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Alvar Aalto Buildings
An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, alvars support a distinctive group of prairie-like plants. Most alvars occur either in northern Europe or around the Great Lakes in North America. This stressed habitat supports a community of rare plants and animals, including species more commonly found on prairie grasslands. Lichen and mosses are common species. Trees and bushes are absent or severely stunted. The primary cause of alvars is the shallow exposed bedrock. Flooding and drought, as noted, add to the stress of the site and prevent many species from growing. Disturbance may also play a role. In Europe, grazing is frequent, while in North America, there is some evidence that fire may also prevent encroachment by forest. The habitat also has strong competition gradients, with better competitors occupying the deeper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobolink
The bobolink (''Dolichonyx oryzivorus'') is a small New World blackbird and the only member of the genus ''Dolichonyx''. An old name for this species is the "rice bird", from its tendency to feed on cultivated grains during winter and migration. The bobolink breeds in the summer in the United States and Canada, with most of the summer range in the northern U.S. Bobolinks winter in southern South America, primarily Paraguay, Argentina, and Bolivia. Bobolink numbers are rapidly declining due to factors such as agricultural intensification and habitat loss; they are considered threatened in Canada, and are at risk throughout their range. Taxonomy The bobolink was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the finches in the genus '' Fringilla'' and coined the binomial name ''Fringilla oryzivora''. Linnaeus mainly based his account on "The Rice-Bird" that had been described and illustrated in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly
Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossils have been dated to the Paleocene, about 56 million years ago, though molecular evidence suggests that they likely originated in the Cretaceous. Butterflies have a four-stage life cycle, and like other holometabolous insects they undergo complete metamorphosis. Winged adults lay eggs on the food plant on which their larvae, known as caterpillars, will feed. The caterpillars grow, sometimes very rapidly, and when fully developed, pupate in a chrysalis. When metamorphosis is complete, the pupal skin splits, the adult insect climbs out, expands its wings to dry, and flies off. Some butterflies, especially in the tropics, have several generations in a year, while others have a single generation, and a few in cold locations may take s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iris Lacustris
''Iris lacustris'', the dwarf lake iris, is a plant species in the genus '' Iris'', subgenus '' Limniris'' and in the section ''Lophiris'' (crested irises). It is a rhizomatous, beardless perennial plant, native to the Great Lakes region of eastern North America. It has lavender blue or violet-blue flowers, a very short stem and long fan-like green leaves. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant in temperate regions. It is closely related to '' Iris cristata'' (another North American crested iris). Description It is similar in form to ''Iris cristata'' but is chromosomally different and smaller.British Iris Society (1997) James Cullen, Sabina G. Knees, H. Suzanne Cubey (Editors) It has slender, wiry,Richard Lynch or cord-like, greenish-brown, or yellow rhizomes. It has a large central section and outer sections, which are long and 0.8–1.2 cm wide. The outer sections have fibrous roots (underneath), and 2–3 brown scale-like leaves above. It creeps across the ground, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cypripedium Arietinum
''Cypripedium arietinum'', the ram's head lady's slipper, is a rare terrestrial orchid that grows in lightly to heavily shaded areas with calcareous soils. It is characteristic of the alvars around the Great Lakes in North America]. In Canada, it is found from Quebec to Saskatchewan, plus an isolated population in Nova Scotia, where it grows on gypsum based soils, 330 km away from the nearest population in Maine. Description ''Cypripedium arietinum'' is a herbaceous perennial small lady's slipper growing to . It typically has 3, but sometimes 4-5, leaves and normally has a single flower per flowering stem but in the form biflorum there may be two flowers per stem. The purplish-red flower has light venation and is white at the lip. The flower has three petals, one modified into a densely hairy pouch with white and purplish markings. The sepals are green with reddish-brown markings and the side sepals are to some degree spirally twisted, linear to linear-lanceolate in shape, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hymenoxys Acaulis
''Tetraneuris acaulis'' is a North American species of flowering plants in the sunflower family. It is known by many common names in English including stemless four-nerve daisy, stemless hymenoxys, butte marigold, and stemless rubberweed. Description ''Tetraneuris acaulis'' is a highly variable perennial plant that grows from a large, coarse taproot. It may be moderate in size or an extremely short herbaceous plant, 2 centimeters to over 30 centimeters in height when flowering. The plants lack stems with all the clustered leaves growing directly from the base of the plant at ground level (basal leaves). The leaves are tightly packed and may be spoon shaped () or like a spear head with the widest part in the end third (), sometimes narrowly so (-oblanceolate). The leaf edges lack teeth or divisions and may either be hairy or smooth. Each flowering stem has a single flower head at the end, though very rarely a stem may have two flower heads on a single stem. The flowering ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carex Juniperorum
''Carex juniperorum'', the juniper sedge, is a perennial flowering plant native to North America, first described by botanist William J. Crins in 1993. ''C. juniperorum'' is in the ''Cyperaceae'' (sedge) family, and is closely related to '' C. jamesii'' and '' C. willdenowii''. It is commonly called juniper sedge as it is often seen growing in areas with red cedar (''Juniperus virginiana''), though the presence of cedar is not necessarily a requirement for it to grow. Distribution Juniper sedge is globally rare. It only occurs in sections of Ohio, Kentucky, and Virginia in the United States. In Canada, it is found in the province of Ontario. Description and habitat Juniper sedge prefers dry, open, calcareous soils that are periodically disturbed to maintain canopy cover. The plant grows forming a clump, with grass-like leaves up to 30cm long with a reddish-brown basal sheath. Flowers occur in early may on a small basal spike. Small (1.5-2mm) ellipsoid perigynia form in late M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Symphyotrichum Pilosum
(formerly ''Aster pilosus'') is a perennial, Herbaceous plant, herbaceous, flowering plant in the Asteraceae Family (biology), family Native plant, native to central and eastern North America. It is Common name, commonly called , , , , , , , , , and . There are two varieties: ''Symphyotrichum'' ''pilosum'', known by the common names previously listed, and ''Symphyotrichum'' ''pringlei'', known as . Both varieties are NatureServe conservation status, conservationally secure globally and in most provinces and states where they are native. The varieties differ in Morphology (biology), morphology, Species distribution, distribution, and habitat; ''pilosum'' is hairy, and ''pringlei'' is hairless, or nearly so. ''pilosum'' is the more widespread of the two and grows in various dry habitats, often with weeds. ''pringlei'' grows in higher-quality Calcareous, calcium-rich ecosystems, often with many non-weedy companion flora. has been Introduced species, introduced to several ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lobelia Kalmii
''Lobelia kalmii'' is a species of flowering plant with a distribution primarily across Canada and the northern United States in temperate and boreal regions. It was formerly known as ''Lobelia strictiflora'' (Rydb.) It is commonly known as Kalm's lobelia, Ontario lobelia and Brook lobelia. Description ''Lobelia kalmii'' is a small plant (10 – 40 cm) that grows in wet environments such as bogs, wet meadows, and rocky shorelines, including wet alvars, where it grows in calcareous soil or cracks between limestone rocks. It is a perennial herb that has blue flowers with a white center. It has thin upper leaves and spatulate basal leaves. The plant starts flowering in July and lasts into September. Cultivation and uses Although other species of Lobelia are cultivated for ornamental purposes, the small (1 cm) flowers of ''Lobelia kalmii'' have not endeared this plant to growers. However, it can be found through on seed exchanges among native plant enthusiasts. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rare Species
A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon, scarce, or infrequently encountered. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and is distinct from the term ''endangered species, endangered'' or ''threatened species, threatened.'' Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body, such as a national government, state, or province. The term more commonly appears without reference to specific criteria. The International Union for Conservation of Nature does not normally make such designations, but may use the term in scientific discussion. Rarity rests on a specific species being represented by a small number of organisms worldwide, usually fewer than 10,000. However, a species having a very narrow Endemic (ecology), endemic range or Habitat fragmentation, fragmented habitat also influences the concept. Almost 75% of known species can be classified as "rare". Rare species are species with small populations. Many will move into the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loggerhead Shrike
The loggerhead shrike (''Lanius ludovicianus'') is a passerine bird in the family Laniidae. It is the only member of the shrike family endemic to North America; the related northern shrike (''L. borealis'') occurs north of its range, however it is also found in Siberia. It is nicknamed the butcherbird after its carnivorous tendencies, as it consumes prey such as insects, amphibians, lizards, small mammals and small birds, and some prey end up displayed and stored at a site, for example in a tree. Due to its small size and weak talons, this predatory bird relies on impaling its prey upon thorns or barbed wire for facilitated consumption. The numbers of loggerhead shrike have significantly decreased in recent years, especially in Midwestern, New England and Mid-Atlantic areas. Taxonomy In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the loggerhead shrike in his ''Ornithologie'' based on a specimen collected in Louisiana in the United States. He used ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brown Thrasher
The brown thrasher (''Toxostoma rufum''), sometimes erroneously called the brown thrush or fox-coloured thrush, is a bird in the family Mimidae, which also includes the Catbird, New World catbirds and mockingbirds. The brown thrasher is abundant throughout the eastern and central United States and southern and central Canada, and it is the only thrasher to live primarily east of the Rocky Mountains, Rockies and central Texas. It is the state bird of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As a member of the genus ''Toxostoma'', the bird is relatively large-sized among the other thrashers. It has brown upper parts with a white under part with dark streaks. Because of this, it is often confused with the smaller wood thrush (''Hylocichla mustelina''), among other species. The brown thrasher is noted for having over 1000 song types, and the largest song repertoire of birds. However, each note is usually repeated in two or three phrases. The brown thrasher is an omnivore, with its diet rangin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
