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Polygala Lewtonii
''Polygala lewtonii'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the milkwort family known by the common name Lewton's polygala, or Lewton's milkwort. It is endemic to Florida in the United States, where it is limited to the central ridge of the peninsula. There are about 49 occurrences of the plant remaining.USFWS''Polygala lewtonii'' Five-year Review.August 2010. Most occurrences contain very few plants. The species is threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat.''Polygala lewtonii''. The Nature Conservancy. This is a federally listed |
Polygalaceae
The Polygalaceae or the milkwort family are made up of flowering plants in the order Fabales. They have a near-cosmopolitan range, with about 27 genera and ''ca''. 900 known species of herbs, shrubs and trees. Over half of the species are in one genus, ''Polygala'', the milkworts. The family was first described in 1809 by Johann Hoffmansegg and Johann Link. In 1896, Robert Chodat split it into 3 tribes. A fourth tribe was split off from the tribe Polygaleae in 1992. Under the Cronquist classification system, Polygalaceae were treated in a separate order of their own, Polygalales. Currently, according to the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, the family belongs in Fabales. Description ''Polygalaceae'' are annual or perennial herbs, shrubs, shrublets, and small trees. Its zygomorphic, hermaphrodite, bisexual flowers have 3-5 petals and 5 sepals. Its leaves are usually alternate, but may be opposite, fascicled, or verticillate. Each flower usually contain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pheidole Morrissii
''Pheidole'' is a genus of ants that belongs to the ant subfamily Myrmicinae. The genus is widespread and ecologically dominant. It probably includes more than 1000 species. The genus first evolved in the Americas, eventually spreading across the globe. Colony structure Most species of ''Pheidole'' are dimorphic, which means that colonies contain two castes of workers, the "minor" workers, and the "major" workers, or "soldiers". The latter generally have much larger heads and mandibles in comparison to their usually fairly modest body size. In addition, as in other ant species, a colony may contain one or several queens, and also in mature colonies, alates - virgin winged females and males. Pheidole_xerophila-major_minors.jpg, major and minor workers of ''P. xerophila'' Major workers The distinctive major workers have earned the genus ''Pheidole'' the nickname of "big-headed ants". The major workers of a ''Pheidole'' colony, while they may look fierce, are often quit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fire Regime
A fire regime is the pattern, frequency, and intensity of the bushfires and wildfires that prevail in an area over long periods of time. It is an integral part of fire ecology, and renewal for certain types of ecosystems. A fire regime describes the spatial and temporal patterns and ecosystem impacts of fire on the landscape, and provides an integrative approach to identifying the impacts of fire at an ecosystem or landscape level.Morgan, Penelope; Hardy; Swetnam; Rollins; Long (1999)"Mapping fire regimes across time and space: Understanding coarse and fine-scale fire patterns"(PDF). ''International Journal of Wildland Fire''. 10: 329–342 – via Google Scholar. If fires are too frequent, plants may be killed before they have matured, or before they have set sufficient seed to ensure population recovery. If fires are too infrequent, plants may mature, senesce, and die without ever releasing their seed. Fire regimes can change with the spatial and temporal variations in topography, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nolina Brittoniana
''Nolina brittoniana'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the asparagus family known by the common name Britton's beargrass. It is endemic to Florida, where there are 72 known populations, only a few of which are large enough to be considered viable.USFWS''Nolina brittoniana''.May 2010. It is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States. This plant has no aboveground stem. It is a rosette of leaves attached at a bulblike base which arises from an underground caudex, a modified stem. The grasslike leaves are up to a meter long and rarely more than a centimeter wide. The edges are serrated with cartilaginous teeth. The inflorescence is a large, erect panicle up to a meter tall. It has small bracts and reduced leaves. The many small flowers have tepals measuring only 1 or 2 millimeters long. While the flowers are bisexual, they are functionally unisexual, with either the male or female part reduced and not functional. Most plants have either functionally m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunus Geniculata
''Prunus geniculata'' is a rare species of plum known by the common name scrub plum. The species is endemic to Florida. Description This plant is a low, rounded shrub with a gnarled trunk emerging from the sand and branching densely to form a mound up to two meters tall. The zig-zagging, angled, sharp-tipped branches are sometimes buried in sand and emerge covered in lichens. The gray bark cracks, revealing new reddish brown bark beneath. The alternately arranged leaves have smooth blades 1 to 3 centimeters long with wavy or toothed edges. Blooming occurs before the leaves appear. The flowers are usually solitary. They have five red sepals and five white petals a few millimeters long. There are many stamens at the center, each with a yellow anther. The species is andromonoecious, with individuals bearing both bisexual and male-only flowers. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ziziphus Celata
''Ziziphus celata'', commonly known as the Florida jujube or Florida ziziphus, is a terrestrial flowering plant endemic to central Florida. Description It is a small spiny shrub that is usually less than 2 meters tall. Clusters of highly fragrant tiny green flowers are borne in winter, and grape-sized, yellow-orange fruit develop in spring. Range The species is currently restricted to just eight sites which collectively support only a few genetically distinct individuals. The first known record of the plant was from a single, mysterious, dried herbarium specimen originally collected in 1948 near the city of Sebring in Highlands County, Florida, U.S. Because the precise location of the locality had not been recorded by Ray Garrett, of Avon Park, and because no living plants were known to exist in the wild, the species was presumed extinct. In 1984 the species was described and named posthumously by W.S. Judd & D.W. Hall of the University of Florida. Many botanists later search ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warea Amplexifolia
''Warea amplexifolia'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the mustard family known by the common names wideleaf pinelandcress, wide-leaf warea, and clasping warea. It is endemic to Florida in the United States, where it is limited to a few counties in the central part of the peninsula. It is threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States. This annual herb grows up to 70 or 80 centimeters in height. The leaves vary in shape, but they are always clasping: their bases encircle the stem, forming a ring around it. They sometimes have two lobes pointing in the opposite direction of the tip of the leaf blade. The leaves are up to 4 centimeters long. The inflorescence is a raceme of white, pink, or purplish flowers. The petals are somewhat spoon-shaped, with a fan-shaped blade narrowing into a very thin claw, the stalk that attaches to the flower. At the center are six long stamens which, at up to 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Power Line
An overhead power line is a structure used in electric power transmission and distribution to transmit electrical energy across large distances. It consists of one or more uninsulated electrical cables (commonly multiples of three for three-phase power) suspended by towers or poles. Since most of the insulation is provided by the surrounding air, overhead power lines are generally the least costly method of power transmission for large quantities of electric energy. Construction Towers for support of the lines are made of wood either grown or laminated, steel or aluminum (either lattice structures or tubular poles), concrete, and occasionally reinforced plastics. The bare wire conductors on the line are generally made of aluminum (either plain or reinforced with steel or composite materials such as carbon and glass fiber), though some copper wires are used in medium-voltage distribution and low-voltage connections to customer premises. A major goal of overhead power line d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quercus Laevis
''Quercus laevis'', the turkey oak, is a member of the red oak group of oaks. It is native to the southeastern United States. The name turkey oak derives from the resemblance of the leaves to a turkey's foot. A Turkish and southern European species ''Quercus cerris'' is also commonly referred to as Turkey oak, so ''Quercus laevis'' is sometimes referred to as American turkey oak to distinguish it from the European species. Description ''Quercus laevis'' is a small tree, sometimes shrubby, typically only tall, though occasionally reaching . The leaves are variable in size, mostly long but occasionally just or as much as long. They have 3–7 slender lobes, deeply incised between the lobes, each lobe with 1–3 bristle teeth at the tip. The leaves turn red in Autumn. The acorns are about long, and, like other red oaks, take 18 months to mature. Distribution and habitat Turkey oak occurs on the coastal plain from Virginia south to central Florida, and west to southeast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pinus Palustris
The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as "yellow pine" or "long leaf yellow pine", although it is properly just one out of a number of species termed yellow pine. It reaches a height of and a diameter of . In the past, before extensive logging, they reportedly grew to with a diameter of . The tree is a cultural symbol of the Southern United States, being the official state tree of Alabama. Contrary to popular belief, this particular species of pine is not officially the state tree of North Carolina. Description The bark is thick, reddish-brown, and scaly. The leaves are dark green and needle-like, and occur in bundles of mainly three, sometimes two or four, especially in seedlings. They often are twisted and in length. A local race of ''P. palustris'' in a cove near Rocki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Florida Scrub
Florida sand pine scrub is an endangered subtropical forest ecoregion found throughout Florida in the United States. It is found on coastal and inland sand ridges and is characterized by an evergreen xeromorphic plant community dominated by shrubs and dwarf oaks. Because the low-nutrient sandy soils do not retain moisture, the ecosystem is effectively an arid one. Wildfires infrequently occur in the Florida scrub. Most of the annual rainfall (about ) falls in summer. It is endangered by residential, commercial and agricultural development, with the largest remaining block in and around the Ocala National Forest. Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge also holds a high proportion of remaining scrub habitat, while the Archbold Biological Station near Lake Placid contains about of scrub habitat and sponsors biological research on it. Plant communities There is a high level of endemism in the flora and fauna, including an estimated 40 species of plants, 4 vertebrates and at least ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central Florida
Central Florida is a region of the U.S. state of Florida. Different sources give different definitions for the region, but as its name implies it is usually said to comprise the central part of the state, including the Tampa Bay area and the Greater Orlando area, though in recent times the Tampa Bay area has often been described as its own region, with "Central Florida" becoming more synonymous with the Orlando area (most notably, this is what the local news channels in each respective metro area call their region). It is one of Florida's three directional regions, along with North Florida and South Florida. Under the previously mentioned "usual" definition, it includes the following counties: Brevard, Citrus, Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Pasco, Pinellas. Polk, Seminole, Sumter, and Volusia though Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, and maybe Manatee are also considered to be the Tampa Bay area. Geography Like many ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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