White Pines Forest State Park

White Pines Forest State Park, more commonly referred to as White Pines State Park, is an Illinois state park in Ogle County, Illinois. It is located near the communities of Polo, Mount Morris and Oregon. The park contains the southernmost remaining stand of native white pine trees in the state of Illinois, and that area, , was designated an Illinois Nature Preserve in 2001.
The area was poised to become a state park in 1903, but a veto by Governor Richard Yates prevented that from occurring. Supporters continued to press for the White Pines Woods, as it was once known, to receive state park designation throughout the period 1903-1927. In 1927 the park was established with help from supporters in the Chicago media. The park contains two freshwater streams, dolomite rock formations, and a variety of activities generally associated with Illinois state parks. Along Pine Creek, one of the park's two streams, fords were constructed instead of bridges allowing visitors to drive through the creek.
History.
Early history.
White Pines Forest State Park is located in what was once a part of the Sauk leader Black Hawk's territory and encompasses an area once known as White Pines Woods. White Pines State Park nearly became an Illinois State Park as early as 1903, when the state established its first state park at Fort Massac. Members of the Oregon, Illinois Woman's Council started the process by lobbying the Illinois legislature to set aside White Pines Woods as a state park. In 1903 the Illinois legislature appropriated US$30,000 for the purchase of White Pines Woods, the southernmost stand of virgin, native white pine trees in the state. The move was stalled when then-Illinois Governor Richard Yates vetoed the measure, citing costs. After 1903 and before 1927 (when the state park was established), the "Pines Woods Bill" was introduced several times without success. The designation of Starved Rock State Park in 1912 reportedly frustrated the supporters of White Pines Woods' designation as a state park.
The influential Friends of Our Native Landscape included the area around the Rock River between Dixon and Oregon on a list of 20 places in Illinois that should be designated state parks. Located in "Rock River country," along an old Indian trail, was White Pines Woods covering in a canyon of dolomite rock carved by Pine Creek. At the time, within White Pines Woods, the tallest trees stood in height. The area was noted by Elia W. Peattie, a poet and member of the Eagle's Nest Art Colony (located at present-day Lowden State Park), who expressed the need for preservation of the White Pines Woods in one of her poems.
The Illinois Board of State Park Advisers was established under a 1925 state law. The law, which was amended in 1931, gave the director of the Illinois Department of Public Works jurisdiction over the state parks. The Public Works position was a result of 1917 reforms by Governor Frank Lowden. The law also mandated a system of state parks, under the Illinois Department of Conservation, later renamed the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Per the 1925 mandate, White Pines Forest became a state park in 1927 after its proponents enlisted the support of the "Chicago Tribune" and WGN Radio. That year, Governor Len Small moved to purchase White Pines for $63,949.
Lodge and cabins.
In 1933, with the Great Depression in full swing, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) sought to relieve the work needs of unemployed Americans. The National Park Service sought to work with state governments in an effort to meet those ends. Many of the projects the CCC was involved with were construction projects. The project at White Pines was originally meant to be the construction of a lodge building. From 1933 to 1939, two hundred men, many of them World War I veterans, worked on the State Park construction project.
After the lodge was completed, it was decided to build a restaurant and breezeway onto the lodge building. Logs for most of the project were shipped via railroad from as far away as Oregon and Washington state, unloaded in Stratford, Illinois and dragged to the construction site by teams of horses. The CCC project also completed sixteen one-room log cabins and three four-bedroom cabins. The work crews also built picnic shelters, trail shelters, and foot bridges. Only the logs for the cabins came from another source. They were purchased from a salvage company that had purchased utility poles from a defunct utility company at the price of 30 cents a piece.
Nature Preserve designation.
In September 2001 the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission dedicated a section of the state park at White Pines Forest as Illinois' 300th nature preserve. Nature preserve designation gave the stand of white pine trees in the park the highest form of legal protection in the state. The designation restricts activities to those that do not impact the area's natural features such as hiking and birdwatching. Activities such as logging, farming, hunting, and fishing are all prohibited within Illinois Nature Preserves, though in some cases there are exceptions for hunting and fishing.
Description.
White Pines State Park is a state park located in the heart of the Rock River Valley in Ogle County. The park represents the southernmost remaining stand of virgin white pine ("Pinus strobus") forest in the state. The state park, like all Illinois state parks, is operated and maintained by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). White Pines Forest State Park provides habitat for a variety of plant and animal life and has two freshwater streams within its boundaries.
Among the park's most distinctive and well-known features are the vehicular river crossings. At three places, crossing Pine Creek, fords were constructed instead of bridges. The fords offer visitors a chance to actually drive through the creek, though high water frequently closes the crossings. Hikers are relegated to pedestrian bridges or stepping stones in the creek to cross the stream. Floods are frequent enough on Pine Creek, a large watershed to the north of the park, that there is an emergency exit from the campground. When high water closes the fords, the campground is cut off and the emergency exit is the only way out.
Wildlife.
The banks of Pine Creek and Spring Creek are lined with large rock and cliff formations that provide habitat to plants ranging from large trees to moss to hanging vines. The cliffs harbor plants rare in the state of Illinois such as Canada yew and sullivantia (family Saxifragaceae), an Illinois state-threatened species. When in season, the park's many species of wildflowers bloom, some of the flowers found in the park include: trout lily, Solomon's seal, bloodroot, blue-eyed grass, spring beauty, and hepatica. The forest undergrowth provides small mammal habitat and among the mammals that can be seen in the park are: red squirrels, raccoons, deer, and chipmunks. Birds include, the pine thrush, warblers, wild turkey, and winter-migratory birds. The creeks are populated with smallmouth bass, rock bass, channel catfish and, when they are stocked by the IDNR, rainbow trout.
Activities.
The park, Illinois' third oldest, has become one of the state's most visited parks, hosting over 350,000 visitors each year. It was visited by 10,000 people on given weekends during the 1930s, and the 1958 record-setting attendance mark was documented at 874,000.
The park is a public area and has a variety of activities that are typically associated with protected areas meant to be visited by the public. During the warmer months, picnicking, camping, lodging, hiking, and fishing are available. During the winter, cross-country skiing trails open, and other activities such as camping remain available as well. The lodge and cabins are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The 25 cabins are operated by a privately owned entity, the White Pines Inn, and the lodge features a popular private restaurant.
White Pines has 103 campsites all accessible by vehicle; the campgrounds are sometimes closed because of high water or soft ground. Seven hiking trails wind a total of five miles (8 km) through the park; three of the seven trails are less than one mile (1.6 km) in length. The two cross-country ski trails total in length and are open as winter weather permits. The park's lodge and cabins consist of 13 one-room cabins and 3 four-room cabins; all cabins have a shower and other modern amenities. The lodge, though renovated, maintains its historic integrity, and new features were blended with the old. The lounge, in the lodge, is filled with crafts and artwork.


Acanthocidaris maculicollis

Acanthocidaris maculicollis is a species of sea urchin of the family Cidaridae. Their armour is covered with spines. It came from the genus Acanthocidaris and lives in the sea. Acanthocidaris hastingeria was first scientifically described in 1904 by de Meijere.


Kunzea preissiana

Kunzea preissiana is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a shrub with hairy branches and leaves, pink to mauve flowers in groups on the ends of shoots, and twenty to thirty stamens about the same length as the petals. It is a widespread, often locally common species across its range.
Description.
"Kunzea preissiana" is a shrub that typically grows to a height of with a few erect stems, each with spreading stems densely covered with fine hairs. The leaves are almost flat, linear to lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, hairy on both sides, long and wide on a petiole about long. The flowers are arranged in groups of between about three and seven on the ends of shoots that continue to grow after flowering. There are hairy bracts and bracteoles at the base of the flowers, distinguishing this species from the similar "K. affinis". The flower cup is densely hairy, about long. The sepal lobes are densely hairy, egg-shaped to lance-shaped and long. The petals are more or less egg-shaped, long and there are between 18 and 32 stamens about the same length as the petals. Flowering mainly occurs in September and October and the fruit is a hairy, urn-shaped capsule with the sepals spreading at right angles.
This is a widespread kunze in the southwest and there is considerable variation in the species, especially in the hairs on the leaves and flower parts and some forms are very similar to "K. acicularis".
Taxonomy and naming.
"Kunzea preissiana" was first formally described by the botanist Johannes Conrad Schauer in 1844 in Johann Georg Christian Lehmann's book "Plantae Preissianae".
Distribution and habitat.
This kunzea grows in gravelly lateritic soil in kwongan and shrubland between Narrogin, Albany and to the east of Hopetoun in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest and Mallee biogeographic regions.
Conservation.
"Kunzea preissiana" is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Drosera roraimae

Drosera roraimae is a sundew native to Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela. It was originally described as a variety of "Drosera montana" before being raised to species rank in 1957.
The specific epithet "roraimae" refers to Mount Roraima, a tepui or table-top mountain, where the type specimen was collected.


Juncus macrophyllus

Juncus macrophyllus is a species of rush known by the common name longleaf rush.
It is native to the southwestern United States and Baja California, where it grows in wet spots in several types of local habitat, such as chaparral.
Description.
"Juncus macrophyllus" is a rhizomatous perennial herb forming tufts of stems up to one meter tall. The inflorescence is an open array of many clusters of a few flowers each. The flower has several segments each about 5 millimeters long.


Ferocactus cylindraceus

Ferocactus cylindraceus is a species of barrel cactus which is known by several common names, including California barrel cactus, Desert barrel cactus, and miner's compass. It was first described by George Engelmann in 1853.
Distribution.
This cactus is native to the eastern Mojave Desert and western Sonoran Desert Ecoregions in: Southern California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah in the Southwestern United States; and Baja California, and Sonora state in Northwestern Mexico.
It is found in gravelly, rocky, or sandy soils, in Creosote Bush Scrub and Joshua Tree Woodland habitats, from in elevation.
Description.
"Ferocactus cylindraceus" is usually cylindrical or spherical, with some older specimens forming columns in height. It is covered in long, plentiful spines, which are straight and red when new and become curved and gray as they age.
The cactus bears flowers that are maroon outside, and bright yellow inside, with red or yellow centers on the side that faces the sun. The fleshy, hollow fruits are yellow.
Conservation.
Having a sculptural form and picturesque qualities, this already uncommon cactus is threatened by plant collectors. It is also losing habitat to clearing for new wind farms and solar power plants in the Mojave Desert and Colorado Desert.


Eucalyptus stoatei

Eucalyptus stoatei, commonly known as scarlet pear gum or Stoat's mallee, is a tree that is native to a small area along the south coast of Western Australia.
Description.
The tree will typically grow to a height of and has white or grey-brown smooth bark and a slender habit. It blooms between July and February producing circular conflorescences with yellow fine flowers. The fruit or capsule are ribbed and barrel-shaped finishing with a point at one end. They are in length and wide with a thick rim, descending disc and three enclosed valves. The capsules are a red-brown colour that darken with age.
The adult leaves are disjunct, glossy, green, thick and concolorous. The blade is an elliptic or ovate shape that is basally tapered supported on quadrangular petioles. The simple axillary conflorescence has single flowered umbellasters on broadly flattened peduncles. Buds form that have an ovoid or pyriform shape with a calyx calyptrate that sheds early.
Unlike most Eucalypts "E. stoatei" almost exclusively pollinated by birds, particularly honeyeaters instead of insects. Insects are not able to access the large pendulous flowers because the stamens form an impassable dome over the floral cup. Only a narrow channel lined with anthers allows access to the nectar at the centre of the floral dome.
The dried fruits are used as an ingredient of potpourri.
Taxonomy.
The species was first formally described by the botanist C.A.Gardner in 1936 as part of the work "Contributiones Florae Australiae Occidentalis No. IX" as published in the "Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia". The type specimen was collected in the Eyre district from around Bandalp Creek near Kundip by K.F. Dureau and J.E. Harrison in 1935. The only known synonym for this species is "Eucalyptus forrestiana" subsp. "stoatei" as described by C.J.Robinson in 1985 in the work "Eucalyptus stoatei as a subspecies of Eucalyptus forrestiana" published in the journal "Nuytsia".
The species name "stoatei" honours T.N.Stoate who was the Senior Assistant Conservator of Forests in Western Australia at the time of the plants discovery.
Distribution.
It is found on flats and rises in a small area between Ravensthorpe and Esperance, Western Australia where it grows in gravelly sand, clay or loam soils. The majority of the population is east of Ravensthorpe to south of Pyramid Lake.
The tree is commonly found amongst mallee woodland communities over a shrub-dominated understorey.


Schistotylus purpuratus


Festuca saximontana

Festuca saximontana, the rocky mountain fescue or the mountain fescue, is a perennial grass native to North America. The specific epithet "saximontana" is Latin and means "of the Rocky Mountains". The grass has a diploid number of 42.
Taxonomy.
"Festuca saximontana" was reduced by Hultén in 1942 to "Festuca brachyphylla" subsp. "saximontana" but recognized the species as separate in 1968 on the basis of anther length. In 1982 it was noted that "F. saximontana" differs from "F. brachyphylla" in its strongly developed leaf sclerenchyma and longer anthers. The two species are typically distinct, but intermediate specimens with an overlap of anther size, leaf size, and sclerenchyma development occur rarely in the northern areas of the distribution of "F. saximontana".
Description.
"Festuca saximontana" is a bluish-grey to green densely tufted grass that lacks rhizomes. The grass has smooth, glabrous, occasionally scabrous culms growing tall. The culms sometimes become puberulent below the inflorescence. The glabrous and smooth or scabrous leaf sheaths are closed for half of their length and occasionally become shredded. Dead leaf sheaths persist at the base of the grass. The erose ligules measure . The conduplicate leaf blades are in diameter, with glabrous abaxial surfaces and scabrous adaxial surfaces. The abaxial sclerenchyma is composed of three to seven strands that form a continuous band and the adaxial sclerenchyma is absent. The flag leaf blades are long. The panicles are mostly linear-cylindrical and occasionally loosely lanceolate, measuring long. One or two erect branches rise from each node of the inflorescence and become nodding during anthesis, measuring long. The greenish spikelets are loosely flowered with three to five florets and measure . The coriaceous glumes are lance-subulate and become scabrous at their distal end. The lower glumes measure and have one vein, and the upper glumes measure and have three veins. The coriaceous lemmas are strongly curved, the longer of which measure long. The awns measure . The paleas are long. The anthers are long.
Distribution and habitat.
"Festuca saximontana" grows in dry or mesic grasslands, woodlands, and sand dunes throughout boreal, mountainous, and subalpine North America. It grows at altitudes below .
"Festuca saximontana" occurs from Alaska to Greenland, as far south as California and New Mexico and as far east as the Great Lakes, and is rarely found in the Russian Far East. It has a slightly more southern distribution than "Festuca brachyphylla", not occurring in the Arctic circle or some of the Canadian archipelago.
Ecology.
"Festuca saximontana" is a host plant for the western branded skipper and the draco skipper.


Cyperus ixiocarpus

Cyperus ixiocarpus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
The robust perennial sedge typically grows to a height of and has a viscid tufted habit. The plant blooms between February and July producing yellow-green-brown flowers.
In Western Australia it is found along sandy creek and river beds in the Gascoyne and Pilbara regions where it grows in red sandy-loamy soils.


Habenaria hymenophylla

Habenaria hymenophylla, commonly known as the coastal rein orchid, is a species of orchid that is endemic to northern Australia. It up to eight leaves scattered along the stem and up to thirty smelly green and white flowers.
Description.
"Habenaria hymenophylla" is a tuberous, perennial herb with between six and eight leaves. The leaves are long and wide. Between twenty and thirty green and white flowers, long and wide are borne on a flowering stem tall. The flowers have an unpleasant smell, especially in the late afternoon. The dorsal sepal is about long and wide and forms a hood over the column. The lateral sepals are a similar size to the dorsal sepal and spread apart from each other. The petals are divided into two lobes about wide, one about long and the other about long. The labellum has three thread-like lobes long. The nectary spur is long and curved. Flowering occurs from October to April.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Habenaria hymenophylla" was first formally described in 1911 by Rudolf Schlechter and the description was published in "Repertorium specierum novarum regni vegetabilis".
Distribution and habitat.
The coastal rein is found in northern parts of the Northern Territory where it is found near Darwin, in Arnhem Land and on Melville Island. It also occurs in disjunct populations in Queensland, including on the Cape York Peninsula and between Ingham and Rockhampton. It grows in rainforest, often near the coast and in woodland.


Guzmania pearcei

Guzmania pearcei is a species of flowering plant in Bromeliaceae family. It is native to Ecuador and Colombia.


Tabernaemontana cordata

Tabernaemontana cordata is a species of plant in the family Apocynaceae. It is endemic to the Island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines. It is listed as vulnerable.


Bennett Spring State Park

Bennett Spring State Park is a public recreation area located in Bennett Springs, Missouri, west of Lebanon on Highway 64 in Dallas and Laclede counties. It is centered on the spring that flows into the Niangua River and gives the park its name. The spring averages 100 million gallons (380,000 m3) of daily flow. The park offers fly fishing, camping, canoeing, hiking, and other activities.
History.
In 1837, the James Brice family built a mill at the stream and the spring became known as Brice Spring. The town that built up was known as Brice. The family of Peter Bennett soon settled near the spring and started their own mill. Originally, the families were rivals, but they soon intermarried. Both of these mills were eventually destroyed in a flood.
During the Civil War years, another mill was constructed by Peter Bennett. This Bennett Mill was larger and more successful than the Brice mill. The spring soon took on the Bennett name. Peter died in 1882 and his son William Sherman Bennett took over. The Bennett Mill burned in 1895.
The state purchased the spring and some surrounding area in 1924-1925 to create a state park. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) made various improvements to the park. The CCC built the dining lodge, cabins, trails, roads, shelters, gauge station, and the arched stone bridge across the spring branch. The bridge has 3 distinctive sideways “C’s” to memorialize the men of the CCC who built it. The CCC also channelized the spring branch and constructed the dam just upstream of the stone bridge to make the spring more habitable to the non-native trout. The dam is used to divert water through the fish hatchery and to maintain a constant water level at Bennett Spring to this day.
Historic sites.
The park includes two resources that were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985:
Activities and amenities.
The park offers trout fishing for rainbow and brown trout in the natural spring that is the namesake of the park. The fishing area is divided into three zones, each with its own set of regulations. During the regular season, fish may be caught and kept. Catch and release regulations are in effect during the winter months. Daily fishing begins and ends with a whistle or siren. The opening march of the angler can sometimes resemble a Civil War–style battle line as the anglers progress into the water with rod in hand.
The park also offers of hiking trails, canoeing on the Niangua River, camping, cabins, swimming pool, nature center, dining lodge, and park store.


Carex secta

Carex secta is a sedge that is endemic to New Zealand. The Māori name is makura amongst others, and it was given the name niggerhead by early European settlers, but that has fallen out of use because of its racist denotation. It grows in wetlands.


Amanita onusta

Amanita onusta, commonly known as the loaded Lepidella or the gunpowder Lepidella, is a species of fungus in the mushroom family Amanitaceae. It is characterized by its small to medium-sized fruit bodies that have white to pale gray caps crowded with roughly conical, pyramidal, or irregular gray warts. The stipe is whitish-gray with woolly or wart-like veil remnants, and at the base is a spindle- or turnip-shaped base that is rooted somewhat deeply in the soil. The species is distributed in eastern North America, from Nova Scotia to Mexico, and may be found growing on the ground in deciduous forests, particularly those with oak, hickory and chestnut. Fruit bodies smell somewhat like bleaching powder, and their edibility is unknown, but possibly toxic.
Taxonomy.
"Amanita onusta" was first described in 1874 by American mycologist Elliot Calvin Howe as "Agaricus onustus". Later, in 1891, Pier Andrea Saccardo transferred the species to the genus "Amanita". "Amanita" authority Cornelis Bas, writing in his extensive 1969 monograph on the genus, placed the species in his stirps "Microlepis", subsection "Solitariae", section "Lepidellus". This grouping of "Amanita" mushroom species also includes "A. abrupta", "A. atkinsoniana", "A. costaricensis" (a provisionally named species authored by Tulloss, Halling, & G.M. Muell.), "A. nitida" (as Coker described the species) and "A. sphaerobulbosa".
The Latin epithet "onustusa" means "charged, load-carrying, burdened", and a regular adjective derived from "onus", "burden" (the same word that gave the English "onus"). "A. onusta" is commonly known as the "loaded Lepidella", or the "gunpowder Lepidella".
Description.
The fruit bodies of "Amanita onusta" have caps that are initially broadly convex but flatten out as they mature, reaching diameters of . The cap surface, grayish-white in color, is ornamented with conical or pyramidal raised warts, or flattened, symmetrically arranged gray to brownish gray, grayish brown or grayish-orange small scales (squamules) that are densely arranged over the surface.
The squamules are less crowded near the edge of the cap (the margin). The margin does not have striations, and is typically fringed with remnants of the veil. The gills on the underside of the cap are spaced closely together, and either free or narrowly attached to the stipe. They are white to cream color, and are interspersed with short lamellulae (gills that do not extend completely from cap margin to stipe). The gills may look as if they are waterlogged.
The stipe is long, thick, and tapers slightly upwards. It is solid gray to brownish-gray near base, paler towards the top, and appears cottony (floccose) or hairy (fibrillose). The bulb at the base of the stipe is roughly spindle- to turnip-shaped, and may root deeply into the soil, especially if the soil is loose. The short-lived partial veil is white, and attached just below the top of the stipe. It is sticky and in maturity often clings to the upper part of the stipe, or may have some meagre remnants hanging from the cap margin. The universal veil remains are arranged in rows of warts and patches of gray to brownish-gray small scales over the upper portion of the bulb; below this, the color is a dirty white. The flesh is firm and white. Fruit bodies can range in smell from mild to "slightly unpleasant". The odor has been described as resembling "chloride of lime", a smell similar to some bathroom disinfectants containing bleach.
Microscopic characteristics.
Viewed in deposit, such as with a spore print, the spores are white. Viewed with a microscope, the spores are broadly ellipsoid to elongate, translucent, thin-walled, amyloid, and have dimensions of 8.3–11.6 by 4.9–6.6 μm. The basidia (spore-bearing cells) are 38–46 by 9–11 μm, club-shaped, mostly 4-spored but some are 2- or 3- spored, with clamps. The cheilocystidia (cystidia found on the edge of a gill) are 23.3–31.5 by 11.6–15.7 μm, ellipsoid, club- to pear-shaped cells, partly in short rows. The cap cuticle is up to 168 μm thick, and consists of thin-walled interwoven hyphae that are 2–5.3 μm diameter, and gelatinized. Clamp connections are present in the hyphae of this species—these are short branches connecting one cell to the previous cell to allow passage of the products of nuclear division.
Edibility.
The edibility of "A. onusta" is unknown, but it has been described as "possibly poisonous" and inedible. In general, species of "Amanita" are best avoided for consumption because of the prevalence of toxic species in that genus.
Similar species.
"Amanita onusta" may be confused with "A. cinereoconia" because of the similar gray powdery veil remnants on the cap surface. "A. cinereoconia" is distinguished from "A. onusta" by the absence of clamps, its powdery-wooly to powdery-warty cap, as well as the absence of warts or scales at the base of the stipe. "A. cinereoconia" also smells distinctly of chloride of lime. Another similar species is "A. costaricensis", found only in Costa Rica. "A. atkinsoniana", another North American species, has shorter warts that are spaced further apart than those of "A. onusta", and the warts on the basal bulb are arranged in parallel rows.
Habitat and distribution.
"Amanita onusta" grows solitary or scattered on the ground in mixed oak, hickory and chestnut forests from southern New England to Texas. The species has a preference for sandy or loose soils. Its range extends north to Nova Scotia, Canada, and south to Mexico.


Nathan Hale State Forest

Nathan Hale State Forest is a Connecticut state forest encompassing in the towns of Coventry and Andover. The forest is managed to sustain a reliable source of forest products and renewable habitat for wildlife. The forest originated in 1946 through the bequest of George Dudley Seymour, which allowed the state to purchase 850 acres in the surrounds of the historic Nathan Hale Homestead. In addition to cultivated plantations, the forest includes a 200-acre natural area that is kept without management activity. A parcel, Creaser Park, is leased to the Town of Coventry for recreational use. The park offers hiking trails, fishing, and a dog-friendly area. Recreational usage in the rest of the forest includes hiking, hunting and letterboxing.


Carex colensoi


Heterotheca barbata

Heterotheca barbata, Spokane false goldenaster, is a very rare North American species of flowering plant in the aster family. It has been found only in the northwestern United States, in eastern Washington and northern Idaho.


Caladenia ensata

Caladenia ensata, commonly known as the stumpy spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a common orchid within its natural range and has a single, hairy leaf and up to three pale yellow and red flowers which have short but thick, fleshy glandular tips.
Description.
"Caladenia ensata" has a single erect, hairy leaf, long and wide. Up to three flowers wide are borne on a stalk high. The flowers are pale yellow and red or greenish and red and the sepals and petals have narrow, thick, glandular tips long. The dorsal sepal is erect, long and about wide at the base. The lateral sepals are a similar size to the dorsal sepal but spread widely and are stiffly held at an angle below horizontal. The petals are long, about wide and arranged like the lateral sepals. The labellum is long and wide and greenish-yellow with a red tip. There are a few short, pointed greenish teeth on the side of the labellum and four or more rows of maroon calli up to long along its centre line. Flowering occurs from September to early November.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Caladenia ensata" was first described by William Nicholls in 1947 from a specimen he collected on the banks of the King River. The description was published in "The Victorian Naturalist". The specific epithet ("ensata") is derived from the Latin word "ensis" meaning "sword" referring to the sword-like tips of the petals and sepals.
Distribution and habitat.
Stumpy spider orchid is found between Albany and Augusta in the Jarrah Forest and Warren biogeographic regions where it usually grows in sandy soil in woodland. It is a common orchid but often difficult to locate because of its small size and darker colours.
Conservation.
"Caladenia ensata" is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Toxopneustes roseus

Toxopneustes roseus is a species of sea urchin from the East Pacific. It is sometimes known as the rose flower urchin or the pink flower urchin. Like the related flower urchin, they are venomous.
Taxonomy.
"Toxopneustes roseus" is one of the four species in the genus "Toxopneustes". It was first described by the American zoologist Alexander Emanuel Agassiz in 1863 as "Boletia roseus".
The generic name "Toxopneustes" literally means "poison breath", derived from Greek τοξικόν [φάρμακον] ("toksikón [phármakon]", "arrow [poison]") and πνευστος ("pneustos", "breath"). The specific name "roseus" means "rosy" in Latin.
Though it does not have a widely used common name, it is sometimes known as the "rose flower urchin" or the "pink flower urchin". More commonly, it is simply called a "flower urchin", though that name strictly applies only to the related Indo-West Pacific species, "Toxopneustes pileolus".
Description.
"Toxopneustes roseus" is similar in appearance to the more widespread flower urchin, "Toxopneustes pileolus". It can be distinguished by having a rigid "shell" (test) that is a solid pink, red, or purple in color, in contrast to the variegated coloration of the test of "Toxopneustes pileolus". Like other members of the genus, its most conspicuous feature are its numerous pedicellariae (stalked grasping appendages) which gives it the appearance of being a cluster of flowers.
Distribution.
"Toxopneustes roseus" is the only member of the genus found in the East Pacific. It can be found from Peru, up along the coast of Central America (including the Gulf of California), and as far north as California. They can also be found in the waters around the Galapagos Islands.
They are common in coral reefs, rhodolith beds, and rocky environments, at depths of . They can also be found in sand and mud substrates.
Ecology.
"Toxopneustes roseus" feeds almost exclusively on rhodoliths, a coralline algae. They are highly mobile. They move and feed throughout the day and night, though they seem to be more active at night.
"Toxopneustes roseus" are among the numerous species of sea urchins known as "collector urchins", so named because they frequently cover the upper surfaces of their bodies with debris from their surroundings. This behavior is usually referred to as "covering" or "heaping". A 1998 study has postulated that the debris collected by the sea urchins may serve as ballast, preventing them from being swept away by wave surges when feeding
Venom.
Like other members of the genus, "Toxopneustes roseus" is venomous. The flower-like pedicellariae can deliver a painful sting if touched.


Acacia sericocarpa

Acacia sericocarpa is a shrub of the genus "Acacia" and the subgenus "Phyllodineae" that is endemic to south western Australia.
Description.
The spreading shrub typically grows to a height of . It can have a rounded habit and a rather dense crown with hairy branchlets. Like most species of "Acacia" it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. The patent to undulate, coriaceous green phyllodes are usually slightly asymmetric and have an obovate, ovate or elliptic shape with a length of and a width of with one main nerve per face. It blooms from August to September and produces yellow flowers. The simple inflorescences are found occurring in pairs in the axils and have spherical flower-heads with a diameter of conraining 15 to 24 mid-golden coloured flowers. Following flowering seed pods form that are twisted to spirally coiled with a length of approximately and a width of . The thinly crustaceous seed pods are covered in woolly hairs and contain shiny brown seeds with an elliptic shape and a length of and a bright orange aril.
Taxonomy.
The species was first formally described by the botanist William Vincent Fitzgerald in 1904 as a part of the work "Additions to the West Australian Flora" as published in the "Journal of the West Australian Natural History Society". It was reclassified as "Racosperma sericocarpum" in 2003 by Leslie Pedley than transferred back to genus "Acacia" in 2006.
Distribution.
It is native to an area in the Wheatbelt and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia where it is commonly situated on flats growing in loamy or sandy-clay soils. The distribution of the shrub extends from Wyalkathem in the north down to around Corrigin and Beverly in the south to around Queen Victoria Rock in the east usually as a part of open "Eucalyptus" woodland or mallee woodland communities or shrublands of "Melaleuca uncinata" and species of "Casuarina".


Brickellia palmeri

Brickellia palmeri is a Mexican species of flowering plants in the daisy family. It is native to northern Mexico (Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Durango, Zacatecas).
The species is named for British botanist Edward Palmer (1829–1911).


North Platte National Wildlife Refuge

North Platte National Wildlife Refuge is located in the U.S. state of Nebraska and includes 5,047 acres (20.42 km2). Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the refuge is broken into four separate sections that are superimposed on U.S. Bureau of Reclamation–managed lakes and reservoirs. Together with the Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge, the two refuges form the Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge Complex.
Within the refuge is the longest continuously used bald eagle nesting site in the state of Nebraska. Since 1994, an average of two eaglets per year have been produced from this one nest alone. During fall migrations, 200,000 ducks, Canada geese, herons, and other waterfowl are known to use the refuge when migrating south. Since 1975, over 200 species of birds have been reported, which makes this refuge one of the finest for bird watching in the U.S. Pronghorn, mule deer, and white-tailed deer, along with raccoon, coyote, beaver, swift fox, river otter, prairie dog, and bobcat are some of the 40 species of mammal known to inhabit the refuge. Sport fishing is popular, with largemouth bass, walleye, and yellow perch considered the best game species.
The main section of the refuge is located 8 miles (12.87 km) northwest of Scottsbluff, Nebraska, the principal city of the Scottsbluff Micropolitan Statistical Area. The refuge consists of multiple lakes, most notably Lake Minatare, part of the Lake Minatare State Recreation Area.


Sarcodontia sibirica

Sarcodontia sibirica is a species of toothed crust fungus in the family Meruliaceae. It was originally described by Czech mycologist Albert Pilát in 1936 as "Acia sibirica". T.L. Nikolajeva transferred it to the genus "Sarcodontia" in 1961.


Acacia sparsiflora

Acacia sparsiflora, also known as currawong or currawang, is a tree belonging to the genus "Acacia" and the subgenus "Juliflorae" that is native to a large area in eastern Australia.
Description.
The tree typically grows to a maximum height of . It has brown to grey and sometimes reddish coloured bark that has a rough texture and is hard and corrugated or fissured. The glabrous branchlets are angled at the extremities. Like most species of "Acacia" it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. The grey-green glabrous phyllodes are sickle shaped and narrowed at both ends. They are thinly coriaceous and have a length of and a width of with many fine and close non-anastomosing nerves with one to three that are more prominent. It flowers between May and August producing inflorescences that occur in pairs with cylindrical flower-spikes that have a length of containing bright lemon coloured yellow. The seed pods that form after flowering are brown with yellow margins and are shallowly constricted between the seeds. The thinly coriaceous and glabrous pods have a length of up to and a width of around to 9 cm long. the seeds inside are arranged longitudinally. The shiny blackish to dark-brown seeds have an oblong shape and are in length with an aril that is folded below the seed.
Distribution.
It is endemic to parts of Queensland and New South Wales and is fairly widespread throughout the Darling Downs region. The northern end of its range is to about to the south of Charters Towers it is found as far as Adavale to the west and down to around Yetman in the south. The tree will often forms dense stands and is sometimes associated with "Acacia shirleyi" and also as a part of open forests and "Eucalyptus" woodlands growing in shallow stony soils usually over a bed of weathered sandstone.


Caladenia javanica

Caladenia javanica is a species of plant in the orchid family, Orchidaceae and is endemic to Indonesia. It has a single linear leaf and an erect, hairy stem with one or two flowers. The sepals and petals are lance-shaped to oblong and the labellum has purple lines and yellow calli. This orchid grows on grassy, rocky slopes. It was first formally described by Henry Ridley from an unpublished manuscript by John Bennett and the description was published in Henry Forbes's book, "A Naturalist's Wanderings in the Eastern Archipelago". The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families recognises "Caladenia javanica" as a synonym of "Caladenia catenata".


Acacia tratmaniana

Acacia tratmaniana is a shrub belonging to the genus "Acacia" and the subgenus "Juliflorae" that is endemic to south western Australia.
Description.
The dense and erect shrub typically grows to a height of . The sericeous branchlets have resinous ribs. Like many species of "Acacia" it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. The ascending or spreading phyllodes are shallowly to moderately incurved and quadrangular in cross section. The slender and glabrous phyllodes have a length of and a width of with a broad nerve along each angle. It blooms from July to September producing yellow flowers.
Distribution.
It is native to an area in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia where it is often situated on rocky ridges, flats and salt flats where it grows in sandy or sandy loam soils often with lateritic gravel. The bulk of the population is found from around Wongan Hills and Mukinbudin in the north down to around Pingelly and Hyden in the south with disjunct populations around Geraldton.


Bash Bish Falls State Park

Bash Bish Falls State Park is a Massachusetts state park located in the town of Mount Washington. The park is named after Bash Bish Falls, Massachusetts' highest single-drop waterfall (), which lies within its borders. The park is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation and is one of several nature preserves in the extreme southwestern corner of Massachusetts noted for their scenery. It is adjacent to the Mount Washington State Forest, as well as New York's Taconic State Park.
Bash Bish State Park consists of numerous gorges and an eastern hemlock ravine forest. The slopes around the waterfall are covered by forests of trees such as maple, oak, and beech. Wildlife includes the timber rattlesnake, the peregrine falcon, bobcats, black bears, and porcupines.
Activities and amenities.
The park's recreational opportunities include scenic viewing, hiking, and fishing. To ensure public safety entering the water, swimming and rock climbing are prohibited. Leashed dogs are allowed on the trail and at the falls. The falls can be reached via a moderately strenuous, half-mile, downhill trail. In all, there are three parking areas with trails of different lengths that provide access to the falls. The park is open from dawn to dusk.


Beaufortia bracteosa

Beaufortia bracteosa is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub growing to a height of about with red to maroon flowers and woody fruit.
Description.
"Beaufortia bracteosa" is a compact shrub growing to a height of about and about in diameter. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and are linear in shape, long, wide and glabrous.
The flowers are arranged in heads on the ends of the branches and have 5 sepals, 5 petals and 5 bundles of stamens. The stamens are deep pink to red or maroon and joined for about of their length into a "claw" which is hairy on one side. The 5 or 6 stamens in each claw all spread from the same point on the claw and are a further long. Flowering occurs throughout most of the year but especially in spring and early summer and is followed by fruit which are woody capsules long and wide.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Beaufortia bracteosa" was first formally described in 1904 by Ludwig Diels in "Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae occidentalis". The specific epithet ("bracteosa") is derived from the Latin word "bractea" meaning "scale" and the suffix "-osa" meaning "having many (or large) bracts".
Distribution and habitat.
This beaufortia grows in sandy soils, sometimes with clay, gravel or loam often over laterite or granite. It occurs between Latham, Dumbleyung, the Wandoo National Park and Jilbadji Nature Reserve in the Avon Wheatbelt, Coolgardie, Esperance Plains, Geraldton Sandplains, Jarrah Forest, Mallee and Swan Coastal Plain biogeographic regions. It is an important component of kwongan vegetation.
Conservation.
"Beaufortia bracteosa" is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Spirobolellus praslinus

Spirobolellus praslinus is an extinct species of millipede in the family Spirobolidae. The species was endemic to Praslin Island of Seychelles.


Melaleuca rhaphiophylla

Melaleuca rhaphiophylla, commonly known as swamp paperbark is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south west of Western Australia. It has narrow, needle-like leaves and profuse spikes of white or yellowish flowers at variable times throughout the year. As its common name suggests, it is usually found in salt marshes, or swamps or along watercourses and occurs over wide areas of the south-west.
Description.
"Melaleuca rhaphiophylla" is a large shrub or small tree, growing to tall, often multi-stemmed, with a bushy crown and greyish papery bark. Its leaves are soft, arranged alternately, long, wide, linear in shape, circular or oval in cross-section and taper to a hooked point.
The flowers are a shade of white to cream, arranged in heads or spikes on the ends of most of the branches which continue to grow after flowering and sometimes also in the upper leaf axils. The heads are up to in diameter, long and contain 4 to 25 groups of flowers in threes. The petals are long and fall off as the flower matures. There are five bundles of stamens around the flower, each with 11 to 25 stamens. Flowering occurs spasmodically, mainly from May to January and is followed by fruit which are woody, cup-shaped capsules, long and in diameter in clusters along the stem.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Melaleuca rhaphiophylla" was first formally described in 1844 by Johannes Schauer in "Plantae Preissianae" from specimens collected "in the sandy plain of the Swan River" and "in humus on the banks of the Avon River near the village of York". The specific epithet ("rhaphiophylla") is derived from Ancient Greek words "rhaphís" meaning “a needle” and "phyllon" meaning "a leaf", referring to the needle like foliage of this species.
Distribution and habitat.
This melaleuca occurs in and between the Kalbarri and Albany districts. It grows in sandy or clay soils, sometimes with limestone, near watercourses, in swamps and saltmarshes.
Ecology.
"Melaleuca rhaphiophylla" provides food for a range of native animals and because of its dense crown, habitat for fauna. Waterbirds use this species as it often grows in areas that are flooded during the breeding season, deterring many predators. Its shallow roots reduce erosion along watercourses, stabilise soils and trap sediment. In some areas, this species is suffering from competition with the introduced "Typha orientalis" which regrows more vigorously after fire.
Conservation.
"Melaleuca rhaphiophylla" is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife.
Use in horticulture.
This species of melaleuca is a useful shrub for damp locations. It can be used as a screening plant if pruned regularly. Seeds are easily collected from unopened capsules on the plant and grown as tubestock or seeded directly into the soil.


Cotoneaster tenuipes

Cotoneaster tenuipes (slender cotoneaster; xi zhi xun zi in Chinese) is an "extremely graceful," meter-high, hirsute, deciduous cotoneaster shrub endemic to the temperate regions of China. It was named and described by botanists Alfred Rehder and E.H.Wilson in 1912.
Description.
Branches.
The terminal and secondary twigs of "C. tenuipes" are slender, cylindrical and tapering; initially grayish-yellow, later changing to brownish-red. They have shaggy hairs that lie flatly to the stem surface when new, which are lost by degrees over time.
Leaves.
The leaves of "C. tenuipes" are typically 2-2.5 cm (occasionally up to 3.5 cm) long, and 1.5–2 cm wide, and range in shape from ovate or elliptic-ovate to narrowly elliptic-ovate. The undersides are grayish with raised veins, and covered with short, woolly hairs which lie flatly to the surface; the uppersides
are green, with slightly impressed veins, and sparsely covered with long, thin, soft, weak, hairs when young, but nearly hairless with age.
Both the leaf-stems (3–5 mm long) and their stipules (2.5–5 mm long, lanceolate) are hairy, but the stipules are much less so.
Flowers.
"Cotoneaster tenuipes" goes into bloom from May to June.
Its flowers are about 7 mm in diameter, and borne on corymbs of two to four flowers each. The slender pedicels (1–3 mm), rachis and hypanthium are villous and closely appressed, but hypanthium only abaxially. The bracts (2–4 mm long) are puberulous, linear or linear-lanceolate. The sepals (~1.2 mm long) are triangularly ovate, and the petals (~3–4 mm long and almost as broad) are white and stiff, ovate or suborbicular, and are clawed at their base, giving it its epithet "tenuipes" which equates roughly with "slender foot" or "slender claw". Each flower has 15 stamens, which are shorter than its petals, and 2 styles that are shorter than or equal to the stamens. The ovary is covered at the apex with very short, fine, erect hairs.
Fruit.
"Cotoneaster tenuipes" bears its fruit from September to October. They are purplish black, ovoid pomes (~ 8.5 X 5.5 mm), each contains one or two pyrenas.
Genetics.
The diploid chromosomal number for "C. tenuipes" is 68 (2n = 68).
Range and habitat.
"Cotoneaster tenuipes" is found naturally in China, in the provinces of Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Tibet and Yunnan, in forested and dryer, rocky, montane slopes, at elevations between 1900 and 3100 meters high.


Mauginiella scaettae

Mauginiella scaettae is an ascomycete fungus that is a plant pathogen.


Chaetodiadema pallidum

Chaetodiadema pallidum is a species of sea urchins of the Family Diadematidae. Their armour is covered with spines. Chaetodiadema pallidum was first scientifically described in 1907 by Alexander Emanuel Agassiz and Hubert Lyman Clark.


Anisoptera aurea

Anisoptera aurea is a tree species in the family Dipterocarpaceae. This Asian species has been recorded from: the Philippines (Luzon), peninsular Malaysia (Penang), Sumatra, and Myanmar [Burma] (Taninthayi). No subspecies are listed in the Catalogue of Life.


Pocomoke River State Park

Pocomoke River State Park is a public recreation area lying on both banks of the Pocomoke River between Snow Hill and Pocomoke City in Worcester County, Maryland. The state park comprises two areas within Pocomoke State Forest: Shad Landing on the south bank of the river and Milburn Landing on the north bank.
History.
The Civilian Conservation Corps developed recreational facilities in the forest in the 1930s. The state assumed control of Shad Landing and Milburn Landing through a license agreement with the federal government in 1939, before taking full possession of the forest lands in 1955.
Ecology.
The park's combination of freshwater swamp and upland, as well as its location between northern and southern physiographic regions, allows for a great diversity of plant and animal life. Notable plant species include flowering dogwood and mountain laurel in the spring, bald cypress, tupelo, yellow pond lily, and loblolly pine. Animals observed include northern river otters, muskrat, prothonotary warblers, pileated woodpeckers, bald eagles, northern water snakes, and broad-headed skinks as well as over 50 species of fish, including largemouth bass and chain pickerel.
Activities and amenities.
The park offers fishing, camping, cabins, boat launch, canoeing, hiking and biking trails, picnic areas and pavilions, and playgrounds. The Shad Landing area also has a marina, camp store, swimming pool, and nature center with representatives of native animal species.


Eunicella cavolini

Eunicella cavolini, commonly known as the yellow gorgonian or yellow sea whip, is a species of colonial soft coral in the family Gorgoniidae. It is native to parts of the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and Ionian Sea where it is a common species.
Description.
"Eunicella cavolini" is a much-branched soft coral growing to a height of about . It is fan-shaped with the irregular, cylindrical branches largely growing in a single plane. The stem has an enlarged base fixed to the substrate and the branches are smooth, short and about thick. The coenenchyme (the thin fleshy covering of the stiff skeleton) is yellowish-orange. The polyps are white to yellow, about long and arranged in four rows. "Eunicella cavolini" can be confused with the warty gorgonian ("Eunicella verrucosa"), but that sea fan has rougher branches, or with "Leptogorgia sarmentosa", but that species has straighter, more slender branches with smaller polyps.
Distribution and habitat.
"Eunicella cavolini" is common throughout the Mediterranean Sea. It grows mainly between but can be found as deep as . It is normally found in a shallower zone than the violescent sea-whip ("Paramuricea clavata"). It is often found growing in association with other soft corals, sponges, polychaete worms, bryozoans, barnacles and winged oysters.
Biology.
The polyps expand their tentacles to catch zooplankton. The food fragments are passed to the mouth and then move into the gut to be digested. The nutrients are then transferred to all parts of the colony via channels in the living matrix of the branches. The fan is usually orientated perpendicular to the current so as to maximise the capture of prey.
Colonies are either male or female and breeding takes place during the summer. Polyps in male colonies liberate sperm into the water and the eggs are fertilised inside the gastric chambers of female polyps in other colonies. The embryos develop into planula larvae which are released into the sea. After drifting as part of the plankton for one to four weeks, these settle on suitable surface and undergo metamorphosis into new polyps. These develop into new colonies by budding. The growth rate is slow, at about per year.


Paenibacillus alvei

Paenibacillus alvei (formerly Bacillus alvei) is a species of bacteria within the order Bacillales. Like other species within the genus "Paenibacillus", strains of this species grow in novel, vortex-like, or branched patterns. This species is associated with the honey bee disease European foulbrood.


Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum

Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group is a Chinese conglomerate mainly engaged in the exploration, production, transportation, and sale of petroleum and natural gas, and in addition the production and sales of petrochemical products. Founded in 1905, it is the fourth largest oil producer in the country. Almost all its reserves and refineries are located in Shaanxi.
General Information.
History.
Yanchang was founded in 1905 in Shaanxi province in China, and was recorded as the first oil enterprise in China. In 1907, Yanchang Oil Plant was the first Chinese company to drill an oil well, also known as ‘Yanyi Well’ in China, and built the first refinery to refine crude oil into commercially refined lamp oil that is “comparable to the imported lamp oil[sic)].” In 1935, Yanchang Oil Plant was acquired by the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army of China. The result of the acquisition was the production of gasoline, paraffin, candle, wax sheets, gun polishing oil, and Vaseline; these products were used in large by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China to assist in the Second World War against the invading Japanese Army. Owing to the heavy demand in these products, Yanchang became an important institution in the ‘liberation of China’ especially in the provinces of Shaanxi, Gansu, and Ningxia.
From the second World War until modern day China, Yanchang remained a small enterprise, focused on regional development. Its small enterprising strategy to operate regionally caused it to grow at a slower pace than other oil companies especially when China started becoming economically competitive globally. Oil companies like PetroChina, Sinopec, and Sinochem outgrew Yanchang and as a result Yanchang became uncompetitive domestically. This saw a period of stagnation in the development and growth of Yanchang. In 1998, Yanchang Petroleum Industry Group was founded as a result of stagnation, and in 2005, was named Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Co. Ltd to emphasize the growth of the company and a roadmap for large-scale developmental projects both domestically and globally to better compete with other domestic oil companies. Currently, Yanchang consistently ranks in the top 10 largest oil companies in China.
Corporate Culture.
YanChang Petroleum Group developed its corporate strategy using the concept of “Three Root, Three Reliance, and Three Propellants”.
The “Three Root” strategy is three pronged in nature and focuses on the core business. The first “root” is the focus on the exploration, exploitation, and processing of both oil and natural gas. The second “root” is to establish a foothold in Shaanxi Province, by building research and industrial parks, and expanding development to other regions. The third “root” is to establish a strong foothold in China and to expand operations in foreign markets and be a key oil industry competitor on the global stage.
The “Three Reliance” strategy is also three pronged and focuses on corporate independence. The first “Reliance” is to be consistent in research and development and continually undertake large projects. The second “Reliance” is to increase its competency in technology and become self-reliant on key innovations. The third “Reliance” is to stimulate profitability and economic benefit by smart and efficient management.
Finally, the “Three Propellants” strategy is also three pronged and focuses on pushing innovative boundaries. The first “Propellant” is to encourage “thinking outside the box” and to promote creative ideas. The second “Propellant” is to constantly upgrade key assets and achieve environmentally sustainable but efficient production methods. The third “Propellant” is to continuously nurture cooperation between the company and government.
Shaanxi Oil Incident Protest.
In the 1970s and 1980s, oil fields in Shaanxi Province were not productive and considered an economic liability to the province due to financial losses incurred by high maintenance costs and lack of production. These circumstances forced the provincial government to recruit counties and their respective lower-level governments to form and run oil companies affiliated with SYPRB (Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Resources Bureau). The local ownership of oil fields in Shaanxi Province by counties and their locally run oil production companies did not curb the low production levels of oil and by 1994, forced the SYPRB to call on outside investment, both from private investors and the state government. The Changqing branch of the state government owned CNPC (China National Petroleum Corporation) signed an agreement called “Agreement on Northern Shaanxi Oil Resource Development” also known as the “4/13 Agreement.” The agreement states that counties with the lack of financial resources or technology can seek state government signed contracts or form joint ventures with private investors.
The “4/13 Agreement” saw major growth in oil production capabilities of Shaanxi Province. The three main contributors to the oil boom were CNPC's Changqing Branch in collaboration with the SYPRB, local county oil companies affiliated with the SYPRB, and private investors that directly injected capital in local county oil companies. In 1999, the Shaanxi provincial government dismissed a legal document called the “1239 Document”, which is an order for the provincial government to surrender oil assets to the state-owned CNPC. The Shaanxi provincial government instead allowed more private investment in 2000. The defiance of the Shaanxi provincial government towards the state government and the CNPC led to the negotiation between the CNPC and private investors to take over county-owned oil companies without the Shaanxi provincial government's consent.
In 2003, the Shaanxi provincial government launched its oil field seizure campaign. The seizure campaign saw the immediate cessation of joint ventures and production contracts with private investors. This led to a period of kidnappings and arrests of private investors who resisted and violently protested against the seizure. The seized oil fields were re-incorporated into the locally owned county run oil companies without consent by private investors. The private investors did not surrender and resorted to peaceful protests, filing legal litigations, petitions, and public campaigns against the Shaanxi provincial government. Losses incurred by private investors including the loss of property in addition to legal fees amounted to 7 billion Chinese Yuan valued at US$843 million using the rate at the end of year 2003 around the time at which the events occurred. Two case filings were submitted to the Shaanxi Supreme Court twice, and were twice rejected. In 2005, the Shaanxi provincial government announced the formation of Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group, owned and operated under the supervision of the Shaanxi provincial government.
Corporate Structure.
Global Operations.
Currently, Yanchang has global operations due to its expansion and acquisitions of global oil companies. Yanchang also has a subsidiary company that is listed in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange called Yanchang Petroleum International Limited that is responsible for global operations and global acquisistions. In 2014, Yanchang acquired a Canadian-based oil petrochemical company called Novus Energy Inc.
Corporate Growth.
Financial Growth.
The domestic and global operations of Yanchang have grown in size and capital assets due to its global expansion efforts and multibillion-dollar acquisitions. A major event in the growth of Yanchang can be attributed to the acquisition of Novus, at 230 million Canadian dollars. This acquisition has been vital because it establishes an international footprint for Yanchang and allows Yanchang to extract oil in a foreign market.
Within the last decade, Yanchang has gone through a period of growth and rapid decline. According to the source provided by Simply Wall Street, as of mid 2016, Yanchang has reported a record revenue of 23.74 billion Hong Kong dollars. However, there was a rapid decline in 2018 at a record low revenue of 4.09 billion Hong Kong dollars with a record loss in earnings of 146.72 million Hong Kong dollars. Geopolitical uncertainty coupled with highly volatile oil prices played a major role in the decline of oil prices globally which adversely affected high capacity oil production companies in China.
As of 2019, with start of the COVID-19 pandemic, oil prices have dropped to a record low in global markets. As an oil producing company, Yanchang will see either stagnated or negative growth, but as with all major oil producing companies in China, will be fiscally supported by government bailouts to ensure the company does not fall into insolvency.
Competition and Federal Government Support.
In a report published in 2005, the largest oil and gas producers in China that are in direct competition with Yanchang Petroleum Group are China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) operating with its most recognized subsidiaries Sinopec and PetroChina, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and Sinochem Group.
Sinopec, CNPC, and CNOOC are state owned companies. Currently, Sinopec, CNPC, and CNOON are listed in one of more of three major global stock indices, namely the NYSE, Shanghai Stock Index, and Hong Kong stock exchange.
Yanchang Petroleum Group is currently controlled by the provincial government and only has provincial support. This limiting factor is the reason why Yanchang Petroleum Group does not have the financial resources to expand its production as aggressively as the other state owned companies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, oil companies around the world has suffered catastrophic losses, and Yanchang Petroleum Group is not immune to the downturn of the global oil market. The health of Yanchang Petroleum Group is currently unknown due to limited information and strict news censorship of the state government regarding economic and industrial health.
Major Projects.
Domestic Projects.
Yanchang has predominantly focused its oil exploration and exploitation efforts in Shaanxi province in China. However, with its stagnation until the early 2000s Yanchang strategized a roadmap to grow its business nationally and internationally. The most recent large-scale project being undertaken by Yanchang is “Enhanced Oil Recovery Using CO2 in North West China.”
This project will focus on the exploration efforts of Yanchang in the Ordos Basin, the second largest sedimentary basin, that covers an area of 370,000 square kilometers encompassing parts of three provinces (Shaanxi, Gansu, and Shanxi) in China. This project is undertaken as an effort by Yanchang to increase oil exploitation by lowering costs and using “Innovation and Green” methods to tackle climate change.
International Projects.
Since Yanchang Petroleum Group's operations overhaul effort in the 1990s, it has been actively acquiring foreign petroleum companies to develop its international presence. In the 2010s Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group a few large acquisitions, namely Novus Energy of Canada, and Sino Union Energy Investment Corporation of Hong Kong.
In 2010, Yanchang Petroleum Group successfully acquired 15% of Sino Union Energy Investment Corporation (Sunpec). The price of the 15% acquisition has not been announced and is therefore unknown. This acquisition will allow Yanchang to exploit hydrocarbon resources in Madagascar, which is located in two oil fields that is currently owned and operated by Sunpec. According to an international evaluation agency and Yanchang, the combination of both oil fields will yield in excess of 5.6 billion barrels of oil and 66.24 million cubic meters of natural gas. As of 2007, Sunpec owns 30 years of oil production and 35 years of natural gas production in Madagascar, with the contract starting in 2007.
In 2014, Yanchang Petroleum Group successfully acquired another major oil producer in Canada, Novus Energy. This acquisition totalled US$320 million inclusive of net debt and all transaction costs, priced at 1.18 CAD per share, a 40-cent premium over the previous close price. Novus Energy is based in Calgary Canada, and is considered a ‘junior’ oil and gas production company. The structure of this acquisition is the parent company, Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group acquired Novus Energy via Canada listed subsidiary called Yanchang Canada, owned by a Hong Kong listed subsidiary, Yanchang Petroleum International, which is owned by Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group. Novus Energy Group operated in Saskatchewan, Canada, and has 166 thousand acres of undeveloped land in which 4000 barrels of oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas are produced daily.
Disasters.
In July 2010, Yanchang Petroleum Group experienced a gas leak at one of its gas fields in Shaanxi Province. 1000 villagers and workers from 5 separate villages and Qilicun town were evacuated to avoid any casualties. The gas leak was caused by both nitrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide. According to the county government official, “villagers said they could feel the heat 200 meters away from the site.”
Another major incident occurred in October 2019. A major explosion occurred at one of Yanchang Petroleum Group's drilling plants. There were 5 casualties, 5 injured and 3 others missing. The reason for this incident according to investigators was caused by the testing of a new method of drilling using thermal technology that would increase oil or natural gas output. The incident took place 40 km east of Yan’an city in Shaanxi Province, and is considered one of the oldest plants in China. After the report of the incident, the provincial government could not be contacted for additional comment and it is currently unclear if the plant is still operational.


Asthenosoma ijimai

Asthenosoma ijimai is a species of sea urchin of the family Echinothuriidae. Their armour is covered with spines. It is placed in the genus Asthenosoma and lives in the sea. Asthenosoma ijimai was first scientifically described in 1897 by Yoshiwara.


Savannah National Wildlife Refuge

The Savannah National Wildlife Refuge is a 31,551 acre (128 km²) National Wildlife Refuge located in Chatham and Effingham counties in Georgia and Jasper County in South Carolina. Of the total area, is in Georgia and is in South Carolina. The refuge was established to provide sanctuary for migratory waterfowl and other birds and as a nature and forest preserve for aesthetic and conservation purposes.
The refuge is one of seven refuges administered by the Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex in Hardeeville, South Carolina. The complex has a combined staff of 25 with a fiscal year 2018 budget of roughly $3,000,000.
History.
The first European visitors to the Savannah, Georgia area arrived in 1526. James Oglethorpe established the city of Savannah in 1733. By the mid-eighteenth century, rice planters were farming much of the land that is now part of the refuge. The old rice levees, which were built by hand, form the basis for current impoundment dikes. Remnants of the original rice field trunk water control structures and narrow dikes are still visible in some places. Within the impoundment system there are 36 historic and prehistoric archeological sites which have been located and inventoried.
On April 6, 1927, Executive Order No. 4626 established the Savannah River Bird Refuge and set aside as a preserve and breeding ground for native birds. On November 12, 1931, Executive Order No. 5748 added to the refuge and renamed the area the Savannah River Wildlife Refuge. An additional were assigned to the refuge on June 17, 1936, by Executive Order No. 7391. On July 25, 1940, Presidential renamed the refuge the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge.
These three Executive Orders established the core of the present refuge; subsequent acquisition using Federal Duck Stamp funds and other special funding added . An additional were added when the fee title to Hog Marsh Island and adjacent lands to the north were acquired through an exchange of spoilage rights with Chatham County, Georgia. In 1964, Savannah Electric and Power Company deeded to the refuge in exchange for a power line right-of-way. In 1978, the Argent Swamp tract was purchased from Union Camp Corporation using Land and Water Conservation Funds. Bear Island (687 acres) was purchased in fee title, from a private individual, on October 19, 1993. In order to straighten the east boundary, two tracts totaling were purchased from Union Camp Corporation on August 27, 1996. The Barrows tract (535 acres), which lies adjacent to the southeast boundary, was purchased in fee title during 1998. Another tract of land was added onto the mid-western portion of the refuge; the Solomon tract was purchased in 1999 and is . The total current refuge area is .
Topography.
The refuge is located in the heart of the Lowcountry, a band of low land, bordered on the west by sandhill ridges and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, extending from Georgetown, South Carolina to St. Mary's, Georgia.
There are of river and over of streams and creeks within the refuge boundaries. Refuge habitats include bottomland hardwoods, palustrine, estuarine and tidal freshwater wetlands. Managed freshwater impoundments make up about 3,000 acres (12 km²).
Wildlife and protected species.
Known for its rich flora during the humid summer months, the region also supports a diverse wildlife population. The variety of birdlife within the Lowcountry is enhanced by its location on the Atlantic Flyway. During the winter months, thousands of mallards, pintails, teal and as many as ten other species of ducks migrate into the area, joining resident wood ducks on the refuge. In the spring and fall, transient songbirds stop briefly on their journey to and from northern nesting grounds.
The refuge is home to a large variety of wildlife including: ducks, geese, wading birds, and shorebirds. Several threatened and endangered species are protected on the refuge, including the American alligator, flatwoods salamander, bald eagle, wood stork, shortnose sturgeon, and Florida manatee. The refuge also provides nesting areas for wood ducks, great horned owls, osprey and swallow-tailed kites.
Facilities.
A visitor center on the South Carolina side of the refuge opened in March, 2010, approximately eight miles south of Hardeeville and seven miles from downtown Savannah, GA on US Hwy 17. The Visitor Center features exhibits describing the history and denizens of the refuge, an introductory video, and "The Gator Hole", a nature and book store. The Visitor Center is open from 9AM until 4PM Monday thru Saturday, closed on Sunday and all Federal holidays. There are opportunities for hiking, cycling, photography and wildlife observation. Pets are not allowed in the refuge.
All dikes are open to foot travel during daylight hours, unless otherwise posted, and provide excellent wildlife observation points. The Cistern Trail, Tupelo Trail and other walking routes are also available to the visiting public.
The Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive is open from dawn until dusk every day. This one-way loop meanders along 4.5 miles (6 km) of earthen dikes through managed freshwater pools and hardwood hammocks. The dikes and pools are remnants of pre-Civil War rice plantations.
Fishing is permitted in the freshwater pools from March 1 to November 30 and is governed by South Carolina and refuge regulations. The refuge administers a variety of hunts during the fall and winter. Hunt regulations and schedules are available at the Visitor Center and on the web at http://www.fws.gov/refuge/savannah.
Volunteer Opportunities.
Volunteers play an important role in supporting and enhancing refuge operations. Volunteers staff the information desk and "The Gator Hole" at the Visitor Center, help with invasive species eradication, do trash pickup and other routine maintenance, participate in ongoing wildlife management activities, and advocate for the refuges before governmental agencies. For more information contact Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges at the link below.


Crepis phoenix

Crepis phoenix, is a Chinese species of plants in the dandelion tribe within the sunflower family. It has been found only in the Province of Yunnan in southern China.
"Crepis phoenix" is a perennial herb up to 70 cm tall, with a large taproot. It produces a flat-topped array of numerous small flower heads. Each head has as many as 25 yellow ray florets but no disc florets. The species grows on mountain slopes.


Lilium kesselringianum

Lilium kesselringianum is a large herbaceous member of the lily family. It is native to North and South Caucasus as well as northern Turkey. It grows from sea level along the Black Sea up into the mountains to subalpine level on forest edges, in brushlands, and in grassy meadows.
The plant grows to a height of 40–60 inches (1–1.5m), but has been recorded growing up to 80inches (2m).
It has an oval bulb of 3–4 inches (10–20 cm) diameter and covered in scales.
The leaves are lanceolate and 4–8 inches (10–20 cm) long and grow up the length of the stem.
5–10 nodding flowers are displayed in June on a raceme at the tip of the stem. (In Abkhazia the plants flower up to 3 weeks later) Bright to straw yellow, tubular to bell–shaped they are spotted inside, 2.5–3 inches (6–8 cm) in diameter and 4–6 inches (10–15 cm) long. The petals are turned back at the tips. The pollen is bright yellow to beige.


Botryorhiza hippocrateae


Carex obnupta

Carex obnupta is a species of sedge known by the common name slough sedge. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California where it grows abundantly in wet, often saline habitat such as wetlands. The plant produces upright, angled stems approaching 1.2 meters in maximum height, growing in beds or colonies from rhizome networks. The inflorescence is a cluster of flower spikes accompanied by a long leaflike bract. The pistillate spikes and sometimes the staminate spikes dangle on peduncles. The fruit is coated by a hard, tough, shiny perigynium which is generally dark in color.


Carex atrosquama

Carex atrosquama, the lesser blackscale sedge, is a species of sedge that was first formally named by Kenneth Mackenzie in 1912. It is native to the northwestern United States and western Canada, from Alaska south to Utah and Colorado. It grows in alpine and subalpine meadows, as well as along rivers and streams in gravelly areas.


Mammillaria microhelia

Mammillaria microhelia is a species of plant in the family Cactaceae. It is endemic to Mexico. Its natural habitat is hot deserts.


Melaleuca shiressii

Melaleuca shiressii is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area in New South Wales in Australia. (Some Australian state herbaria continue to use the name "Callistemon shiressii".) It is rare shrub or small tree with pale, papery bark, sharp-pointed leaves and spikes of white to pale cream bottlebrush flowers in spring and summer.
Description.
"Melaleuca shiressii" is a shrub or small tree growing to high with white or grey papery bark. Its leaves are arranged alternately and are long, wide, more or less flat, narrow elliptic or narrow egg-shaped and end in a sharp point. There is a mid-vein, marginal veins and 12–23 distinct lateral veins and there are many distinct oil glands. The edges of the leaves are often curled under and the lower surface is paler than the upper one.
The flowers are cream or greenish-cream and are arranged in spikes at the end of, or around the branches which continue to grow after flowering. The spikes are in diameter and long with 5 to 25 individual flowers. The petals are long and fall off as the flower ages and there are 48-84 stamens in each flower. Flowering occurs from September to January and is followed by fruit which are woody capsules, long and in diameter.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Melaleuca shiressii" was first named in 2006 by Lyndley Craven in Novon when "Callistemon shiressii" was transferred to the present genus. "Callistemon shiressii" was first formally described in 1941 by William Blakely. The specific epithet ("shiressii") honours David William Campbell Shiress who, with Blakely, collected the type specimen "on shale ridges about 1 mile north-west of Narara railway station".
"Callistemon shiressii" is regarded as a synonym of "Melaleuca shiressii" by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Distribution and habitat.
"Melaleuca shiressii" occurs in and between the Singleton and Richmond districts in New South Wales. It grows in moist forests and on ridges .


Fraxinus lanuginosa

Fraxinus lanuginosa (Japanese ash; Japanese: アオダモ Aodamo) is a species of ash native to Japan and to the Primorye region of eastern Russia.
"Fraxinus lanuginosa"is a medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 10–15 m tall with a trunk up to 50 cm diameter. The bark is smooth, dark grey. The buds are pale pinkish-brown to grey-brown, with a dense covering of short grey hairs. The leaves are in opposite pairs, pinnate, 10–15 cm long, with 3-7 leaflets; the leaflets are broad ovoid, 4–7 cm long and 2–4 cm broad, downy at the base on the underside, with a finely serrated margin, and short indistinct petiolules. The flowers are produced in panicles after the new leaves appear in late spring, each flower with four slender creamy white petals 5–7 mm long; they are pollinated by insects. The fruit is a slender samara 2–4 cm long and 3–5 mm broad, reddish, ripening brown.
In the population of "F. lanuginosa" native to central Hokkaidō, northern Japan, "hermaphrodites and males commonly coexist in populations of the species. Hermaphrodites and males have identical flowering phenologies and pollen morphologies".
It is closely related to "Fraxinus ornus" from Europe and southwest Asia, sharing similar flower characters.
Cultivation and uses.
The wood is strong and hard, with a tenacity that allows it to be bent into curves, such as for making tennis rackets and skis. Its wood is also used in the making of baseball bats and electric guitars.


Rocky Islets National Park

Rocky Islets are part of the Three Islands National Park in Far North Queensland, Australia, in the Coral Sea, 1605 km northwest of Brisbane.
The islands are important and protected seabird nesting sites. Access to the Rocky Islets is prohibited.


Thelymitra pulchella

Thelymitra pulchella, commonly called the striped sun orchid, is a species of orchid in the family Orchidaceae that is endemic to New Zealand. It has a single erect, fleshy, channelled leaf and up to fourteen blue flowers with darker stripes on the petal and sometimes also on the sepals. The column and its lobes are variable in shape and colour.
Description.
"Thelymitra pulchella" is a tuberous, perennial herb with a single erect, fleshy, channelled leaf long and wide. Up to fourteen blue, sometimes pink or white flowers wide are borne on a flowering stem sometimes up to tall. The petals, and sometimes also the sepals have dark blue stripes. The column is dark blue, pink, mauve or white and long. The arms on the sides of the column are reddish brown and sometimes have red or yellow teeth. The lobe on top of the anther is variable in colour and shape but often has irregular teeth. Flowering occurs from October to January.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Thelymitra pulchella" was first formally described in 1853 by Joseph Dalton Hooker and the description was published in "Flora Novae-Zelandiae". The specific epithet ("pulchella") is the diminutive form of the Latin word "pulcher" meaning "beautiful". Hooker described this species as "very handsome".
Distribution and habitat.
The striped sun orchid grows in open shrubland and often in wetland. It is found on the North, South, Stewart and Chatham Islands.


Quercus hondae

Quercus hondae is a species of tree in the beech family. It has been found on Kyushu Island in southern Japan.
"Quercus hondae" is an evergreen tree with dark gray bark. Twigs are dark brown and hairless. Leaves can be as much as 14 cm long, thick and leathery.


Lactarius adustus

Lactarius adustus is a member of the large milk-cap genus "Lactarius" in the order Russulales. The species was first described in 1938 by Johannes Rick.


Dendrobium findlayanum

Dendrobium findlayanum, Findlay's dendrobium, is a species of orchid. It is native to Indochina (Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar) and to the Yunnan region of China.
The epithet is sometimes spelled "findleyanum". The species was named for James Findlay.


Big Hole Battlefield National Monument


Sabicea brasiliensis

Sabicea brasiliensis is a species of woodvine in the family Rubiaceae, and is native to Brazil, and also to Bolivia. There are no synonyms. Chemical compounds isolated from its roots have been shown to have significant anti-inflammatory effects.
Description.
Wernham describes it as an erect shrub. However, Standley describes it as a "large, woody vine". According to Wernham, the upper surface of its leaves is densely hairy, and the leaves narrow gradually to their base, making them almost without a stalk. Standley, however, describes the leaves as being stalked, with densely white woolly matting on the undersurface, and covered in weak hairs on the upper surface. The flowers, too, are covered in a dense white woolly matting, and the inflorescence is a dense sessile head. The calyx lobes are triangular. The stamens are inserted at the mouth of the corolla tube, and both the ovary and stigma are 5-merous.
Its type specimen, k000172688 was collected in 1827 by William John Burchell outside the town of Gozaz.


Nymphon brevirostre

Nymphon brevirostre is a species of sea spider first described by George Hodge in 1863. The species highly resembles other members of the genus "Nymphon" (e.g. "N. rubrum"), and species identification from morphological traits alone is therefore a complex task.
Morphology.
Early life stage morphology
White, translucent or reddish, occasionally with violet bands. Slender body (2.5-3.0 mm) and legs that are three and a half times as long. The proboscis is relatively short. The abdomen is thick, and the thoracic segments are broader than long. The palps have five joints. The propodus is longer than the tarsus, which is covered with numerous short spines and three longer ones near the heel.
Later life stage morphology
Morphological characteristics very similar to earlier life stages. Reddish or white. Smooth and slender body (4-5mm) and legs four times this. The cephalon is broad, and the abdomen is relatively short. Male specimens carry the eggs on specially designed appendages (2).
Habitat.
The species inhabits the littoral and sublittoral zone to a depth of 60m and occurs amongst hydroids. Its distribution ranges from the Arctic to at least south of Great Britain, and is widely distributed in both The North Sea and The Baltic Sea (2, 3). In The Baltic Sea, this species has been found around Elsinor in Denmark in depths of ~37m amongst dense populations of the hydroids "Abietinaria abietina", "Alcyonium digitatum" and various other hydroids.
Diet.
Feeds on e.g. coelenterate species (2,3). The species is able to detect the chemical cues of different hydroids such as "Dynamena pumila", "Laomeda loveni", "Tubularia larynx" and "Alcyonium digitatum" (5).


Acokanthera oblongifolia

Acokanthera oblongifolia (commonly known as African wintersweet, dune poison bush, Hottentot's poison, poison arrow plant or wintersweet) is a plant in the family Apocynaceae. It grows as an evergreen shrub or small tree up to tall. Its fragrant flowers feature a white tinged pink corolla. The berries are purple when ripe. Its habitat is dry forest and coastal thickets. "Acokanthera oblongifolia" is used in local African medicinal treatments for snakebites, itches and internal worms. The plant has been used as arrow poison. The species is native to Mozambique and South Africa.
Taxonomy.
It was first described in 1844 by Christian Ferdinand Friedrich Hochstetter as "Carissa oblongifolia," reassigned in 1876 to the genus, "Acokanthera", by George Bentham and Joseph Hooker, but not validly, and finally, in 1895, validly published by Benjamin Daydon Jackson as "Acokanthera oblongifolia".


Erigeron denalii

Erigeron denalii is a North American species of flowering plants in the daisy family known by the common name Denali fleabane. It is found in Alaska, Yukon, British Columbia, and Northwest Territories.
"Erigeron denalii " is a very short perennial herb rarely more than 5 cm (2 inches) tall. Each stem generally has only one flower head, with 30–55 white or lavender ray florets surrounding numerous yellow disc florets.
The species is named for Denali, the tallest mountain in North America.


Quercus gilva

Quercus gilva, the red-bark oak, is a species of tree in the beech family. It has been found in Japan, Korea, and southeastern China (Fujian, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hunan, Taiwan, Zhejiang).
"Quercus gilva" is a tree which grows to tall with orangish-brown twigs. Leaves can be as much as .


Campylocentrum grisebachii

Campylocentrum grisebachii is a species of orchid. It is native to Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.


Acrochaene punctata


Eucalyptus platycorys

Eucalyptus platycorys, commonly known as Boorabbin mallee, is a species of mallee, rarely a small tree, that is endemic to Western Australia. It has rough, dark grey, fibrous and flaky bark on the trunk, smooth greyish bark above, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds usually in group of three, creamy white flowers and cup-shaped to cylindrical fruit.
Description.
"Eucalyptus platycorys" is a mallee, rarely a small tree, that typically grows to a height of and forms a lignotuber. It has rough, dark grey, fibrous and flaky bark on the lower part of the trunk, smooth greyish bark above that is shed in ribbons. Young plants and coppice regrowth have dull bluish green leaves that are lance-shaped, long and wide. Adult leaves are the same glossy green on both sides, lance-shaped, long and wide, tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils, usually in groups of three, on an unbranched peduncle long, the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are cylindrical, bright red before flowering, long and wide with a conical or beaked operculum. Flowering mainly occurs from July to October and the flowers are creamy white. The fruit is a woody, cup-shaped to cylindrical capsule with the valves at rim level or below it.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Eucalyptus platycorys" was first formally described in 1929 by Joseph Maiden and William Blakely in Maiden's book, "A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus" from material collected from Boorabbin by Alexander Morrison. The specific epithet ("platycorys") is from ancient Greek, meaning "flat", "wide" or "broad" and "helmet", referring to the operculum that is wider than the hypanthium.
Distribution and habitat.
Boorabbin mallee is found around sand lakes, on sandplains and sand dunes from Boorabbin to Ravensthorpe and east to the Fraser Range and the western part of the Great Victoria Desert.
Conservation status.
This eucalypt is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Pultenaea pauciflora

Pultenaea pauciflora (Narrogin pea) is a pea which is endemic to Western Australia. It is a member of the Fabaceae family. There are no synonyms.
The species was first formally described by botanist Munro Briggs Scott in 1914. The specific epithet, "pauciflora", is derived from the Latin words, "paucus" ("pauci-"), meaning "few", and "flos" ("floris") meaning "flower" to give a compound Botanical Latin adjective which describes this "Pultenaea" as "few-flowered" or as "having few flowers".


Eurymerodesmus melacis

Eurymerodesmus melacis is a species of flat-backed millipede in the family Eurymerodesmidae. It is found in North America.


Cirsium rhothophilum

Cirsium rhothophilum is a rare North American species of thistle known by the common name surf thistle. It is endemic to California, where it is known only from the coastline around the border between San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties. It grows in sand dunes and coastal scrub near the beach.
"Cirsium rhothophilum" grows up to tall with fleshy, woolly herbage usually forming a mound. The thick leaves are wavy and covered in feltlike hairs. They may have smooth, lobed, or toothed edges and small spines. The largest leaves at the base of the plant may reach in length. The inflorescence bears several clustered flower heads, each head up to 4 centimeters long and 6 cm wide. The heads are lined with woolly phyllaries and filled with off-white to pale yellowish disc florets but no ray florets. The fruit is an achene a few millimeters long with a pappus up to 2 centimeters in length.


Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

The Kofa National Wildlife Refuge is located in Arizona in the southwestern United States, northeast of Yuma and southeast of Quartzsite. The refuge, established in 1939 to protect desert bighorn sheep, encompasses over of the Yuma Desert region of the Sonoran Desert. Broad, gently sloping foothills as well as the sharp, needlepoint peaks of the Kofa Mountains are found in the rugged refuge. The small, widely scattered waterholes attract a surprising number of water birds for a desert area. A wide variety of plant life is also found throughout the refuge.
History.
The name Kofa comes from a former area gold mine: the King of Arizona mine (active from 1897 to 1910), with Kofa a contraction of the name.
In 1936, the Arizona Boy Scouts mounted a statewide campaign to save the bighorn sheep, leading to the creation of Kofa. The Scouts first became interested in the sheep through the efforts of Major Frederick Russell Burnham, the noted frontiersman turned conservationist who co-founded Scouting Burnham observed that fewer than 150 of these sheep lived in the Arizona mountains. He called George F. Miller, then scout executive of the Boy Scout council headquartered in Phoenix, with a plan to save the sheep. Burnham put it this way:
I want you to save this majestic animal, not only because it is in danger of extinction, but of more importance, some day it might provide domestic sheep with a strain to save them from disaster at the hands of a yet unknown virus.
Several other prominent Arizonans joined the movement and a "save the bighorns" poster contest was started in schools throughout the state. Burnham provided prizes and appeared in store windows from one end of Arizona to the other. The contest-winning bighorn emblem was made into neckerchief slides for the 10,000 Boy Scouts, and talks and dramatizations were given at school assemblies and on radio. The National Wildlife Federation, the Izaak Walton League, and the Audubon Society joined the effort.
On January 18, 1939, over were set aside at Kofa and at Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge combined, and a civilian conservation corps side camp was set up to develop high mountain waterholes for the sheep. On April 2, 1939, Kofa National Wildlife Refuge was officially opened; Burnham gave the dedication speech. The desert bighorn sheep is now the official mascot for the Arizona Boy Scouts, and the number of sheep in these parks have increased substantially. The Kofa Game Range, as it was called, was originally administered jointly by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management. On February 5, 1975, Kofa was transferred exclusively to the Bureau of Land Management. But in 1976 complete authority was returned to the Department of Fish and Wildlife Services and the Kofa Game Range was renamed the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge.
Wildlife.
The population of desert bighorn sheep was recently estimated to be 428. They live mainly in the two ranges that dominate the refuge landscape — the Kofa Mountains and Castle Dome Mountains of northern Yuma County and southern La Paz County. These mountains are not especially high, but they are extremely rugged and rise sharply from the surrounding desert plains, providing excellent bighorn sheep habitat. In recent years, this herd has provided animals for transplanting throughout Arizona and neighboring states.
Other notable wildlife species found in the area include the badger, desert tortoise and kit fox. Bird species that occur at Kofa include the white-winged dove, American kestrel, northern flicker, Say's phoebe, cactus wren, phainopepla, and orange-crowned warbler. In recent years, the cougar has established a full-time presence in the park.
Plants.
The Kofa Mountain barberry, "Berberis harrisoniana", a rare plant endemic to southwestern Arizona, occurs on the refuge. It is also home to the desert fan palm ("Washingtonia filifera"), the only native palm in Arizona.
Hiking.
Palm Canyon.
Palm Canyon is a unique natural feature predominantly known for the native palm trees that grow in the canyon. These are rare in Arizona and are likely relicts of a geological period when the area was wetter and cooler.
Visiting.
The turnoff for Palm Canyon is located at Milepost 85 on US Highway 95. A parking area is about eight miles east down a gravel road. Half a mile down the trail is a sign indicating the California fan palms. The hike to the canyon is short but strenuous.
The refuge provides opportunities for viewing desert plants and wildlife, rock climbing, exploring old mines, and remote wilderness camping. Temperatures often exceed 120 °F (49 °C) in the summer, and rain falls only a few times per year.
Regulated hunting on the refuge is permitted for quail, bighorn sheep, deer, cottontail rabbit, coyote, and fox.
Kofa was included in the desert military training exercises conducted by General George S. Patton during World War II. Unexploded ordnance may be encountered during cross-country hiking.


Homalium brevidens

A shrub or tree species in the Salicaceae family, Homalium brevidens is found in Laos and Cambodia.
It grows 2-6m tall, with simple broad leaves, and is found in flooded forests in Cambodia.
These forests, also known as "swamp forests", is a community where the trees are usually 7-15(-20)m tall, that occurs along the shores of the lake Tonle Sap and nearby rivers, and is flooded to a maximum of 4-6m of water for up to 8 months per year. The 2 main species of tree in these forests are "Barringtonia acutangula" and "Diospyros cambodiana", with "H. brevidens" one of the other common tree species.
On islands of the Mekong, in Steung Treng and Kratie provinces, north-central Cambodia, the tree occurs with medium abundance in the Riverine Strand vegetation zone (last to be flooded, first to be exposed). Here it contributes to a closed canopy, growing above metamorphic sandstone bedrock at an elevation of 25-30m above sea level. On these islands it flowers from June to July, and fruits from September to October.
The plant is known as "rotèang" or "stiëw" in Khmer. Wood from the shrub is used to make charcoal, its bark is used to caulk boats.


Nemesia denticulata

Nemesia denticulata, the toothed aloha, is a species of flowering plant in the genus "Nemesia" of the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, native to South Africa. A matforming perennial useful for borders, it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
The Latin specific epithet "denticulata" means "slightly toothed", referring to the notched petal edges.