Arrowleaf elephant's ear (Xanthosoma sagittifolium)

Arrowleaf elephant's ear (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) is a plant species in Araceae, 0.4 to 1.5 m high, has no stem and is not woody, waxy leaves, important tuber producers where corm that grows underground is a source of carbohydrates and cultivated since ancient times.

X. sagittifolium has 2-5 leaves with green stems, dark green or purplish stripes, 23-150 cm long and the base is a midrib. Leaves have a size of 6.60x7.53 cm, round eggs, oval with tapered ends, sometimes purplish in color around the stalks, waxy and rounded base.

The flower comes in the cob on the armpit of the leaf. The sheath has a green or yellow or white and fall out. Arrowleaf elephant's ear is grown for tubers as an important source of carbohydrates. Tubers can be processed by steaming, boiling, baking, frying, or processed into flour, porridge, cakes, pasta and fermented to produce pudding.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Alismatales
Family: Araceae
Subfamily: Aroideae
Tribe: Caladieae
Genus: Xanthosoma
Species: Xanthosoma sagittifolium

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 ...

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...

Giant Asian mantis (Hierodula patellifera)

Giant Asian mantis ( Hierodula patellifera ) is an animal species in the Mantidae, winged praying mantis with females 65-75 mm long and males 45-65 mm long, large but not the largest in the genus Hierodula, generally have variants including green, yellow and brown. H. patellifera has a fully rotating head. The head is dominated by a pair of very large and green eyes. The jaw forms a triangle. The back is very wide with thickened margins. A pair of long antennas. Wide wings with rounded tips, striped surface, thick margins, two large white plots on the right and left. The belly is large and jointed, curved downward, the upper part is completely covered by the wings, but partially visible from the side. The pair of forelegs are large and have three segments. The upper segment has 2-3 large spines on the front and is whitish in color. The middle segment has a row of many spines on the back and a black or white tip. The third segment has a row of many spines, long, black or white tips a...

Dlium