green to yellow-green with more brownish bases. Leaf margins are lined with tiny, mild, white spines that can age to a yellow or brown. The leaf midrib also has spines, but not near the base. This species is most easily distinguished by its very large (20–25 cm), rounded fruit-head, that is held up erect on a short peduncle that is densely covered in protective bracts. Each fruit-head holds 15-25 drupes, that are flat-topped and covered in stigmas, but otherwise variable in shape. The half or third of the drupe, that is inside the fruit-head, becomes orange or red when ripe. Each drupe holds a large number (over 50) o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus Barklyi
''Pandanus barkleyi'' is a species of plant in the family Pandanaceae, endemic to Mauritius. Description This is an extremely variable and difficult to identify species. Overall in its shape and growth form, this species can sometimes resemble the related ''Pandanus glaucocephalus''. ''Pandanus barkleyi'' is typically a short (4-5m) tree, with ascending branches. The 10–18 cm wide trunk is grey, fissured, and bears only a few stilt-roots near the base of the stem. The leaves are slender and dark green, with a translucent light-yellow midrib. New leaves are initially erect, but they later droop, and eventually the old dead leaves persist hanging around the stem, beneath the dense rosette. The leaf margins are lined with very tiny yellow-green spines, but these are usually not near the leaf base. This species has variable 9–18 cm, globose fruit-head that becomes greenish-brown to purple when ripe. Each fruit-head holds an extremely variable number (50-150) of drupe ... [...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] |
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] |
Plant
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude the fungi and some algae, as well as the prokaryotes (the archaea and bacteria). By one definition, plants form the clade Viridiplantae (Latin name for "green plants") which is sister of the Glaucophyta, and consists of the green algae and Embryophyta (land plants). The latter includes the flowering plants, conifers and other gymnosperms, ferns and their allies, hornworts, liverworts, and mosses. Most plants are multicellular organisms. Green plants obtain most of their energy from sunlight via photosynthesis by primary chloroplasts that are derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria. Their chloroplasts contain chlorophylls a and b, which gives them their green color. Some plants are parasitic or mycotrophic and have lost the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pandanus
''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names include pandan, screw palm, and screw pine. They are classified in the order Pandanales, family Pandanaceae. Description Often called pandanus palms, these plants are not closely related to palm trees. The species vary in size from small shrubs less than tall, to medium-sized trees tall, typically with a broad canopy, heavy fruit, and moderate growth rate. The trunk is stout, wide-branching, and ringed with many leaf scars. Mature plants can have branches. Depending on the species, the trunk can be smooth, rough, or warty. The roots form a pyramidal tract to hold the trunk. They commonly have many thick stilt roots near the base, which provide support as the tree grows top-heavy with leaves, fruit, and branches. These roots are adven ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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