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Srivenkateshwara National Park
Sri Venkateswara National Park is a national park and biosphere reserve in Tirupati of Andhra Pradesh, India. The total area of the park is 353 km2. The park is known for its many waterfalls, including the Talakona, Gundalakona and Gunjana. As the government of India declared the Seshachalam Hills as one of the biosphere reserves of India in 2010, this national park becomes the part of it. Geography The National Park is located in Eastern Ghats spread over the Seshachalam hills of Annamaya district and Tirumala hills of Tirupati district. The elevation varies from 150 to 1,130 m. The terrain is undulating with forest covered valleys. Most of the rainfall is received from the northeast monsoon and a little from the southwest monsoon. The vegetation here is a mix of dry deciduous and moist deciduous types. Average rainfall in the region is 900 mm. The average temperature of the region varies from 12 °C to 44 °C. Flora and fauna Flora The vegetation in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tirupati District
Tirupati district () is one of the twenty-six districts in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Andhra Pradesh state. The district headquarters is located at Tirupati city. Tirupati district is known for its numerous historic temples, including the Hindu shrine of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Sri Kalahasteeswara temple and many others.The district is also home to Satish Dhawan Space Centre (formerly Sriharikota Range), a rocket launch centre located in Sriharikota and operated by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The river Swarnamukhi flows through Srikalahasti and joins with the Bay of Bengal in this district. Industries include groundnuts and paddy fields. The district is an educational hub and has central and state universities and institutes including IIT Tirupati, Sri Venkateswara University, National Sanskrit University, IISER Tirupati. The district is home to Sri City, one of the leading spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterocarpus Santalinus
''Pterocarpus santalinus'', with the common names red sanders, red saunders, protect it Yerra Chandanam, Chenchandanam, red sandalwood, Rakta Chandana, and saunderswood, is a species of ''Pterocarpus'' endemic to the southern Eastern Ghats mountain range of South India. This tree is valued for the rich red colour of its wood. The wood is traditionally considered not aromatic. However, in recent years there has been a marked uptick in the use of red sandalwood as a component of incense, especially in the west. The tree is not to be confused with the aromatic ''Santalum'' sandalwood trees that grow natively in Southern India. Description ''Pterocarpus santalinus'' is a light-demanding small tree, growing to tall with a trunk 50–150 cm diameter. It is fast-growing when young, reaching tall in three years, even on degraded soils. It is not frost tolerant, being killed by temperatures of −1 °C. The leaves are alternate, 3–9 cm long, trifoliate with t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blue-faced Malkoha
The blue-faced malkoha (''Phaenicophaeus viridirostris'') or small green-billed malkoha, is a non-parasitic cuckoo found in the scrub and deciduous forests of peninsular India and Sri Lanka. It has a waxy, dark, blue-grey plumage on its upperparts and has a long tail with graduated white-tipped feathers. The throat and chin are dark with spiny pale feathers that are branched. The lower belly is a dull creamy to rufous colour. The bill is apple green, and a naked patch of blue skin surrounds the eye. The sexes are alike. The blue-faced malkoha is a bird of open forests and scrub jungle. Description A largish species at 39 cm, its back and head are dark grey with an oily green or blue gloss, and the dark tail has graduated feathers tipped with white. The belly is pale ochre to grey. The feathers of the chin and throat are branched (unlike in '' Phaenicophaeus tristis'') with the branched tips being pointed and slightly yellowish giving the throat a streaked and spiny appeara ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Large Hawk-cuckoo
The large hawk-cuckoo (''Hierococcyx sparverioides'') is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It has a wide breeding distribution from temperate Asia along the Himalayas extending to East Asia. Many populations winter further south. They are known for their loud and repetitive calls which are similar to that of the common hawk-cuckoo but do not rise in crescendo. They are also somewhat larger and adults can be readily told apart from the smaller common hawk-cuckoo by the black patch on the chin. They are brood-parasites of babblers and laughing-thrushes. Distribution It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Found as a vagrant on Christmas Island. The subspecies ''H. s. bocki'' of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo is usually considered a separate species, the dark hawk-cuckoo. Habitats Its natural habitats are temperate forest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White-backed Vulture
The white-backed vulture (''Gyps africanus'') is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the most common vulture species in the continent of Africa. Description Preening at the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park The white-backed vulture is a typical vulture, with only down feathers on the head and neck, very broad wings and short tail feathers. It has a white neck ruff. The adult's whitish back contrasts with the otherwise dark plumage. Juveniles are largely dark. This is a medium-sized vulture; its body mass is , it is long and has a wingspan. Distribution and habitat The white-backed vulture occurs from Senegal, Gambia and Mali in the west, throughout the Sahel region to Ethiopia and Somalia in the east, through East Africa into Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa in the south. It is the most widespread and common vulture in Africa with an estimated range of , but has undergone rapid pop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 peaks exceeding in elevation lie in the Himalayas. By contrast, the highest peak outside Asia (Aconcagua, in the Andes) is tall. The Himalayas abut or cross five countries: Bhutan, India, Nepal, China, and Pakistan. The sovereignty of the range in the Kashmir region is disputed among India, Pakistan, and China. The Himalayan range is bordered on the northwest by the Karakoram and Hindu Kush ranges, on the north by the Tibetan Plateau, and on the south by the Indo-Gangetic Plain. Some of the world's major rivers, the Indus, the Ganges, and the Tsangpo–Brahmaputra, rise in the vicinity of the Himalayas, and their combined drainage basin is home to some 600 million people; 53 million people live in the Himalayas. The Himalayas have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grey-fronted Green Pigeon
The grey-fronted green pigeon (''Treron affinis'') is a pigeon in the genus ''Treron''. It is found in the forests of the Western Ghats in India. Many authorities have split the species from the pompadour green pigeon complex. Description The male has a reddish mantle. The female has a green mantle. Behaviour The grey-fronted green pigeon usually occurs singly or in small groups. Its flight is fast and direct, with the regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings that are characteristic of pigeons in general. It eats the seeds and fruits of a wide variety of plants. It builds a stick nest in a tree and lays two white eggs. Gallery File:Grey-fronted Green Pigeon (Treron affinis).jpg, Female File:GFGPigeon DSC9657.jpg, Male References External links *Collar, N.J. 2011. Species limits in some Philippine birds including the Greater Flameback Chrysocolaptes lucidus. Forktail number 27: 29–38. *Rasmussen, P.C., and J.C. Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia: the Rip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yellow-throated Bulbul
The yellow-throated bulbul (''Pycnonotus xantholaemus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family of passerine birds. The species is endemic to southern peninsular India. They are found on scrub habitats on steep, rocky hills many of which are threatened by granite quarrying. It is confusable only with the white-browed bulbul with which its range overlaps but is distinctively yellow on the head and throat apart from the yellow vent. The calls of this species are very similar to that of the white-browed bulbul. Taxonomy and systematics The yellow-throated bulbul was originally described by Thomas Jerdon in the genus ''Brachypus'' (a synonym for ''Pycnonotus''), and later re-classified it in the genus ''Ixos''. It has since been re-classified to the genus ''Pycnonotus''. The alternate name yellow-eared bulbul should not be confused with the species of that name, '' Pycnonotus penicillatus''. The name 'yellow-throated bulbul' is also used as an alternate name for Falkenstei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Psilotum Nudum
''Psilotum nudum'', the whisk fern, is a fernlike plant. Like the other species in the order Psilotales, it lacks roots. Its name, ''Psilotum nudum'', means "bare naked" in Latin, because it lacks (or seems to lack) most of the organs of typical vascular plants, as a result of evolutionary reduction. (Note that leaves are not actually absent, but greatly reduced.) Development The embryo has only two parts, a distal shoot apex and a proximal foot. The shoot apex produces a rhizome without roots, possibly because ''P. nudum'' and relatives are often epiphytes. The rhizome in turn will eventually produce greatly reduced leaves instead of roots. These processes are heavily influenced by auxin concentrations. Distribution ''P. nudum'' is found in tropical Africa, Central America, tropical and subtropical North America, South America, tropical Asia, Australia, Hawaii, southern Japan, Lord Howe Island, New Zealand, with a few isolated populations in SW Europe ("Los Alcornocales", Sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syzygium Alternifolium
''Syzygium alternifolium'' is a species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is native to Arcot, Vellore, North Arcot, Kadapa, Cuddapah, Kurnool, and the Nagari hills, in eastern Chittoor district, India. It has alternate leaves. Syzygium alternifolium Walp. is a semi-evergreen mass-flowering tree species of dry deciduous forest in the southern Eastern Ghats of India. It is a mass bloomer with flowering during dry season. The floral traits suggest a mixed pollination syndrome involving entomophily and anemophily together called as ambophily. Further, the floral traits suggest generalist pollination system adapted for a guild of pollinating insects. The plant is self-incompatible and obligate out-crosser. The flowers are many-ovuled but only a single ovule forms seed and hence, fruit and seed set rates are the same. Bud infestation by a moth, flower predation by the beetle, Popillia impressipygaand bud and flower mounds significantly limit fruit set rate. The ability of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cycas Beddomei
''Cycas beddomei'' is a species of cycad in the genus ''Cycas'', native to India, where it is confined to a small area of Andhra Pradesh state in the Tirumala Hills in scrubland and brush covered hills. Superficially similar to ''Cycas revoluta'', it has erect, solitary stems. There are 20-30 leaves in the crown, each leaf 90 cm long, stiff, lanceolate, pinnate, with 50-100 pairs of leaflets, these 10-17.5 cm long and 3–4 mm wide, and angled forward at 45 degrees; the leaf petiole bears minute spines. The female cones are open, with sporophylls 15–20 cm long, with pink-brown coloured tomentose down, with two ovules. The cones emerge in November to December, ripening in March to May. The lamina margin is strongly toothed, with an acuminate point. The sarcotesta is yellow to brown. The male cones are solitary, ovoid, 30 cm long and 7.5 cm broad, with an apical spine and rhomboid sporophyll face. The species is unusual in that it contains a laye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
