The life History of Ornithoptera Alexandrae Rothschild

During the years 1967 and 1968 some data were obtained on the life history and behavior of Ornithoptera alexandrae Rothschild, the largest known species of Rhopalocera. The geographic distribution of O. alexandrae is limited to a relatively small area in southeastern Papua New Guinea. However, within its range, there are many areas where the butterfly does not occur although the host plant grows prolifically.

The main habitat is a low and relatively flat region, but it has also been observed at altitudes up to 900 mete: O. alexandrae is monophagous. Its hostplant is Aristolochia schlechteri, a vine having rather large, thick leaves and stringy stems covered with a layer of strongly ribbed cork.

The flower is shaped like a starfish with three long arms and is dark purple-brown with a yellow heart. ‘The fruit is green, shaped like a small cucumber 20 to 30 cm long, strongly ribbed longitudinally and has a rough skin. It matures slowly and when fully rotten the seeds fall to the ground and are carried away by rainwater generally over short distances, resulting in a number of plants growing in a restricted area.

In primary forest the vine reaches the top of tall trees of over 40 meters high. When larvae were transferred to Aristolochia tagala, a plant more generally distributed, it was accepted readily and the larvae developed normally, although at a much faster rate than larvae feeding on their natural host. Data recorded show a rapid growth as v with larvae of Papilioaegeus when reared on parsley or carrot leaves instead of their natural food plants. 

When three larvae, obtained from eggs collected in the field, were reared on A. tagala they went through six instars instead of the usual five. It is not known whether this is hereditary or environ- as the case mental, The female butterfly does not oviposit on A. tagala. Oviposition. 

Generally a single egg is laid on the under surface of an old leaf of the hostplant. In secondary forest where this plant is not ver tall, the egg is laid from a few centimeters above the ground to about one meter above it. On several occasions a female was observed laying on other objects than the food plant such as a grass stem growing at a dis- tance of a few centimeters from one of the main stems of the Aristolochia vine. In primary forest, however, oviposition may take place at a con- siderable height above the ground. 

Egg. Large, light yellow, flattened at the base, Diameter 34% mm. Covered with a thick layer of a bright-orange sticky substance, which fixes it firmly to the surface ‘on which it is laid. Incubation period varying from 11 to 13 days. First-instar Larva. Ground colour dark wine red. All segments with long tubercles of same colour as body; tubercles fleshy for about one-fourth their length, remain- ing part stiff and black with numerous black spines. 

Two dorsal tubercles on the fourth abdominal segment light red as is dorsal saddle mark joining them on the same segment. Saddle mark divided mid-dorsally by a narrow black line. Head, prothoracie shield and legs black; prolegs dark, fleshy. Newly hatched larva seven to eight mm long. Osmaterium orange yellow. Second-instar Larva, Ground colour reddish black. Tubercles proportionately longer, all fleshy and without spines, latero-dorsal ones the longest. 

Dorsal and latero-dorsal tubercles on thoracic segments two and three, and dorsal ones on ab- dominal segments one, seven, eight and nine red; two dorsal tubercles on ab- dominal segment four creamy-white with pink tips; remaining tubercles of ground colour, First thoracic segment with four tubercles, following three segments with eight; abdominal segments two to eight with six; ninth abdominal with four and the last segment with two tubercles, Third- to final-instar Larvae, Ground colour unchanged, ‘Tubercles without spines, of nearly equal length except for the ventro-lateral ones which are very short, In ultimate instar, body tubercles proportionately smaller than in early instars, All bright red except two dorsal ones on fourth abdominal segment which remain creamy white with pink tips. 

Conspicuous saddle mark extending and narrowing down to spiracles. Some larvae with an additional creamy spot on third abdominal segment. Measurements of a large, mature larva: length 118 mm, greatest width 30 mm; headcapsule length, 12 mm, width 11 mm; longest tubercle, 13 mm. Some larvae have six instars instead of the usual five, and these producing the largest butterflies. 

Adult. The size of the butterfly varies considerably. The average length of the forewing in the male is 97 to 100 mm, in the female 118 to 126 mm. Many specimens are smaller, few are larger. One previously unrecorded feature is that some males have translucent, yellow discal spots on the hind wings, homologous to those of priamus and victoriae. 

In the higher altitudes of its range the total figure may reach 180 days depending on the locality. It was observed that larvae feeding on Aristolochia schlechteri spend much time in search of suitable leaves and stems. However, those feed- ing on the succulent and soft parts of Aristolochia tagala rarely move around and appear to have a longer average daily feeding time. Feeding habits. Shortly after hatching the larva devours its eggshell, which provides sufficient food for the next 24 hours.

It then commences. Later instars feed on older leaves and stems. Fifth and sixth instar larvae feed mainly on the stringy feeding on tender shoots and young leavi stems and shortly before pupation one or more stems of the host vine are severed, causing the upper parts to wither. If the plant is young, the lower part is eaten down to the ground. Pupation. The larva may wander for 24 hours or longer to locate a suitable site for pupation, which sometimes occurs at a considerable distance from where it was feeding last. 

The longest recorded distance was nearly 10 meters. It generally pupates under a leaf of any kind of shrub or tree other than the hostplant, rarely on stems, at an average height of one to two meters above the ground in secondary forest, but considerably higher in primary forest. Pupa. 

The ground color is light brown. Wing cases are yellow, with a broad light-brown streak along the lower margin. Abdomi its brown ventrally and yellow dorsally, with a yellow latero-ventral. streak. I saddle mark bright yellow, extending over segments one to five. Middorsally divided by a narrow dark brown line; a similar line running laterally below wing cases, ‘Thorax dark brown, tegulae bright yellow. Abdominal segments five to eight with two very short, sharp, black processes each. Pupa very closely resembles that of O. victoria. Duration of the pupal stage from forty to forty-five days. General observations. Female butterflies appear to follow a determined flight pattern when ovipositing. 

This is suggested by the fact that larvae in different stages of development, together with one or more pupae or exuviae, may always be located on or near the same foodplant, while other plants growing in the vicinity remain free of specimens the year round. It is possible that females, in their search for suitable conditions for oviposition, are stimulated by plants that already do support or have previously supported early stages. Single larvae are only found on small plants. Although it has not been possible to determine the longevity of the adults it is believed to be similar to that of O. priamus. Some males of Alexandria were clearly marked after they emerged from the pupa and then released in a garden. A few of these specimens established themselves for the duration of their adult life in the same garden, where both hostplants and flowers were prolific. After 11 weeks, one male was found caught in a large spiderweb. 

Another died in the same way after nearly 12 weeks. Predators and diseases. Several larvae have been found marked with numerous rust-brown dots, sitting motionless without feeding. They died after several weeks and may have been killed by a fungus disease. On one occasion a larva covered with eggs of a Tachinid was collected, but continued feeding pupated normally, and produced the adult. Apparently, the parasite eggs did not hatch or the resulting maggots did not survive. 

A native collector once had a pupa that produced a large number of small, black wasps, probably Chalcididae. Otherwise, larvae of O. alexandrae are rarely attacked by parasites. Prepupae and soft, fresh pupae are sometimes killed by ants and wasps and mature larvae and pupae are attacked by tree rats and small marsupials, When not mating both sexes may be seen, generally flying high (average 20 to 30 meters above the ground) and in a single direction. In the forest, males are seldom seen as they remain in the shade of the high canopy and avoid open or exposed areas. Fecundity. Two females were taken on the wing while ovipositing. Both specimens appeared in good condition, but it was impossible to make an accurate estimate of their age. They were kept alive and fed daily se and honey solution. 

After 12 days in captivity, both specimens were killed. One female had laid one egg; dissection of its abdomen produced another 16 mature eggs. On the basis that not more than 10 eggs had been laid before its capture, we can estimate a total capacity of 25 to 27 eggs. Dissection of the second female produced a total of 12 eggs of which two were immature. as

 

MYXOMYCETES (The Slime Moulds)

The myxomycetes are a strange and interesting group, apparently half plant and half animal. We see them as small dry fruiting bodies of various forms, from small puff-ball-like objects, on wood, to brightly colored little stalked balls or cylinders on stalks, less than 10mm tall. 

They are so strange and they are now classified in a totally different Kingdom, the Protozoa, neither fungi nor animals. They continue to be treated as ‘honorary fungi’ for the purposes of recording. They develop from spores into primitive animal forms, amoeba-like and swimming about in the water in their substrates, eating bacteria. They then change their form by coming together in huge numbers to form a sort of slime, which still feeds by engulfing food as it moves around, flowing slowly like a large Amoeba. 

The organism finally decides that it should reproduce, and the slime emerges from within the deadwood, or whatever substrate it was growing in, and climbs up to a dry spot where the final transformation takes place. It slowly changes into the fruiting body we see, containing thousands on more of dry spores borne on minute threads which expand and contract, contorting, and releasing the spores to the air.

The mysterious demise of William Morgan

In the history of American Freemasonry, there is perhaps no more intriguing a tale than the mysterious demise of William Morgan. The mix of circumstances, evidence, hearsay, public speculation, and alleged abduction and murder weave a fantastic tale perfect for a made-for-television movie. The fact that the case was so much in the public eye is arguably the most crucial element of the mystery since the eventual outrage and exposure of the Brotherhood and its secrecy led to widespread anti-Mason sentiments and the formation of the Anti-Masonic Party. 

A native of Culpepper County in Virginia, William Morgan left his home to spend time working various jobs in Canada and areas of New York. In 1824, Morgan settled in the small town of Batavia, New York, and began work as an itinerant stonemason. Referring to himself as “Captain” Morgan, he cited his distinctive military service in the War of 1812. Whether Morgan actually did serve in the armed forces is still questioned by historians, and many accounts of the Morgan mystery vary widely. 

Some historical accounts show that in 1825 in the Western Star Chapter No. 33 in LeRoy, New York, Morgan was awarded a Royal Arch degree. Experts disagree as to whether he was ever really a Mason (most assert he wasn’t) or had simply lied his way into the fraternity for his own evil gain. Other accounts tell that Morgan showed up at the lodge claiming he was already a brother, which incited suspicion among that lodge’s brethren. No matter whether he was a true Mason or not, several accounts state that Morgan spent time visiting other lodges and eventually was part of a group that was petitioning for a Royal Arch Chapter (a division of the York Rite). 

However, when the chapter started, Morgan was denied membership. Unbeknownst to everyone, this marked the beginning of a powerful public scandal that would shock brethren around the world. Morgan Spills Freemason Secrets Morgan’s omission from the new Batavian charter group resulted in arguments, and Morgan left the fraternity. 

At that point, he made his intentions clear: he was writing a book that would reveal all the secrets of Freemasonry—including their rituals and procedures—and he had, in fact, been paid a great sum in advance for the book by David Miller, publisher of a local newspaper, the Batavia Advocate. Morgan’s contract for the book involved Miller, a Mason who for twenty years did not progress beyond Entered Apprentice and bore a grudge against the Brotherhood; Morgan’s landlord, John Davids; and a man called Russell Dyer. 

Morgan exacerbated the issue by continually boasting about the enormous sum he had been paid for the book, which only gave rise to anger among the brethren. In order to avert the potential crisis, local Masons ran advertisements in other publications, which informed the public to be watchful of Morgan and his undesirable attributes. As one historian tells the tale, shortly thereafter, a local innkeeper was asked by a Mason to provide a meal for fifty of his brethren, who revealed that their intention that evening was to attack the Batavia Advocate’s offices. After hearing of their plan, Miller put out the word that he and others were armed and prepared for any attack. 

The Freemasons never executed their plan, but the incident did set off a chain of events. It is said that several Masons approached Morgan at his residence and arrested him for debts he owed them. He was taken to a local jail in the charge of a jailer who also happened to be a Mason. Miller, upon hearing of Morgan’s incarceration, set about finding the jailer so as to pay off Morgan’s alleged debt; however, it was a Friday evening and the jailer had conveniently departed, leaving Morgan behind bars until Monday. 

With the jailer absent, the Freemasons returned to confront Morgan about his scandalous exposé, telling him that if he gave them the book he would go free. After he refused to do so, they went to his home and engaged in a futile attempt to recover Morgan’s work. From there, matters only got worse. By Monday morning, Miller paid Morgan’s “debt,” and he was released. The Freemasons then turned around and had him immediately arrested for stealing a shirt and tie and owing another small debt in the town of Canandaigua, about fifty miles east of Batavia. He was driven there in a carriage and again incarcerated. At the same time, an unsuccessful attempt was made to jail Miller.

Modification Mesohippus

About 40 million years ago, the evolutionary process began to change the horse even more. At this time, during the Oligocene Epoch, appeared Mesohippus. As the temperature and climate changed, forests began to dwindle and grass became more prevalent. Mesohippus developed larger than its ancestors, standing 24 inches high at the shoulders, about the size of a collie dog. The 44 teeth remained, however, and legs and face began to lengthen. 

Its feet were still clinging to pads but tiny hooves had developed on three toes on the front and three toes on the back feet. It was better suited to running fast to escape the enemies that pursued. Because the swamp had given way to soft ground, Mesohippus no longer needed its toes so much as Eohippus did. 

The lateral supporting toes gradually decreased in size while the middle toe gained strength. Some of these horses migrated across the Bering Strait to preserve the species, which were eventually wiped out on the North American continent for unknown reasons.

Buff-Tailed Bee (Bombus terrestris)

This bumblebee has two dark yellow bands, one on the thorax near the head and the second on the abdomen. Workers have a white tip to the tail, and the queen has a buff-white (or occasionally orange) tail tip. Behavior & life cycle The queens emerge from February onwards. The nest becomes large, with up to five hundred bees, and is typically sited underground in an old rodent hole, with an entrance tunnel up to 6 feet (2 m) long. 

The workers fly for much of the year, with males emerging to mate with the young queens from July to October. Usually, only the newly mated queen overwinters, but some colonies have remained active throughout recent warmer winters in southern England (and similar latitudes), with worker bees seen flying during January. 

It was the first bumblebee species to be reared commercially, and it is now used worldwide to pollinate greenhouse crops such as tomato, eggplant (aubergine), zucchini (courgette), watermelon, bell pepper, and strawberry. Outdoors, it is an important pollinator of fruit and crops such as alfalfa, onion, rape, and sunflower. 

Commercial use has led to this bee escaping and colonizing Tasmania and South America. It was deliberately introduced to New Zealand in the late 1800s. B. terrestris is parasitized by the cuckoo bee Bombus vestalis.

George Washington and the Whiskey Rebellion

In 1788 George Washington was elected as the first President of the United States. New York was then the country's capital city. On April 30, 1789, Washington stood on a balcony there and swore a solemn oath “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." When the ceremony came to an end he officially took control of the nation's government. Washington believed that political parties were harmful. He said later that it was "the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage" them. Even so, he favored a strong federal government, so he tended to govern in a federalist manner. The way that he dealt with the "Whiskey Rebellion" of 1794 was an example of this. 

The main crop grown by farmers in western Pennsylvania was corn. Some of this they made into whiskey which they then sold. When the federal government placed a tax on the whiskey the Pennsylvania farmers refused to pay it. They burned down the houses of the federal tax collectors or "revenue agents." who tried to make them pay. Washington sent an army of men to support the rights of the federal government. Faced by soldiers, the rebels went home quietly. The Whiskey Rebellion collapsed without any fighting. The soldiers arrested a few of the leaders, but later the President pardoned them. After this, there was no more organized resistance to paying the whiskey tax. 

But many frontier farmers went on making whiskey that was never taxed. They made it in stills hidden away in the woods in places that revenue agents could not find. Such illegal" moonshine" whiskey-so called because it was often made at night-continues to be made to this day. The law-making, or "legislative," powers of the federal government were given to a Congress. This was made up of representatives elected by the people. Congress was to consist of two parts, the Senate and the House of Representatives. In the Senate, each state would be equally represented, with two members, whatever the size of its population. 

The number of representatives a state had in the louse of Representatives, however, would depend upon its population. Finally, the Constitution set up a Supreme Court to control the "judicial" part of the nation's government. The job of the Supreme Court was to make decisions in any disagreements about the meaning of the laws and the Constitution. The Constitution made sure that there was a "balance of power" between these three main parts, or ' " branches," of the federal government. To each bunch it gan' powers that the or her two did not have; each had ways of stropping wrongful actions by either of the other two. This was to make sure that no one person or group could become powerful enough to take complete control of the nation's government. 

The American people had rebelled against being ruled in an undemocratic fashion by Britain. They did not want to replace the unrepresentative rule of the king and parliament in Lon don with the rule of a tyranny cal central government in the United States itself Many Americans had another fear. This was that the federal government might try to weaken the tilt' of the states to run their own individual affairs. To remove this danger the Constitution said exactly what powers the federal government should have and what powers should be reserved for the states. It said that the states would be allowed to run their internal affairs as they wished. provided that they kept to the rules of the Constitution. Before the new system of government set out in the Constitution could begin. It had to be approved by a majority of the citizens In at least nine of the thirteen states.

Phylogenetic reconstruction of relationships of the Australo-Papuan parrots

 Phylogenetic reconstruction of relationships of the Australo-Papuan parrots using the Bayesian criteria and the 27 taxa and eight loci used in the Secondary dataset. Posterior probabilities are indicated above branches; values of 1.0 or 100% are indicated with asterisks and values below 0.7 or 70% are not shown. Images of birds painted by Frank Knight reproduced with permission (see Acknowledgments). The species depicted, from top to bottom are shown approximately to scale, and are: Pezoporus flaviventris, Neophema elegans, Psephotus dissimilis, Melopsittacus undulatus, Loriculus galgulus, Psittacella brehmi, Eclectus roratus (male, left and female, right), Micropsitta finschii.

DRAB PROMINENT “Misogada unicolor”

 RECOGNITION Instantly identified by its “forked tail” and close association with sycamore. Pale green with broad white dorsal stripe infused with brick-red spots. Head with pair of medial white lines that diverge to follow edges of the triangle and conspicuous, broad reddish band, edged below with white that extends to the antenna. Larva to 4cm.

OCCURRENCE Edges of watercourses, wetlands, and parks from Missouri to Massachusetts south to northern Florida and Texas. At least two generations with mature caterpillars from May to November.

COMMON FOODPLANTS Sycamore; reports from cottonwood and other foodplants may be in error.

REMARKS This interesting caterpillar is anything but drab its moniker is derived from the plebian appearance of the adult. The larva rests with its head partially pulled within the thorax (inset). Look for the Drab Prominent on leaf undersides, positioned over the midrib or a strong secondary vein. I have had consistent success searching saplings and young sycamore plants in late summer. In early instars, the anal prolegs account for more than half of the body length. Alarmed larvae shunt blood (hemolymph) into their anal prolegs, enlarging them further, and flail them about the body. In each successive instar, the anal prolegs become proportionately smaller and lose erectile capacity. The pupa overwinters.

The Birding Site of Seychelles

 Seychelles is a group of small islands 1,500 km off the eastern coast of Africa, in the Indian Ocean. It is a luxury tourist destination, offering the romantic tropical island experience with sun-drenched beaches, palm trees, coral reefs, and top-class accommodation. To wildlife enthusiasts and conservationists, however, they are something much more: an example of successful habitat restoration and the recovery of bird populations that at one time seemed doomed to extinction. Seychelles include about 40 granite islands and more than 100 coral or sand islets. 

The larger islands have hilly centers covered with montane forest and, not surprisingly, it is these islands that hold most of the endemic bird species. Indeed, Mahe, the largest island, is home to seven of them and one, the Seychelles Scops Owl, occurs nowhere else. This small reddish-brown owl was discovered in 1880 but declared extinct in 1958, having been recorded just once in the meantime, in 1940. Following up on reports of strange croaking calls being heard at night, however, it was rediscovered only a year later, when reports tentatively suggested the existence of 20 birds. It is now known, however, that there are about 360 birds, mostly found in the Morne Seychellois National Park, and it has now been intensively studied, the very first nest having been discovered in 2000.

This back-from-the-brink story is not the only one to feature among the birds of Seychelles. On the nearby island of Fregate, for example, the Seychelles Magpie-Robin has faced a more genuine struggle for survival. Its problems are common to many Seychelles birds, and to many species of birds on small islands generally. Once widespread on most of the major islands, this attractive black chat with a broad white wing-bar fell victim to a catalog of ills; foraging mainly on the ground, it was frequently preyed upon by introduced cats and its tree-hole nest was vulnerable to rats. 

 This, together with habitat destruction and degradation, eventually limited the magpie robin to just one 2.19-sq-km island, and by 1965 there were only 15 individuals remaining, perhaps making it the rarest bird in the world. Then the conservation agencies stepped in, yet their first attempts at helping the magpie-robin failed. Some birds were translocated to other islands but died out; cats were eradicated from Fregate in 1982, but still, the population hovered in the danger zone.

It was not until 1990, when the habitat on Fregate began to be managed especially for them, that the birds, at last, began to recover, reaching a total of 85 individuals by 1999. Birds were translocated to Aride, Cousin and Cousine islands and the present total from the four populations is well above 150 birds. In 2005, to richly deserved fanfare, Seychelles Magpie-Robin was downgraded from Critical status to Endangered by BirdLife International. Meanwhile, the island of Cousin was witnessing its own drama. At the same time that the magpie-robin was faltering on Fregate, Seychelles Warbler population declined to 29 individuals on Cousin, and it was in severe trouble. However, in 1968 Cousin Island came up for sale and became the first island in the world to be owned by an international conservation organization (the International Council for Bird Preservation, the forerunner of BirdLife International).

The island was promptly purged of its coconut palms and the original scrubby vegetation regenerated. The warbler recovered and its population is now over 2,000 individuals, including birds translocated to Aride and Cousine. Studies have shown that this species lays only one egg per clutch, exceptionally low for a member of its family. The next species that were expected to reach dangerously low populations was the Seychelles White-eye. Until recently it was thought to occur only in Mahe, wherein in 1996 there were thought to be only 35 individuals surviving, all dangerously vulnerable to cats and to nest-predation by rats, and introduced Common Mynas. With no hope of eradicating these threats on such a comparatively large (30 km long) island, things looked bleak until, miraculously, a previously unknown, thriving population of more than 250 was discovered in 1997 on the predator-free islet of Conception.

For once, the bird managed its own recovery. The other Seychelles endemics have spared the conservationists too much trauma, but several are vulnerable to catastrophic events. Magnificent Seychelles Paradise Flycatcher, for example, the male of which is entirely sooty black with a long trailing tail, occurs only on the island of La Digue, where its population numbers about 230 birds. The gecko-eating Seychelles Kestrel numbers about 450 birds, mostly on Mahe, while the Seychelles Swiftlet has a larger population, but many of its breeding caves are still to be discovered. Happily, the Seychelles Blue Pigeon, the Seychelles Bulbul, and the Seychelles Fody are all secure, and the Seychelles Sunbird seems to have positively benefited from man’s alteration of the local environment. It can be seen everywhere. Thus it is that a birder visiting Seychelles can still see a good range of endemic birds.

The other main attraction is the seabirds and the island of Aride has some of the most important colonies in the Indian Ocean, totaling about one million birds of ten species. There are up to 360,000 pairs of Sooty Terns, 200,000 pairs of Sooty Noddies (Seychelles has all the world’s largest colonies of this bird), and 72,000 Audubon’s Shearwaters. Bird Island, an isolated speck 100 km north of Mahe, may hold a million Sooty Terns in the breeding season, of which up to 600,000 pairs may actually be nesting. 

This island also provides a habitat for 10,000 Brown Noddies and several other species of tern. Meanwhile, the population of the exotic-looking White Tern, with its snowy plumage and large dark eye, numbers about 14,000 pairs throughout all the islands. Famously, it lays its single egg precariously on a fork in a branch from where, on occasion, it may be deliberately tipped by a badly behaved Seychelles Fody. These two last-named sums up Seychelles quite well, bird-wise. The fabulous White Tern adorns the tourism brochures, but it is birds like the fody that provide lasting and uplifting memories of the Seychelles.

KEY SPECIES Eleven endemic land birds including Seychelles Magpie-Robin and Seychelles Paradise Flycatcher, and a host of tropical seabirds including White Tern. TIME OF YEAR July to October is best when the seabirds are breeding.

tamaricaceae: tamariSk Family

 The tamarisk family consists of about 4 or 5 genera of shrubs and trees from Eurasia and Africa. Species are commonly halophytes, occurring in saline or alkaline habitats. Twig Much branched, often green and photosynthetic. leaf Commonly small and scalelike. Flower Usually tiny, often in branched inflorescences; sepals, petals, and stamens each commonly 4 or 5; ovary superior, 1-chambered, with usually 3 styles. Fruit Capsule containing hairy seeds.

TAMARIX: tamarisks or Saltcedars

Of the approximately 55 species of tamarisk native to the Old World (Eurasia and Africa), about 9 have been introduced to North America, and at least 2 have become aggressively invasive. Shrubs and trees with a fine, wispy, often drooping terminal stem that are grayish-green, photosynthetic, and mostly deciduous at the end of a season. Bark Brownish or reddish-brown, smooth at first, eventually becoming grayish brown and furrowed.  The leaf is Reduced to tiny scales that have salt-excreting glands and thus are sometimes encrusted with white. Flower Tiny, whitish to pinkish, usually bisexual (when unisexual, male and female on the separate plant), borne in racemes that are either single or in branched clusters. Sepals 4 or 5, separate or joined at the base; petals 4 or 5, separate; stamens 4 or 5, attached to the edge of a central nectar disk with 4 or 5 lobes, or immediately beneath it. Fruit Tiny capsule splitting into 3 or 4 segments, with many tiny seeds, each seed with a tuft of hairs at the tip, resembling a minute whisk broom.

The biblical manna may have come from the excrescence of insects feeding on tamarisk. Honey producers make dark, flavorful honey from the flowers. Tamarisk was apparently introduced to the U.S. in the 1850s for ornamental use, for windbreaks, or to stabilize erosion. It raced across the West as an invasive plant in the early The 1900s, displacing native vegetation along watercourses, overtaking more than half a million hectares. The Northern Tamarisk Beetle (Diorhabda carinulata) and closely related species are now being used for biological control. Tamarisk is deep-rooted, tapping water that other plants may not be able to access, but also has widely spreading roots, which give rise to new plants. The tiny seeds float upon the wind for long distances. Other means of eradication are expensive, requiring chemical and/or mechanical means, and sometimes also the burning of dense stands.

In North America, tamarisks (or saltcedars)occur in places that are wet at least part of the year, such as saline plains, floodplains, roadsides, riverbanks, canyon bottoms, and springs, from low to moderate elevations, in much of the w. and se. U.S. The slender green terminal, often drooping twigs with tiny alternate, scale-like leaves are diagnostic, especially when examined in combination with inflorescences of minute pinkish-white flowers. At first glance, Casuarina, which has not been naturalized in the West, is very similar, but it has scale-like leaves in rings, making a jointed stem, and a small avoid, rough woody fruiting body.

Tamarix species are differentiated by small differences of the flower, particularly the shape of the nectar disk and attachment of stamens to the nectar disk. Also important is the presence or absence of minute teeth on leaves or sepals, though species are practically impossible to identify without flowers. Flower and leaf features require at least a 10×lens to see. To confound the problem, species will hybridize when in contact with one another, and a number of floral parts may vary on any one plant.

Still, with a lens and persistence, one can usually identify a species, or an intergrade between species. Look at the number of stamens per flower (4 or 5) and the junction of the stamens with the nectar disk in the center of the flower. In this treatment, the first species, T. parviflora, has 4 stamens. The second group of species, beginning here with T. gallica has 5 stamens with flared bases of filaments confluent with the nectar disk, and no well-defined disk lobes between the filament bases. The third group of species, headed by T. chinensis, has 5 stamens with slender filaments, and an abrupt junction between the nectar disk and narrow base of the filament, the disk with well-defined lobes between the filament bases.

Flammulated Attila Song

The Flammulated Attila sings two acoustically distinct song types. Dawn songs have up to six elements, four of which occurred in the main phrase and two others in the terminal phrase. Birds sequenced these elements inflexible but predictable ways. Attilas varied the number of repetitions of dawn song elements before going on to the next element or ending the song. They combined elements in different ways by using two different starting elements and three ways of ending songs. Ignoring variable repetitions of song elements, 22 different patterns were observed at least once. Most birds had four or more patterns present in the recorded sample of their singing. Individual birds that were known to have elements in their repertoire often omitted some of these elements from songs.

Day songs seemed to be less flexible than dawn songs, but birds often failed to give the terminal phrase, sang the terminal phrase without first singing the main phrase, or repeated the terminal phrase. Day songs also varied in the number of repetitions of the most common note of the main phrase. Dawn and day songs of a tyrant flycatcher, the Flammulated Attila (Attila flammulatus), were recorded in Costa Rica. Flexible syntax was noted in both dawn and day songs. Attila’s not only varied the number of repetitions of their song elements but also combined elements in various ways. This appears to be the first reported case of combinatorial song syntax in a suboscine species.

Why Hummingbirds are So Attractive?

These majestic tiny birds are extremely fascinating for many reasons. The way they fly, their colorful feathers, and their high-pitched chirping are just a few of the things that make them so interesting to watch. When it comes to diversity in nature, there is no bird as diverse as the hummingbird. The hummingbird family contains more than 310 species divided into two subfamilies: The 28 Neotropical species and the 292 Nearctic species, with each living in different parts of North America (their home continent). These two groups can be further divided into 10 genera with 18 different species that reside in California alone. Hummingbirds live on average anywhere from 2-7 years, but some have been documented living up to more than 10 years.

What is an Invention?

What is an Invention?

An invention is something that is developed by a person, or by a team of people, usually in response to a need. From paper cups to pencils, good inventions make our lives easier. Other inventions, such as candy bars, make our lives more fun. Some inventions meet an obvious need. The first can opener, invented in 1855, was made almost 60 years after the invention of the sealed tin can; before this, cans were opened with a hammer and chisel. Innovation is the application of better solutions that meet new requirements or needs. For example, the innovations to the light bulb—from incandescent to compact fluorescent to LED—has meant brighter lighting.

What is a discovery?

Discoveries and inventions often complement each other, but they are different things. A discovery is when something that already exists is found. The discovery of lodestone, a magnetic rock, led to the invention of the first compass, which sailors used to navigate.

Who was first?

Many inventions have been developed by different people at the same time. A famous example is the light bulb, first made by Englishman Joseph Swan and by American Thomas Edison in 1878. The two had not worked together.

What is a patent?

A patent is a legal document that grants sole rights to an individual or company to make, use, and sell an invention for a certain period of time. A patent protects an original idea, so the inventor can make money from it.

 

The Common Black Kite

The Common Black Kite is often seen in Subcontinent. The bird is relaxing in pleasant weather. 

 Read More – What is Happiness in Life / Source: CP

The Gobi Bear

The rare Gobi Bear “Mazaalai” is a subspecies of the Brown Bear lives on the harshest places on Earth. It is in the list of critically endangered species by the Zoological Society of London. Gobi Bear is found in Gobi Desert of Mongolia. The flimsy eco-system of the Gobi desert is being threatened by the advance of the human activities. That strengthens the process of desertification and shrinks the traditional natural habitat of the species.