Jobang (Acmella ciliata)

Jobang (Acmella ciliata) is a species of plant in the Asteraceae, perennial herb, up to 50 cm tall, stems growing lying down or towering, dark red or green or purple in color, generally found wild in wet places, in the middle of rice fields and river banks with lots of sun.

A. ciliata has leaves ovate to broad, up to 8 cm long, up to 6 cm wide, has no hair or hair on both surfaces, flat or heart-shaped base, serrated edges, pointed tips and green.

Flowers are compound in a blunt conical head, grow at the terminal or in the axillary stem, solitary or 2-3 buds and are yellow in color. The flower has a stalk up to 16 cm long, 9-12 bandage leaves in 2 circles for a height of about 6 mm.

Jobang scatter their seeds or fruit with wind and animals, usually growing in open places close to water, pasture, land, roadsides and rocky soil. Also in rice fields in the highlands up to an altitude of 2200 m.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Asteroideae
Tribe: Heliantheae
Subtribe: Spilanthinae
Genus: Acmella
Species: Acmella ciliata
Varieties: Acmella ciliata var. oppositifolia

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

NEWS - Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) create bubble net tools while foraging, consisting of internal tangential rings, and actively control the number of rings, their size, depth and horizontal spacing between the surrounding bubbles. These structural elements of the net increase prey intake sevenfold. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” for hunting, but the new report shows that the animals also manipulate them in a variety of ways to maximize catches. The behavior places humpbacks among the rare animals that make and use their own tools. “Many animals use tools to help them find food, but very few actually make or modify these tools themselves,” said Lars Bejder, director of the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP), University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Humpback whales in southeast Alaska create elaborate bubble nets to catch krill. They skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form a web with internal rings. They actively control details such ...

Sweetpotato bug (Physomerus grossipes)

Kutu ketela or sweetpotato bug ( Physomerus grossipes ) is an insect species in Coreidae, brown with black legs, adults growing about 2 cm long, oval shaped, segmented antennas, heavily veined membranes, metathoracic odor glands and enlarged rear tibia. P. grossipes generally live in Leguminosae and Convolvulaceae especially sweet potato ( Physomerus grossipes ), pink morning glory ( Ipomoea carnea ), purple beans ( Vigna unguiculata ), Asian pigeonwings ( Clitoria ternatea ) and common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris ). Sweetpotato bugs suck liquid from the stem which causes plants to wither and disrupt fruit production. P. grossipes places eggs at the bottom of the leaves or stems or grass around them. Females are very protective of their children, keeping eggs and nymphs from predators as the most famous example of maternal care in Coreidae. Even so, about 20% of eggs are eaten by predators such as ants and 13% are lost by parasitoid predation by chalcid wasps which lay eggs in egg...

Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar (Amanita javanica)

OPINION - Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar ( Amanita javanica ) is a mysterious fungus species and has been enigmatic since it was first reported by Boedijn in 1951 and after that no explanation or reporting of specimens is believed to be the same as expected. Boedijn (1951) described A. javanica which grew on Java island as having the characteristics covered in the Amanita genus. Corner and Bas in 1962 tried to describe Javan mocca and all species in Amanita based on specimens in Singapore. Over time some reports say that they have found A. javanica specimens in other Southeast Asia including also China, Japan, India and Nepal. But there is no definitive knowledge and many doubt whether the specimen is the same as described by Boedijn (1951). I was fortunate to have seen this species one afternoon and soon I took out a camera for some shots. In fact, I've only met this mushroom species once. Javan mocca is an endangered species and I have never seen in my experience in...

Dlium