Freycinet National Park

Freycinet National Park is a national park on the east coast of Tasmania, Australia, 125 km northeast of Hobart. It occupies a large part of the Freycinet Peninsula, named after French navigator Louis de Freycinet, and Schouten Island. Founded in 1916, it is Tasmania's oldest park, along with Mount Field National Park. Bordering the national park is the small settlement of Coles Bay, and the largest nearby town is Swansea. Freycinet contains part of the rugged Tasmanian coastline and includes the secluded Wineglass Bay. Features of the park include its red and pink granite formations and a series of jagged granite peaks in a line, called "The Hazards".
Because of the range of rare and endemic flora and fauna species present, as well as the diversity of landscapes and communities at Freycinet National Park, its role in conservation is particularly significant. The area within the park is also of cultural importance, with many Aboriginal and European sites protected, though deeper investigation into human history within the park still needs to be undertaken. Large sections of the park remain undisturbed by humans, including parts of the catchment and the landscape.
Tourism at Freycinet forms a significant component of the economy for the eastern part of Tasmania, with visitors drawn to the region by the natural environment, weather and recreational activities available in the area. Every year thousands of people are attracted to the coastal environments and the area's rural and isolated setting.
Geology.
Devonian granite is the dominant rock type at Freycinet. Orthoclase, a pink feldspar, gives the mountains and coastline their characteristic pink tint. Black micas and white quartz are also found. The western side of Schouten Island is composed of Jurassic dolerite.
Ecology.
Forty-nine endemic species to Tasmania are found at Freycinet.
Mammals found include the brushtail possum, ringtail possum, sugar glider, eastern pygmy possum, little pygmy possum, echidna, wombats, New Holland mouse, swamp rat, water rat, Tasmanian bettong and the long-nosed potoroo.
The Tasmanian devil was once common at the park, but has seen a significant drop in density due to the devil facial tumour disease. Cetaceans such as southern right whale, humpback whale, and bottlenose dolphins are known to use the bay to feed, calve or to take rests.
Flora.
The vegetation in Freycinet National Park is indicative of temperature ranges and precipitation, just as it is through the rest of Tasmania. In this part of the state it is dominated by dry sclerophyll forests and woodlands, with black peppermint ("Eucalyptus amygdalina") growing over an understorey of varying heaths such as "Banksia" spp., "Leptospermum" spp., "Thryptomene" spp., "Melaleuca" spp. and "Calytrix" spp. in the area of Hazards Lagoon. West of the lagoon the coastal scrub consists of "Acacia longifolia" with a thick forest of "Allocasuarina verticillata", and to the east "Eucalyptus ovata" and "Eucalyptus obliqua" dominate the dry woodlands.
More than 500 plants have been recorded within the park, with over 80 species of orchids being sighted. Several species have a restricted distribution and numerous species, such as "Melaleuca pustulata", "Cyphanthera tasmanica", "Epacris barbata" and "Westringia brevifolia" var. "raleighi" are listed under the Tasmanian "Threatened Species Protection Act 1995" ("TSP Act").
Fauna.
Mammals.
The red-necked wallaby, also called Bennett's wallaby ("Macropus rufogriseus"), is one of the most commonly seen animals within the park and can be spotted grazing on low lying vegetation such as grass, they are also known to gather around people. Another common species seen is the eastern quoll ("Dasyurus viverrinus"), a marsupial carnivore which was previously sighted on the mainland of Australia but is now only found in Tasmania. Also extinct on the mainland, the Tasmanian pademelon ("Thylogale billardierii") is still common in Freycinet National Park but they are rarely seen during the day, coming out at night to feed.
Echidnas ("Tachyglossus aculeatus") can be seen during the day foraging through litter on forest floors, or among coastal vegetation, searching for ants or other food sources. The eastern pygmy possum ("Cercartetus nanus") and the little pygmy possum ("Cercartetus lepidus") are listed as vulnerable in several mainland Australian states but are not listed in Tasmania, and although they can be found at Freycinet, sightings of them are uncommon. The New Holland mouse ("Pseudomys novaehollandiae") is listed as endangered under the Tasmanian "TSP Act" and sightings are rare, but it is known to be present within Freycinet National Park.
Reptiles and amphibians.
There are numerous reptiles that are found at Freycinet including lizards, skinks and snakes. The ocellated skink ("Niveoscincus ocellatus"), Tasmanian tree skink ("Niveoscincus pretiosus") and she-oak skink ("Cyclodomorphus casuarinae") are all endemic to Tasmania and found in the park. Other species found include the blotched blue-tongued lizard ("Tiliqua nigrolutea"), mountain dragon ("Rankinia diemensis") and lowland copperhead snake ("Austrelaps superbus"). The Tasmanian froglet ("Ranidella tasmaniensis") is also endemic to Tasmania and can be seen in several creeks in Freycinet, along with the frequently spotted common eastern froglet ("Crinia signifera") found in low-lying water bodies such as swamps. Other amphibians found include the southern toadlet ("Pseudophryne semimarmorata"), spotted grass frog ("Limnodynastes tasmaniensis"), southern brown tree frog ("Litoria ewingii") and growling grass frog ("Litoria raniformis").
Birds.
Owing to the varying ecosystems in Freycinet there are many species of birds that either inhabit or fly through the park. They range from large predator species such as the brown falcon ("Falco berigora") and white-bellied sea eagle ("Haliaeetus leucogaster") to smaller species including the superb fairy-wren ("Malurus cyaneus") and flame robin ("Petroica phoenicea"). There are also several species which are listed on the "TSP Act", such as the black-browed albatross ("Thalassarche melanophris"), shy albatross ("Thalassarche cauta"), Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle ("Aquila audax fleayi"), white-fronted tern ("Sterna striata"), Australian fairy tern ("Sternula nereis nereis") and the swift parrot ("Lathamus discolor"). The endangered swift parrot breeds on the east coast of Tasmania from September through to January, their movements corresponding to the flowering of several "Eucalyptus" spp. before they migrate to the mainland over winter.
Climate.
The park receives on average 600 mm (23.6 in.) of rain per year. It has a climate similar to that of France with on average more than 300 days of sunshine.
Environmental Threats.
There are numerous threats to species within Freycinet National Park, and with recreation and tourism in natural areas becoming increasingly popular further stresses can be placed on flora and fauna already struggling to survive. There can be many impacts caused by the building and maintenance of roads, tracks, lookouts and various types of accommodation. A study conducted by Jones observed that species such as the Tasmanian devil and eastern quoll are more susceptible to being killed by cars after road upgrades to increase the volume of tourist traffic.
There can also be direct and indirect damage to vegetation and habitats from activities such as bushwalking and horse riding, as well as an increased risk of alterations to soil characteristics and the transmission of disease. An example of this is the fungus "Phytophthora cinnamomi", which numerous plant families in Freycinet National Park are susceptible to, and which also places rare and endangered species at greater risk of extinction. Visitors to the park may also inadvertently bring in seeds of weeds on clothing or equipment.
One of the most serious threats faced by any species within Freycinet is the devil facial tumour which has seen the Tasmanian devil’s ("Sarcophilus harrisii") conservation status upgraded in 2008 to endangered under the "TSP Act". Studies have shown there has been a decline in the population of the Tasmanian devil in the area, with this decrease in numbers being associated with the devil facial tumour. This infectious disease, caused by a transmissible cancer has become a serious threat to populations of devils throughout Tasmania and has seen a change to the age structure within the population at Freycinet National Park. A decrease in breeding age adults has placed pressure on the persistence of the species with most females now only having the opportunity to breed once rather than typically producing offspring annually for 3 years after the age of two.
The loss of Tasmanian devils also places other species within Freycinet National Park at risk, as the decline of such a predator could alter interactions between other species. For instance, research has shown that the eastern quoll is in decline at Freycinet as well as other parts of the state. It is possible the changes occurring due to the decline of the Tasmanian devil are affecting the behaviour of other predators and species.
Threats that are faced by the endangered eastern quoll, which are common to many species, and include introduced species, increasing dry conditions and modifications to habitats are also faced by the Tasmanian bettong ("Bettongia gaimardi"). A recent study showed a decline in observations of the Tasmanian bettong with the occurrence of feral cats, though further research is still required to determine if this introduced species is a predator of "B. gaimardi" and if the Tasmanian bettong is susceptible like some Australian mammals to the disease toxoplasmosis carried by cats.
Management.
Management plans.
As directed under the "National Parks and Wildlife Act 1970", The Freycinet National Park, Wye State Reserve Management Plan was developed in 2000. This plan outlines the objectives and visions for the park, with a focus on conservation and protection of species and ecosystems. The plan has since been altered in 2004 in response to changing circumstances, and was again updated in 2015.
Public awareness.
The use of public programs and signs in national parks to make people aware of the dangers of feeding wildlife has been shown to be of benefit in Freycinet National Park. Signs were constructed in an attempt to make people aware that feeding native species could not only make animals more susceptible to predators, but also cause diseases, including bone deformities, and social disturbances. A study conducted by Mallick and Driessen showed that there has been an increase in awareness to not feed wildlife and the majority of people had seen information related to the ‘keep wildlife wild’ program.
How protection has benefited species preservation.
Throughout the 1900s there was a significant loss of over 60% of core wilderness in Tasmania, however during this time there was also a huge increase in the amount of wilderness area which became protected in the reserve system. Locations on the Freycinet Peninsula, along with Mount William and Maria Island were the only areas on the east coast which had not vanished. It has been suggested locations in the reserve system included minimal variation in community types and land which had been deemed of little economic importance, and it wasn’t until the 1970s and onwards when management for conservation became more of a priority. It has perhaps proven beneficial in terms of biodiversity that areas within Freycinet National Park were unsuitable for practices such as farming or other economic gain.
The bioregion and catchment which Freycinet National Park is a part of are seen as having a low variegated landscape, with 80-90% of native vegetation still intact. Delegation of this area as a national park has allowed numerous species to be protected, including some which are vulnerable or endangered, with the primary objective being to protect the habitats of native flora and fauna. Making Freycinet a protected area has not only allowed for relevant management actions to be carried out, but it also means the prohibition of land clearing and the grazing of stock within the park. Although flora and fauna still face risks to their survival, having the benefits of legislation and funding that is provided by having habitats within the park aids in raising not only the chances of survival but awareness of these species. Government agencies are also able to conduct monitoring of species responses to any threats on a regular basis.
An example of such species is the sand grass tree ("Xanthorrhoea arenaria"), which is endemic to Tasmania and can only be found at a few locations in the state. It is also listed as vulnerable at both a national and state level by the "Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999" ("EPBC Act") and the "TSP Act". As Freycinet National Park is managed for conservation, strategies have been implemented which aim to prevent the spread of the disease "Phytophthora cinnamomi" throughout the populations of this species and threaten the number of individuals surviving in the park. Due to the confusion in separating this species from "Xanthorrhoea bracteata" exact population estimates are difficult to achieve, but as they are known to occur at locations within Freycinet National Park this assists in their conservation with regards to some threatening processes including land clearing for development.
Similarly, "Philotheca freyciana", or the Freycinet Waxflower, is listed by the Commonwealth "EPBC Act" and the Tasmanian "TSP Act" as endangered. This species only occurs on the Freycinet Peninsula and can mostly be found dispersed among granite rocks of the Hazards within Freycinet National Park, where approximately 100 individuals have been recorded. Initially only 3 plants were recorded to exist, but after surveys were conducted by staff from numerous government agencies throughout the Freycinet Peninsula over 100 individuals were found in areas around The Hazards, but none elsewhere, highlighting the importance of their conservation within the national park. Due to its occurrence within the park "P. freyciana" is able to be monitored and threats to its survival can be identified until further surveys and studies can be done on the species to gain a greater understanding of it. Given the very specific requirements for the growth of "P. freyciana" it is believed the chances of any further populations growing outside their occurrence in Freycinet National Park is small.
Known to occur with "P. freyciana" is "Epacris barbata" which is also listed as endangered under the "EPBC Act" and the "TSP Act". This species is endemic to Tasmania and occurs mostly within Freycinet National Park, with only one population found outside the park. "E. barbata" is susceptible to "Phytophthora cinnamomi", and not only do sites undergo regular monitoring for infestation by the pathogen but wash stations have also been installed in an attempt to reduce transmission from bushwalkers. Such measures can be implemented by government agencies who have the knowledge and equipment required to assist in protection within a national park, while the necessary level of protection for a species may be unavailable for those that fall outside such protected areas.
These species are also known to have varying requirements with regards to fire and the intensity and frequency for which they can regenerate. Any planned burns within the park, that form part of management plans, can take these species into consideration in order to protect them.
Previously believed to be extinct, the New Holland mouse was discovered in Tasmania in 1970s. Owing to its restricted habitat in the state it is considered rare, but there are several key population sites within Freycinet, including Friendly Beaches. These protected locations provide the species with preferred environmental conditions, such as a sandy substrate for burrows, combined with a mixed understorey of flora as a food source.
The conservation of Freycinet also provides protection of habitats important for the swift parrot. The species is known to move along the east coast of Tasmania with "Eucalyptus ovata" being one of its main food sources. Swift parrots are found breeding up to 10 km from the coastline on ridges and slopes of "Eucalyptus" woodlands and forests, such as those of Freycinet. The protection of the vegetation within Freycinet National Park is a vital component in the survival of the endangered species, providing breeding sites, food resources and assisting in the movement of the species during migration.
Similarly, Freycinet and its surrounds are of significance to the Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle and white-bellied sea eagle, with there being an overlap in management and habitat requirements of the swift parrot. Both eagle species have specific requirements for nesting which notably includes the absence of disturbance and presence of water nearby. The protection provided by Freycinet National Park assists in providing suitable habitat for both species by denying the development of plantations and urbanisation of the environment.


Boletinellus proximus

Boletinellus proximus is a species of bolete fungus in the family Boletinellaceae. It is found in Florida, where it grows on the ground or rotten wood in moist habitats.


Breynia desorii

Breynia desorii is a species of sea urchins of the Family Loveniidae. Their armour is covered with spines. Breynia desorii was first scientifically described in 1851 by Gray.


Tricholoma subresplendens

Tricholoma subresplendens is a mushroom of the agaric genus "Tricholoma". It was first described by American mycologist William Alphonso Murrill in 1914.


Banksia purdieana

Banksia purdieana is a species of bushy shrub that is endemic to Western Australia. It has broadly linear, pinnatipartite leaves with sharply-pointed lobes on the sides, yellow flowers in heads of about eighty and egg-shaped follicles.
Description.
"Banksia purdieana" is a bushy or column-shaped shrub that grows to high and up to wide but does not form a lignotuber. It has curved, broadly linear, pinnatipartite leaves that are long and wide with between four and seven triangular, sharply-pointed teeth on each side. The flowers are yellow and are arranged heads of about eighty with elliptical to linear involucral bracts up to long at the base of the head. The perianth is long and the pistil long and curved. Flowering occurs from July to September and the follicles are egg-shaped with a notch at the base and long.
Taxonomy and naming.
This species was first formally described in 1904 by Ludwig Diels who gave it the name "Dryandra purdieana" and published the description in the journal "Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie". The specific epithet ("purdieana") honours Diels's friend Alexander Purdie.
In 2007 Austin Mast and Kevin Thiele transferred all dryandras to the genus "Banksia" and renamed this species "Banksia purdieana".
Distribution and habitat.
This banksia grows in kwongan between Tathra National Park, Mogumber, Cadoux, Moorine Rock and Bendering in the Avon Wheatbelt, Coolgardie, Geraldton Sandplains, Jarrah Forest and Mallee biogeographic regions.
Conservation status.
"Banksia purdieana" is classed as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Eucalyptus caleyi

Eucalyptus caleyi, commonly known as Caley's ironbark or Ovenden's ironbark is a species of small to medium-sized tree, endemic to eastern Australia. It has brown or black "ironbark" on the trunk and main branches, dull bluish grey lance-shaped to egg-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and barrel-shaped or conical fruit. It grows on the Central and Northern Tablelands of New South Wales and in south-eastern Queensland.
Description.
"Eucalyptus caleyi" is a tree that typically grows to a height of and forms a lignotuber. It has rough, grey, brown or black "ironbark" on its trunk and branches. The leaves on young plants and on coppice regrowth are egg-shaped, triangular or more or less round, bluish grey, long, wide and have a petiole. Adult leaves are the same dull bluish grey on both sides, sometimes with a powdery bloom, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, long, wide on a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged in groups of seven on a peduncle long, the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are oval to diamond-shaped, long, wide with a conical operculum that is long, wide, but usually narrower than the floral cup. Flowering mainly occurs between September and November and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody barrel-shaped or conical capsule long and wide on a pedicel long with the valves below the rim.
Taxonomy.
"Eucalyptus caleyi" was first formally described by Joseph Maiden in 1906 and the description was published in Volume 2 of his book "The Forest Flora of New South Wales".
In 1991, Lawrie Johnson and Ken Hill described two subspecies:
Subspecies "caleyi" has a number of synonyms.
The specific epithet ("caleyi") honours George Caley and the epithet "ovendenii" honours Peter John Ovenden (1929–1997), a forester who first recognised the subspecies later named after him as distinct.
Distribution and habitat.
Caley's ironbark grows on low hills, ridges and broad undulating valleys in dry forest and woodland. It grows from near Denman and the Goulburn River through the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales to the Millmerran area in south-eastern Queensland.
Ovenden's ironbark, (subspecies "ovendenii") is restricted to more elevated sites to the west of Tenterfield.


Taxandria spathulata

Taxandria spathulata is a shrub species that grows along the southern coast of Western Australia. This plant was previously classified as "Agonis spathulata" but is now part of the "Taxandria" genus.
Description.
The shrub has a spindly, erect to spreading and procumbent form, typically growing to a height of . The leaves are typically in length. It blooms between September and October producing small white petal flowers with a diameter of approximately that appear in dense cluster of about 20 flowers. Each flower contains about 10 stamens, one opposite each sepal and petal.
Distribution.
Often found in dense bushland on small hills, low rocky ridges, plains and coastal dunes it is distributed along the south coast in the Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions where it grows in sandy, peaty clay soils over granite, spongelite or laterite.
Classification.
First formally described as "Agonis spathulata" by the botanist Johannes Conrad Schauer in 1844 as part of Johann Georg Christian Lehmann's work "Plantae Preissianae" The plant was subsequently reclassified to "T. spathulata" in a 2007 revision by Wheeler and Marchant into the new genus "Taxandria".


Eucalyptus neglecta

Eucalyptus neglecta, commonly known as Omeo gum, is a species of small tree that is endemic to a small area of Victoria, Australia. Older plants have rough, fibrous bark on the trunk, otherwise smooth grey to brownish bark, a crown of mostly lance-shaped, egg-shaped or oblong leaves arranged in opposite pairs, flower buds in groups of between seven and fifteen, white flowers and cup-shaped or conical fruit.
Description.
"Eucalyptus neglecta" is a tree, sometimes a mallee that typically grows to a height of and forms a lignotuber. It has smooth grey to brownish bark, but older specimens often have fibrous grey to brown bark on the trunk. The crown of the tree is mostly composed of sessile, juvenile leaves that are arranged in opposite pairs, with some intermediate and adult leaves. Juvenile leaves are greyish green, broadly elliptic to almost round, up to long and wide. Adult leaves are lance-shaped, the same shade of green on both sides, long and wide on a petiole up to long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in groups of between seven and fifteen on an unbranched peduncle up to long, the individual buds sessile. Mature buds are oval, long and wide with a conical to rounded operculum. Flowering occurs between November and February and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody, cup-shaped or conical capsule long and wide with the valves near rim level.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Eucalyptus neglecta" was first formally described in 1904 by Joseph Maiden in "The Victorian Naturalist" from specimens collected near Omeo by Alfred William Howitt. The specific epithet ("neglecta") is from the Latin "neglectus" meaning "neglected", apparently because the species was not recognised as distinct at first.
Distribution and habitat.
Omeo gum grows on river flats along creeks in the Victorian high country, including near Omeo and Bright. Although rare, it is easily recognised because of the unusual foliage in its crown.


Dendrobium lobbii

Dendrobium lobbii, commonly known as the straggly rush orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is native to an area extending from Indochina to northern Australia. It has thin, wiry stems with stiff leaves and mostly white or cream-coloured flowers singly or in pairs in leaf axils. Its white labellum does not open widely and sometimes remains closed.
Description.
"Dendrobium lobbii" is a terrestrial, perennial, herb which forms small clumps. It has thin, wiry, erect or straggly stems long with narrow lance-shaped leaves long and about wide with a notched tip. The flowers are white, cream-coloured or greenish, long, wide and are borne singly or in pairs in leaf axils. The sepals are long, about wide and the petals are about the same length but narrower. The labellum is white, about long, wide and has three lobes. The side lobes are small and narrow while the middle lobe is egg-shaped, notched and warty. Flowering occurs from December to May but the labellum does not open widely, sometimes remaining closed so that the flower self-pollinates.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Dendrobium lobbii" was first formally described in 1853 by Johannes Elias Teijsmann and Simon Binnendijk from a specimen sent from Singapore and the description was published in "Natuurkundig Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch Indië". The specific epithet ("lobbii") honours Thomas Lobb who collected the type specimen.
Distribution and habitat.
The straggly rush orchid grows with rushes and sedges in swampy places and near streams. It is found in Thailand, Vietnam, Borneo, the Malay Peninsula, the Philippines, Sulawesi, Sumatra, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and northern Australia where it occurs in Arnhem Land and the Cape York Peninsula as far south as Cardwell.


Fritillaria viridea

Fritillaria viridea is a rare species of flowering plant in the lily family Liliaceae, known by the common name San Benito fritillary. It is endemic to the Central Coast Ranges of California, USA, where it belongs to the chaparral and serpentine soils flora. There are confirmed records of this species from San Benito and Monterey Counties plus unconfirmed reports from Fresno and San Luis Obispo Counties.
Description.
This bulbous herbaceous perennial produces an erect stem tall, surrounded by several lance-shaped leaves up to long. The smooth stem is topped with a raceme inflorescence of one or nodding bell-shaped flowers. Each flower has six tepals long, which are pale to very dark green.


Trichophyton terrestre

Trichophyton terrestre is a fungus of the genus Trichophyton.


Eunoe hozawai

Eunoe hozawai is a scale worm described from Japan, North Pacific Ocean.
description.
Number of segments 40; elytra 15 pairs. Anterior margin of prostomium rounded. Lateral antennae inserted ventrally (beneath prostomium and median antenna). Notochaetae about as thick as neurochaetae. Bidentate neurochaetae absent.


Ammotrophus arachnoides

Ammotrophus arachnoides is a species of sand dollar of the family Arachnoididea. Their external skeleton, known as a test, is covered with spines. It belongs to the genus "Ammotrophus" and lives in the sea off southern Australia. Ammotrophus arachnoides was first scientifically described in 1938 by Hubert Clark.


Bone Hill National Wildlife Refuge

Bone Hill National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota. It is managed under Kulm Wetland Management District.
Bone Hill National Wildlife Refuge was established by Executive Order 8112, signed on May 10, 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Refuge boundaries encompass of private land. A system of management easements allows the District staff to maintain a dam on the property and restrict hunting, trapping and other harassment of wildlife.
Bone Hill Refuge is located in LaMoure County, North Dakota. From Jud, North Dakota the northwest corner of the Refuge is north and one mile (1.6 km) east on county and township roads.
The Refuge is a migration stopover for waterfowl. Snow geese frequently stop in the neighborhood surrounding the Refuge during spring and fall migrations. Much of the Refuge lands are cultivated by the owner; however, some waterfowl nesting and brood rearing takes place on the reservoir and pasture portions of the Refuge.
Bone Hill National Wildlife Refuge is closed to all public use. Very limited opportunities for wildlife observation and photography are available from public roads around the Refuge.


Carex merritt-fernaldii

Carex merritt-fernaldii, or Fernald's sedge, is a species of sedge from northeastern North America. It was first described by Kenneth Mackenzie in 1923. It is named after botanist Merritt Fernald.
This species can be found in a variety of places, such as cliffs, balds, ledges, meadows and fields, and woodlands, as well as anthropogenic surroundings. It is a perennial that has two types of stems - some with flower/fruit clusters (spikes) at their summits, known as reproductive stems, and others that lack spikes, known as vegetative stems. Stems are triangular. Its habitat is sandy or rocky acidic sterile soils, but it can also be found in drying peat blogs.


Pinnacles National Park

Pinnacles National Park is an American national park protecting a mountainous area located east of the Salinas Valley in Central California, about east of Soledad and southeast of San Jose. The park's namesakes are the eroded leftovers of the western half of an extinct volcano that has moved from its original location on the San Andreas Fault, embedded in a portion of the California Pacific Coast Ranges. Pinnacles is managed by the National Park Service and the majority of the park is protected as wilderness.
The national park is divided by the rock formations into East and West Divisions, connected only by foot trails. The east side has shade and water, the west has high walls. The rock formations provide for spectacular pinnacles that attract rock climbers. The park features unusual talus caves that house at least 13 species of bats. Pinnacles is most often visited in spring or fall because of the intense heat during the summer. Park lands are prime habitat for prairie falcons, and are a release site for California condors that have been hatched in captivity.
Pinnacles was originally established as a national monument in 1908 by President Theodore Roosevelt, and was redesignated as a national park by Congressional legislation in 2012 that was then signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 10, 2013.
History.
Native Americans in the Pinnacles region comprised the Chalon and Mutsun groups of the Ohlone people, who left stone artifacts in the park. These native people declined with the arrival of the Spanish in the 18th century, who brought novel diseases and changes to the natives' way of life. The establishment of a Spanish mission at Soledad hastened the area's native depopulation through disease and dispersion. Archaeological surveys have found 13 sites inhabited by Native Americans, 12 of which antedate the establishment of the missions. One site is believed to be about 2000 years old. The last Chalon had died or departed from the area by 1810. From 1810 to 1865, when the first Anglo-American settlers arrived, the Pinnacles region was a wilderness without human use or habitation.
By the 1880s the Pinnacles, then known as the Palisades, were visited by picnickers from the surrounding communities who would explore the caves and camp. The first account of the Pinnacles region appeared in print in 1881, describing the Balconies area. Between 1889 and 1891, newspaper articles shifted from describing excursions to the "Palisades" to calling them the "Pinnacles". Interest in the area rose to the point that the "Hollister Free Lance" sent a reporter to the Pinnacles, followed two months later by a party of local officials. Investors came from San Francisco to consider placing a resort hotel there, but the speculation came to nothing. In 1894, a post office was established in Bear Valley. Schuyler Hain was the postmaster. Since at least one other Bear Valley was in California, the post office was named "Cook" after Mrs. Hain's maiden name. In 1924, the post office was renamed "Pinnacles".
Schuyler Hain was a homesteader who arrived in the Pinnacles area in 1891 from Michigan, following his parents and eight siblings to Bear Valley. His cousin, A.W. White, was a student at Stanford University, and White brought G.K. Gilbert, one of his professors, to see the Pinnacles in 1893. Dr. Gilbert was impressed by the scenery, and his comments inspired Hain to publicize the region. Hain led tours to Bear Valley and through the caves, advocating the preservation of the Pinnacles. Hain's efforts resulted in a 1904 visit by Stanford president David Starr Jordan, who contacted Fresno Congressman James C. Needham. Jordan and Needham, in turn, influenced Gifford Pinchot to advocate the establishment of the Pinnacles Forest Reserve to President Theodore Roosevelt, who proclaimed the establishment on July 8, 1906. Pinchot, who was primarily interested in the management of forests for productive use rather than for preservation, advocated the use of the recently passed Antiquities Act to designate the scenic core of the area as Pinnacles National Monument, which was done by Roosevelt on January 16, 1908. This designation nominally passed control of the Pinnacles from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of the Interior, but the U.S. Forest Service retained effective control of the area until "circa" 1911.
In his efforts to promote the Pinnacles, Hain became convinced that the Pinnacles were an "extraordinary mountain" described by Captain George Vancouver and pictured by John Sykes in his book "Voyage of Discovery", which documented the Vancouver Expedition. Hain began to refer to the mountain as "Vancouver's Pinnacles", a term that was picked up by "Sunset" in a 1903 article. References to "Vancouver's Pinnacles" persisted until 1955, when analysis of the Sykes picture indicated that the mountain described by Vancouver was actually located near Fort Ord, within easy reach of the day trip described by Vancouver.
National monument.
First set aside as part of the Pinnacles Forest Reserve in 1906, Pinnacles has had several different federal management agencies, ranging from the U.S. Forest Service to the General Land Office and ultimately to the National Park Service. In 1908 President Theodore Roosevelt created Pinnacles National Monument with the power given him in the Antiquities Act of 1906. The initial area designated under the Antiquities Act was . The Forest Service relinquished control of the monument "circa" 1911, but no operating agency yet existed to receive it. No drivable roads existed into the park from communities like Hollister. Hollister boosters campaigned for federal funds for road-building. Congressman Everis A. Hayes made a trip into the Pinnacles in 1913 as part of the campaign for road funds. By 1914, primitive roads extended to Bear Valley.
The National Park Service was finally established in 1916, but Pinnacles was not considered significant enough to command any Park Service resources at that time. In the meantime, a mining claim disrupted access to the traditional picnic grounds. In 1922, following repeated pleas from local residents for Park Service action, W.B. Lewis, superintendent of Yosemite National Park, was directed to visit Pinnacles and report on the circumstances to Park Service director Stephen Mather. Lewis had a difficult trip and stayed only 45 minutes, and his report included a recommendation that the monument be abandoned, since the most scenic sections were in private hands. The General Land Office, which administered lands surrounding the national monument and what was then known as Monterey National Forest, also received complaints, and in December 1922, J.H. Favorite of the GLO made a thorough report which was copied to Mather. Favorite recommended that public-domain lands be consolidated into the monument, and that a caretaker be appointed from a local homestead. In 1923, Herman Hermansen was appointed caretaker, and on May 7, 1923, the monument was enlarged by proclamation of President Warren G. Harding.
Mather finally visited the monument on March 28, 1924. A further proclamation, this time by Calvin Coolidge, enlarged the monument on July 2, 1924, securing water sources and campsites, was followed by a directive for a complete survey of the now- monument. Following a visit by NPS assistant director Horace M. Albright, money was appropriated to build a ranger's cabin, completed in 1929, while facilities within the caves were improved. Frank A. Kittredge, the Park Service chief of engineering, and Thomas Chalmers Vint, Park Service landscape architect, conducted a survey for a five-year improvement plan in 1927. In 1929, condemnation proceedings were filed against private landowners in and around the park, including the mining company, seeking . An expansion proclamation by President Herbert Hoover in 1931 added of land donated by San Benito County. Trail building was expanded in the early 1930s, including a tunnel for the High Peaks Trail.
In 1933, a Civilian Conservation Corps camp was established for about 200 men who worked on additions to the trail network. After lengthy legal proceedings, the old mining claims were incorporated into the monument in 1958. CCC laborers improved the road in Bear Gulch, built tourist cabins, and constructed the dam at the Bear Gulch reservoir. A fire lookout was built by the CCC on Chalone Peak in 1935, but was destroyed by fire in 1951 and replaced by a frame structure the following year. The park's visitor center and headquarters were built in 1936–37 from local stone. A superintendent's residence was started in 1941 and completed in 1949. The Mission 66 project added lands and new projects, with an emphasis on development of the previously undeveloped west side of the park.
In 1975, the park comprised , growing to the present through a series of additions including the Pinnacles Ranch. The most recent addition to the Pinnacles National Monument was president Bill Clinton's Proclamation 7266 that increased the size of the monument by and to include more caves.
National park status.
Legislation authored by Rep. Sam Farr (D-California) to make Pinnacles National Monument a national park passed the United States Senate on December 30, 2012, having passed the House on July 31, 2012. The bill also designates the present Pinnacles Wilderness as the Hain Wilderness in commemoration of Schuyler Hain's efforts to establish the national monument. The legislation was signed by President Barack Obama on January 10, 2013. The change in designation does not change the park's status, management, or purpose. Congress specified in the 1970 General Authorities Act and the 1978 Redwood Act that all units of the National Park System are to be treated on equal status, regardless of title. Pinnacles is the ninth unit in the National Park System in California to be named a national park.
Geography.
Pinnacles National Park lies about inland from the Pacific Ocean and about south of the San Francisco Bay Area. The park is in the southern portion of the Gabilan Range, part of California's Coast Ranges.
Elevation within the boundaries range from at the peak of North Chalone Peak.
Climate.
According to the Köppen climate classification system, Pinnacles National Park has a Hot-summer Mediterranean climate ("Csa"). According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the Plant Hardiness zone at the Painted Desert Visitor Center (1056 ft / 322 m) is 8b with an average annual extreme minimum temperature of 19.3 °F (-7.1 °C).
The Santa Lucia Mountains lie between the park and Pacific Ocean, blocking the ocean’s moderating influence on diurnal temperature swings. In comparison to the nearby coast, temperatures have a much larger daily range of depending on season. The typical rainfall is about per year. Snow can fall in small amounts at higher elevations between mid-December and January.
The National Weather Service has a cooperative weather station at the park headquarters. January temperatures are a maximum of and a minimum of . July temperatures are a maximum of and a minimum of . The record high temperature was on July 15, 1972. The record low temperature was on January 2, 1960, and December 22, 1990. Average annual precipitation is . The wettest calendar year was 1983 with and the driest 1947 with . The most precipitation in one month was in March 1983. The most precipitation in 24 hours was on February 3, 1998. The most snowfall in one month was in January 1962.
Geology.
The park is located near the San Andreas fault, which had a hand in creating the unique formations the park protects. The Pinnacles are part of the Neenach Volcano which erupted 23 million years ago near present-day Lancaster. The movement of the Pacific Plate along the San Andreas fault split a section of rock off from the main body of the volcano and moved it to the northwest. It is believed that the pinnacles came from this particular volcano because of the unique breccias that are only found elsewhere in the Neenach Volcano formations. Differential erosion and weathering of the exposed rock created the Pinnacles that are seen today. The rock formations are andesite and rhyolite, forming a dropped fault block embedded in the Gabilan Range.
Large-scale earth movement also created the talus caves that can be found in the park. Deep, narrow gorges and shear fractures were transformed into caves by large chunks of rock falling from above and wedging into the cracks, leaving an open area below.
Since the Pinnacles were moved to this area, the San Andreas fault has shifted to the east of the park. The original location of the San Andreas can be seen in the Chalone Creek fault. Two other large faults are known to run through the park, the Miner's Gulch and Pinnacles faults. These faults parallel the San Andreas and were most likely caused by major movements of the main fault. The establishment of the relative movement between the Pinnacles and the Neenach rocks was a significant factor in the acceptance of plate tectonics in geology.
Seismic activity is frequent in the park, and United States Geological Survey maintains two seismometers within the boundaries. Evidence of past and ongoing seismic activity can be seen in offset streams where they cross faults. Valley bottoms and terraces show signs of uplift.
Ecology.
Wildlife.
Prairie falcons breed in this area in some of the highest densities of anywhere in North America. Peregrine falcons have recently returned to the park to breed, also, but in far fewer numbers. A California condor re-establishment program has been in place since 2003. The first nest since reintroduction was built in 2010, and Pinnacles now manages a population of 25 free-flying condors. Mammals and birds that inhabit this park include prairie falcon, coyote, skunk, great horned owl, bobcat, California quail, raccoon, wild turkey, gray fox, golden eagle, and cougar.
Native animals, now locally extinct from most of central California, included tule elk and pronghorn. Grizzly and black bears were in the area until the end of the 19th century.
Like many parks in central California, Pinnacles has had a problem with wild pigs (a mix of feral domestic pigs and imported wild boars) disturbing the landscape on a regular basis. As of spring 2006, the core of the park was pig-free. The culmination of a twenty-year, $1.6 million effort had succeeded in eradicating pigs from the main area of the park. National Park Service personnel along with IWS worked to remove pigs from inside the park, and establish and monitor an exclusionary fence that runs for approximately around the center core of the park. Outside this fence, wild pigs still roam. Monitoring for potential breaks and breaches in the fence is performed to ensure that the pigs do not return to the park.
Thirteen species of bats have been documented at Pinnacles, with a further three species considered likely. The talus caves provide roosting and breeding habitat for the bats.
In the 1990s, a student biologist, Olivia Messinger, did a census of bees at Pinnacles. She found that the park has more bees per unit area than known anywhere else on earth, around 400 species. Most of these bees are solitary bees, not living in colonies like European honeybees, and most live for only three to four weeks, and since flowers bloom here throughout the growing season, many niches are available for all the bee species.
The diversity of intersecting ecosystems and altitude is hospitable to a great number of animal species.
Vegetation.
According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. Potential natural vegetation Types, Pinnacles National Park has a Chaparral ("33") potential vegetation type with a California chaparral and woodlands ("6") vegetation form. The vegetation is about 80% chaparral with woodlands, riparian, and grasslands merged into the chaparral.
In the warmer portions of the park, large areas of greasewood cover slopes, along with manzanita, gray pine, canyon live oak, and blue oak. Cooler portions of the park have higher proportions of pines and oaks, together with California buckeye, hollyleaf cherry, and coffeeberry. Willows and elderberries are found along the intermittent streams. Fire has been a dominant influence on the region's flora, both from natural causes and from intentional intervention by people. When the region was inhabited by Native Americans, they used fire as a tool to encourage the growth of preferred food sources, and to herd small game during hunting. Since the disappearance of native peoples, the hills have become brushier.
Hain Wilderness.
More than 80% () of the park is designated as the Hain Wilderness (known until 2013 as the Pinnacles Wilderness). Wilderness designation provides even higher protection for the rock spires that give Pinnacles its name, as well as South Chalone Peak, the second-highest peak in the park. The wilderness includes the creeks and canyons that are habitat for the endangered California red-legged frog. The United States Congress in 1976 enacted Public Law 94-567, adding Pinnacles Wilderness and several others to the National Wilderness Preservation System.
Activities.
Although roads approach the park from the west through Soledad and from the east through empty lands south of Hollister, the roads do not connect in the park. Most of the developed areas are on the east side of the park.
Several trails have been developed for day hikers, some of which are strenuous. Primarily in March and April, a wide variety of wildflowers is on display, except in years of extreme drought. The trails provide views of the surrounding hills and valleys on clear days. The San Andreas Fault is visible from some vantages along the trails. The park includes a well-known hiking portion known among enthusiasts simply as "The Pig Fence". This portion of South Wilderness Trail is a challenging stretch of strenuous hiking that at times requires use of the fence, erected to prevent feral pigs from entering the park, to help oneself to climb the steeply pitched trail. Other trails include lush wildflower-accented views along flat stream beds, trails that bring one into beautiful caves, and trails that involve high vistas of the Pinnacle formations.
The caves at Pinnacles are talus caves, formed when steep, narrow canyons were filled with boulders, leaving passages between the larger rocks. Bear Gulch Cave on the east side of the park and Balconies Cave on the west side are seasonally open to visitors. Trails lead to and through both caves. These caves house breeding colonies for Townsend's big-eared bat and are closed during pupping season. The caves may be flooded at times of high water. The National Park Service maintains a webpage showing the status of the caves.
Camping facilities are available on the east side in the Pinnacles Campground.
The park is popular with advanced rock climbers due to the many difficult and challenging climbs. The park is home to a variety of bouldering, single-pitch, and multi-pitch routes. Rock quality, volcanic breccia, can break while climbing.


Coprinellus plagioporus

Coprinellus plagioporus is a species of mushroom in the family Psathyrellaceae. First described as "Coprinus plagioporus" by the mycologist Henri Romagnesi in 1941, it was transferred to the genus "Coprinellus" in 2001.


Acacia macnuttiana

Acacia macnuttiana, commonly known as McNutt's wattle, is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to north-eastern New South Wales. It is a shrub with linear phyllodes, spherical heads of bright yellow flowers arranged in racemes in leaf axils and seeds usually in more or less straight, leathery pods.
Description.
"Acacia macnuttiana" is a bushy shrub that typically grows to a height of with finely ribbed, dark coloured branchlets. The phyllodes are narrow linear, long and wide, thin and glabrous. The flowers are arranged in a raceme long with more or less spherical heads of ten to fifteen bright yellow flowers, each head on a peduncle long. Flowering occurs between July and September and the pods are usually more or less straight, oblong to broadly linear, up to long, wide, dark brown and leathery, containing black seeds.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Acacia macnuttiana" was first formally described in 1927 by Joseph Maiden and William Blakely in the "Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales" from specimens collected in 1913 near the village of Bismuth near Torrington by Andrew McNutt who had been a schoolteacher at Hillgrove.
Distribution and habitat.
McNutt's wattle grows near rivers and along valleys on sandy soils derived from granite from near Torrington to Boonoo Boonoo Falls, near Pindari Dam and the Washpool National Park, in north-eastern New South Wales.
Conservation status.
This acacia is listed as "Vulnerable" under the Commonwealth EPBC Act, and "Endangered" under the Threatened Species Conservation Act of New South Wales.


Gagea fedtschenkoana

Gagea fedtschenkoana is an Asian species of plants in the lily family, native to Russia (Tuva, Altay Krai, Western Siberia Krai, Krasnoyarsk), China (Xinjiang), Kazakhstan, and Mongolia.
"Gagea fedtschenkoana" is a bulb-forming perennial up to 10 cm tall. Flowers are yellow tinged with green or purple.


Mahonia longibracteata

Mahonia longibracteata is a shrub in the family Berberidaceae, first described as a species in 1917. It is endemic to China, found in Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces.


Mnemiopsis leidyi


Kenlake State Resort Park

Kenlake State Resort Park is a park located on the western shore of Kentucky Lake. The park's main entrance and most of its facilities are located in Marshall County; the park also extends into Calloway County. The mailing address of the park is Hardin, Kentucky; however, it is located much closer to the unincorporated community of Aurora, Kentucky. The nearest town of substantial size is Murray. The park encompasses of land, of water, and features climate-controlled indoor tennis courts. It was Kentucky's first state resort park. Along with Lake Barkley State Resort Park and Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park, Kenlake State Resort Park is part of the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, originally organized by the Great Depression–era Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
History.
The Commonwealth of Kentucky began negotiations with the TVA in 1946 to lease a portion of land known as Aurora Landing. The land was situated on the western shore of Kentucky Lake near the Eggner's Ferry Bridge. Kentucky Lake had just opened, following completion of the Kentucky Dam in 1944. The new lake, created by the dam on the Tennessee River, had the most beach area of any man-made lake in the world. The leased land would be used as a state park dedicated to recreation. The TVA leased an initial 1,146 acres to Kentucky. After the land transfer was officially completed on March 13, 1948, the new park at Aurora Landing was named Kentucky Lake State Park and joined the commonwealth's state parks system. By the 1970s, the name of the park was often shortened to "Kenlake State Park" rather than "Kentucky Lake State Park".
Kenlake Hotel.
In 1950, fifteen vacation cottages were opened in Kentucky Lake State Park, and plans were announced to construct a hotel inside the new Kentucky Lake State Park. The Kenlake Hotel was constructed at a cost of $600,000, and it opened in Spring 1952. The hotel originally had 60 guest rooms, each with twin beds and private bathrooms.
The Kenlake Hotel is now a 48-room hotel, and it is one of just a few Kentucky State Parks that has interior room doors. The property also includes 34 cottages, some of which belonged originally to the defunct Cherokee State Park, which was nearby. A 90-site camping-ground is also available for overnight stays.
Cherokee State Park.
Kenlake State Resort Park contains an area that was originally known as Cherokee State Park. Cherokee State Park was the third blacks-only state park in the United States. It was the first such state park in Kentucky, as well as the Southern United States. The park was opened in 1951 as the companion to the whites-only Kentucky Lake State Park, and it was publicized as "the finest colored vacation site in the South". The park was originally 300 acres, and it included a beach, cottages, boat and fishing docks, a picnic area, a bathhouse, and a 200-seat dining hall. It was designed to provide the same standards as Kentucky Lake State Park under the separate but equal doctrine. Cherokee State Park was closed by 1964 after Governor Bert T. Combs signed the executive order ending segregation in 1963. The land was transferred to the control of Kentucky Lake State Park.
The Cherokee State Park area remained abandoned for many years until it was cleaned up and re-purposed for use by the Murray State University rowing team. The university leased the park area and used some remaining structures to establish a boathouse and a trophy room as Murray State began NCAA level rowing competition in 1998. The university later cut the rowing program in 2008. The former park and the remaining structures were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. The former Cherokee State Park dining hall was renovated and reopened in Fall 2010 as a meeting and event facility. The renovated dining hall is now known as the Richard H. Lewis Lodge.
Park Activities.
There are several activities available at the park. Fishing is a popular pastime; crappie are the most popular fish at the park, with bluegill, catfish, sauger, and various types of bass also available. Two trails, named Chickasaw and Cherokee, total of hiking trails at the park. It is also the premier place in Kentucky for big boat sailing.
Blues Festival.
Kenlake State Resort Park has been home to the Hot August Blues Festival every summer since 1989. The blues festival, originally started by then Kenlake sales manager Gloria Hargrove, takes place at the Kenlake Amphitheater. Blues legend Junior Wells played the inaugural 1989 festival. Other artists to play the festival have included KoKo Taylor, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Lew Jetton, and Chris Cain. The festival was named one of Kentucky's top ten summer events by the Kentucky Tourism Council in 2007.


Lago Petroleum Corporation

Lago Petroleum Corporation was an oil production company established by Americans in 1923 that exploited the oilfields in Lake Maracaibo.
It was acquired by Standard Oil of New Jersey in 1932. Later it was nationalized.
Ownership.
Edward L. Doheny, who owned the Pan American Petroleum and Transport Co., controlled the Barco concession in Colombia through a subsidiary. He became interested in Venezuelan oil operations, including a pipeline from Colombia to Venezuela to reduce the cost of exporting the Colombian oil. After meetings between J.A. Coronil and Doheney's staff, the Lago Petroleum Co. was formed by Preston McGoodwin, Joshua S. Cosden and Payne Whitney Associates, and registered in Delaware on 12 April 1923.
British-Mexican Petroleum acquired about 25% of its stock.
In 1924 the company took over concessions that had been granted to the British Equatorial Oil Company in addition to properties it had purchased from twenty Venezuelans who had obtained them from General Juan Vicente Gómez, the military ruler of the country.
C. Ledyard Blair's Blair & Co. and Chase Securities sold a controlling stake in Lago to Pan American Petroleum in a complex transaction at the end of 1925.
By the late 1920s a trio of foreign-controlled companies were operating in the eastern Lake Maracaibo region. Shell Oil had the Aranguren concession onshore. Gulf Oil had acquired the Creole Syndicate's leases in the strip of shallow water wide along the lake shore. Standard of Indiana through Pan American owned Lago's operations in the lake bed.
In 1932 Pan American sold its foreign properties to Standard Oil of New Jersey for about $100 million.
The deal included Pan American's large oil concessions in Venezuela.
Lago Petroleum became a subsidiary of Creole Petroleum Corporation, now the Venezuelan subsidiary of Standard Oil of New Jersey. Included in the sale were the Lago Oil and Transport Company and the Lago Shipping Company, and the finalized plans to build the Lago refinery, "the giant", on Aruba. It later operated under the name Creole Petroleum Company, then under Standard Oil's name, Esso.
The company was nationalized with the rest of the Venezuelan petroleum industry in 1976.
Operations.
Lago owned about of land in Lake Maracaibo,
and produced about 30,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
Oil wells in Lake Maracaibo require drilling platforms. Wooden pilings to support the platforms were vulnerable to teredo worms.
Lago Petroleum pioneered use of concrete pilings pre-fitted with steel heads and tied together with steel ropes.
Lago's techniques, including use of barges to move heavy equipment around, made the cost of drilling on water lower than that of drilling on land, although taxes and royalties had been set lower by the government on the assumption that costs would be higher.
The company did not spend money on exploration, but simply drilled wells into the La Rosa field.
Lago discovered the valuable Tía Juana field in 1928.
Standard of Indiana obtained land on Aruba from the Dutch government, built a tanker terminal and refinery there, and started shipping Lago's crude to Aruba in 1925.
In 1929 Lago had 129 active wells in the lake. In 1929 nineteen lake tankers carried 37 million barrels of crude to the huge refinery being built at the Aruba terminal.
Production was inefficient. Since the three competing companies were draining a common reservoir, each had an interest in extracting oil as quickly as possible,
although a more deliberate pace would have given greater total output.
At times, hastily built wells collapsed, oil gushed into the lake and caught fire, burning rigs and equipment.
Lago employed Chinese and West Indians as well as Venezuelans, using competition between these groups to keep pay low.
The government saw these foreign workers as a source of labor unrest, and in 1929 prohibited further entry of Afro-Caribbean and Chinese workers and demanded that existing workers have a certificate of employment and good conduct.
Lago employed about 1,400 workers during the 1930s, mostly based in Lagunillas and La Salina.
In 1939 Lago said its employees included 268 foreigners and 3,119 Venezuelans.
Most of the local people were simply day laborers.
References.
Notes
Citations
Sources


Operation Sandstone

Operation Sandstone was a series of nuclear weapon tests in 1948. It was the third series of American tests, following Trinity in 1945 and Crossroads in 1946, and preceding Ranger. Like the Crossroads tests, the Sandstone tests were carried out at the Pacific Proving Grounds, although at Enewetak Atoll rather than Bikini Atoll. They differed from "Crossroads" in that they were conducted by the Atomic Energy Commission, with the armed forces having only a supporting role. The purpose of the Sandstone tests was also different: they were primarily tests of new bomb designs rather than of the effects of nuclear weapons. Three tests were carried out in April and May 1948 by Joint Task Force 7, with a work force of 10,366 personnel, of whom 9,890 were military.
The successful testing of the new cores in the "Operation Sandstone" tests rendered every component of the old weapons obsolete. Even before the third test had been carried out, production of the old cores was halted, and all effort concentrated on the new Mark 4 nuclear bomb, which would become the first mass-produced nuclear weapon. More efficient use of fissionable material as a result of Operation Sandstone would increase the U.S. nuclear stockpile from 56 bombs in June 1948 to 169 in June 1949.
Origins.
Nuclear weapons were developed during World War II by the Manhattan Project, which created a network of production facilities, and the weapons research and design laboratory at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Two types of bombs were developed: the Mark 1 "Little Boy", a gun-type fission weapon using uranium-235, and the Mark 3 "Fat Man", an implosion-type nuclear weapon using plutonium.
These weapons were not far removed from their laboratory origins. A great deal of work remained to improve ease of assembly, safety, reliability and storage before they were ready for production. There were also many improvements to their performance that had been suggested or recommended during the war that had not been possible under the pressure of wartime development. Norris Bradbury, who replaced Robert Oppenheimer as director at Los Alamos, felt that "we had, to put it bluntly, lousy bombs."
Plutonium was produced by irradiating uranium-238 in three 250 MW nuclear reactors at the Hanford site. In theory they could produce of plutonium per megawatt-day, or about per month. In practice, production never approached such a level in 1945, when only between was produced per month. A "Fat Man" core required about of plutonium, of which 21% fissioned. Plutonium production fell off during 1946 due to swelling of the reactors' graphite neutron moderators. This is known as the Wigner effect, after its discoverer, the Manhattan Project scientist Eugene Wigner.
These reactors were also required for the production (by irradiation of bismuth-209) of polonium-210, which was used in the initiators, a critical component of the nuclear weapons. Some of bismuth-209 had to be irradiated for 100 days to produce 600 curies of polonium-210, a little over . Because polonium-210 has a half-life of only 138 days, at least one reactor had to be kept running. The oldest unit, B pile, was therefore closed down so that it would be available in the future. Investigation of the problem would take most of 1946 before a fix was found.
Uranium-235 was derived from enrichment of natural uranium at the Y-12 plant and K-25 site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Improvements in the processes and procedures of the electromagnetic and gaseous isotope separation between October 1945 and June 1946 led to an increase in production to around of uranium-235 per month, which was only enough for one of the very wasteful "Little Boy"s. A "Fat Man" was 17.5 times as efficient as a "Little Boy", but a ton of uranium ore could yield eight times as much uranium-235 as plutonium, and on a per-gram basis, plutonium cost somewhere between four and eight times as much to produce as uranium-235, which at this time cost around $26 per gram.
Weapon development 1945–48.
The objectives of the Sandstone series of tests were to:
Levitation meant that instead of being immediately inside the tamper, there would be an air gap between the tamper and the core, which would be suspended inside on wires. This would allow the tamper to gain more momentum before striking the core. The principle was similar to swinging a hammer at a nail versus putting the hammerhead directly on the nail and pushing as hard as possible. In order for this to work outside the laboratory, the wires had to be strong enough to withstand being dropped from an aircraft, but thin enough to not disturb the spherical symmetry of the implosion. The Theoretical Division at Los Alamos, known as T Division, had run computer calculations on the levitated core as early as March 1945. The use of the levitated core had been proposed during the planning for Operation Crossroads, but it had been decided instead to use the existing solid core "Christy" design. This was named after its designer, Robert Christy. For Sandstone, however, it was decided that at least two of the three tests would use levitated cores.
The motivation behind the composite core was to make better use of the available fissionable material. The use of uranium-235 in an implosion weapon instead of the inefficient gun type Little Boy was an obvious development. However, while plutonium was more expensive and harder to produce than uranium-235, it fissions faster, because it makes better use of the neutrons its fission produces. On the other hand, the slower reaction of uranium-235 permits the assembly of super-critical masses, making it theoretically possible to produce weapons with high yields. By July 1945, Oppenheimer and Groves were considering using both materials in a composite core containing of plutonium and of uranium-235. The composite cores became available in 1946. Los Alamos' priority then became the development of an all-uranium-235 core. By January 1948 the national stockpile contained 50 cores, of which 36 were composite Christy cores, nine were plutonium Christy cores, and five were composite levitated cores. Testing the new levitated, composite and uranium-235 cores would require at least three test firings.
More efficient weapons would require less efficient initiators. This meant that less polonium would be required. At the time of Sandstone, the national stockpile of polonium-beryllium initiators consisted of 50 A-Class initiators, with more than 25 curies of polonium, and 13 B-Class initiators with 12 to 25 curies. During Sandstone, at least one test would be conducted with a B-Class initiator.
Preparations.
Organization.
The tests were authorized by President Harry S. Truman on June 27, 1947. The Atomic Energy Commission's Director of Military Applications, Brigadier General James McCormack and his deputy, Captain James S. Russell, met with Bradbury and John Henry Manley at Los Alamos on July 9 to make arrangements for the tests. They readily agreed that they would be scientific in nature, with Los Alamos supplying the technical direction and the armed forces providing supplies and logistical support. The cost of the tests, around $20 million, was divided between the Department of Defense and the Atomic Energy Commission. Lieutenant General John E. Hull was designated as test commander. Rear Admiral William S. Parsons and Major General William E. Kepner reprised their Operation Crossroads roles as deputy commanders. Joint Task Force 7 was formally activated on October 18, 1947. As its commander, Hull was answerable to both the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Atomic Energy Commission.
Joint Task Force 7 consisted of 10,366 personnel, 9,890 of them military. Its headquarters consisted of about 175 men, of whom 96 were on board the . The rest were accommodated on the , and . A special division of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, known as J Division, was created specifically to manage nuclear testing. An Atomic Energy Commission group (Task Group 7.1) was responsible for preparing and detonating the nuclear weapons, and conducting the experiments. It consisted of some 283 scientists and technicians responsible for nuclear tests from J Division, the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, the Naval Research Laboratory, the Naval Ordnance Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, the Aberdeen Proving Ground, the Atomic Energy Commission, Edgerton, Germeshausen & Grier, and other agencies.
Each dealt with a different aspect of the tests. The Naval Ordnance Laboratory handled the blast measurement tests, while the Naval Research Laboratory conducted the radiation measurement experiments, and Argonne National Laboratory did gamma ray measurements. Edgerton, Germeshausen, and Grier were contractors hired to design and install the timing and firing systems. Seven experimental weapon assemblies and six cores were delivered to San Pedro, California, and loaded on the weapon assembly ship USS "Curtiss", in February 1948, but the Atomic Energy Commission only gave permission for the expenditure of three cores in the tests.
Ships.
The naval forces were organized as Task Group 7.3. It consisted of:
Source: Berkhouse "et al", "Operation Sandstone", p. 40
Civil affairs.
In September 1947, Hull, Russell, who was designated test director on October 14, and Joint Task Force 7's scientific director, Darol K. Froman from the Los Alamos Laboratories, set out with a group of scientists and military officers to examine various proposed test sites in the Pacific. Enewetak Atoll was chosen as the test site on October 11. The island was remote, but with a good harbor and an airstrip. It also had ocean currents and trade winds that would carry fallout out to sea, an important consideration in view of what had happened at Bikini Atoll during Operation Crossroads.
As the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands was a United Nations trust territory administered by the United States, the United Nations Security Council was notified of the upcoming tests on December 2. The atoll was inhabited by the dri-Enewetak, who lived on Aomon, and the dri-Enjebi, who lived on Bijire. Their original homes had been on Enewetak and Enjebi, but they had been moved during the war to make way for military bases. The population, about 140 in number, had been temporarily relocated to Meck Island during Operation Crossroads. This time, Ujelang Atoll, an uninhabited atoll southwest of Enewetak, was selected as a relocation site. A Naval Construction Battalion group arrived there on November 22 to build accommodation and amenities. The military authorities met with the local chiefs on December 3, and they agreed to the relocation, which was carried out by by December 20. An LST and four Douglas C-54 Skymaster aircraft were placed on standby to evacuate Ujelan in case it was affected by fallout, but were not required.
Unlike the Crossroads tests, which were conducted in the media spotlight, the "Sandstone" tests were carried out with minimal publicity. On April 15, there was still discussion in Washington about whether or not there should be any public announcement of the tests at all. Hull opposed making any announcement until after the series was completed, but the AEC commissioners felt that the news would leak out, and the United States would look secretive. It was therefore decided to make a last minute announcement. There was no announcement of the purpose of the tests, and only cursory press releases. On 18 May, after the series was over, Hull held a press conference in Hawaii, but only permitted the media to quote from written statements.
Construction.
Enjebi, Aomon, and Runit Islands were cleared of vegetation and graded level to make it easier to install the required instrumentation, and a causeway was built between Aomon and Bijire so the instrument cables could be run from the test tower on Aomon to the control station on Bijire. The detonations were ordered so that later test areas would suffer minimal fallout from the earlier shots. The Army component, Task Group 7.2, was responsible for construction work. It consisted of the 1220th Provisional Engineer Battalion, with the 1217th and 1218th Composite Service Platoons, the 18th Engineer Construction Company and 1219th Signal Service Platoon; Companies D and E of the 2nd Engineer Special Brigade's 532nd Engineer Boat and Shore Regiment; the 461st Transportation Amphibious Truck Company; 854th Transportation Port Company; 401st CIC Detachment; and the Naval Shore Base Detachment.
Operations.
As in "Operation Crossroads", each detonation was given its own code name, taken from the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet. All used modified Mark III assemblies, and were detonated from towers. The timing of the detonations was a matter of compromise. The gamma ray measurement experiments required darkness, but the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress drones that would sample the clouds needed daylight to control them. As a compromise, the Sandstone detonations all took place shortly before dawn.
The detonations in the United States' "Sandstone" series are listed below:
X-Ray.
The "X-Ray" nuclear device used a levitated composite core. It was detonated on Enjebi just before sunrise at 06:17 on April 15, 1948, with a yield of 37 kilotons. The efficiency of utilization of the plutonium was about 35%; that of the uranium-235 was 25% or more. This was somewhat higher than Los Alamos' prediction. Observers watching from ships in the lagoon saw a brilliant flash and felt the radiant heat. A condensation cloud in diameter quickly enveloped the fireball, which glowed within the cloud. It took 45 to 50 seconds for the thunderous roar of the explosion to reach the observers.
About 20 minutes later, "Bairoko" launched a helicopter to check on the cable winch which was to collect samples. It also lowered boats to test radioactivity levels in the lagoon. B-17 pilotless drone aircraft were flown through the clouds, and a drone light tank was used to recover soil samples from the crater. Unfortunately, it became bogged and had to be towed out ten days later.
Yoke.
The "Yoke" nuclear device used a levitated all-uranium-235 core. It was detonated on Aomon just before sunrise on May 1, 1948 at 06:09, a day late due to unfavorable winds. The observers saw a similar flash and felt the same heat as the X-Ray blast, but the wide condensation cloud was larger, and the sound of the explosion more forceful. One observer likened it to the sound of "a paper bag which is forcefully burst in a small room". They were correct: its yield of 49 kilotons made it the largest nuclear detonation up to that time, but it was considered inefficient and wasteful of the fissile material.
Zebra.
"Zebra", the third test, and the last of the Sandstone series, was detonated on Runit just before sunrise at 06:04 on May 15, 1948. This test was characterized by AEC Chairman David Lilienthal as the "hardest and most important" test of the three. By using one of the B-class initiators, it demonstrated that these could still be used with confidence. The observers perceived the flash and blast as similar to the previous two tests, but this time the base of the condensation cloud was at , which gave the observers an unobstructed view of the fireball, which therefore appeared to be brighter and last longer than the other two. Looks were deceiving: its levitated uranium-235 core produced a yield of 18 kilotons.
The procedures used in the previous tests were repeated, but this time the winch cable snagged, and the test samples had to be retrieved by a jeep, exposing its crew to more radiation. The Los Alamos personnel assigned to remove the filters from the B-17 drones had apparently carried out the procedure on "X-Ray" and "Yoke" without problems, but this time three of them suffered radiation burns on their hands serious enough to be hospitalized and need skin grafting. One of the men who had carried out the procedure for Yoke was then also found to have burns on his hands and was hospitalized too, but was discharged on 28 May. Once again the drone tank gave trouble, and bogged in the crater, but the soil samples were retrieved by the backup drone tank. Both tanks were subsequently dumped in the ocean.
Outcome.
The successful testing of the new cores in the Sandstone tests had a profound effect. Practically every component of the old weapons was rendered obsolete. Even before the third test had been carried out, Bradbury had halted production of the old cores, and ordered that all effort was to be concentrated on the Mark 4 nuclear bomb, which would become the first mass-produced nuclear weapon. The more efficient use of fissionable material would increase the nuclear stockpile from 56 bombs in June 1948 to 169 in June 1949. The Mark III bombs were withdrawn from service in 1950. At the same time, new production plants were coming online and the Wigner effect problem had been solved. By May 1951, plutonium production was twelve times that of 1947, while uranium-235 production had increased eight-fold. The Chief of the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, Major General Kenneth D. Nichols, saw clearly that the era of scarcity was over. He now "recommended that we should be thinking in terms of thousands of weapons rather than hundreds."


Quercus oblongifolia

Quercus oblongifolia, commonly known as the Arizona blue oak, Blue live oak or Sonoran blue oak, is an evergreen small tree or large shrub in the white oak group.
Distribution.
"Quercus oblongifolia" grows in high grasslands, canyons and mesas in Texas, Arizona and New Mexico and northwestern Mexico (Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sinaloa and Sonora states). Arizona blue oak is closely related to Engelman oak "Quercus engelmannii" in Southern California. The two species may be conspecific and could be combined as one species.
Description.
The Arizona blue oak is a small evergreen tree growing 5–8 meters (16–27 feet) tall with a rounded crown. At higher elevations it is typically a large shrub. The trunk is up to 50 cm (20 inches) in diameter and the bark is light gray and densely furrowed. The twigs are yellowish brown and hairless with reddish brown buds. The leaves are small, alternate and oblong, with entire margins, leathery, bluish-green above and mid green below. The flowers appear in spring at the same time as the old leaves are being shed and new leaf growth starts. The male flowers form yellowish-green catkins and the female flowers are solitary or paired and grow in the leaf axils. The light brown acorns are ovoid or oblong, about 2 cm (0.8 inch) long and lodged in scaly, bowl-shaped cups about one third the length of the nut.
Habitat.
The Arizona blue oak is common at elevations of 1200 to 1800 meters (4000–6000 feet). It is often found on thin sandy soils in semi-arid regions and is the dominant species in lower open oak woodland where it grows in association with Arizona white oak ("Quercus arizonica") and Emory oak ("Quercus emoryi"). It is an important constituent of pinyon-juniper communities. where it grows in association with species of pine and juniper, Arizona rosewood ("Vauquelinia californica"), shrubby buckwheat ("Eriogonum wrightii"), catclaw mimosa ("Mimosa aculeaticarpa"), bullgrass ("Muhlenbergia emersleyi"), plains lovegrass ("Eragrostis intermedia"), fendlerbush ("Fendlera rupicola") and wolftail ("Lycurus phleoides").
Cultivation.
Arizona blue oak "Quercus oblongifolia" popularity in landscaping has been increasing in California with many plantings at Apple Park and other Bay area plantings. The fast growth and beautiful blue foliage makes selections from trees in Arizona the best for cultivation.
References.
8. Oak hybridization at the University of utah. W.P. Cottam, State Arboretum of Utah, 1982.


Eremophila dichroantha

Eremophila dichroantha, also known as bale-hook eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with many ascending branches making the plant appear broom-like. It has small, hooked leaves and small, though abundant, violet to lilac-coloured flowers.
Description.
"Eremophila dichroantha" is an erect shrub with many ascending branches which, although glabrous, have many raised glands. It grows to a height of and the ends of the branches and younger leaves are shiny and sticky due to the presence of resin. The leaves are arranged alternately along the stems and are linear to almost needle-shaped, mostly long, about wide with a curved, hooked tip on the end.
The flowers are borne in groups of 3 to 5 in leaf axils on a stalk which is long and sticky when young. There are 5 overlapping, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, brownish sepals which are long. The sepals are glabrous except for the long hairs on their edges, are sticky and remain on the plant long after flowering has finished. The petals are long and joined at their lower end to form a tube. They are a shade of violet to lilac-coloured, rarely white on the outside and white with violet spots inside the tube. The petal lobes are hairy on the outside and have short, flattened hairs on the inside. The petal tube is mostly glabrous on the outside while the inside of the tube is filled with long, spidery hairs. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed in the petal tube. Flowering occurs from August to November and is followed by fruit which are oval-shaped, hairy and long.
Taxonomy and naming.
The species was first formally described in 1904 by Ludwig Diels in "Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie". The specific epithet ("dichroantha") is derived from the Ancient Greek words "δίχρως (díkhrōs)" meaning “two-coloured” and "ἄνθος (ánthos)" meaning “flower”.
Distribution and habitat.
This eremophila is widespread and locally common between Balladonia, Esperance and Lake King including the Cape Arid and Norseman areas in the Coolgardie, Esperance Plains and Mallee biogeographic regions.
Conservation status.
"Eremophila dichroantha" is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
Use in horticulture.
This eremophila is attractive with its arching branches and masses of blue to purple flowers in spring, followed by persistent sepals. It is difficult to grow from cuttings and seed but can be propagated more easily by grafting onto "Myoporum" rootstock. It will grow in most soils and in full sun or partial shade, is drought and frost resistant but should only be lightly pruned.


Goffertpark

The Goffertpark is a public park in Nijmegen, The Netherlands. In the park, which is sometimes used as an outdoor concert venue, there's also the stadium of football club N.E.C..
History.
Sixty acres of woodland and heathland changed in the thirties by the effort of Nijmegen unemployed in a spacious park, including provision of sports fields, a stadium, a teahouse and a zoo. The new Goffertpark went on Saturday, July 8, 1939 open to the public.
The plans for the Goffertpark were part of the General Expansion of Nijmegen, prepared by planning early thirties A. Siebers. This expansion included a network of ring roads and radials, following the canals around the old town. Districts should be provided with green strips, parks and playgrounds. And in the southwest of the city would be around the old farm Goffert The Volkspark come for a great recreational and sporting activities. Elsewhere in the Netherlands when these parks were built, such as the Hague and Amsterdam Forest Zuiderpark. On the insistence of Mayor J. A.H. Steinweg took the Empire in the context of the construction costs of unemployment relief Goffertpark itself. From the spring of 1935 there were over 160 unemployed people to work for a fee of 35 cents per hour. Although the construction of the park was used the natural slope of land, were still 600,000 cubic metres of sand are moved. For as many people into work, but this did not happen with excavators with shovels and wheelbarrows. By far the hardest job was digging the six metres deep pit for the stadium, which it nicknamed "the bloedkuul" remained. The park has been throughout the years a venue for public events in Nijmegen and in recent years also for concerts.
Present status.
The park is inscribed as a municipal monument.
The stadium, with athletics and cycling, became the home of football in 1939, when N.E.C. moved there. Over the years, there were various events and performances. In 1999, sixty years after the opening, park and stadium were thoroughly refurbished and modernized.
Artists, including AC/DC, Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Coldplay, Deftones, Guns N' Roses, Kings of Leon, KISS, Korn, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Eminem, Metallica, Mudvayne, Mumford and Sons, Phil Collins, Muse, Pearl Jam, Pink Floyd, Robbie Williams, R.E.M., Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Rolling Stones, U2, Van Halen, and Velvet Revolver have performed at the Goffertpark as a concert venue.


Prasophyllum sargentii

Prasophyllum sargentii, commonly known as the frilled leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tall orchid with a single smooth, tubular leaf and up to thirty or more purplish and white or golden brown and white flowers with a frilled labellum.
Description.
"Prasophyllum sargentii" is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single smooth green, tube-shaped leaf long and in diameter near the base. Between 10 and 35 or more flowers are arranged on a flowering spike high. The flowers are brownish and white, about long and wide. The petals face forwards and the lateral sepals are erect, white and fused at their edges. The labellum is white, suffused with pink, has frilly edges and is turned upwards towards the lateral sepals. Flowering occurs from August to October and is stimulated by fire or light disturbance.
Taxonomy and naming.
The frilled leek orchid was first formally described in 1948 by William Nicholls who gave it the name "Prasophyllum australe" var. "sargentii" and published the description in "The Victorian Naturalist". In 1971, Alex George raised it to species status, noting that the species "P. australe" does not occur in Western Australia. The specific epithet ("sargentii") honours Oswald Sargent, the collector of the type specimen.
Distribution and habitat.
The frilled leek orchid grows in sandy soil in shrubland and woodland, usually flowering after fire or light disturbance. It occurs from Kalbarri in the north to Israelite Bay in the east.
Conservation.
"Prasophyllum sargentii" is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Mayon Volcano Natural Park

The Mayon Volcano Natural Park is a protected area of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region (Region 5) on southeast Luzon Island, the largest island of the country. The Natural park covers an area of , which includes its centerpiece Mayon Volcano, the most active volcano in the Philippines, and its adjacent surroundings. The volcano is also renowned for having an almost perfect cone. First protected as a National Park in 1938, it was reclassified as a Natural Park in the year 2000.
Geography.
Mayon Volcano Natural Park encompasses an area of located in the eight cities and municipalities that has jurisdiction of the mountain. These communities are Camalig, Daraga, Guinobatan, Legazpi City, Ligao City, Tabaco City, Malilipot, and Santo Domingo, all in the province of Albay. The peak of the volcano is the highest elevation in the Bicol Region at .
History.
The protected area was first declared as "Mayon Volcano National Park", with an initial area of , on July 20, 1938 by Proclamation no. 292 during the Commonwealth presidency of Manuel L. Quezon. In 1992, the Republic Act No. 7586 or the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act was established to create, designate, classify and administered by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, all the protected areas of the country for the present and future generations of the Filipino people. Under NIPAS, the Mayon Volcano National Park was reclassified and renamed as "Mayon Volcano Natural Park" with the signing of Proclamation No. 412 on November 21, 2000.


Juncus bryoides

Juncus bryoides is a species of rush known by the common names moss rush and mosslike dwarf rush. It is native to western North America from Oregon to Baja California, where it grows in many types of wet, sandy habitat. It is a very tiny annual herb producing erect, hair-thin stems no more than about 2 centimeters tall. Atop the stem is one flower made up of a few reddish segments 1 to 3 millimeters long which curve around the developing fruit.


Eucalyptus thozetiana

Eucalyptus thozetiana is a species of tree that is native to inland north-eastern Australia. It has smooth bark, or sometimes with rough bark near the base, linear to lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of between seven and eleven, white flowers and urn-shaped, barrel-shaped or cylindrical fruit.
Description.
"Eucalyptus thozetiana" is a tree that typically grows to a height of and forms a lignotuber. It has smooth creamy white and greyish bark, sometimes with rough, blackish bark near the base and sometimes with small flakes of old bark in patches on the trunk. Young plants and coppice regrowth have stems that are square in cross-section and linear leaves that are long and wide. Adult leaves are the same shade of glossy green on both sides, linear to lance-shaped, long and wide, tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are mostly arranged on the ends of branchlets in groups of seven, nine or eleven on a thin, branching peduncle long, the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are pear-shaped to oval, long and wide with a rounded, conical or beaked operculum. Flowering occurs from March to November and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody urn-shaped, barrel-shaped or cylindrical capsule long and wide with the valves enclosed below the rim.
Taxonomy and naming.
In his book "Eucalyptographia" of 1883, under the heading "Eucalyptus gracilis", Ferdinand von Mueller noted -
In 1903, Joseph Maiden based a description of "Eucalyptus calycogona" var. "thozetiana" on Mueller's excerpt in his book, "A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus".
In 1906, Richard Thomas Baker raised the variety to species status as "Eucalyptus thozetiana" in "Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales". The specific epithet honours Anthelme Thozet.
Distribution and habitat.
"Eucalyptus thozetiana" usually grows on sandy soils in woodland and open forest. It is widespread between Emerald, Junda and the Darling Downs in Queensland and near Arltunga in the south of the Northern Territory.
Conservation status.
This eucalypt is classified as "least concern" under the Queensland Government "Nature Conservation Act 1992", and as "near threatened" in the Northern Territory.


Spinturnix americanus

Spinturnix americanus is a species of mite that parasitizes bat wings. It was described as a new species in 1902 by American entomologist Nathan Banks. Banks initially placed it in the now-defunct genus "Pteroptus."
The holotype had been collected from a bat in a cave in Indiana.
Species that it affects include the little brown bat, northern long-eared bat, and riparian myotis.
It has been documented affecting bats in Indiana and Pennsylvania in the United States, Nova Scotia in Canada, and Mato Grosso in Brazil.


Evalljapyx boneti

Evalljapyx boneti is a species of forcepstail in the family Japygidae. It is found in Central America.


Tori-shima (Izu Islands)

, is an uninhabited Japanese island in the Pacific Ocean. The volcanic island is part of the Izu Islands.
Geography.
Tori-shima is located in the Philippine Sea approximately south of Tokyo and north of Lot's Wife. The roughly circular-shaped island is listed as a Class A active volcano by the Japan Meteorological Agency. The island is the above-water portion of a submarine volcano, whose submerged caldera portion to the north of the island continues to erupt underwater. Volcanic activity on the island itself was last recorded in 2002, accompanied by earthquake swarms. The main peak on the island, has a height of , and the island has a circumference of . The total area of the island is .
History.
Tori-shima was known to Japanese fishermen and mariners since at least the early Edo period, but was uninhabited aside from occasional shipwreck survivors. In 1841, 14-year-old Nakahama Manjirō and four friends were shipwrecked on Tori-shima until rescued by the American whaleship "John Howland" commanded by William H. Whitfield. Japanese writer Akira Yoshimura researched and wrote about 15 similar instances. The island was settled in Meiji period, with the primary economic activity being the gathering of guano from the abundant short-tailed albatross, who use the island as their nesting grounds. A major volcanic eruption was recorded in 1871. The island was administratively grouped with the Ogasawara islands in August 1898, but was transferred to the administration of Hachijojima in April 1901. The population of 150 inhabitants was killed by the major volcanic eruption of 1902. Torishima was never repopulated.
Since the 1930s, the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology has taken a very active role in researching and attempting to preserve the local seabird species, especially the short-tailed albatross, which had been reduced to an estimated 50 birds by 1933. The Japan Meteorological Agency established a weather station and volcanic research station on the island in 1947, but this was abandoned in 1965 due to volcanic activity and earthquakes. On November 1, 1954 Tori-shima was proclaimed a protected bird sanctuary. This designation was increased to that of a protected national Natural monument on May 10, 1965. It can only be visited by research scientists with special permission, and landing on the island is very difficult due to heavy seas and lack of suitable landing beaches or facilities. Tour boats which take people around the island to view the birds are popular, but these tours are not permitted to land on the island. Researchers normally travel to the island by chartered government helicopter.
Tori-shima, along with the other Izu Islands, is officially part of Tokyo Metropolis, and also falls within the borders of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.
Flora and fauna.
Repeated volcanic eruptions in 1939 and 2002 have set the flora on Tori-shima back to initial stages in the ecological succession. Plants such as "Vitex rotundifolia" and hydrangea are found near the shoreline, and "Chrysanthemum pacificum" and Japanese black pine in sheltered areas inland, but most of the central portion of the island remains as volcanic ash and rock.
The island is home to several tens of thousands of breeding pairs of Tristram's storm petrel and other birds such as Japanese murrelet, black-footed albatross, common kestrel and blue rock thrush, but the short-tailed albatross population has been very slow to recover, with recovery hampered by the presence of large numbers of black rats, the only remaining mammal on the island. Humpback whales and dolphins often appear around the island during migration and breeding seasons. Tori-shima is the primary and one of only two remaining breeding sites for the Short-tailed albatross. The island has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International.


Eosentomon transitorium

Eosentomon transitorium is a species of proturan in the family Eosentomidae. It is found in Africa, Europe, and Northern Asia (excluding China).


Phoratopus remex


Suillus subluteus

Suillus subluteus is a species of mushroom in the genus "Suillus". First described as "Boletus subluteus" by Charles Horton Peck in 1887, it was transferred to "Suillus" by Wally Snell in 1944. It is found in North America.


Eucalyptus rummeryi

Eucalyptus rummeryi, commonly known as steel box, Rummery's box or brown box, is a species of medium-sized to tall tree that is endemic to northern New South Wales. It has rough bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven on the ends of branchlets, white flowers and conical, hemispherical or cup-shaped fruit.
Description.
"Eucalyptus rummeryi" is a tree that typically grows to a height of and forms a lignotuber. It has rough, fibrous or flaky, grey to black bark on the trunk and branches. Young plants and coppice regrowth have stems that are square in cross-section and leaves that are dull green, paler on the lower side, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, long and wide and petiolate. Adult leaves are glossy green, paler on the lower surface, lance-shaped to curved, long and wide tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged on the ends of branchlets in groups of three or seven on a branched peduncle long the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are oval to spindle-shaped, long and wide with a conical operculum. Flowering occurs from November to December and the fowers are white. The fruit is a woody conical, hemispherical or cup-shaped capsule long and wide with the valves near rim level.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Eucalyptus rummeryi" was first formally described in 1923 by Joseph Maiden in his book "A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus" from material collected from Busby's Flat, near Casino by Edward George Rummery (1877–1958), (named as George Edward Rummery by Maiden) in 1921. The specific epithet ("rummeryi") honours the collector of the type.
Distribution and habitat.
Steel box grows on slopes and ridges in wet or grassy forest from Dorrigo to north-west of Casino.