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Speyeria Idalia
The regal fritillary (''Speyeria idalia'') is a striking nymphalid butterfly found among some of the remaining tallgrass and mixed-grass prairies in the east-central United States. This prairie-specialist butterfly has a characteristic deep orange color and unmistakable dark hindwings with two bands of spots ( Brock 2003). On the female, both bands of spots are white. However, on the male, the outer band of spots is orange in color. Females also tend to be slightly larger than males. The ventral surface of the hindwings is olive brown to black in color with bold silvery white spots ( Selby 2007). The wingspan of ''S. idalia'' usually measures ( Selby 2007). Flight is in the summertime from approximately June to September and adults tend to be swift in flight, coasting close to the ground ( Brock 2003). It is listed as a species of special concern and believed extirpated in the US state of Connecticut. Regal fritillary larvae are approximately 0.08 inches long after they hatc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dru Drury
Dru Drury (4 February 1724 – 15 December 1803) was a British collector of natural history specimens and an entomologist. He had specimens collected from across the world through a network of ship's officers and collectors including Henry Smeathman. His collections were utilized by many entomologists of his time to describe and name new species and is best known for his book ''Illustrations of natural history'' which includes the names and descriptions of many insects, published in parts from 1770 to 1782 with copperplate engravings by Moses Harris. Life Dru Drury was born in Lad Lane, Wood Street, London where his father, also Dru lso given as "Drew"Drury (1688–1763), was a citizen, goldsmith and silversmith of the City of London, and his second wife Mary, daughter of Dr Hesketh, chaplain to Queen Anne. The elder Dru Drury's grandfather, William, Lord of the Manor of Colne (Drurys manor, to the east of the old church at Colne, was demolished c. 1787), Huntingdonshire ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viola Nuttallii
''Viola nuttallii'' (Nuttall's violet or yellow prairie violet) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the violet family (''Violaceae''), and is one of the few violet species with lanceolate leaves. It is native to the western Canada and the north-central and western United States, appearing in upper steppe lands, forests, and alpine ridges. The genus name ''Viola'' means violet in Latin. For Nuttall's violet the only purple coloring is the nectar guides in the throat of the flower. The species name is given in honor of noted botanist Thomas Nuttall Thomas Nuttall (5 January 1786 – 10 September 1859) was an English botanist and zoologist who lived and worked in America from 1808 until 1841. Nuttall was born in the village of Long Preston, near Settle in the West Riding of Yorkshire and .... The plant is highly variable, usually with bright yellow petals. The veined, elliptical leaves are long. The species serves as a larval host for the Coronis fritillary butterfly. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vernonia
''Vernonia'' is a genus of about 350 species of forbs and shrubs in the Daisy family Asteraceae. Some species are known as ironweed. Some species are edible and of economic value. They are known for having intense purple flowers. There have been numerous distinct subgenera and subsections named in this genus, and some botanists have divided the genus into several distinct genera. For instance, the ''Flora of North America'' recognizes only about twenty species in ''Vernonia'' ''sensu stricto'', seventeen of which are in North America north of Mexico, with the others being found in South America. Taxonomy The genus was circumscribed by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in Gen. Pl. ed. 8 vol.2 on page 541 in 1791. The genus name of ''Vernonia'' is in honour of William Vernon (1666/67 - ca.1711), who was an English plant collector, ( bryologist) and entomologist from Cambridge University, who collected in Maryland, USA in 1698. Species Species of this genus are found in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Goldenrod
Goldenrod is a common name for many species of flowering plants in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, commonly in reference to the genus '' Solidago''. Several genera, such as '' Euthamia'', were formerly included in a broader concept of the genus ''Solidago''. Some authors treat ''Oligoneuron'', the flat-topped goldenrods, as a separate genus than ''Solidago'', while others consider it a section: ''Solidago'' sect. ''Ptarmicoidei''. Goldenrods can be used as a sustainable method to enrich soil with nitrogen. With an increase of nitrogen levels, there can then be an increase of vegetative growth. Plants known as goldenrods include: *'' Bigelowia'' spp., rayless goldenrods, 2 species native to the Southeastern United States *''Cuniculotinus gramineus ''Cuniculotinus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Species There is only one known species, ''Cuniculotinus gramineus''. It is native to the Great Basin deserts of California in Inyo County Inyo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clover
Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution with highest diversity in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes on mountains in the tropics. They are small annual, biennial, or short-lived perennial herbaceous plants, typically growing up to 30 cm tall. The leaves are trifoliate (rarely quatrefoiled; see four-leaf clover), monofoil, bifoil, cinquefoil, hexafoil, septfoil, etcetera, with stipules adnate to the leaf-stalk, and heads or dense spikes of small red, purple, white, or yellow flowers; the small, few-seeded pods are enclosed in the calyx. Other closely related genera often called clovers include ''Melilotus'' (sweet clover) and '' Medicago'' ( alfalfa or Calva ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monarda Didyma
''Monarda didyma'', the crimson beebalm, scarlet beebalm, scarlet monarda, Eau-de-Cologne plant, Oswego tea, or bergamot, is an aromatic herb in the family Lamiaceae, native to eastern North America from Maine west to Ontario and Minnesota, and south to northern Georgia. Its odor is considered similar to that of the bergamot orange (used to flavor Earl Grey tea). The genus name comes from Nicolas Monardes, who described the first American flora in 1569. Description ''M. didyma'' is a perennial plant that grows to 0.6-1.2 m in height and spreads 0.4-0.6 m. The 7–18 cm long, ovate to ovate-lanceolate leaves with serrate margins are medium to deep green, placed opposite on square, hollow stems. The leaves are minty fragrant when crushed. It has ragged, bright red tubular flowers 3–4 cm long, borne on showy heads of about 30 together, with reddish bracts. It grows in dense clusters along stream banks, moist thickets, and ditches, blooming for about 8 weeks from early/ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liatris
''Liatris'' (), commonly known as gayfeather and blazing star. is a genus of flowering plants in the tribe Eupatorieae within the family Asteraceae native to North America (Canada, United States, Mexico and the Bahamas). Some species are used as ornamental plants, sometimes in flower bouquets. They are perennials, surviving the winter in the form of corms. ''Liatris'' species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the flower moths '' Schinia gloriosa'' and '' Schinia sanguinea'', both of which feed exclusively on the genus, and '' Schinia tertia'' and ''Schinia trifascia''. Classification ''Liatris'' is in the tribe Eupatorieae of the aster family. Like other members of this tribe, the flower heads have disc florets and no ray florets. ''Liatris'' is in the subtribe Liatrinae along with ''Trilisa'', ''Carphephorus'', and other genera. ''Liatris'' is closely related to ''Garberia'', a genus with only one species endemic to Florida. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Echinacea
''Echinacea'' is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants in the daisy family. It has ten species, which are commonly called coneflowers. They are found only in eastern and central North America, where they grow in moist to dry prairies and open wooded areas. They have large, showy heads of composite flowers, blooming in summer. The generic name is derived from the Greek word ('), meaning "sea urchin", due to the spiny central disk. These flowering plants and their parts have different uses. Some species are cultivated in gardens for their showy flowers. Two of the species, '' E. tennesseensis'' and '' E. laevigata'', are listed in the United States as endangered species. '' Echinacea purpurea'' is used in traditional medicine. Although commonly sold as a dietary supplement, there is insufficient scientific evidence that ''Echinacea'' products are effective or safe for improving health or treating any disease. Description ''Echinacea'' species are herbaceous, drought-toler ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the planton the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. These prickles are an adaptation that protects the plant from being eaten by herbivores. Typically, an involucre with a clasping shape similar to a cup or urn subtends each of a thistle's flower heads. The comparative amount of spininess varies dramatically by species. For example, '' Cirsium heterophyllum'' has minimal spininess while ''Cirsium spinosissimum'' is the opposite. Typically, species adapted to dry environments have greater spininess. The term thistle is sometimes taken to mean precisely those plants in the tribe Cardueae (synonym: Cynareae), especially the genera '' Carduus'', ''Cirsium'', and '' Onopordum''. However, plants outside this tribe are sometimes called thistles. Biennial thistles are particularly notewort ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asclepias
''Asclepias'' is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycosides termed cardenolides, exuded where cells are damaged. Most species are toxic to humans and many other species, primarily due to the presence of cardenolides, although, as with many such plants, there are species that feed upon them (e.g. their leaves) and from them (e.g. their nectar). Most notable are monarch butterflies, who use and require certain milkweeds as host plants for their larvae. The genus contains over 200 species distributed broadly across Africa, North America, and South America. It previously belonged to the family Asclepiadaceae, which is now classified as the subfamily Asclepiadoideae of the dogbane family, Apocynaceae. The genus was formally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, who named it after Asclepius, the Greek god of healing. Flowers Members of the genus produce some of the most complex flo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nectar
Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists, which in turn provide herbivore protection. Common nectar-consuming pollinators include mosquitoes, hoverflies, wasps, bees, butterflies and moths, hummingbirds, honeyeaters and bats. Nectar plays a crucial role in the foraging economics and evolution of nectar-eating species; for example, nectar foraging behavior is largely responsible for the divergent evolution of the African honey bee, ''A. m. scutellata'' and the western honey bee. Nectar is an economically important substance as it is the sugar source for honey. It is also useful in agriculture and horticulture because the adult stages of some predatory insects feed on nectar. For example, a number of parasitoid wasps (e.g. the social wasp species '' Apoica flavissima'') ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. It is the southern and main part of the Interior Plains, which also include the tallgrass prairie between the Great Lakes and Appalachian Plateau, and the Taiga Plains and Boreal Plains ecozones in Northern Canada. The term Western Plains is used to describe the ecoregion of the Great Plains, or alternatively the western portion of the Great Plains. The Great Plains lies across both Central United States and Western Canada, encompassing: * The entirety of the U.S. states of Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota; * Parts of the U.S. states of Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming; * The southern portions of the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Man ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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