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Xylocopa Bombylans
''Xylocopa bombylans'', the peacock carpenter bee, is a species of carpenter bee found in Australia. It gets its common name by its habit of burrowing into wood. It was originally described by Danish naturalist Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775. Its specific epithet is the Latin ' "like a bumblebee". The name is derived from the Ancient Greek ( / '') "wood-cutter". As its name implies, the peacock carpenter bee is a metallic blue-green or green in colour, although it may even appear purplish from some angles. A large stocky bee, it is often heard by its loud low-pitched buzzing while flying between flowers. The male has white face markings. The bee does have a sting which is potentially painful, although no stings have been recorded. The natural distribution is from the Cape York Peninsula in north Queensland south along the eastern seaboard to the Sydney region (where it overlaps with '' X. aerata''). They can be seen from spring to autumn, commonly feeding at pea flowers of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johan Christian Fabricius
Johan Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is considered one of the most important entomologists of the 18th century, having named nearly 10,000 species of animals, and established the basis for the modern insect classification. Biography Johan Christian Fabricius was born on 7 January 1745 at Tønder in the Duchy of Schleswig, where his father was a doctor. He studied at the gymnasium at Altona and entered the University of Copenhagen in 1762. Later the same year he travelled together with his friend and relative Johan Zoëga to Uppsala, where he studied under Carl Linnaeus for two years. On his return, he started work on his , which was finally published in 1775. Throughout this time, he remained dependent on subsidies from his father, who worked as a consultant at Frederiks Hospita ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biotropica
''Biotropica'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Association for Tropical Biology & Conservation. The journal publishes articles describing original research on the ecology, conservation and management of tropical ecosystems and on the evolution, behavior, and population biology of tropical organisms. According to the ''Journal Citation Reports'', the journal has a 2018 impact factor of 2.989. ''Biotropica'' publishes articles in four categories: * Insights: Short and highly original articles * Papers: Longer research articles * Reviews: Longer synthesis articles * Commentaries: Opinion or discussion articles * Annual Award for Excellence in Tropical Biology and Conservation A small number of book reviews are also published each year, as are occasional "Special Sections" and "Special Issues" comprising articles on a particular theme. Origins and History of ''Biotropica'' The journal was established in 1969 to replace ''The B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xylocopa
Carpenter bees are species in the genus ''Xylocopa'' of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant material such as dead wood or bamboo. The main exceptions are species in the subgenus '' Proxylocopa''; they dig nesting tunnels in suitable soil. Etymology The French entomologist Pierre André Latreille described the genus in 1802. He derived the name from the Ancient Greek ''xylokopos''/ξυλοκὀπος "wood-cutter". Characteristics Many species in this enormous genus are difficult to tell apart; most species are all black, or primarily black with some yellow or white pubescence. Some differ only in subtle morphological features, such as details of the male genitalia. Males of some species differ confusingly from the females, being covered in greenish-yellow fur. The confusion of species arises particularly in the common names; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allodapula Bee
''Allodapula'' is a genus of bees in the family Apidae, subfamily Xylocopinae. They are similar in appearance, around 7mm in length, with swarthy head and thorax, contrasting with the brown abdomen. After the removal of a number of former species into other genera, the genus as presently defined occurs only in Africa. Biology left, 200px, ''Allodapula'' sp. collecting Aloe pollen The nest is inside a hollow weed or shrub stalk, and the tip of the abdomen is used to close off the nest entrance. A set of eggs are laid inside the plant stalk, in quick succession, so as to hatch together. They are placed at about the same height, above the bottom of the nest. The larvae are fed on pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ..., which like other bees, is carried on hairs of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melaleuca
''Melaleuca'' () is a genus of nearly 300 species of plants in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, commonly known as paperbarks, honey-myrtles or tea-trees (although the last name is also applied to species of '' Leptospermum''). They range in size from small shrubs that rarely grow to more than high, to trees up to . Their flowers generally occur in groups, forming a "head" or "spike" resembling a brush used for cleaning bottles, containing up to 80 individual flowers. Melaleucas are an important food source for nectarivorous insects, birds, and mammals. Many are popular garden plants, either for their attractive flowers or as dense screens and a few have economic value for producing fencing and oils such as "tea tree" oil. Most melaleucas are endemic to Australia, with a few also occurring in Malesia. Seven are endemic to New Caledonia, and one is found only on (Australia's) Lord Howe Island. Melaleucas are found in a wide variety of habitats. Many are adapted for life in swamp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Casuarina
''Casuarina'' is a genus of 17 tree species in the family Casuarinaceae, native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and eastern Africa. It was once treated as the sole genus in the family, but has since been split into four genera (see: Casuarinaceae).Flora of Australia''Casuarina''/ref> They are evergreen shrubs and trees growing to tall. The slender, green to grey-green twigs bearing minute scale-leaves in whorls of 5–20. The apetalous flowers are produced in small catkin-like inflorescences. Most species are dioecious, but a few are monoecious. The fruit is a woody, oval structure superficially resembling a conifer cone, made up of numerous carpels, each containing a single seed with a small wing. The generic name is derived from the Malay word for the cassowary, ''kasuari'', alluding to the similarities between the bird's feathers and the plant's foliage, though the tree is called ''ru'' in Modern Malay. Kare ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banksia
''Banksia'' is a genus of around 170 species in the plant family Proteaceae. These Australian wildflowers and popular garden plants are easily recognised by their characteristic flower spikes, and fruiting "cones" and heads. ''Banksias'' range in size from prostrate woody shrubs to trees up to 30 metres (100 ft) tall. They are found in a wide variety of landscapes: sclerophyll forest, (occasionally) rainforest, shrubland, and some more arid landscapes, though not in Australia's deserts. Heavy producers of nectar, ''banksias'' are a vital part of the food chain in the Australian bush. They are an important food source for nectarivorous animals, including birds, bats, rats, possums, stingless bees and a host of invertebrates. Further, they are of economic importance to Australia's nursery and cut flower industries. However, these plants are threatened by a number of processes including land clearing, frequent burning and disease, and a number of species are rare and endangered. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xanthorrhoea
''Xanthorrhoea'' () is a genus of about 30 species of flowering plants endemic to Australia. Species are known by the name grass tree. Description All are perennials and have a secondary thickening meristem in the stem. Many, but not all, species develop an above ground stem. The stem may take up to twenty years to emerge. Plants begin as a crown of rigid grass-like leaves, the caudex slowly growing beneath. The main stem or branches continue to develop beneath the crown, This is rough-surfaced, built from accumulated leaf-bases around the secondarily thickened trunk. The trunk is sometimes unbranched, some species will branch if the growing point is damaged, and others naturally grow numerous branches. Flowers are borne on a long spike above a bare section called a scape; the total length can be over three four metres long in some species. Flowering occurs in a distinct flowering period, which varies for each species, and often stimulated by bushfire. Fires will burn the le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Museum Victoria
Museums Victoria is an organisation which operates three major state-owned museums in Melbourne, Victoria: the Melbourne Museum, the Immigration Museum and Scienceworks Museum. It also manages the Royal Exhibition Building and a storage facility in Melbourne's City of Moreland. History The museum traces its history back to the establishment of the "Museum of Natural and Economic Geology" by the Government of Victoria, William Blandowski and others in 1854. The Library, Museums and National Gallery Act 1869 incorporated the Museums with the Public Library and the National Gallery of Victoria; but this administrative connection was severed in 1944 when the Public Library, National Gallery and Museums Act came into force, and they became four separate institutions once again. Museums Victoria was founded in its current form under the Australian Museums Act (1983). Currently, Museums Victoria's State Collections holds over 17 million items, including objects relating to In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leucopogon
''Leucopogon'' is a genus of about 150-160 species of shrubs or small trees in the family Ericaceae, in the section of that family formerly treated as the separate family Epacridaceae. They are native to Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia, the western Pacific Islands and Malaysia, with the greatest species diversity in southeastern Australia. Plants in this genus have leaves with a few more or less parallel veins, and tube-shaped flowers usually with a white beard inside. Description Plants in the genus ''Leucopogon'' range from prostrate shrubs to small trees. The leaves are arranged alternately and usually have about three, more or less parallel veins visible on the lower surface. The flowers are arranged in leaf axils or on the ends of branchlets either singly or in spikes of a few to many flowers. There is a single egg-shaped to circular bract and a pair of similar bracteoles at the base of each flower immediately below the five sepals. The sepals are similar to the bracts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cassia (genus)
''Cassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae, and the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. Species are known commonly as cassias. Cassia is also the English common name of some species in the genus ''Cinnamomum'' of the family Lauraceae. Species of the genera '' Senna'' and ''Chamaecrista'' were previously included in ''Cassia''. ''Cassia'' now generally includes the largest species of the legume subtribe Cassiinae, usually mid-sized trees. Ecology ''Cassia'' species occur in a range of climates. Some can be utilized widely as ornamental plants. They have been used in reforestation projects, and species from desert climates can be used to prevent desertification. ''Cassia'' species are used as food plants by the caterpillars of many lepidopteran taxa. For example, the skipper ''Astraptes fulgerator'' and the pierids ''Catopsilia pomona'' and '' C. pyranthe'' are all seen on ''Cassia fistula''. The latter utilizes several other cassias, as well. The plant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aotus (plant)
''Aotus'' is an Australian genus of flowering plants, within the legume family Fabaceae. ''Aotus'' species, together with other species of the tribe Mirbelieae, are often called golden peas because of their distinctive small yellow flowers. They are endemic to Australia, occurring in all states except the Northern Territory. ''Aotus'' are evergreen species. Some are widely cultivated by gardeners for their ornamental value. Species ''Aotus'' comprises the following species: * '' Aotus carinata'' Meissner * '' Aotus cordifolia'' Benth. * '' Aotus ericoides'' (Vent.) G.Don * '' Aotus genistoides'' Turcz. * '' Aotus gracillima'' Meissner * '' Aotus intermedia'' Meissner * '' Aotus lanigera'' Benth. * '' Aotus mollis'' Benth. * '' Aotus passerinoides'' Meissner * '' Aotus phylicoides'' Benth. * '' Aotus procumbens'' Meissner * '' Aotus subglauca'' Blakeley & McKie * '' Aotus subspinescens'' (Benth.) Crisp * '' Aotus tietkensii'' F.Muell. Species names with uncertain taxonomic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
