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Papilio Eurymedon
''Papilio eurymedon'', the pale swallowtail or pallid swallowtail, is a relatively common swallowtail butterfly found throughout much of the western North America. The species was first described by Hippolyte Lucas in 1852. It is found on the Pacific coast from northern Baja California to southernmost British Columbia, and inland to New Mexico and the Black Hills of South Dakota. It is present from the coast to western Montana, and from Wyoming to northern New Mexico. It is absent from most of Nevada and western Utah. It prefers open woodlands and forest clearings, especially near permanent bodies of water such as ponds, but also urban parks and is occasionally seen in suburban areas. Though not as common as the western tiger swallowtail, the pale swallowtail can be seen in large numbers at puddling parties where up to a dozen or more males may be gathered. There they join other species to sip water from damp soil to obtain nutrients for mating. Their appearance is quite simil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hippolyte Lucas
Pierre-Hippolyte Lucas (17 January 1814 – 5 July 1899) was a French entomologist. Lucas was an assistant-natural history, naturalist at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. From 1839 to 1842 he studied fauna as part of the scientific commission on the exploration of Algeria. His brother was Prosper Lucas. Works * ''Histoire naturelle des lépidoptères exotiques. Ouvrage orné de 200 figures peintes d'après nature par Pauquet et gravées sur acier''. Paris, Pauquet, Bibliothèque Zoologique, 1835. * ''Histoire naturelle des animaux articulés. Exploration scientifique de l'Algérie, pendant les années 1840, 1841 et 1842''. Paris, Imprimerie Nationale (1844–1849). Published in 25 volumes this work contains 122 fine engraved plates. * "Description de nouvelles Espèces de Lépidoptères appartenant aux Collections entomologiques du Musée de Paris". ''Revue et magasin de zoologie pure et appliquée''. (2) 4 (3): 128–141 (1852) 4 (4): 189–198 (1852) 4 (6): 290–300 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ceanothus
''Ceanothus'' is a genus of about 50–60 species of Actinorhizal plant, nitrogen-fixing shrubs and small trees in the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae). Common names for members of this genus are buckbrush, California lilac, soap bush, or just ceanothus. ''"Ceanothus"'' comes from grc, κεάνωθος (''keanōthos''), which was applied by Theophrastus (371–287 BC) to an Old World plant believed to be ''Cirsium arvense''. The genus is native to North America with the highest diversity on the western coast. Some species (e.g., ''Ceanothus americanus, C. americanus'') are restricted to the eastern United States and southeast Canada, and others (e.g., ''Ceanothus caeruleus, C. caeruleus'') extend as far south as Guatemala. Most are shrubs tall, but ''Ceanothus arboreus, C. arboreus'' and ''Ceanothus thyrsiflorus, C. thyrsiflorus'', both native to California, can be small multi-trunked trees up to tall. Taxonomy and etymology There are two subgenera within this genus: ''Ceanothus' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Papilio
''Papilio'' is a genus in the swallowtail butterfly family, Papilionidae, as well as the only representative of the tribe Papilionini. The word ''papilio'' is Latin for butterfly. It includes the common yellow swallowtail (''Papilio machaon''), which is widespread in the Northern Hemisphere and the type species of the genus, as well as a number of other well-known North American species such as the western tiger swallowtail ('' Papilio rutulus''). Familiar species elsewhere in the world include the Mormons ('' Papilio polytes'', '' Papilio polymnestor'', '' Papilio memnon'', and '' Papilio deiphobus'') in Asia, the orchard and Ulysses swallowtails in Australia (''Papilio aegeus'', '' Papilio ulysses'', respectively) and the citrus swallowtail of Africa (''Papilio demodocus''). Older classifications of the swallowtails tended to use many rather small genera. More recent classifications have been more conservative, and as a result a number of former genera are now absorbed within ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm ''Bombyx mori'' reared in captivity (sericulture). The shimmering appearance of silk is due to the triangular prism-like structure of the silk fibre, which allows silk cloth to refract incoming light at different angles, thus producing different colors. Silk is produced by several insects; but, generally, only the silk of moth caterpillars has been used for textile manufacturing. There has been some research into other types of silk, which differ at the molecular level. Silk is mainly produced by the larvae of insects undergoing complete metamorphosis, but some insects, such as webspinners and raspy crickets, produce silk throughout their lives. Silk production also occurs in hymenoptera ( bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moult
In biology, moulting (British English), or molting (American English), also known as sloughing, shedding, or in many invertebrates, ecdysis, is the manner in which an animal routinely casts off a part of its body (often, but not always, an outer layer or covering), either at specific times of the year, or at specific points in its life cycle. In medieval times it was also known as "mewing" (from the French verb "muer", to moult), a term that lives on in the name of Britain's Royal Mews where the King's hawks used to be kept during moulting time before becoming horse stables after Tudor times. Moulting can involve shedding the epidermis (skin), pelage (hair, feathers, fur, wool), or other external layer. In some groups, other body parts may be shed, for example, the entire exoskeleton in arthropods, including the wings in some insects. Examples In birds In birds, moulting is the periodic replacement of feathers by shedding old feathers while producing new ones. Feathers are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osmeterium
The osmeterium is a defensive organ found in all papilionid larvae, in all stages. The organ is situated in the prothoracic segment and can be everted when the larva feels threatened. The everted organ resembles a fleshy forked tongue (not unlike a snake tongue), and this along with the large eye-like spots on the body might be used to startle birds and small reptiles. The osmeterial organ remains inside the body in the thoracic region in an inverted position and is everted when the larva is disturbed in any way emitting a foul, disagreeable odor which serves to repel ants, small spiders and mantids. To humans, this odour is rather strong but pleasant, usually smelling like a concentrated scent of the caterpillar’s food plant and pineapple. The constitution of the osmeterial secretion varies from species to species and contains monoterpene hydrocarbons, sesquiterpenic compounds or a mixture of aliphatic acids and esters The fine structure of the osmeterium of ''Papilio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eyespot (mimicry)
An eyespot (sometimes ocellus) is an eye-like marking. They are found in butterflies, reptiles, cats, birds and fish. Eyespots could be explained in at least three different ways. They may be a form of mimicry in which a spot on the body of an animal resembles an eye of a different animal, to deceive potential predator or prey species. They may be a form of self-mimicry, to draw a predator's attention away from the prey's most vulnerable body parts. Or they may serve to make the prey appear inedible or dangerous. Eyespot markings may play a role in intraspecies communication or courtship; the best-known example is probably the eyespots on a peacock's display feathers. The pattern-forming biological process (morphogenesis) of eyespots in a wide variety of animals is controlled by a small number of genes active in embryonic development, including the genes called Engrailed, Distal-less, Hedgehog, Antennapedia, and the Notch signaling pathway. Artificial eyespots have been sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thorax
The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the creature's body, each of which is in turn composed of multiple segments. The human thorax includes the thoracic cavity and the thoracic wall. It contains organs including the heart, lungs, and thymus gland, as well as muscles and various other internal structures. Many diseases may affect the chest, and one of the most common symptoms is chest pain. Etymology The word thorax comes from the Greek θώραξ ''thorax'' "breastplate, cuirass, corslet" via la, thorax. Plural: ''thoraces'' or ''thoraxes''. Human thorax Structure In humans and other hominids, the thorax is the chest region of the body between the neck and the abdomen, along with its internal organs and other contents. It is mostly protected and supported by the rib cage, spi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amelanchier
''Amelanchier'' ( ), also known as shadbush, shadwood or shadblow, serviceberry or sarvisberry (or just sarvis), juneberry, saskatoon, sugarplum, wild-plum or chuckley pear,A Digital Flora of Newfoundland and Labrador Vascular Plants/ref> is a genus of about 20 species of deciduous-leaved shrubs and small trees in the rose family (Rosaceae). ''Amelanchier'' is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, growing primarily in early successional habitats. It is most diverse taxonomically in North America, especially in the northeastern United States and adjacent southeastern Canada, and at least one species is native to every U.S. state except Hawaii and to every Canadian province and territory. Two species also occur in Asia, and one in Europe. The taxonomic classification of shadbushes has long perplexed botanists, horticulturalists, and others, as suggested by the range in number of species recognized in the genus, from 6 to 33, in two recent publications. A major so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunus Emarginata
''Prunus emarginata'', the bitter cherry or Oregon cherry, is a species of ''Prunus'' native to western North America, from British Columbia south to Baja California, and east as far as western Wyoming and New Mexico. It is often found in recently disturbed areas or open woods on nutrient-rich soil.Plants of British Columbia''Prunus emarginata''/ref>Jepson Flora''Prunus emarginata''/ref> Description ''Prunus emarginata'' is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to tall with a slender oval trunk with smooth gray to reddish-brown bark with horizontal lenticels. The leaves are long, thin, egg-shaped, and yellowish-green with unevenly sized teeth on either side. The flowers are small, diameter, with five white petals and numerous hairlike stamens; they are almond-scented, and produced in clusters in spring, and are pollinated by insects. The fruit is a juicy red or purple cherry diameter, which, as the plant's English name suggests, are bitter. As well as reproducing by seed, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holodiscus Discolor
''Holodiscus discolor'', commonly known as ocean spray or oceanspray, creambush, or ironwood, is a shrub of western North America. Description ''Holodiscus discolor'' is a fast-growing deciduous shrub usually from to in height, and up to tall. Its alternate leaves are small, long and broad, lobed, juicy green when new. The young branches have longitudinal ridges. Cascading clusters of white flowers drooping from the branches give the plant its two common names. The flowers have a faint sweet, sugary scent. The bloom period is May to July. It bears a small, hairy fruit containing one seed which is light enough to be dispersed by wind. Distribution and habitat The plant is common in the Pacific Northwest, and throughout California in diverse habitats including California mixed evergreen forest, California oak woodlands, chaparral, Coast redwood forest, Douglas-fir forest, Yellow pine forest, Red fir forest, and Lodgepole pine forest. It is native to regions of Califor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alnus Rubra
''Alnus rubra'', the red alder, is a deciduous broadleaf tree native to western North America (Alaska, Yukon, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho and Montana). Description Red alder is the largest species of alder in North America and one of the largest in the world, reaching heights of . The official tallest red alder (as of 1979) stands tall in Clatsop County, Oregon (US). The trunks range from in diameter. The bark is mottled, ashy-gray and smooth, often colonized by white lichen and moss. The leaves are ovate, long, with bluntly serrated edges and a distinct point at the end; the leaf margin is revolute, the very edge being curled under, a diagnostic character which distinguishes it from all other alders. The leaves turn yellow in the autumn before falling. The male flowers are dangling reddish catkins long in early spring. Female flowers occur in clusters of (3) 4–6 (8). Female catkins are erect during anthesis, but otherwise pendant. They develop i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
