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Morchella is derived from "morchel," an old German word for mushroom. There are about a dozen different kinds of morels but they seem to cross, making exact identification very difficult without a microscope. It is important to try small amounts of any edible mushroom, and only eat ones that are clean and free of decay.
Morchella, the true morels, is a genus of edible mushrooms closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi. These distinctive mushrooms appear honeycomb-like in that the upper portion is composed of a network of ridges with pits between them.
These ascocarps are prized by gourmet cooks, particularly for French cuisine. Commercial value aside, morels are hunted by thousands of people every year simply for their taste and the joy of the hunt. Morels have been called by many local names, some of the more colorful include dryland fish, due to the fact that when sliced lengthwise then breaded and fried,their outline resembles the shape of a fish, or hickory chickens, as they are known in many parts of Kentucky; and merkels or miracles, based on a story of how a mountain family was saved from starvation by eating morels. Other common names for morels include sponge mushroom.
The fruit bodies of the Morchella are highly polymorphic in appearance, exhibiting variations in shape, color and size; this has contributed to uncertainties regarding taxonomy.
Morels grow abundantly in the two and sometimes three years immediately following a forest fire. However, where fire suppression is practiced, they may grow regularly in small amounts in the same spot year after year. Commercial pickers and buyers in North America will follow forest fires to gather morels.
The Finnish name, huhtasieni, refers to huhta, area cleared for agriculture by slash and burn method. These spots may be jealously guarded by mushroom pickers, as the mushrooms are a delicacy and sometimes a cash crop.
Although no symbiotic relationships have been proven between morels and certain tree species, experienced morel hunters swear by these relationships. Trees commonly associated with morels include ash, sycamore, tulip tree, dead and dying elms, cottonwoods and old apple trees (remnants of orchards). Yellow morels (Morchella esculenta) are more commonly found under deciduous trees rather than conifers, but black morels (Morchella elata) can be found in decidous forests, oak and poplar.
Morels have not yet been successfully farmed on a large scale, and the commercial morel industry is largely based on harvest of wild mushrooms
Morels are a feature of many cuisines, including Provençal. Though morels are typically sold dried or canned, they can be purchased fresh. When preparing fresh morels for consumption, soaking them may ruin their delicate flavor. Due to their natural porousness, morels may contain trace amounts of soil which cannot be washed out.
One of the best and simplest ways to enjoy morels is by gently sauteeing them in butter, cracking pepper on top and sprinkling with salt
Others soak the mushrooms in an egg batter and lightly bread them with saltine crackers or flour.
Many people dry out the morels for long term storage. When they are ready to eat them, they simply soak the morels until they reabsorb moisture. Eggs from moths or insects can hatch during storage. Other people freeze or can their mushrooms.
The best known morels are the Yellow Morel or Common Morel (Morchella esculenta); the White Morel (M. deliciosa); and the Black Morel (M. elata). Other species of true morels include M. semilibera and M. vulgaris.
Discriminating between the various species is complicated by uncertainty regarding which species are truly biologically distinct. Mushroom hunters refer to them by their color (e.g., gray, yellow, black) as the species are very similar in appearance and vary considerably within species and age of individual.
When gathering morels, care must be taken to distinguish them from the poisonous false morel (Gyromitra esculenta and others).
Morels contain small amounts of toxins that are usually removed by thorough cooking; morel mushrooms should never be eaten raw. It has been reported that even cooked morels can sometimes cause mild poisoning symptoms when consumed with alcohol.
Verpa Bohemica are also called wrinkled thimble cap, or early morel, and Ptychoverpa Bohemica. Although the early false morels are sometimes eaten without ill effect, they can cause severe gastrointestinal upset and loss of muscular coordination (including cardiac muscle) if eaten in large quantities or over several days in a row. They should be parboiled and dried before use in cooking to break down a gyromitrin-like toxin (an organic, carcinogenic poison) that is produced by the mushroom.
The early false morels can be told apart from the true morels by careful study of how the cap is attached to the stalk. The edge of true morels' (morchella) caps are intergrown with the stalk, but early morels' (verpas) caps hang over like a thimble, for which they are sometimes referred to as "thimble morel". Early false morels are the first morels to fruit in the spring, shortly after leaves begin to form on deciduous trees. Narrow-head morels (morchella angusticeps) fruit next, around May. The last morels to fruit are the yellow or white morels (Morchella esculenta), then crassipes.
The cap of false morels is wrinkled and irregular, bell shaped or cone shaped, attached only at apex (top) of cap not like true morels which have caps that are attached at the bottom, the color yellow brown to olive yellow or tan, darkens with age.
Stalk: 6-16 cm high, white to creamy or tan, hollow, often stuffed with white cottony pith. Spores when seen under a microscope are elliptical and have large oil droplets; true morels have no oil droplets.
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 6461
I was following a lizard and I came upon a showy rushpink, Lygodesmia grandiflora. I noticed it because it is lovely, and because I had not seen one before. I looked for more, but found none in the Dolores Canyon in the next two days.
Rushpink is an odd common name for a bluish lavender flower. It makes more sense to know that this species is polymorphic for flower color, with pink being the common color.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
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Thanks to every friend ! Greetings ! And wish you every lucky !
5/17
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 6376
Notice the blue scales on the wings. Beautiful!
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
Its range includes north-eastern India (including Sikkim, Assam and Nagaland), Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nicobar Islands, Andaman Islands (stragglers only), western, southern and eastern China. This species is common and not threatened. The cultivation of citrus all over Southern Asia provides an abundance of food plants.
Papilio memnon
Wings of the Tropics, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Chiang Dao NS, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Order : Lepidoptera
Family : Nymphalidae
Sub-Family : Apaturinae
Genus : Euripus
Species : Euripus nyctelius nyctelius
The Courtisan is a Southeast Asian species found in an area stretching from Northeast India, through Thailand to Indonesia and the Philippines. It is sometimes called the Golden Eye and is a low elevation species found in primary rainforest at elevations between sea level and about 800m. The species is sexually dimorphic and the sexes differ greatly both in appearance and in size. The female is also polymorphic and mimics other species known to be distasteful to predators. It is a medium size buttterfly with a wingspan of 50-70mm, the females being the larger. Females are rarely seen and the males are fairly elusive spending much of their time in the tree tops, occasionally descending to puddle on damp ground. Males are very territorial and will chase off any other males that encroach on their patch.
Larval foodplants are Trema sp. (Cannabaceae) and the female lays her eggs singly on the upperside of a leaf on the host plant. The eggs hatch in around 3 days and the whole lifecycle from egg to adult takes from 27-31 days.
This species is not easy to photograph and when I approached this one it decided to move partially under the shade. At least it didn't fly away so I guess I should be grateful !
You can see what the underside looks like in the first comment box below. Just click on the image to see the full size version.
All my insect pics are single, handheld shots of live insects in wild situations.
A segment of the Sleepy Hollow community mural along the Riverwalk. The Tarrytown Lighthouse and Gov Mario M. Cuomo Bridge are in the background.
This is Amazonite and Smoky Quartz from White Cap Pocket, Smoky Hawk Claim, Teller Co., Colorado at the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show.
www.mindat.org/loc-158899.html
A gemstone(semiprecious)-specimen occurrence/claim. The claim is currently (2021) being mined by Joe Dorris of Pinnacle 5 Minerals.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazonite
Amazonite, also known as amazonstone,[4] is a green tectosilicate mineral, a variety of the potassium feldspar called microcline.[4][5][6] Its chemical formula is KAlSi3O8,[1][7] which is polymorphic to orthoclase.
Its name is taken from that of the Amazon River, from which green stones were formerly obtained, though it is unknown whether those stones were amazonite.[4] Although it has been used for jewellery for well over three thousand years, as attested by archaeological finds in Middle and New Kingdom Egypt[8] and Mesopotamia, no ancient or medieval authority mentions it. It was first described as a distinct mineral only in the 18th century.[9]
Green and greenish-blue varieties of potassium feldspars that are predominantly triclinic are designated as amazonite.[10] It has been described as a "beautiful crystallized variety of a bright verdigris-green"[11] and as possessing a "lively green colour".[4] It is occasionally cut and used as a gemstone.[12]
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoky_quartz
Smoky quartz is a brownish grey, translucent variety of quartz that ranges in clarity from almost complete transparency to an almost-opaque brownish-gray or black crystals.[6] The color of smoky quartz is produced when natural radiation, emitted from the surrounding rock, activates color centers around aluminum impurities within the crystalline quartz. [7]
www.visittucson.org/tucson-gem-mineral-fossil-showcase/
Every year the world-renowned Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase is like a time portal, a trip around the world, and a treasure hunt all rolled into one. Every winter, more than 65,000 guests from around the globe descend upon Tucson, AZ, to buy, sell, trade, and bear witness to rare and enchanting gems, minerals, and fossils at more than 50 gem show locations across the city. If you're planning a winter visit to Tucson, you won't want to miss this three-week-long event filled with shows, related events, a free day at the gem & mineral museum, and much, much more!
"Whether you’re looking for a $5 shimmering crystal necklace or a show-stopping $200,000 crystallized rock from an exotic location, the Tucson Gem, Mineral, & Fossil Shows have something for everyone.
www.visittucson.org/blog/post/gems-and-minerals/
The theme this year was Shades of Green- Experience the Magic. The theme for next year's show will be Red, White, and Blue Celebrate the Spirit of Minerals
xpopress.com/news/article/783/shades-of-green-70th-annual...
TGMS 2025
Tucson Gem Show 2025
Big Cypress National Preserve
Southern Florida
USA
Best Seen In Lightbox-
www.flickr.com/photos/42964440@N08/48430515467/in/photost...
The red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members within the genus of Buteo in North America or worldwide.
The red-tailed hawk is one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk", though it rarely preys on standard-sized chickens.
The red-tailed hawk occupies a wide range of habitats and altitudes including deserts, grasslands, coniferous and deciduous forests, agricultural fields and urban areas. It is legally protected in Canada, Mexico, and the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
The 14 recognized subspecies vary in appearance and range, varying most often in color, and in the west of North America, red-tails are particularly often strongly polymorphic, with individuals ranging from almost white to nearly all black.
The red-tailed hawk is one of the largest members of the genus Buteo, typically weighing from (1.5 to 3.5 lb) and measuring (18–26 in) in length, with a wingspan from (3 ft 7 in–4 ft 8 in). This species displays sexual dimorphism in size, with females averaging about 25% heavier than males.
The diet of red-tailed hawks is highly variable and reflects their status as opportunistic generalists, but in North America, it is most often a predator of small mammals such as rodents. Prey that is terrestrial and diurnal is preferred so types such as ground squirrels are preferential where they naturally occur. Large numbers of birds and reptiles can occur in the diet in several areas and can even be the primary foods.
They hunt from a perch most often but can vary their hunting techniques where prey and habitat demand it.
POLYMORPHIC VISION AND STEEL LOOK / THE FINAL / CHRISTELLE GEISER & AEON VON ZARK / NAKED EYE PROJECT BIENNE / ALTERED STATE SERIE / THE WEIRD DREAM / PORTRAIT.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
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Leave a message, add to the favorites or visit,
Thanks to every friend ! Greetings ! And wish you every lucky !
8/17
The Variable Hawk is one of the most commonly seen birds of prey in Patagonia, but you might not know it. As its name suggests, it appears in a bewildering multitude of different morphs - the species is described as "polymorphic" that differ from each other to an extent that many argue that they should be considered different species.
The tawny eagle is considered to appear "inelegant, scruffy-looking" but has a fairly characteristic aquiline silhouette. The species has a fairly long neck and long deep bill with a gape line level with the eye, moderately long wings with fairly pronounced "fingers" and a slightly rounded to almost square-ended and shortish tail, which can be more reminiscent of the tail of a vulture than that of other eagles. The feathering on the legs is extensive and can appear almost baggy-looking.
The bill and head are strong and bold, the body well-proportioned and feet are powerful while the countenance is quite fierce-looking. While perching, the tawny eagle tends to sit rather upright, often on stumps, posts, low trees or treetops for long periods of the day or may descend to the ground to walk somewhat unsteadily with a more horizontal posture. The wingtips when perched are roughly even with the tip of the tail. Adults have variably colored eyes, ranging from yellow to pale brown to yellow brown, while those of juveniles are dark brown. Both the cere and feet are yellow at all ages.
The tawny eagle is polymorphic with considerable individual variation in plumage, resulting in occasional disparities in plumages that can engender confusion in some. In adulthood, they can vary in coloration from all dark grey-brown to an occasionally streaky (or more plain) foxy-rufous to buffish-yellow. Most adults are usually a general grey-brown or rufous-tawny color, with occasional pale spotting visible at close quarters on the nape and belly, coverts uniformly toned as the body.
The nape is consistently dark and uniform despite the feathers often being tipped paler with other feathers in adults, lacking the contrasting paler feathers often seen in other Aquila. Females, in addition to being slightly larger, may tend to be slightly darker and more streaked than the males. The most blackish-brown individuals tend to occur in India.v
Adults often show relatively little varying colors apart from their somewhat blacker wing and tail feathers, though when freshly molted great wing coverts and secondaries may show small pale tips which may form pale lines along closed wing has tawny upper parts and blackish flight feathers and tail.
The head is often similarly tawny in colour as the body but may also sometimes shows darker eyebrows, other thin brown streaks or a darker chin. Meanwhile, the tail is plain or obscurely dark barred (with around 7 subtle bands). The dark morph adult is essentially all dark, dull brown.
Some dark morph tawny eagles with wear may show irregular streaking or molting browns and more blackish feathers Intermediate morph are dark to rufous brown above with the mantle and wing coverts variably streaked or molted lighter rufous as is the head with the crown or crown-sides being paler. The intermediate morph's underside is largely rufous (especially farther south in Africa) with breast and flanks very heavily and broadly streaked dark brown, though at times appears all dark brown contrasting with plain trousers and crissum.
Pale morph adult tawny eagles always show a clear contrast between the pale body and wing coverts which bear darker flight feathers and tail. In pale morphs, the underparts are rufous buff to lighty tawny-brown, phasing into somewhat darker lesser and median wing coverts to darker brown to even blackish greater coverts and flight feathers.
The head may too be tawny in pale morph tawny eagles but sometimes with thin brown streaks or darker chin. Below pale morph adults are all light rufous to tawny buff or brown, sometimes paler below the belly area. In worn individuals the bodily feathers of pale morph tawny eagles can appear almost whitish.
Dark morph juvenile tawny eagles are generally light rufous to rufous brown with creamier lower back to upper tail coverts. Juveniles show thinly pale-tipped dark brown greater coverts and remiges while the tail is barred grey and brown usually with a narrow creamy tip. Dark morph juveniles may fade to pale buff or creamy often before molting into browner plumage.
Subsequent stages are not as well-known but it appears dark morph subadults gradually manifest a darker brown or rufous brown color on the mantle, as well as on the head and upper breast while maintaining a buffish rear body (i.e. lower back and rump patch). Generally other morphs are similar but not as well-known and are perhaps individually inconsistent. Many are rufous or sandy after a molt but have mottling later on, the extent of pale feathers indicative perhaps of their ultimate adult morph.
This image was taken in the Tvaso East National Park in Kenya
Varied Eggfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 6392
[Pheidole Westwood 1839: 1,160+†7 (IT: 3+†0) spp]
Conspecific sympatric ♀, sx side; conspecific sympatric ☿ maior & ☿ minor, dorsal habitus.
Pheidole (from φειδωλός) is a hyperdiverse and polymorphic genus, abundant in the Neotropics and in many other areas of the world. While there are other genera with discrete worker castes, none have radiated to the extent of Pheidole. Wilson's 2003 treatment of the New World spp and other more recent taxophylogenetic studies have brought some clarity to defining the boundaries of many spp. Still, much work remains before it can be claimed that Pheidole has few new spp to be described and that the taxonomy of this group is definitively complete.
REFERENCES
S. Cantone 2017: Winged ants - males.
B. Seifert 2016: Pheidole pallidula 4 cryptic spp.
E.P. Economo & al. 2015: Pheidole expansion and taxon cycles.
E.P. Economo & al. 2014: Pheidole global phylogenetics.
M.R. Pie & M.K. Tschá 2013: Evolution of ant worker morphology.
What's in a name?
A brown vine or liana snake, or is it a common sharp-nosed snake? Common names pose an inherent danger of mis-communication. They often rely on physical characteristics that may or may not be polymorphic within a population, and thus your green vine snake and brown vine snake may be one and the same species. Moreover, different cultures, languages, geographical ranges, etc... a huge variety of obfuscating factors make common names unreliable, which is why whenever possible the binomial latin name is preferred. Philodryas argentea, ah, much clearer...Or is it Xenoxybelis argenteus...hmmmm...
Taxonomy isn't necessarily a field that you would think experiences revolutionary advances, however, to a discipline which once relied on observation, physiological determinants, natural history and more recently, advances in microscopy, genetics has done just that. However, this has also opened up a whole new set of questions and dilemmas. Reconciling earlier identifications with new genetic analyses which may not square. Genetics is not just an additional tool in the kit of scientific methodology, it is a usurper, and many other perfectly valid, and important tools have fallen out of favour as a result.
Moreover, the definition of species, ironically, seems to be evolving with our new tools. The old definition of a distinct population which lives, and reproduces together to produce viable offspring is under attack. Genetic homologies are finding more and more support. And yet, the variability of the gene pool within a breeding population is a difficult thing to separate from marker genes for a species. To a certain extent, this is a line in the sand.
There is no argument that genetics is a valuable and powerful tool which can parse out differences and provide a degree of exactitude beyond morphological observation, to the very base-pair essence of an individual. This is reductionism. It is amazing the degree of detail it can provide, but it is dangerous, and its risks are glossed over in academia in the pell-mell pursuit down the rabbit hole to publish, always something new, always new knowledge (regardless of its merit). As one starts describing genes, quarks, gluons, the stuff that make up life, one becomes gradually more and more removed from what life actually is. Are we more than the sum of our parts? Perhaps in our quest for knowledge, our dissection of life, we have killed the patient and our post-mortem is not as close to "Truth" as we thought. Nowadays, specialization, often to an absurd degree is the norm. Rare is the renaissance man, the polymath. Nature doesn't have separate classrooms for physics, biology, chemistry, etc...it is all in the open air, messy and wonderful.
And so what's in a name? - Apparently a convoluted history of contending ideologies, convictions, descriptions, and emotions.
See more amazing #reptilesofSani.
Photographed for the #SaniProject2017. Follow us at @destinationecuador #Sanilodge #paulbertner.
Mittwochsmakro
Wednesday Macro
The thin periwinkle Littoraria (Littorinopsis) filosa is endemic from the east coast of Australia and is known for its polymorphic shells which can varies from yellow to pink. Their shell can achieve no more than 3 cm height and they are usually found in mangrove leaves where they feed. The specie prefer to be on high heights far from the water and just go down to release larvae.
small yellow land snail
12 mm long,
alive and still living
Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths.
Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight.
The group comprises the large superfamily Papilionoidea, which contains at least one former group, the skippers (formerly the superfamily "Hesperioidea") and the most recent analyses suggest it also contains the moth-butterflies (formerly the superfamily "Hedyloidea").
Butterfly fossils date to the Paleocene, which was about 56 million years ago.
Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their whole life cycle.
Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances.
Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms.
Some species are pests because in their larval stages they can damage domestic crops or trees; other species are agents of pollination of some plants. Larvae of a few butterflies (e.g., harvesters) eat harmful insects, and a few are predators of ants, while others live as mutualists in association with ants. Culturally, butterflies are a popular motif in the visual and literary arts.
I went to a butterfly attraction recently and although it is only 1 small room I enjoyed it . It only cost £4 for entry Butterfly Jungles Experience & Plant Centre
Hall Place & Gardens
Bourne Rd
Bexley
KENT
DA5 1PQ
Tel 01322 527389
This beauty which was temporarily resting on the ground at the Haga Ocean butterfly house in Solna, Sweden is a female common mormon (Papilio polytes f. polytes) - as in the form polytes of the species polytes.
The females of this species are polymorphic and mimic other, unpalatable species. This one makes a fairly good impression of the common rose (Pachliopta aristolochiae), a beautiful species which I haven't photographed.
Part 1 shows the wing colouration better here: www.flickr.com/photos/tinyturtle/53593612199/
There is also a colour form which looks just like the males so here is a shot which I am unable to tell if it is a male or female: www.flickr.com/photos/tinyturtle/52907390990/
Not sure about species of this one. Did not get a real good look at it. Good thing we spotted it first. Thought it might be a Hognose at first, but now I'm not sure. I say this because this snake has black coloring on both sides of it's head behind the eyes. I have never seen a Hognose with this kind of color pattern.
Hognose are polymorphic, they usually mimic a more dangerous snake that is found in the environment they live in. The most dangerous snakes around this area are the rattlesnake and water moccasin. followed by the constrictors, none of these have the pattern seen on this snake. The closest would be the copperhead and we have next to none around here. They have been found but are very very sparse in the distribution in the area I live in.. ( you can take a 2 hour drive from where I live and find hordes of them. )
I wish I could have gotten a better look at it's face ( which was pointed away from me ) and the color markings on the rest of it's body if there are any.
Innenpark. Bonifatius-Felsen.
Inner Park. Boniface Rock.
Asplenium trichomanes subsp. pachyrachis (Christ) Lovis et Reichst.
Willdenowia 10: 18. 1980.
Asplenium trichomanes sublus. pachyrachis Christ
Farnkr. Schweiz 1 (2): 92. 1900.
Asplenium csikii Kümmerle & András.
Magyar Bot. Lapok 17. 110. 1919 (nomen), 20. 3, fig. 1923
Asplenium pachyrhachis Landolt
Fl. Indicativa 268 2010.
Seestern-Braunschwarz-Streifenfarn, Dickstieliger Braunstieliger Streifenfarn, Dickstieliger Brauner Streifenfarn
Lobed Maidenhair Spleenwort
Anmerkung:
Die Asplenium trichomanes Gruppe, ist ein sehr polymorpher, taxonomisch kritischer Spezieskomplex! Die Evolutionsgeschichte und Beziehungen zwischen den Taxa in dieser Gruppe wurden intensiv untersucht. Allerdings sind morphologische Variation und die Verteilung dieser Taxa unzureichend bekannt, da sie in der lokalen Floren oder Checklisten häufig nicht vorkommen. Die Gründe für die Vernachlässigung der Taxa innerhalb der Asplenium trichomanes Gruppe sind der Mangel an diagnostischen morphologische Merkmalen, das häufige gemeinsame Auftreten an ihren Standorten, sowie die Hybridisierung unter den Taxa. Die Asplenium trichomanes Gruppe umfasst zytologisch und ökologisch unterschiedliche Taxa mit fast weltweiter Verbreitung, die offenbar noch aktiv in der Entwicklung sind (L. Ekrt & M. Štech, 2008).
Annotation:
The Asplenium trichomanes group is a very polymorphic, taxonomically critical species complex! The evolutionary history and relationships between the taxa in this group have been extensively studied. However, morphological variation and distribution of these taxa are poorly understood because they are often absent in local floras or checklists. The reasons for the neglect of the taxa within the Asplenium trichomanes group are the lack of diagnostic morphological features, the frequent common occurrence at their sites, as well as the hybridization among the taxa. The Asplenium trichomanes group includes cytologically and ecologically diverse taxa with almost worldwide distribution, which apparently are still active in development (L. Ekrt & M. Štech, 2008).
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 4147
リコリス・ロンギチュバ ‘ピュア・ホワイト’
Lycoris longituba Y.C.Hsu et G.J.Fan, 1974 ‘Pure White’
This name is accepted. 08/13, 2022.
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Family: Amaryllidaceae (APG IV)
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Distribution:China (Jiangsu)
36 CHS
Lifeform:Bulb geophyte
Original Compiler:R.Govaerts
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Authors:
Yin Hsu (fl. 1974)
Guang Jin Fan (fl. 1970)
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Publication:
Acta Phytotaxonomica Sinica. [Chih su fen lei hsüeh pao.]. Beijing
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Collation
12(3): 299
Date of Publication
18 Jul 1974
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Type-Protolog
Locality:China: Jiangsu: Nanjing, 28 Aug. 1951
Collector and Number:F.H. Liou 1919
Institutions(s):HT: HSBI; IT: SHMMI
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(Imported at JAPAN, 1979 from China, By Mr. Kaneko, Japan.)
Very rare plants. 2n=16=6M+10T
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This name is Accepted by:
Zhengyi, W. & Raven, P.H. (eds.) (2000). Flora of China 24: 1-431. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis.
Flora of China Editorial Committee. 2000. Flora of China (Flagellariaceae through Marantaceae). 24: 1–431. In C. Y. Wu, P. H. Raven & D. Y. Hong (eds.) Fl. China. Science Press & Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing & St. Louis.
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Endemic to China (Jiangsu and Anhui). Very polymorphic species. Variable in flower color and shape. Plants with yellow flowers classified as a variety, "Lycoris longituba Y.C.Hsu et G.J.Fan, 1974". Very long tepatube and its fragrance are marked chracteristics of this species. Leaves lanceolate, to 63 cm long and to 4 cm wide, somewhat fleshy and pale green, appearing in early spring and wither up in May. Scape, 60-80 cm hight, appearing in July to August. Spathe, to 5 cm long. Pedicel 1.5-4.5 cm, tepaltube 4.5-6.0 cm. Tepals 7-9.5 cm long, . Stamens 6-7.5 cm, shorter than tepals. Style 7-9.5 cm, nearly equal to or slightly exceeding tepals. Before that it was far carrying out this plant in a scientific statement, it was indicated by U.S. an Advanced Horticulturalist Mr. Sam Coldwell from that it was a new species. The formal scientific statement of "Lycoris longituba" was announced by Y.C.Hsu & G.J.Fan in 1974. However, this plant was introduced into Japan and was already grown in the 1930s. It by misconception of scholar Dr. Inariyama (1948) of Japan "Lycoris x straminea Lindl., 1848" said. When it depended on research of scholar Dr. Kurita of Japan, it became clear that the individual of this plants is one of the variations of "Lycoris longituba Y.C.Hsu et G.J.Fan, 1974"
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此の個体はリコリス中でも最も大型の部類で、主に種子繁殖をし、非常に自家受粉しやすいが、その反面、分球はしずらく、1球が10球までになるには大凡30年はかかった。ヒガンバナが30年で2000球に分けつする事と比較すると恐ろしいほどスローモーな分けつ力である。此の個体は、金子氏が40年前に中国から導入したヒガンバナ類の中から選抜した個体で、他に麦藁色の個体が明治期にもたらされていたが、在来の個体より鑑賞価値は高い。春出葉型なので、短い期間しか葉が無い為、其の間には良く日光に当て肥培をすることが肝心で有る。自然交雑種のナツズイセンの片親である事がDr. Kurita の研究で判明した。自然界でのリコリス・ロンギチュバは、白、ピンクなど幅があり、黄花や麦藁色の物は別途變種扱いされている。此の個体自体は、蘂にやや紫色が乗るが、是程に白い花の個体は少なく、殆どの場合、やや濁っているピンクであり、選抜した意味は大きい。本種は大球性で他のリコリスよりもやや深く土中に球根が潜る。開花は、是から得られたナツズイセンよりも1ヶ月早く、7月中には開花する。
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昨年は、薄らピンクの花を咲かせ、大いにがっかりしましたが、今年は、元来の綺麗な白花として咲きました。蘂の色からも解る様に、 a true albino では無いので、原因は不明ですが、環境要因か、体調の具合で色彩に影響されるのかも知れません。然は然り乍ら、ロンギチュバの個体群の中では一番白い花です。手元には 變種フラバの系統もありますが、稲荷山博士がストラミネアと誤認した個体等です。稲荷山系の個体は今年はサボリで開花しない様です。
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Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Nikon Ai Micro-Nikkor 200mm F4s (IF)
Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. Some species are pests because in their larval stages they can damage domestic crops or trees; other species are agents of pollination of some plants. Larvae of a few butterflies (e.g., harvesters) eat harmful insects, and a few are predators of ants, while others live as mutualists in association with ants. Culturally, butterflies are a popular motif in the visual and literary arts.
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 6473
Amazonite, also known as amazonstone, is a green tectosilicate mineral, a variety of the potassium feldspar called microcline. Its chemical formula is KAlSi₃O₈, which is polymorphic to orthoclase. This specimen is from Teller Co, Colorado.
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. S20N_382
The Great Mormon Swallowtail { Papilio memnon } is a common South-Asian butterfly and is widely distributed in 13 subspecies (4 male and 9 female forms). This is a large butterfly with contrasting colors. The wingspan is 12 ~15 cm (4.7 ~ 5.9 inches).
The male never has a tail, and is deep blue to black. It may or may not have red streak on the forewing. The female may be tailed (alcanor) or tailess (butlerianus, polymnestoroides). The upperside forewing is ground colour sepia with greyish white streak. The upperside hindwing is blue-black with 5 to 7 yellow or white discal patches. It is polymorphic and with mimetic forms. ( Excellent information is available on Wikipedia.)
This photo was taken at the Kipandi Butterfly Park, 36 km from Kota Kinabalu. It shows a male fluttering and tugging at the lantana. The butterfly and flower were vibrating quite vigorously.
What's in a name?
A brown vine or liana snake, or is it a common sharp-nosed snake? Common names pose an inherent danger of mis-communication. They often rely on physical characteristics that may or may not be polymorphic within a population, and thus your green vine snake and brown vine snake may be one and the same species. Moreover, different cultures, languages, geographical ranges, etc... a huge variety of obfuscating factors make common names unreliable, which is why whenever possible the binomial latin name is preferred. Philodryas argentea, ah, much clearer...Or is it Xenoxybelis argenteus...hmmmm...
Taxonomy isn't necessarily a field that you would think experiences revolutionary advances, however, to a discipline which once relied on observation, physiological determinants, natural history and more recently, advances in microscopy, genetics has done just that. However, this has also opened up a whole new set of questions and dilemmas. Reconciling earlier identifications with new genetic analyses which may not square. Genetics is not just an additional tool in the kit of scientific methodology, it is a usurper, and many other perfectly valid, and important tools have fallen out of favour as a result.
Moreover, the definition of species, ironically, seems to be evolving with our new tools. The old definition of a distinct population which lives, and reproduces together to produce viable offspring is under attack. Genetic homologies are finding more and more support. And yet, the variability of the gene pool within a breeding population is a difficult thing to separate from marker genes for a species. To a certain extent, this is a line in the sand.
There is no argument that genetics is a valuable and powerful tool which can parse out differences and provide a degree of exactitude beyond morphological observation, to the very base-pair essence of an individual. This is reductionism. It is amazing the degree of detail it can provide, but it is dangerous, and its risks are glossed over in academia in the pell-mell pursuit down the rabbit hole to publish, always something new, always new knowledge (regardless of its merit). As one starts describing genes, quarks, gluons, the stuff that make up life, one becomes gradually more and more removed from what life actually is. Are we more than the sum of our parts? Perhaps in our quest for knowledge, our dissection of life, we have killed the patient and our post-mortem is not as close to "Truth" as we thought. Nowadays, specialization, often to an absurd degree is the norm. Rare is the renaissance man, the polymath. Nature doesn't have separate classrooms for physics, biology, chemistry, etc...it is all in the open air, messy and wonderful.
And so what's in a name? - Apparently a convoluted history of contending ideologies, convictions, descriptions, and emotions.
See more amazing #reptilesofSani.
Photographed for the #SaniProject2017. Follow us at @destinationecuador #Sanilodge #paulbertner.
Distribution
H. bolina is found in Madagascar in the west, through to South and Southeast Asia, Cambodia, the South Pacific islands (French Polynesia, Tonga, Tuvalu, Samoa and Vanuatu), and occurs in parts of Australia as far south as Victoria during summer and autumn, Japan, and New Zealand.[2] Appearances in New Zealand appear to be linked with favourable winds during April–June migratory periods in Australia, with the butterfly being recorded in 1956, 1971 and 1995.[10] No populations have established locally in New Zealand.[10]
Habitat
H. bolina is a generally common butterfly across most tropical and sub-tropical habitat types, including wet/dry woodland (such as tropical savanna), rainforest and shrubland. It is a common visitor to suburban back yards and other areas of human disturbance. In the Australian tropics, H. bolina is particularly common along tracks, streambeds, and the corridors formed between remnant gallery forest and cultivated sugar cane fields. Both sexes are invariably found in association with one or more larval hostplant species, especially disturbance species such as Synedrella nodiflora, Sida rhombifolia, and Commelina cyanea.
Mimicry
To the west the female is monomorphic, mimicking species of the oriental and Australasian danaid genus Euploea. Eastwards H. bolina is frequently polymorphic and most forms are then non-mimetic. In areas where it resembles Euploea the butterfly has usually been designated a Batesian mimic. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypolimnas_bolina
Polychromatic mural by Northern California street artist Ricky Watts. Since the 90's he has created vibrant polymorphic forms throughout the US. Watts us also an illustrator and designer!
They are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies have the typical four-stage insect life cycle. 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, and after its wings have expanded and dried, it 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 several years to pass through their entire life cycle. Butterflies are often polymorphic, and many species make use of camouflage, mimicry and aposematism to evade their predators. Some, like the monarch and the painted lady, migrate over long distances. Many butterflies are attacked by parasites or parasitoids, including wasps, protozoans, flies, and other invertebrates, or are preyed upon by other organisms. 6137
The Great Mormon (Papilio memnon) is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
The Scarlet Mormon or Red Mormon (Papilio rumanzovia) is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in the Philippines but has been recorded as a vagrant to southern Taiwan.
The species was named by Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz after Nicholas Rumanzow, Chancellor of the Russian Empire. It has traditionally been regarded as a species of its own rather than a subspecies of Papilio deiphobus the former treatment is still preferred by some.
Sweet shot of a butterfly on a flower. Polymorphic Longwing.
Cream Spotted Tigerwing. Heliconius Hecale.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
This was taken at Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, Tai Po, Hong Kong.
Fung Yuen Valley has been listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) since 1980 to reflect "its importance as a major breeding site for butterflies". The protected area covers approximately 43 hectares. Within this area, the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve was set up on 2 hectares of private land in 2005 by the Tai Po Environmental Association through the funding from the Environment and Conservation Fund.
This image is included in 3 galleries:- 1) "Tiny Worlds and Nature" curated by Karen Valentine, 2) "INVERTEBRATS IV" by Montse (montse rocas) and 3) "Butterflies and Moths Part II" by Radoslav Besenyi.
Taken on 4/11/2012 12:55pm.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
This was taken at Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, Tai Po, Hong Kong. This female butterfly here is feeding on 紅花假馬鞭 Pink Rat Tail.
Fung Yuen Valley has been listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) since 1980 to reflect "its importance as a major breeding site for butterflies". The protected area covers approximately 43 hectares. Within this area, the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve was set up on 2 hectares of private land in 2005 by the Tai Po Environmental Association through the funding from the Environment and Conservation Fund.
( Explored: Nov 17, 2024 #296 )
This image is included in 3 galleries:- 1) "EL MARAVILLOSO MUNDO DE LOS ANIMALES LXXXXXXIIII." curated by Lagarto (miguelitoiglesias21), 2) "Természet és állatok" by
Lev Portnoy (levbalint) and 3) "insectstuff 2" by sephi sunset.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
This was taken at Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, Tai Po, Hong Kong. The yellow-green bokeh helps to paint a beautiful autumnal scene.
Fung Yuen Valley has been listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) since 1980 to reflect "its importance as a major breeding site for butterflies". The protected area covers approximately 43 hectares. Within this area, the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve was set up on 2 hectares of private land in 2005 by the Tai Po Environmental Association through the funding from the Environment and Conservation Fund.
( Explored: Jan 4, 2025 #440 )
This image is included in a gallery "Butterflies and Moths" curated by Radoslav Besenyi.
Papilio memnon, the great Mormon, is a large butterfly native to southern Asia that belongs to the swallowtail family. It is widely distributed and has thirteen subspecies. The female is polymorphic and with mimetic forms.
This was taken at Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, Tai Po, Hong Kong.
Fung Yuen Valley has been listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) since 1980 to reflect "its importance as a major breeding site for butterflies". The protected area covers approximately 43 hectares. Within this area, the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve was set up on 2 hectares of private land in 2005 by the Tai Po Environmental Association through the funding from the Environment and Conservation Fund.