Dog's tongue (Pseudelephantopus spicatus)

Sandung or dog's-tongue (Pseudelephantopus spicatus) is a plant species in Asteraceae, perennial herbs, stems erect, 10-40 cm tall, inconspicuously ribbed, puberulous, grows wild on roadsides, open land and disturbed sites, often used to make brooms, animal feed and medicines.

P. spicatus has simple leaves, rosulate or alternate at base, 5-15 by 1.5-5 cm, obovate or oblanceolate, margin slightly serrate to entire, apex obtuse or rounded, base cuneate or attenuate and subcoriaceous. Upper surface puberulous without glands, lower surface puberulous with filiform hairs and capitate glands.

Lateral veins 9-15-paired. Petioles up to 2 cm long. Capitulescences terminal and axillary, capitula 1-4 aggregated in clusters supported by foliaceous bracts, clusters arranged in a spike. Capitula tubular, 14-17 mm long. Receptacle flat, 1-1.5 mm in diameters and glabrous.

Florets bisexual and fertile. Involucres oblong, in 2 series, 10-11 mm long. Phyllaries 8, decussate, light green, margin entire or piliferous and outer surface pilose without glands. The outer lanceolate and apicies acute. The inner ones obovate-lanceolate or oblong and apices acute.

Corollas salverform, white, zygomorphic and glabrous. Corolla tubes 5-9 mm long and corolla lobes 2.5-2.8 mm long. Anthers 1.5-2 mm long, apical appendage acute, base acute. Styles white, 5-9 mm long, branches ca. 2 mm long, inner surface covered with stigmatic papillae.

Achenes clavate, 4-5 mm long, pubescent with densely twin hairs, without glands, 10-ribbed. Pappus in 1 series, often of 2 sizes and bent at the tip, bristles 6-9, 2-6 mm long.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Cichorioideae
Tribe: Vernonieae
Subtribe: Elephantopinae
Genus: Pseudelephantopus
Species: Pseudelephantopus spicatus

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) manufacture bubble-nets as tools to increase prey intake

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Tanglehead (Heteropogon contortus)

Tanglehead ( Heteropogon contortus ) is a species of Poaceae, an erect grass, up to 65 cm tall, with leaves up to 13 cm long and 0.5 cm wide. The inflorescence is at the top and hairy. The tip is black. This plant forms dense colonies in forests, agricultural lands, roadsides, and abandoned areas. TAXON : Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Liliopsida Order: Poales Family: Poaceae Subfamily: Panicoideae Tribe: Andropogoneae Subtribe: Anthistiriinae Genus: Heteropogon Pers. in Syn. Pl. 2: 533 (1807) Species: Heteropogon contortus (L.) P.Beauv. in J.J.Roemer & J.A.Schultes, Syst. Veg., ed. 15[bis]. 2: 836 (1817) HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS : Andropogon contortus L. in Sp. Pl.: 1045 (1753) Heteropogon contortus var. hirtus Hack. in C.F.P.von Martius & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Bras. 2(3): 267 (1883) Heteropogon hirtus Pers. (1807) Holcus contortus (L.) Stuck. in Anales Mus. Nac. Buenos Aires, ser. 3, 4: 48 (1904) Sorghum contortum (L.) Kuntze in Revis. Gen. ...

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Velvet coral tree or cockspur coral tree ( Erythrina crista-galli ) is a species of plant in the Fabaceae family. It is a small tree, 5-8 meters tall, with a trunk circumference of about 50 cm, irregular branches, light wood, and fissured, soft, and light brown bark. The taproot is white. The leaves are ovate, with three strands, dark green and glossy on the upper surface, and pale green on the underside. The central lobe is up to 17 cm long and up to 11 cm wide. The left and right lobes are up to 15 cm long and up to 10 cm wide. The flowers are red, arranged in racemes, at the apex, pentameric, complete, and bilaterally symmetrical. The flowers are up to 6 cm long and 4 cm wide. The pods are long, containing about 8 seeds, green when young and turning brown as they mature. The seeds are ovate, flat, and brown. It grows well in lowlands up to an elevation of 1,500 meters, with an annual rainfall of 800-1,500 mm/year, and a temperature of 20-32°C. It thrives in well-drained soils, but...

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