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Tongan Tooth-billed Pigeon
The Tongan tooth-billed pigeon (''Didunculus placopedetes''), is an extinct species of pigeon that was endemic to Tonga that lived in the Quaternary period. A related species, the tooth-billed pigeon (''Didunculus strigirostris''), is the only known living species in its genus. Discription The Tongan tooth-billed pigeon is described as looking similar to its relative, the tooth-billed pigeon, although it was larger. The Tongan tooth-billed pigeon is only defined by subfossils found at archaeological sites. A common predator of the Tongan tooth-billed pigeon was the Barn Owl (T. a. lulu). It was about 31 to 38 centimetres long and weighed about 400 grams. with a short tail and a curved beak. Distribution and habitat It was located on the Tongan islands of Tongatapu, Lifuka, Ha'ano, 'Uiha, and Ha'afeva and lived in terrestrial environments. Its diet consisted of raw fruit of the Rhus taitensis. It also ate seeds from Heliconia laufao, nutmegs from the genus Myristica, tube ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Extinct Species
This page features lists of extinct species, organisms that have become extinct, either in the wild or completely disappeared from Earth. In actual theoretical practice, a species not definitely located in the wild in the last fifty years of current time is textually called "extinct". Plants * List of recently extinct plants Animals By region * List of African animals extinct in the Holocene ** List of extinct animals of Réunion * List of Asian animals extinct in the Holocene ** List of extinct animals of India ** List of extinct animals of the Philippines * List of European animals extinct in the Holocene ** List of extinct animals of Catalonia ** List of Caucasian animals extinct in the Holocene ** List of extinct animals of the British Isles *** Extinct animals from the Isle of Man ** List of extinct and endangered species of Italy ** List of extinct and endangered species of Lithuania ** List of extinct animals of the Netherlands ** List of extinct animals of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Berries
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, red currants, white currants and blackcurrants. In Britain, soft fruit is a horticultural term for such fruits. In common usage, the term "berry" differs from the scientific or botanical definition of a fruit produced from the ovary of a single flower in which the outer layer of the ovary wall develops into an edible fleshy portion (pericarp). The botanical definition includes many fruits that are not commonly known or referred to as berries, such as grapes, tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, bananas, and chili peppers. Fruits commonly considered berries but excluded by the botanical definition include strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, which are aggregate fruits and mulberries, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dioscorea
''Dioscorea'' is a genus of over 600 species of flowering plants in the family Dioscoreaceae, native throughout the tropical and warm temperate regions of the world. The vast majority of the species are tropical, with only a few species extending into temperate climates. It was named by the monk Charles Plumier after the ancient Greek physician and botanist Dioscorides. Description Wild Yam (''Dioscorea'') is a vine that is invasive, deciduous, and herbaceous. This species is native to Asia, though, in the U.S., it is commonly found in Florida. They can grow over in length. Wild yams are an important crop, as they have been used to prevent menstrual cramps, stomach cramps, and general pain for centuries. During the 1950s scientists found that the roots of wild yams contained diosgenin which is a plant-based estrogen; diosgenin is hypothesized to aid in chemical defense against herbivores. This was used to create the first birth control pills during the 60s. In addition, some ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuber
Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing season, and as a means of asexual reproduction. ''Stem tubers'' form thickened rhizomes (underground stems) or stolons (horizontal connections between organisms); well known species with stem tubers include the potato and yam. Some writers also treat modified lateral roots (''root tubers'') under the definition; these are found in sweet potatoes, cassava, and dahlias. Terminology The term originates from the Latin , meaning "lump, bump, swelling". Some writers define the term "tuber" to mean only structures derived from stems; others use the term for structures derived from stems or roots., p. 124 Stem tubers A stem tuber forms from thickened rhizomes or stolons. The top sides of the tuber produce shoots that grow into typ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myristica
''Myristica'' is a genus of trees in the family Myristicaceae. There are over 150 species, distributed in Asia and the western Pacific. The type species of the genus, and the most economically important member, is ''Myristica fragrans'' (the nutmeg tree), from which mace is also derived. Etymology The name ' is from the Greek adjective , meaning ‘fragrant, for anointing’, referring to its early use. The adjective is from the noun (‘perfume, ointment, anointing oil’). Description All or nearly all species are dioecious. Knuth (1904) however cites a report of trees being male in their sex expression when young and female later. Perianth of one whorl of three largely united segments. Stamens two to thirty, partly or wholly united. The ovary is superior, consisting of a single uniovulate carpel.Secondary Pollen Presentation. page 7. Peter Yeo 1993 Species in this genus use secondary pollen presentation (pollen presentation in the flower which does not use an anther), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nutmeg
Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, and mace, from the seed covering. It is also a commercial source of an essential oil and nutmeg butter. Conifers of the genus '' Torreya'', commonly known as the nutmeg yews, have edible seeds of similar appearance, but are not closely related to ''Myristica fragrans'', and are not used as a spice. Indonesia is the main producer of nutmeg and mace. If consumed in amounts exceeding its typical use as a spice, nutmeg powder may produce allergic reactions, cause contact dermatitis, or have psychoactive effects. Although used in traditional medicine for treating various disorders, nutmeg has no scientifically confirmed medicinal value. Common nutmeg Nutmeg is the spice made by grinding the seed of the fragrant nutmeg tree (''Myristica fra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heliconia
''Heliconia'', derived from the Greek word (), is a genus of flowering plants in the monotypic family Heliconiaceae. Most of the ca 194 known species are native to the tropical Americas, but a few are indigenous to certain islands of the western Pacific and Maluku. Many species of ''Heliconia'' are found in the tropical forests of these regions. Most species are listed as either vulnerable or data deficient by the IUCN Red List of threatened species. Several species are widely cultivated as ornamentals, and a few are naturalized in Florida, Gambia, and Thailand. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, toucan beak, wild plantain, or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers ('' Strelitzia''). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as "heliconias". Description These herbaceous plants range from 0.5 to nearly 4.5 m (1.5–15 ft) tall, depending on the species. The simple leaves of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhus Taitensis
''Rhus taitensis'' is a small tree or shrub in the sumac family of plants. It is found from tropical Asia, to Australia and many islands of the Pacific ocean. The chemical tetrahydroxysqualene from dried and ground parts of ''R. taitensis'' has ''in vitro'' activity against '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' and the plant has been used in folk medicine locally to treat diarrhea and hearing loss. Distribution The native range of ''R. taitensis'' includes Asian countries, such as Indonesia (in the Sulawesi, Irian Jaya, eastern Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands, and the Moluccas), Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines; western and south central Pacific island locales, such as the Society Islands of French Polynesia (the type specimens were collected from the island of Tahiti by Carlo Luigi Giuseppe Bertero and J. A. Moerenhout during an expedition described in Moerenhout's book entitled ''Voyages aux îles du Grand Océan''), Niue, Palau and others within Micronesia, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lifuka
Lifuka is an island in the Kingdom of Tonga. It is located within the Haapai Group in the centre of the country, to northeast of the national capital of Nukualofa. It is the administrative centre of the Haapai group of islands with Pangai being the administrative capital village. History Lifuka is the place where Captain James Cook dubbed Tonga "The Friendly Islands". Tofua is where the mutiny on the ''Bounty'' occurred in 1789; this active volcanic island lies approximately 40 nautical miles west of Lifuka. The Captain Bligh voyage stands as the longest known successful passage ever recorded in an open boat without modern navigational aids. It was successfully recreated in 2009 by the Talisker Bounty team. Lifuka Island was the final anchorage of the ill-fated ''Port au Prince''. In 1806 the natives off the northwest coast attacked the British privateer and whaler, slaughtering the majority of the crew. One of the few survivors of the attack, William Mariner, was befrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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