Lithops
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Lithops
''Lithops'' is a genus of succulent plants in the ice plant family, Aizoaceae. Members of the genus are native to southern Africa. They avoid being eaten by herbivores with their camouflage as small stones, and are often known as pebble plants or living stones. "Lithops" is both the genus name and the common name, and is singular as well as plural. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words () 'stone' and () 'face', referring to the stone-like appearance of the plants. Description Individual ''Lithops'' consist of one or more pairs of bulbous, almost fused leaves opposite each other and hardly any stem. The slit between the leaves contains the meristem and produces flowers and new leaves. The leaves of ''Lithops'' are mostly buried below the surface of the soil, with a partially or completely translucent top surface known as a leaf window which allows light to enter the interior of the leaves for photosynthesis. During winter a new leaf pair, or occasionally more t ...
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Lithops Turbiniformis 1
''Lithops'' is a genus of succulent plants in the ice plant family, Aizoaceae. Members of the genus are native to southern Africa. They avoid being eaten by herbivores with camouflage in plants, their camouflage as small stones, and are often known as pebble plants or living stones. "Lithops" is both the genus name and the common name, and is singular as well as plural. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words () 'stone' and () 'face', referring to the stone-like appearance of the plants. Description Individual ''Lithops'' consist of one or more pairs of bulbous, almost fused leaf, leaves opposite each other and hardly any Plant stem, stem. The slit between the leaves contains the meristem and produces flowers and new leaves. The leaves of ''Lithops'' are mostly buried below the surface of the soil, with a partially or completely translucent top surface known as a leaf window which allows light to enter the interior of the leaves for photosynthesis. During winter a ...
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Lithops Salicola
''Lithops salicola'' is a species of perennial plant in the family Aizoaceae, often called living stones, because of its resemblance to round grey pebbles. Description ''Lithops salicola'' has two coupled leaves, divided by a fissure through which the flowers appear. It is cylindrical or conical with a flat surface and green-gray coloration. The flowers are white and very small. It grows to a height of . Distribution This species can be found in the Cape Provinces and Free State of South Africa''Lithops salicola'' L.Bolus
''''. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
at an elevation of to . It is generally found in well-drained

Lithops Pseudotruncatella
''Lithops pseudotruncatella'' is a species of succulent in the family Aizoaceae. Initial confusion associated with '' Conophytum truncatum'' is where it derives its name, literally meaning "fake-truncatum". It also received The Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. The plant is endemic to Namibia. Description Leaves are thick, and similar to that of the rest of the genus ''Lithops ''Lithops'' is a genus of succulent plants in the ice plant family, Aizoaceae. Members of the genus are native to southern Africa. They avoid being eaten by herbivores with their camouflage as small stones, and are often known as pebble plants ...''. The leaves are paired in twos, and the plant as a whole does not grow larger than 5 cm in height. They are grey to pale brown in color with branched marbling on the top. Its flowers are yellow in color and not more than 4 cm in diameter. References {{Taxonbar, from=Q5977184 pseudotruncatella Taxa named by Alwin Berge ...
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Lithops Optica
''Lithops optica'' is a species of plant in the family Aizoaceae, endemic to Namibia. Name and description The name "optica" means "eye-like" and refers to the rounded windows at the top of the leaves. In habitat, these two leaves emerge just above the surface of the ground. The well-known and widely cultivated "rubra" variety is a bright purple/red colour. While most specimens of Lithops optica do not have this colour, the "rubra" variety is by far the most commonly cultivated. Distribution This species occurs in the coastal areas around Lüderitz, Namibia. This is a very arid "mist-belt" area, with winter rainfall but extremely dry conditions. It is therefore one of the few species of ''Lithops'' which is adapted to a winter rainfall climate. Its natural habitat is sandy soil in rocky areas. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. ...
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Aizoaceae
The Aizoaceae (), or fig-marigold family, is a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genera and about 1,800 species. Several genera are commonly known as 'ice plants' or 'carpet weeds'. The Aizoaceae are also referred to as ''vygies'' in South Africa. Some of the unusual Southern African genera—such as '' Conophytum'', '' Lithops'', '' Titanopsis'' and '' Pleiospilos'' (among others)—resemble gemstones, rocks or pebbles, and are sometimes referred to as 'living stones' or 'mesembs' (short for mesembryanthemums). Description The family Aizoaceae is widely recognised by taxonomists. It once went by the botanical name "Ficoidaceae", now disallowed. The APG II system of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system of 1998) also recognizes the family, and assigns it to the order Caryophyllales in the clade core eudicots. The APG II system also classes the former families Mesembryanthemaceae Fenzl, Sesuviaceae Horan. and Tetragoniaceae Link under the family ...
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Mesemb
The Aizoaceae (), or fig-marigold family, is a large Family (biology), family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genus, genera and about 1,800 species. Several genera are commonly known as 'ice plants' or 'carpet weeds'. The Aizoaceae are also referred to as ''vygies'' in South Africa. Some of the unusual Southern African genera—such as ''Conophytum'', ''Lithops'', ''Titanopsis'' and ''Pleiospilos'' (among others)—resemble gemstones, rocks or pebbles, and are sometimes referred to as 'living stones' or 'mesembs' (short for mesembryanthemums). Description The family Aizoaceae is widely recognised by taxonomists. It once went by the botanical name "Ficoidaceae", now disallowed. The APG II system of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system of 1998) also recognizes the family, and assigns it to the order Caryophyllales in the clade core eudicots. The APG II system also classes the former families Mesembryanthemaceae Fenzl, Sesuviaceae Horan. and Tetragoniaceae Link ...
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Leaf Window
Leaf window, also known as epidermal window, and fenestration, is a specialized leaf structure consisting of a translucent area through which light can enter the interior surfaces of the leaf where photosynthesis can occur. The translucent structure may include epidermal tissue, and in some succulent plants it consists of several cell layers of parenchyma, which may also function as water-storage tissue. It can appear as a large continuous patch, a variegated or reticulated region, or as numerous small spots. It is found in some succulent plants native to arid climates, allowing much of the plant to remain beneath the soil surface where it is protected from desiccation by winds and heat while optimizing light absorption. Many species featuring leaf windows are native to Southern Africa. Functions The primary function of the translucent windows is to increase the absorption of radiant energy, and thereby the rate of photosynthesis. Epidermal windows are commonly situated at the ape ...
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Camouflage In Plants
In evolutionary biology, mimicry in plants is where a plant evolves to resemble another organism physically or chemically. Mimicry in plants has been studied far less than mimicry in animals. It may provide protection against herbivory, or may deceptively encourage mutualists, like pollinators, to provide a service without offering a reward in return. Types of plant mimicry include Bakerian, where female flowers imitate males of the same species; Dodsonian, where a plant mimics a rewarding flower, luring pollinators by mimicking another species of flower, or fruit where feeders of the other species are attracted to a fake fruit to distribute seeds; Gilbertian, where a plant has structures like butterfly eggs, dissuading egg-laying; Vavilovian, where a weed is unintentionally selected to resemble a crop plant; Pouyannian, in which a flower imitates a female mate, deceiving a male pollinating insect into pseudocopulation; Batesian, where a harmless species deter predators by ...
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Succulent Plant
In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meaning "juice" or "sap". Succulents may store water in various structures, such as leaf, leaves and Plant stem, stems. The water content of some succulent organs can get up to 90–95%, such as ''Glottiphyllum semicyllindricum'' and ''Mesembryanthemum barkleyii''. Some definitions also include roots, thus geophytes that survive unfavorable periods by dying back to underground storage organs (caudex) may be regarded as succulents. The habitats of these water-preserving plants are often in areas with high temperatures and low rainfall, such as deserts, but succulents may be found even in Alpine climate, alpine ecosystems growing in rocky or sandy soil. Succulents are characterized by their ability to thrive on limited water sources, such as mist ...
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Nicholas Edward Brown
Nicholas Edward Brown (11 July 1849 in Redhill, Surrey – 25 November 1934 in Kew Gardens, London) was an English plant taxonomist and authority on succulents. He was also an authority on several families of plants, including Asclepiadaceae, Aizoaceae, Labiatae and Cape plants. Background He started work as an assistant in the Herbarium at Kew in 1873, and was promoted to the position of Assistant Keeper in 1909, which he kept until 1914. He produced many annotated drawings of succulent plants in his work revising the genus '' Mesembryanthemum'', which were published in 1931. He was the author of several works on the taxonomy of plants, particularly succulents. The Araceae genus '' Nebrownia'' was named in his honour by Otto Kuntze. A number of plants bear the specific name "''nebrownii''" – such as ''Acacia nebrownii'', ''Gibbaeum nebrownii'', ''Caralluma nebrownii'' and ''Lithops olivacea v nebrownii'', as does a waterhole in the Etosha National Park. The plant '' Anthuri ...
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