Quercusia quercus = Thecla quercus = Neozephyrus quercus = Favonius quercus

Moradilla del roble - Nazarena - Morada

Según la temporada de vuelo se pueden observar encinas o robles muy poblados con estas mariposas y se las ve por las copas de los árboles disputándose dominios. Son muy remisas a abandonar las alturas. Obtienen buena parte de los nutrientes que necesitan de las secreciones de pulgones depositadas en las hojas de los árboles/arbustos donde desarrollan toda su actividad, pero ocasionalmente también descienden a zonas bajas, incluso a flores próximas. Eso sí, hay que acercarse con mucho sigilo pues son realmente esquivas.

Muchas gracias por las visitas, comentarios y favoritos.

Purple hairstreak

Quercusia quercus = Thecla quercus = Neozephyrus quercus = Favonius quercus

Depending on the flight season, holm oaks or oaks can be observed heavily populated by these butterflies, and they can be seen in the treetops vying for dominance. They are very reluctant to leave the heights. They obtain much of the nutrients they need from the secretions of aphids deposited on the leaves of the trees or shrubs where they carry out their activity, but occasionally they also descend to lower areas, even to nearby flowers. However, you must approach them very stealthily, as they are truly elusive.

Thank you very much for the visits, comments and faves.

Thécla du chêne

Quercusia quercus = Thecla quercus = Neozephyrus quercus = Favonius quercus

Selon la saison de vol, on peut observer des chênes verts ou des chênes densément peuplés de ces papillons, qui se disputent la domination à la cime des arbres. Ils sont très réticents à quitter les hauteurs. Ils tirent une grande partie des nutriments dont ils ont besoin des sécrétions des pucerons déposées sur les feuilles des arbres ou des arbustes où ils exercent leur activité, mais il leur arrive aussi de descendre vers les zones plus basses, voire vers les fleurs voisines. Il faut cependant les approcher avec la plus grande discrétion, car ils sont vraiment insaisissables.

Merci beaucoup pour vos visites, commentaires et favoris.

The importance of rainfall.

Plants are autotrophs or obtain all nutrients they need from the environment around them. Rainwater plays an important role in this function. Rainwater is the most natural way for plants to obtain moisture.

Tap water often has added chemicals as it`s treated and recycled for human consumption. Rainwater has a higher level of oxygen.

Rainwater frees nutrients and minerals in the soil the plants need to survive. Rainfall has a unique, earthy smell. It is caused by the water from the rain, along with certain compounds like ozone, geosmin and plant oils.

Photographed with: Canon 600D

The Hortus has two huge Ginkgo bilobas; they were planted here around 1895 and delight all visitors, especially in Autumn when their leaves turn golden yellow. But indeed: they are old and there are worries about their health.

Some of us were rather alarmed when recently at the feet of our Friends these Fungi appeared. It is feared that they are signs the roots of those Ginkgos are decomposing. Orange Peel Fungus is known as a 'decomposer', cleaning up dying and dead plant and tree material.

But perhaps there's another explanation. In 2001 Erik A. Hobbie, Nancy S. Weber and James M. Trappe published a study in which they write that Aleuria aurantia also possibly has a mycorrhizal function. That is to say that Aleuria takes sugars from the tree in return for moisture and nutrients that it takes from the soil. Aleuria thus functions as a kind of helpful extension of Ginkgo's root system, and works on its survival.

We hope for the best...

Fruta rica en vitamina C y otros importantes nutrientes.

The name "Vanda" is derived from the Sanskrit name for the species Vanda tessellata. These are mostly epiphytes (plants, such as a tropical orchid or staghorn fern, that grow on another plant and depends on it for mechanical support but not nutrients.) Also called aerophyte, air plant.) but sometimes they are lithophytic (plants that grows on rock and derive their nourishment chiefly from the atmosphere. Or terrestrial (plants that grow on the ground) Vandas are distributed in India, Himalaya, SE Asia, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea, southern China and northern Australia.

The genus is monopodial, that is they grow upward from a single point, adding leaves to the apex and the stem grows longer accordingly. Some have flat, typically broad, ovoid leaves (strap-leaves), while others have cylindrical (terete), fleshy leaves and are adapted to dry periods. The stems of these orchids vary considerably in size; there are miniature plants and plants that grow to several meters.

There are few to many flattened flowers growing on a lateral inflorescence. Most show a yellow-brown color with brown markings, but they also appear in white, green, orange, red and burgundy shades. The lip has a small spur. Vandas usually bloom every few months and the flowers last for two to three weeks.

This genus is one of the five most horticulturally important orchid genera, because it has some of the most magnificent flowers to be found in the entire orchid family. This has contributed much to the work of hybridists producing flowers for the cut flower market. Vanda coerulea is one of the few botanical orchids with blue flowers (actually a very bluish purple), a property much appreciated for producing interspecific and intergeneric hybrids. Vanda dearei is one of the chief sources of yellow color in Vanda hybrids.

Many Vanda orchids (especially Vanda coerulea) are endangered, because of habitat destruction. The export of wild-collected specimens of the Blue Orchid (Vanda coerulea) and other wild Vandas is prohibited worldwide, as all orchids are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Ponpimol X coerulea

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

Es el fruto seco más saludable por sus grasas esenciales son buenas para el corazón. Además, aporta valiosos nutrientes. Descubre su sabor en recetas deliciosas.

Las nueces son una buena fuente de ácidos grasos omega-3, de los que cada vez son más conocidas sus propiedades beneficiosas para la salud. Estos nutrientes son esenciales para el organismo, ya que éste no puede producirlos por sí mismo y únicamente puede obtenerlos a través de determinados alimentos que los contienen, como el pescado, aceites por ejemplo el de soja y algunos frutos secos, especialmente las nueces.

Los rábanos aportan al organismo nutrientes como:

-vitamina C -vitamina A -antioxidantes -fibra -potasio

-calcio -fosforo -sodio -magnesio -yodo -folatos -azufre

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Una de las mejores ventajas es que el rábano posee pocas calorías y muchas sustancias nutritivas.

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1.Ayudan a perder peso

2.Mejoran la circulación sanguínea

3.Retrasan el envejecimiento

4.Fortalecen los dientes y los huesos

5.Sacian el apetito

6.Regulan el tránsito intestinal

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The name "Vanda" is derived from the Sanskrit name for the species Vanda tessellata. These are mostly epiphytes (plants, such as a tropical orchid or staghorn fern, that grow on another plant and depend on it for mechanical support but not nutrients.) Also called aerophyte, air plant.) but sometimes they are lithophytic (plants that grows on rock and derive their nourishment chiefly from the atmosphere. Or terrestrial (plants that grow on the ground) Vandas are distributed in India, Himalaya, SE Asia, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea, southern China and northern Australia.

The genus is monopodial, that is they grow upward from a single point, adding leaves to the apex and the stem grows longer accordingly. Some have flat, typically broad, ovoid leaves (strap-leaves), while others have cylindrical (terete), fleshy leaves and are adapted to dry periods.

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL

www.susanfordcollins.com

An ancient oak grows in the nutrient poor sandy soils of Sherwood Forest.

Blossoms in the spring attract birds for nectar, bugs and provide nutrients and energy at a time when other food sources might be scarce. Anna’s Hummingbird on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Copyright © Kim Toews/All Rights Reserved.

Cocinar al vapor es un hábito culinario tan saludable como benéfico, ya que ayuda a que los alimentos conserven sus nutrientes intactos, a la vez que mantienen su sabor, consistencia y color natural. Conozca esta antigua técnica que está de vuelta en todo el mundo, y goce de sus efectos positivos de manera cotidiana.

No usar esta imagen sin mi autorización. © Todos los derechos reservados. así como las fotografías de la presente pagina Web.

Please don't use this image without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved,

© Copyright

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Carcharodus alceae = Papilio alceae = Papilio malvarum

Piquitos castaña - Piquitos de las malvas.

Sus principales nutricias son la malva, (Malva sylvestris), Malva real (Alcea rosea), Malva de hoja redonda (Malva neglectum), (Malva moschata) etc. Y parece ser que en España también se nutre de Hibiscus sp.

En la foto posando sobre las flores de “verrucaria” (Heliotropium europaeum).

Mallow skipper

Its main nutrients are mallow, (Malva sylvestris), royal mallow (Alcea rosea), round-leaved mallow (Malva neglectum), (Malva moschata) etc. And it seems that in Spain it also feeds on Hibiscus sp.

In the photo posing on the flowers of “verrucaria” (Heliotropium europaeum).

Grisette, Hespérie de l'alcée

Ses principaux nutriments sont la mauve, (Malva sylvestris), la mauve royale (Alcea rosea), la mauve à feuilles rondes (Malva neglectum), (Malva moschata), etc. Et il semble qu'en Espagne, il se nourrit également d'Hibiscus sp.

Su la photo posant sur les fleurs de “verrucaria” (Heliotropium europaeum).

fungus (plural: fungi or funguses is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from the other eukaryotic kingdoms, which by one traditional classification include Plantae, Animalia, Protozoa, and Chromista.

A characteristic that places fungi in a different kingdom from plants, bacteria, and some protists is chitin in their cell walls. Fungi, like animals, are heterotrophs; they acquire their food by absorbing dissolved molecules, typically by secreting digestive enzymes into their environment. Fungi do not photosynthesize. Growth is their means of mobility, except for spores (a few of which are flagellated), which may travel through the air or water. Fungi are the principal decomposers in ecological systems. These and other differences place fungi in a single group of related organisms, named the Eumycota (true fungi or Eumycetes), that share a common ancestor (i.e. they form a monophyletic group), an interpretation that is also strongly supported by molecular phylogenetics. This fungal group is distinct from the structurally similar myxomycetes (slime molds) and oomycetes (water molds). The discipline of biology devoted to the study of fungi is known as mycology (from the Greek μύκης mykes, mushroom). In the past, mycology was regarded as a branch of botany, although it is now known fungi are genetically more closely related to animals than to plants.

Abundant worldwide, most fungi are inconspicuous because of the small size of their structures, and their cryptic lifestyles in soil or on dead matter. Fungi include symbionts of plants, animals, or other fungi and also parasites. They may become noticeable when fruiting, either as mushrooms or as molds. Fungi perform an essential role in the decomposition of organic matter and have fundamental roles in nutrient cycling and exchange in the environment. They have long been used as a direct source of human food, in the form of mushrooms and truffles; as a leavening agent for bread; and in the fermentation of various food products, such as wine, beer, and soy sauce. Since the 1940s, fungi have been used for the production of antibiotics, and, more recently, various enzymes produced by fungi are used industrially and in detergents. Fungi are also used as biological pesticides to control weeds, plant diseases and insect pests. Many species produce bioactive compounds called mycotoxins, such as alkaloids and polyketides, that are toxic to animals including humans. The fruiting structures of a few species contain psychotropic compounds and are consumed recreationally or in traditional spiritual ceremonies. Fungi can break down manufactured materials and buildings, and become significant pathogens of humans and other animals. Losses of crops due to fungal diseases (e.g., rice blast disease) or food spoilage can have a large impact on human food supplies and local economies.

The fungus kingdom encompasses an enormous diversity of taxa with varied ecologies, life cycle strategies, and morphologies ranging from unicellular aquatic chytrids to large mushrooms. However, little is known of the true biodiversity of Kingdom Fungi, which has been estimated at 2.2 million to 3.8 million species.[5] Of these, only about 148,000 have been described,[6] with over 8,000 species known to be detrimental to plants and at least 300 that can be pathogenic to humans.[7] Ever since the pioneering 18th and 19th century taxonomical works of Carl Linnaeus, Christiaan Hendrik Persoon, and Elias Magnus Fries, fungi have been classified according to their morphology (e.g., characteristics such as spore color or microscopic features) or physiology. Advances in molecular genetics have opened the way for DNA analysis to be incorporated into taxonomy, which has sometimes challenged the historical groupings based on morphology and other traits. Phylogenetic studies published in the first decade of the 21st century have helped reshape the classification within Kingdom Fungi, which is divided into one subkingdom, seven phyla, and ten subphyla.

The Narcissus bulbs are quite versatile because they can tolerate wet conditions and they multiply easily and are a great asset to your boarders early in the year also giving you a great show of colour. These Narcissus flowers have a lovely fragrance and they are also a little unusual because they have an inner yellow trumpet which is edged in red/orange. This variety has been awarded the “Award of Garden Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society” and was introduced back in 1919 which is 103 years ago. It is important to dead head the flowers but always leave the leaves so that the bulbs can re-absorb the nutrients that they contain.

IMG_0430

I don't often see a group of these butterflies. Nutrients in the soil must have attracted them along Wylie Rd.

Carden Alvar / Couchiching, ON.

Spicebush Swallowtail getting nutrients from soil

A humpback whale lazily swimming along in the nutrient rich feeding grounds off of Cape Cod.

This wildflower I believe originated in California and it is now grown in lots of other countries. The flowers are very tiny (approx 15 to 25mm) but very pretty, but unfortunately the flowers only last for just one day, but the plant does produce an abundance of flowers. Besides being planted in gardens, nowadays it is grown industrially because you can manufacture the seeds which produce Linseed oil, and the long stems are collected because they are used in the process of making linen, and the last thing I have found out is that the plants are used to form part of the foods that is fed to animals because it contain very good nutrients and protein.

We visited the city of Beppu primarily for the nutrient rich hot springs. The yield of hot water is said to be the highest in Japan and you can find various types of onsen to enjoy. The resulting rising steam is also a characteristic of Beppu.

While walking to a sand Onsen, this rather cubist architectural scene with all the overhead wiring caught my attention.

Beppu, Japan

February, 2020

Wilde Kievitsbloem (Fritillaria meleagris) Picture taken in Zwolle. Netherlands.

Ecology & distribution

Wild Snake's Head Fritillary (Fritillaria meleagris) is a key species of the Snakes Head Fritillary association and occurs in moderately nutrient-rich grasslands with Alopecurus pratensis. This association grows mainly in floodplains where peat formation has taken place on top of a clay layer and where this package has been cut by a river. Wild Snake’s Head fritillary grows especially in those places where the competition of Alopecurus pratensis is less due to flooding. At Zwolle (Zwarte Water) the plant grew so numerous that the flowers were sold in scents. The species was previously not seen as a wild plant, but the natural location in floodplains is an argument against naturalization. Decline is mainly caused by the expansion of cities and business parks, as a result of which locations are lost. Other reasons are dewatering, fertilization and grazing. It takes eight years for the plant to flower from seed, which partly determines the vulnerability. The seeds float and are therefore dependent on periodic flooding for distribution.

Wilde kievitsbloem (Fritillaria meleagris) kensoort van de Kievitsbloem-associatie en komt voor in matig voedselrijke graslanden met Grote vossenstaart. Deze associatie groeit vooral in uiterwaarden en boezemlanden waar veenvorming heeft plaatsgevonden bovenop een kleilaag en waar dit pakket door een rivier is aangesneden. Wilde kievitsbloem groeit vooral op die plaatsen waar door overstromingen de concurrentie van Grote vossenstaart minder is. Bij Zwolle (Zwarte Water) groeide de plant zo talrijk dat de bloemen in ruikers werden verkocht. De soort werd vroeger niet als wilde plant gezien, maar de natuurlijke standplaats in uiterwaarden is een argument tegen verwildering. Achteruitgang wordt vooral veroorzaakt door de uitbreiding van steden en bedrijventerreinen waardoor standplaatsen verloren gaan. Andere redenen zijn ontwatering, bemesting en beweiding. Het duurt acht jaar voordat de plant uit zaad tot bloei komt, wat voor een deel de kwetsbaarheid bepaalt. De zaden blijven drijven en zijn voor de verspreiding dus afhankelijk van periodieke overstromingen.

On Neptune the lichens have to find the balance between warmth from the distant sun and trying to leach nutrients from the mineral poor rocks

Photographed in May in beech forest. The plant has no chlorophyll, gaining its nutrients not from photosynthesis but by attaching its roots to a mycorrhizal fungus below the leaf litter. The fungus in turn obtains its sustenance from the tree roots. Being the colour of dead leaves, the bird's nest orchid is often difficult to spot among the fallen foliage. The vernacular name comes from the unusual nest-like structure of the roots. From a slide.

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The Hemiptera or True Bugs are an order of insects comprising over 80,000 species and they range in size from 1mm to 15cm. They all have mouthparts they use to pierce the upper surface of the plant and then they use their mouth to suck out the nutrients, it seems that they have two parts to their mouth, one part helps with the movement of saliva and then the other side takes up the extracts from the food they are eating, when they are not eating they fold their mouth parts underneath their body. Most insects in this category have half of their front wings hard and the other half soft, but the hind wings are soft and shorter than the front wings.

I would like to thank Calle Söderberg for letting me know that I had originally identified this insect incorrectly.

A stunted Fir tree seek nutrients, from the floating dead log. Surviving on moisture and Sunlight, this amazing tree is over 70 yeaars old!!!

Un día después de tantos festejos y excesos un trago natural

En el verano un trago natural a base de naranja con piña, nos refresca e hidrata, es fabuloso, con muchos nutrientes que ayudan a mantener la buena salud; tiene buen sabor dulce y ligeramente ácido se le puede añadir unos cubos de hielo para darle esa temperatura que el verano requiere.

Ayuda a eliminar toxinas.

Reducir la presión alta.

Ayuda a controlar el ácido úrico.

Sirve para bajar de peso.

Ayuda a quemar grasa.

Sirve para bajar los niveles de colesterol alto de la sangre.

Combate el acné y la piel grasa.

Embellece la piel.

Es antioxidante, por lo que previene el envejecimiento

prematuro.

Fortalece el sistema inmunológico.

Previene gripes y refriados.

Excelente fuente de vitamina C.

Es depurativo.

Es anticancerígeno.

Mejora la digestión.

Es diurético.

Muy refrescante.

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Diaz De Vivar Gustavo Photographher

© Copyright

A Late Winter Haiga

(the image is above, and the hokku below)

The circle of life;

A tree holds the dead leaf

that will nourish it.

A fallen and decaying maple leaf (yin) caught on a dogwood branch, with young embryos (yang), or flower buds. The old (yin) with the young (yang).

Eventually, the leaf will fall to the ground, decompose, and its nutrients will be absorbed by the dogwood roots, giving nutrition to the dogwood tree. What was maple will be dogwood.

We, also, do not collect fallen leaves to be thrown away; we chop the dead leaves up with our lawn mower, so that the nutrients can be recycled into the trees and grass. Try it! The mulched leaves decompose quickly! Your neighbors will notice and do the same, we hope!

Southern KY, USA.

Liquen que crece en las rocas y paredes en entornos soleados y rico en nutrientes, muy resistente a la polución.

This youngster was 16 months old when I took this photo. He was born in January or February, while his mother was sleeping in her winter den.

When grizzly cubs are born, they are blind, hairless and toothless. Of all mammals, bears at birth are the smallest percentage of their adult size. The cubs weigh 500 grams (1 pound) or less at birth. Their mother's milk is one of the richest in nutrients and fat in all of nature though, enabling the babies to grow to a size where they can survive in the outside world when their mother leaves the den in April.

Cubs stay close to their mother and they learn all of their survival lessons from her over their first 2-1/2 years (some areas report cubs staying with their mothers for an additional year). Bear cubs are most frequently twins or triplets, with quadruplets and single cubs being less common.

At 16 months old, the cubs are eating more and more solid food and rely less on their mother's milk. They spend most of their time exploring the world within a hundred metres of their mother and wrestling with each other. At this age, they are excellent tree climbers, which they do to avoid danger.

This youngster is about the size of a large dog and looks friendly and huggable. However, he already has powerful claws and teeth and his omnipresent mother, nature's ultimate protector!

Most people know that Tulips grow from a bulb and most tulip bulbs only produce one flower on a stem. Tulips only bloom for 3 to 7 days in spring but the freshly cut tulips flowers will continue to grow in your vase to gain about another inch in height. When the bulb has finished flowering, the flower and leaves wither, but its important not to cut these off as the nutrients in the leaves and flower go back into the bulb which then lays dormant until the following spring when they start to show signs of life again. An interesting fact is that the variegated Tulips originally started to appear because of a viral disease which was transferred to the bulbs by aphids many years ago.

A Bromélia Neoregelia

Esse gênero é nativo do Brasil, e se caracteriza por não apresentar caule e ser uma planta rizomatosa, isto é, possui rizomas que são uma espécie de caule subterrâneo que tem como função armazenar nutrientes para o sustento e desenvolvimento da espécie vegetal embaixo do solo. As Bromélias que fazem parte do gênero Neoregelia possuem rosetas bem abertas, que apresentam até 40 (quarenta) centímetros de diâmetro. As folhas das espécies vegetais que pertencem a este gênero, podem ser largas e estreitas, mudando de acordo com a espécie de Bromélia. As folhas das Bromélias do gênero Neoregelia são duras e possuem aspecto coriáceo (lembram o couro), e apresentam espinhos em suas margens. As folhas podem ser encontradas na coloração verde. As inflorescências deste gênero de Bromélia são representadas pela mudança das folhas que ficam dentro da roseta, as chamadas brácteas, e de uma maneira geral apresentam coloração vermelha, com o objetivo de proteger as discretas flores brancas que são formadas. Essa combinação acaba compondo um conjunto bastante decorativo e ornamental, o que acaba ajudando o uso ornamental dessa espécie vegetal.

Fonte: flores.culturamix.com/flores/naturais/bromelias-do-genero...

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The Neoregelia Bromeliad

This genus is native to Brazil and is characterized by not having a stem and being a rhizomatous plant, that is, it has rhizomes that are a subterranean stem species whose function is to store nutrients for the sustenance and development of the plant species under the soil. Bromeliads that are part of the genus Neoregelia have very open rosettes, which are up to 40 (forty) centimeters in diameter. The leaves of the plant species that belong to this genus, can be wide and narrow, changing according to the species of Bromélia. The leaves of the Bromeliads of the genus Neoregelia are hard and have a leathery appearance (they resemble the leather), and present thorns in its margins. The leaves can be found in green coloration. The inflorescences of this genus of Bromelia are represented by the change of the leaves that remain inside the rosette, the so-called bracts, and in general have red coloration, in order to protect the discrete white flowers that are formed. This combination ends up composing a very decorative and ornamental set, which ends up helping the ornamental use of this plant species.

Link: flores.culturamix.com/flores/naturais/bromelias-do-genero...

Moose of Grand Teton

Moose are the largest member of the deer family and love cold weather. They frequent marshy meadows and edges of lakes and streams. About 800 Moose inhabit the southern part of Yellowstone, Grand Teton National Park and surrounding national forests. Moose are most heavily concentrated in Grand Teton Park.

To keep from sinking in mud while feeding, as the animal lowers its foot, a large dewclaw spreads to better support the weight. Similarly, the odd-looking crook of the hind leg allows a Moose to pull the leg straight up, more easily releasing it from deep, sucking mud.

Bull Moose lose their antlers anytime between December and March. Most of the Moose drop them in January. Immature bulls may not shed their antlers for the winter but retain them until the following spring. Female Moose do not have antlers.

A new set of antlers begin to grow the following spring, nourished by the covering of furry skin known as velvet. They take three to five months to develop fully – the velvet is then scraped and rubbed off against bushes and branches. The antlers are then ready for battle. Generally, each set of antlers will be larger than the one before.

Birds, carnivores, and rodents eat dropped antlers as they are full of protein and Moose themselves will eat antler velvet for the nutrients.

Take note—cow Moose with young can be particularly dangerous.

For more info: www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/wildlife/about-moose/

I found this old tree near Titting, a municipality in the district of Eichstätt in Bavaria. Titting is located in the Anlautertal. However, this tree is nearby in the Jura mountains, a sub-alpine mountain range being in Germany part of several plateaus like the Oberpfälzer Jura.

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Not the most glamorous butterfly photo, but tiny pearl crescents do utilize the nutrients in horse dung. Two had alighted on this pile.

Parasitic plant, getting nutrients from many other species of plants, Spencerville, MD

White Pines Lake, near Arnold / Calaveras County, California

The famously brown waters of the Mekong, a shot from 2009.

The murky colour of the Mekong is caused by nutrient-rich sediments carried downstream by the river and its regular and massive floods during rainy season.

At least that is how it used to be, before several dams upstream reduced the water flow and with it the nutrients that sustained wildlife and agriculture that millions of people in SEA depend on.

Last year (in 2020) i saw news reports showing the waters blueish and almost clear, besides the nowadays much lower water levels. A social and ecological disaster in the making, in plain sight.

☞ more from along the Mekong

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I love the Autumn and the changing colours of the leaves as the trees store up their nutrients for the cold days ahead.

Leaf colour comes from pigments. These are natural substances produced by leaf cells to help them obtain food. The three pigments that colour leaves are chlorophyll (green), carotenes (yellow) and anthocyanins (reds and pinks).

The depth of colour is influenced by the blend of chemical processes and weather conditions.

Cold nights: low temperatures destroy chlorophyll so the green leaf fades to yellow, but if temperatures stay above freezing, anthocyanin production is enhanced and the leaves take on a red colour.

Dry weather: sugars become concentrated in the leaves, more anthocyanin is produced and consequently leaves are redder.

Bright sunny days: although the production of new chlorophyll stops in autumn, photosynthesis can still occur on sunny autumn days, using the remaining chlorophyll. Sugar concentration increases, more anthocyanin is produced and the leaves are redder.

(Source: www.woodlandtrust.org.uk)

Not a flower, this is a parasitic plant that derives sustenance and nutrients from mycorrhizal fungi that attach to roots of trees. Lacking chlorophyll, it is unable to photosynthesize. Ectomycorrhizal symbioses involve a mutualism between a plant root and a fungus; the plant provides fixed carbon to the fungus and in return, the fungus provides mineral nutrients, water and protection from pathogens to the plant. The snow plant takes advantage of this mutualism by tapping into the network and stealing sugars from the photosynthetic partner by way of the fungus. This form of parasitism is known as mycoheterotrophy. - Wikipedia

Pine Mountain, Western Ventura County, California, USA.

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August 07, 2017

Macro Mondays Theme: Staying Healthy

After my kidney stone operation, orange juice and orange fruit are now part of my special diet.

"Delicious and juicy orange fruit contain an impressive list of essential nutrients, vitamins, minerals for healthy growth and development and overall well-being.

•Nutrients in oranges are plentiful and diverse. The fruit is low in calories, contains no saturated fats or cholesterol, but rich in dietary fiber, pectin. Pectin, by its virtue as a bulk laxative, helps protect the mucosa of the colon by decreasing its exposure time to toxic substances as well as by binding to cancer-causing chemicals in the colon. By binding to bile acids in the colon, pectin has also been shown to reduce blood cholesterol levels by decreasing its re-absorption in the colon."

All comments are highly appreciated. It will help me a lot to improve my photography skills. Big thanks to all of you for the comments, faves and views.

Happy clicking to all! HMM!

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The plant does not have chlorophyll and cannot photosynthesize its own nutrients. The orchid depends on a specific soil fungus that obtains nutrients from decaying litter in the forest soil and transfer some of those nutrients into the root mass of the orchid.

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Assateague Island Wildlife Loop

A quick search reveals that the horses at Assateague Island are thought to be the descendants of horses that survived a shipwreck off the coast of Virginia in the olden times.

The more likely explanation is that mainlanders seeking to evade taxation and ownership laws brought their domesticated horses to barrier islands like Assateague and the neighboring Chincoteague Island, and the remaining feral horse populations are their descendants. Personally, I like the shipwreck story more.

These horses (true horses, not ponies) have adapted to unusual conditions on their island and are very tough for it. They withstand temperature extremes: summer island heat can be intense, not to mention the mosquitoes, and they form thick coats in the winter to stave off the cold winds and storms.

Assateague horses feed primarily on nutrient-poor marsh and dune grasses, whereas domesticated horses enjoy a more varied diet including fruit and grains. To combat their high-salt diet, they drink around twice the amount of water of domesticated horses—this combination results in a rotund, bloated appearance.

Ripples and waves of sand capture the morning shadow of a small cluster of Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata) shortly after sunrise, Mesquite Dunes, Death Valley National Park, California.

Creosote Bush have what appear to be a supernatural ability to thrive in places where water is an afterthought and essential plant nutrients are minimal. These plants are incredibly drought tolerant, and have been known to live for at least 2 years with no water at all. However, when one considers the substantial investment they make in belowground root structures, the mystery is less mysterious. Shallow roots 3-4 m in length radiate outward to intercept any rain soon after it enters the surface soil, and in deeper sandy soils such as these with a water table underneath, substantial tap roots are also common. In addition, the Creosote Bush only photosynthesizes in the morning when humidity is high, and shuts down as the sun rises toward noon, the temperature climbs, and water vapor deficits become life threatening. It is for this reason that photosynthetically active leaf tissue commonly faces southeast as is evident here.

The conundrum of acquiring sufficient nutrients - e.g., nitrogen and phosphorus - is addressed via the relationships the plant sustains with algae, bacteria, and fungi. Data from the Jornada Long-Term Ecological Research site in New Mexico indicates that black areas on some branches are actually communities of microorganisms. When infrequent rain events do occur, the water that flows down the branches and over these organisms enters the soil containing 9 times the amount of phosphorus and 16 times the amount of nitrogen available in normal rain water.

The more I look, the more it appears that inter-dependence is a theme to which natural systems return over and over again. For people currently living in cities, it may be easy to forget this theme, or perhaps assume it applies to others elsewhere. Thinking about the relatively brief history of the United States being a country, I think it is safe to say that appreciation for inter-dependence has waned in the modern era. The Mormons surely understood it as they moved west into Utah. Today, how much do people think about the quality of the soil that ultimately sustains us? And the previously stable climate which made development of agriculture possible? While the Creosote Bush may survive more frequent droughts in the years to come, it seems the people of this world must recognize again that we need each other to survive. And in that 'other' there can be no room for partisan warfare, racism, misogyny, and antagonism to knowledge. We must re-develop a renewed appreciation for the inter-dependencies that make life itself possible.

In Full Blossom still in this uncommonly pleasant Autumn, Sweet William Catchfly, Silene armeria. Try as I might, I could see no caught flies. In the past, this pretty Silene has occasionally been classified among the carnivorous plants. Its stem exudes sticky messes that easily trap small insects. But whether this is for nutrients or has another purpose, I don't know. You can in fact feel this stickiness on your fingers if you touch its stem. Regardless, Silene armeria is no longer botanically arranged among carnivores. Oh! but it really is a beauty!

Traditionally, Tansy, Tanacetum vulgare, was used to treat digestive disorders. Thinking about this, I wondered how Hoverflies digest those small but quite hard and tough pollen particles. It used to be thought that Our Flies were able to crush the pollen by sheer physical force. That idea has been discarded. Today research has led to the insight that the enzyme action of nectar sugar in the Fly's Stomach opens the pores of the outer skin of pollen grains so that their nutrients can be accessed. Highly fascinating...

This is Myathropa florea, Flower Hoverfly or Deathhead Fly. The name Myathropa was devised by the Italian entomologist Camillo Róndani (1808-1879), but he was clearly a bit sloppy in his Greek derivation. If he'd been precise, he would have written 'Myiatropa' - deriving from the Greek words for fly and for personified death or destiny (=Atropos). This was pointed out by George Henry Verrall (1848-1911) in 1901. But to no avail because the scientific name had already been officially established. So word purists will have to grit their teeth when it is said that 'Myathropa', from the Greek, means 'Deathhead Fly'. The 'blot' of a Deathhead or Skull can vaguely been seen on our Hoverfly's thorax.

La Doxocopa elis es una mariposa de la familia Nymphalidae, subfamilia Apaturinae, que vimos entre las veredas Río Vides y La Castellana, cerca de Villagarzón, en el departamento del Putumayo.

En learnaboutbutterflies pude encontrar que "el género Doxocopa comprende 15 especies que se encuentran de forma variada desde México hasta Bolivia y Paraguay. Las mariposas están estrechamente relacionadas con las emperadoras púrpuras de Europa y Asia templada, y tienen hábitos similares.

Los machos de este insecto de tamaño medio reflejan un brillo púrpura en la parte superior de las alas, pero éste tiende a ser de una tonalidad menos intensa que en la mayoría de las otras especies de Doxocopa, y sólo es visible cuando la luz del sol se refleja en ángulos particulares de la superficie de las alas. Las hembras carecen de iridiscencia y tienen bandas anaranjadas más anchas en las alas delanteras.

Doxocopa elis se encuentra en las laderas orientales de los Andes, desde Colombia hasta Bolivia y se reproduce en hábitats de selva tropical a una altitud de entre 0 y 800 metros".

"Los machos son más escasos que la agathina, la cyane y el pavón, pero a veces pueden verse tomando el sol en el suelo desnudo, donde se posan para absorber la humedad mineralizada. Extraen sodio y otros minerales de la humedad, la convierten químicamente y la pasan a las hembras durante la cópula".

"Las hembras no absorben minerales. No se sabe que visiten las flores. Es posible que obtengan su sustento totalmente de las sustancias químicas que les pasan los machos a través del espermatóforo. Sin embargo, también pueden obtener nutrientes de las secreciones de los áfidos en el follaje de los árboles, o de la savia que rezuma de los troncos dañados".

Fuente (acudiendo al uso justo): www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Amazon%20-%20Doxocopa%20eli...

Fair use: "En general, se considera uso razonable la utilización de una obra con propósitos de crítica, realización de comentarios descriptivos, noticias, enseñanza (como en este caso) e investigación". es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uso_justo

Finally the leaves becoming the nutrients for subsequent years.

La cequia no deja espacio donde crecer, duro es encontrar nutrientes en este suelo.