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Windward Islands Xeric Scrub
The Windward Islands xeric scrub ecoregion (WWF ID: NT1317) covers the relatively small areas of the Windward Islands that receive low levels of precipitation. The dry areas of these islands are the low coastal areas that receive less precipitation. Because the dry scrub land is generally flat, near the coast, and not as obviously in need of conservation as the upland forests of the interior, they are more vulnerable to human settlement and development for agriculture. Location and description The ecoregion is represented mostly in the low coastal zones of Barbados, Dominica, and Martinique; also the northern tip of Saint Lucia and the southern shores of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. These islands are part of a volcanic arc, and the soils of the low coastal areas are mostly alluvial and ash, not the harder volcanic rocks of the mountainous areas. Climate The climate of the ecoregion is '' Tropical savanna climate - dry winter'' (Köppen climate classification (Aw)). Thi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cabrits National Park
Cabrits National Park is on a peninsula at the north end of the Caribbean island of Dominica, north of Portsmouth. The park protects tropical forest, coral reefs and wetlands. There are hiking trails and an English garrison called Fort Shirley (Dominica), Fort Shirley. Cabrits National Park occupies 1,313 acres (531 ha) and was established in 1986. Cabrits is an extinct volcano that was once its own island, separate from mainland Dominica. It was connected to Dominica by the sweeping in of material from Douglas Bay and Prince Rupert Bay. The word Cabrits is derived from "goat" in Spanish, French and Portuguese, and is a reference to the animal that has been indigenous to Cabrits. Goats were introduced to the island by sailors, who set them free on the island to grow, so that there would be meat available when they returned. Cabrits is the last stop on the Waitukubuli Trail which originates in the southern village of Scott's Head. Segment 14 of the trail runs from Capuchin to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lonchocarpus
''Lonchocarpus'' is a plant genus in the legume family (biology), family (Fabaceae). The species are called lancepods due to their fruit resembling an ornate lance tip or a few beads on a string. ''Cubé'' resin is produced from the roots of ''Lonchocarpus urucu, L. urucu'' and namely 'Lonchocarpus utilis, L. utilis'' (''cubé''). It contains enough of the toxic rotenoids rotenone and deguelin to be used as an insecticide and piscicide. As these are naturally occurring compounds, they were formerly used in organic farming. Since it is highly unselective and kills useful, as well as pest, animals, it is considered harmful to the environment today. Also, Chronic (medicine), chronic exposure to rotenone and deguelin seems to increase the risk of Parkinson's disease even in mammals, for which these compounds are less Acute (medicine), acutely toxic than for fish and insects. On the other hand, deguelin might be useful in cancer therapy if it can be applied directly into tumors, and ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Small Indian Mongoose
The small Indian mongoose (''Urva auropunctata'') is a mongoose species native to Iraq and northern South Asia; it has also been introduced to many regions of the world, such as several Caribbean and Pacific islands. Taxonomy ''Mangusta auropunctata'' was the scientific name proposed by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1836 for a mongoose specimen collected in central Nepal. It was later classified in the genus ''Herpestes'', but all Asian mongooses are now thought to belong in the genus ''Urva''. In the 19th and 20th centuries, several zoological specimens were described: *''Mangusta pallipes'' proposed by Edward Blyth in 1845 were mongooses observed in Kandahar, Afghanistan. *''Herpestes palustris'' proposed by R. K. Ghose in 1965 was an adult male mongoose collected in a swamp on the eastern fringe of Kolkata, India. The small Indian mongoose was once considered a subspecies of the Javan mongoose (''H. javanicus''). Genetic analysis of hair and tissue samples from 18 small Indian an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pilosocereus Royenii
''Pilosocereus royenii'' is a species of cactus found throughout the West Indies and the states of Yucatán and Quintana Roo in Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema .... Common names include Royen's tree cactus, dildo cactus, and pipe organ cactus. It is composed of multiple long, tubular shaped branches, each ribbed with multiple sections and sharp spines. Gallery Pilosocereus royenii 1.JPG, Sebucán (Pilosocereus royenii) Flor Sebucán.jpg References Dildo cactus Pilosocereus, royenii Cacti of North America Flora of the Caribbean Flora of Mexico Plants described in 1957 {{cactus-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opuntia Dilenii
''Opuntia'', commonly called prickly pear or pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae. Prickly pears are also known as ''tuna'' (fruit), ''sabra'', ''nopal'' (paddle, plural ''nopales'') from the Nahuatl word for the pads, or nostle, from the Nahuatl word for the fruit; or paddle cactus. The genus is named for the Ancient Greek city of Opus, where, according to Theophrastus, an edible plant grew and could be propagated by rooting its leaves. The most common culinary species is the Indian fig opuntia (''O. ficus-indica''). Description ''O. ficus-indica'' is a large, trunk-forming, segmented cactus that may grow to with a crown of over in diameter and a trunk diameter of . Cladodes (large pads) are green to blue-green, bearing few spines up to or may be spineless. Prickly pears typically grow with flat, rounded cladodes (also called platyclades) containing large, smooth, fixed spines and small, hairlike prickles called glochids that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erythroxylum
''Erythroxylum'' (''Erythroxylon'') is a genus of tropical flowering plants in the family Erythroxylaceae. Many of the approximately 200 species contain the substance cocaine,Bieri S, Brachet A, Veuthey J, Christen P. Cocaine distribution in wild Erythroxylum species. ''Journal of ethnopharmacology''. 2006; 103: 439-447. and two of the species within this genus, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense'', both native to South America, are the main commercial source of cocaine and of the mild stimulant coca tea. Another species, '' Erythroxylum vaccinifolium'' (also known as catuaba) is used as an aphrodisiac in Brazilian drinks and herbal medicine. ''Erythroxylum'' species are food sources for the larvae of some butterflies and moths, including several ''Morpho'' species and ''Dalcera abrasa'', which has been recorded on ''E. deciduum'', and the species of ''Agrias''. Species , Kew's Plants of the World Online listed 259 species: {{Columns-list, colwidth=22e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chrysophyllum Argenteum
''Chrysophyllum argenteum'' is a tree in the family Sapotaceae, native to the tropical Americas. Description ''Chrysophyllum argenteum'' grows up to tall, with a trunk diameter of up to . Larger trees may feature buttresses. Its grey bark is fissured. The elliptic or oblong An oblong is a non-square rectangle. Oblong may also refer to: Places * Oblong, Illinois, a village in the United States * Oblong Township, Crawford County, Illinois, United States * A strip of land on the New York-Connecticut border in the Unit ... leaves measure up to long. Fascicles feature up to 10 cream to green flowers. The ellipsoid fruits ripen purple to black and measure up to long. Distribution and habitat ''Chrysophyllum argenteum'' is native to a wide area from the Caribbean to Central America and tropical South America. Its habitat is in various forest types and grasslands at altitudes up to . References argenteum Flora of South America Plants described in 1760 {{Sapotaceae-s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haematoxylon Campechianum
''Haematoxylum campechianum'' (blackwood, bloodwood tree, bluewood, campeachy tree, campeachy wood, campeche logwood, campeche wood, Jamaica wood, logwood or logwood tree) is a species of flowering tree in the legume family, Fabaceae, that is native to southern Mexico,where it is known as ''Árbol de campeche'', and introduced to the Caribbean, northern Central America, and other localities around the world. The tree was of great economic importance from the 17th century to the 19th century, when it was commonly logged and exported to Europe for use in dyeing fabrics. The modern nation of Belize developed from 17th- and 18th-century logging camps established by the English. The tree's scientific name means "bloodwood" (''haima'' being Greek for blood and ''xylon'' for wood). Uses ''Haematoxylum campechianum'' was used for a long time as a natural source of dye. The woodchips are still used as an important source of haematoxylin, which is used in histology for staining. The bar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pisonia Fragrans
''Pisonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the four o'clock flower family, Nyctaginaceae. It was named for Dutch physician and naturalist Willem Piso (1611–1678). Certain species in this genus are known as catchbirdtrees, birdcatcher trees or birdlime trees because they catch birds. The sticky seeds are postulated to be an adaptation of some island species that ensures the dispersal of seeds between islands by attaching them to birds, and also allows the enriching of coralline sands. (Should a fledgling fall to the ground, become entangled in the ''Pisonia'' sticky seeds, and be unable to free itself, then it will starve, and so enrich the soil within the tree's rootzone.) These island species include '' P. brunoniana'' of Australasia and Polynesia and '' P. umbellifera'', which is widespread in the tropical Indo-Pacific region. Species *''Pisonia aculeata'' L. – pullback (pantropical) *''Pisonia alba'' Span. *''Pisonia albida'' (Heimerl) Britton ex Standl. – ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lonchocarpus Pentaphyllus
''Lonchocarpus'' is a plant genus in the legume family (Fabaceae). The species are called lancepods due to their fruit resembling an ornate lance tip or a few beads on a string. ''Cubé'' resin is produced from the roots of '' L. urucu'' and namely ' L. utilis'' (''cubé''). It contains enough of the toxic rotenoids rotenone and deguelin to be used as an insecticide and piscicide. As these are naturally occurring compounds, they were formerly used in organic farming. Since it is highly unselective and kills useful, as well as pest, animals, it is considered harmful to the environment today. Also, chronic exposure to rotenone and deguelin seems to increase the risk of Parkinson's disease even in mammals, for which these compounds are less acutely toxic than for fish and insects. On the other hand, deguelin might be useful in cancer therapy if it can be applied directly into tumors, and ''Lonchocarpus'' root is used to a probably insignificant extent by indigenous peoples as an ai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tropical Savanna Climate With Dry-winter Characteristics
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to as the tropical zone and the torrid zone (see geographical zone). In terms of climate, the tropics receive sunlight that is more direct than the rest of Earth and are generally hotter and wetter as they aren't affected as much by the solar seasons. The word "tropical" sometimes refers to this sort of climate in the zone rather than to the geographical zone itself. The tropical zone includes deserts and snow-capped mountains, which are not tropical in the climatic sense. The tropics are distinguished from the other climatic and biomatic regions of Earth, which are the middle latitudes and the polar regions on either side of the equatorial zone. The tropics constitute 40% of Earth's surface area and contain 36% of Earth's landmass. , the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
