Split Rock Lighthouse State Park

Split Rock Lighthouse State Park is a state park of Minnesota on the North Shore of Lake Superior. It is best known for the picturesque Split Rock Lighthouse, one of the most photographed lighthouses in the United States. Built by the United States Lighthouse Service in 1910, the lighthouse and some adjacent buildings have been restored and the Minnesota Historical Society operates them as a museum. The state park offers a unique cart-in campground and scenic trails for hiking, cross-country skiing, and bicycling.
Natural history.
Geography.
Split Rock Lighthouse State Park encompasses about of rocky shoreline on Lake Superior with several prominent headlands. Named features of the shore, from southwest to northeast, are the mouth of the Split Rock River, Split Rock Point, Crazy Bay, Corundum Point, the mouth of Split Rock Creek, Day Hill, Little Two Harbors, Stony Point (site of the lighthouse), and Gold Rock Point. The name Little Two Harbors comes from the division of the inlet by a small island, formerly a tombolo, and refers to the city of Two Harbors farther down the shore. There are two shallow sea caves at the base of Stony Point.
The east and west branches of the Split Rock River, not to be confused with Split Rock Creek, join in the park. There are ten waterfalls on the river, although because they can only be reached by a moderate hike on the Superior Hiking Trail and are not marked on park maps, they are lightly visited.
Geology.
Much of the shore of Lake Superior is made of basalt erupted from the Midcontinent Rift System when the middle of the North American Plate began to crack 1.1 billion years ago. In a small tract that includes Split Rock Lighthouse State Park, additional magma intruded into the basalt and cooled underground into a harder rock called diabase. These flows also carried with them blocks of anorthosite, an even harder rock from the base of the Earth's crust, which became interspersed randomly in the diabase. Three large blocks of anorthosite form Corundum Point, Day Hill, and Stony Point beneath the lighthouse. In the southwest portion of the park another eruption formed a layer of red rhyolite. The rhyolite has eroded into several natural pillars, and forms the walls of the Split Rock River gorge.
Beginning 2 million years ago a series of glacial periods repeatedly covered the region with ice, scouring the bedrock and scooping out a great basin. The glaciers, and later meltwater, wore away less resistant rock, leaving behind hills and ridges of the harder diabase and anorthosite. At the end of the last glacial period the basin filled with meltwater. The water level fluctuated significantly over time due to blockages of the outlet and post-glacial rebound. The high-water Glacial Lake Duluth deposited clay sediments inland, while later, lower precursors of Lake Superior eroded bluffs and beach terraces.
Flora and fauna.
The park was originally forested with red and white pine. However, these were heavily logged at the beginning of the 20th century, and wildfires sweeping through the cutover land killed many of the remaining saplings and seedlings. Today the vegetation is primarily birch with some spruce, fir, and ash trees.
Mammals found in the park include white-tailed deer, moose, black bears, raccoons, snowshoe hares, red foxes, bobcats, and Canadian lynxes. A colony of beavers lives on the Split Rock River. Birds include herring gulls, common loons, and a variety of songbirds. Peregrine falcons nest on the lakeside cliffs.
Cultural history.
Early history.
Several vestiges of early 20th-century industry are visible in the park. The first white settlement in the Split Rock area was Little Two Harbors, a commercial fishing village populated largely by Norwegian immigrants. The men of the village fished for trout, whitefish, and herring from 16–18 foot skiffs in the fall and winter. Little Two Harbors was inhabited until 1925, although in later years only 4 or 5 residents lived there year-round. Cement foundations of houses and fish processing buildings remain.
A logging camp known as Splitrock existed at the mouth of the Split Rock River from 1899 to 1906. Pilings from their dam and wharf are still visible jutting from the water. The Merrill Logging Trail follows the route of their rail line. In 1901 a prospector from Duluth misidentified the outcrops of anorthosite as corundum, an extremely hard mineral valuable as an industrial abrasive. Three years later the North Shore Abrasives Company set up mining operations on Corundum Point, but abandoned the site in 1908 when their product was found to be inadequate. Their crushing house burned down in a forest fire in 1910 but its concrete footings remain.
Another remnant from this period is a finely crafted, freestanding stone fireplace atop Day Hill. According to local legend it was the start of a house built around 1900 by Frank Day, a businessman from Duluth, for himself and his sweetheart, but abandoned when she did not reciprocate his love.
Split Rock Lighthouse.
Three violent storms struck the Great Lakes in November 1905, killing 116 sailors. One, the Mataafa Storm of November 28, damaged nearly 30 ships on Lake Superior. Two ships were wrecked against the future park's shore, the steel steamboat "William Edenborn" and a barge it was towing, the "Madeira". The "Edenborn" was beached far ashore at the mouth of the Split Rock River and later salvaged, but one of the 25 crewmembers was killed. The "Madeira" with 10 men aboard drifted northeast until violent waves began smashing her against the cliffs of Gold Rock Point. Crewman Fred Benson managed to leap onto the rocks and scale the cliff in the midst of the snowstorm. The first mate was swept overboard and drowned, but Benson was able to lower a rope and pull the other eight crew to safety. The "Madeira" sank in pieces at the foot of Gold Rock while the crewmen, suffering from exposure and frostbite, found shelter with local fishermen and loggers. Both crews were picked up two days later by the tugboat "Edna G".
The shipping companies that had sustained losses in the storms lobbied the federal government for an expanded system of navigational aids on the Great Lakes. Besides the "Edenborn" and the "Madeira", five other ships had been damaged within a dozen miles of the Split Rock River. A signal in that area was at the top of the industry's list of demands. The site ultimately selected for the lighthouse and fog signal was northeast of the Split Rock River, on Stony Point. There were no roads yet up the North Shore, so all construction materials were brought in by barge and hoisted up the cliff with a derrick and a steam-powered hoist. By midsummer 1910 work was complete on the lighthouse, foghorn building, and three houses for the lighthouse keepers.
The derrick remained the only way to bring supplies up the cliff until the lighthouse staff built a tramway in 1915-16. The station finally became accessible by a road, now Minnesota State Highway 61, completed in 1929. Five years later a crew from the Civilian Conservation Corps built a new access road and lighthouse tenders were provided with a truck to bring in supplies by land, so the tramway was dismantled.
The picturesque lighthouse, perched on a 130-foot cliff overlooking the world's largest lake, began attracting small numbers of visitors within weeks of its opening. However the completion of Highway 61 opened the floodgates to tourism. In 1938 it was estimated that 100,000 visitors stopped by, five times more than any other federally operated lighthouse. Some of the lighthouse keepers' children opened a souvenir stand just outside the station entrance in 1941. Both the U.S. Lighthouse Service and the U.S. Coast Guard which absorbed it in 1939 were obliged to add seasonal staff to help conduct tours.
State park creation.
In 1945 Clarence R. Magney, a former mayor of Duluth turned associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, noticed a sign near the Baptism River reading "Lake and River Frontages for Sale." A staunch advocate of public lands on the North Shore, Magney determined to protect some of this land from the development boom that would accompany the end of World War II. At this time Gooseberry Falls was the only Minnesota state park on Lake Superior. A bill promoted by Magney easily passed in the Minnesota Legislature, creating both Baptism River State Park (now Tettegouche State Park) and Split Rock State Scenic Wayside. The wayside consisted of a hill offering a view of the Split Rock Lighthouse.
Due to its popularity with tourists, the lighthouse was kept operating well after radar and other technology had rendered it obsolete. However, by 1967 the Coast Guard was considering decommissioning the station. The state legislature acted to expand the wayside into a full-fledged state park including the lighthouse itself. The station was officially closed in 1969 after 59 years of service. Under the Surplus Property Act the grounds and buildings were transferred to the state of Minnesota for free to be operated as a historic site.
The state parks division developed an entrance station, picnic grounds, roads, and trails. The Minnesota Historical Society took over management of the lighthouse station in 1976. Over the next decade they restored several buildings to their 1920 appearance and constructed a $1.2 million history center. Meanwhile, from 1984 to 1990 the state park spent $555,000 to improve the recreational facilities, including a new access road, picnic area, and all-season trail shelter, and an expanded trail system. They also developed the park's first campground, an unconventional design in which campers wheel their equipment to their sites in carts provided by the park.
The Split Rock Trading Post, just outside and unaffiliated with the state park, operated from 1960 up to 1999, when it burned down in a fire. In addition to a kitschy gift shop, this tourist trap once boasted live bears in cages, the anchor of the "Madeira", and a wooden tower offering a view of the lighthouse.
Gold Rock Point, the headland just north of the lighthouse, was not originally part of the state park. In 1997 it was purchased from its private owners by the Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota, an organization founded by Clarence Magney, among others, to buy and hold worthy properties until state legislation can authorize their public acquisition. The next year Nadine Blacklock, a nature photographer and president of the Parks and Trails Council, was killed in a car accident just outside the north end of the park. The Council and the Blacklock Nature Sanctuary, an art and conservation non-profit organization she and her family had founded, jointly purchased of land around the accident site. were transferred to the state park while the remainder, with an existing one-bedroom cabin, is managed by the Blacklock Nature Sanctuary as an artists' retreat. The additions were developed with access features for "Madeira" wreck divers and the Gitchi-Gami State Trail, a paved bicycling route in development along the North Shore.
Recreation.
Split Rock Lighthouse State Park has a unique cart-in campground with 20 secluded campsites and a modern restroom. Campers leave their vehicles in a parking lot and use two-wheeled carts provided by the park to carry their equipment a short distance to their site. There are four backpack campsites along the shore, two accessible to sea kayakers. Conventional drive-in campgrounds managed by the state park are available in two state forests in the area. An expansion of the state park campground, to include 60 drive-in sites, has been approved and construction may begin in summer 2010.
The park contains of trails for hiking, bicycling, and cross-country skiing. There are several overlooks providing views of the lighthouse and Lake Superior. A paved section of the Gitchi-Gami State Trail runs through the park near the shore, while the Superior Hiking Trail runs inland and skirts both the Split Rock River and Split Rock Creek. There is a lakeshore picnic area and two picnic shelters, one open year-round.
Water recreation includes boating, sea kayaking, and fishing for lake trout, salmon, and brown trout. The park also provides scuba diving access to the "Madeira" wreck, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Divers can also see parts of the "Madeira" in Little Two Harbors, where they were dumped in 1974 after an aborted salvage operation. Underwater artifacts from the settlements of Splitrock and Little Two Harbors can be seen in their respective bays.
Park events.
The park's trail center hosts various public events, including music performances, nature walks, and history programs. Every year on November 10th, the beacon of the lighthouse is lighted to commemorate the sunken SS "Edmund Fitzgerald". This event attracts nearly 900 people each year.


Anystipalpus percicola

Anystipalpus percicola is a species of mite in the family Laelapidae.


Brickellia hastata

Brickellia hastata is a North American species of shrubs in the daisy family. It is found only in the state of Baja California Sur in western Mexico.


Imnaha National Forest

Imnaha National Forest was established in Oregon on March 1, 1907 with when the first Wallowa National Forest and Chenismus National Forest were combined. Its lands presently exist as part of Wallowa–Whitman National Forest.
It is adjacent to Hells Canyon National Recreation Area.


Sebastiania rigida

Sebastiania rigida is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It was originally described as "Gymnanthes rigida" in 1863. It is native to Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.


Excoecaria grahamii

Excoecaria grahamii is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It was described in 1906. It is native to western tropical Africa.


Xyris scabrifolia

Xyris scabrifolia, common name Harper's yelloweyed grass, is a North American species of perennial in the yellow-eyed-grass family. It grows in the southern United States from Texas to North Carolina.


Gunniopsis rodwayi

Gunniopsis rodwayi is a succulent plant in the iceplant family, Aizoaceae. It is endemic to Western Australia.
The annual herb can have an erect or prostrate habit typically growing to a height of . It blooms between August and December producing white flowers.
It is found around salt lakes and other saline areas and was a scattered distribution throughout the Mid West, Wheatbelt and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy, loamy or clay soils.
The species was first formally as "Aizoon rodwayi" by the botanist Alfred James Ewart in 1908 in his work "Contributions to the Flora of Australia" as recorded in "Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria". Gardner reclassified it into the "Gunniopsis" genera in 1930 in the work "Enumeratio Plantarum Australiae Occidentalis".


Amblyseius foenalis

Amblyseius foenalis is a species of mite in the family Phytoseiidae.


Sipunculus robustus

Sipunculus robustus is a species of unsegmented benthic marine worm in the phylum Sipuncula, the peanut worms.
Distribution.
This peanut worm is found in the northwestern Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, but not the Mediterranean Sea, and also it is found on the Atlantic side of Central America, but not on the Pacific side.


Six Rivers National Forest

Six Rivers National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in the northwestern corner of California. It was established on June 3, 1947 by U.S. President Harry S. Truman from portions of Klamath, Siskiyou and Trinity National Forests. Its over one million acres (4,000 km2) of land contain a variety of ecosystems and of old growth forest. It lies in parts of four counties; in descending order of forestland area they are Del Norte, Humboldt, Trinity, and Siskiyou counties. The forest is named after the Eel, Van Duzen, Klamath, Trinity, Mad, and Smith rivers, which pass through or near the forest's boundaries.
The forest has 366 miles (589 km) of wild and scenic rivers, six distinct botanical areas, and public-use areas for camping, hiking, and fishing. The northernmost section of the forest is known as the Smith River National Recreation Area. Forest headquarters are located in Eureka, California. There are local ranger district offices in Bridgeville, Gasquet, Orleans, and Willow Creek.
Its old-growth forests include Coast Douglas-fir ("Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii"), Tanoak ("Lithocarpus densiflorus"), Pacific madrone ("Arbutus menziesii"), and White Fir ("Abies concolor").
Wilderness areas.
There are five designated wilderness areas in Six Rivers National Forest that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Two of them lie mostly in other National Forests or on Bureau of Land Management land.


Rubus weatherbyi

Rubus weatherbyi is a rare North American species of flowering plants in the rose family. It is found only in eastern Canada in the Provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
The genetics of "Rubus" is extremely complex, so that it is difficult to decide on which groups should be recognized as species. There are many rare species with limited ranges such as this. Further study is suggested to clarify the taxonomy.


Isocarpha megacephala

Isocarpha megacephala is a New World species of plants in the sunflower family. It has been found only in northeastern Brazil (Bahia, Pernambuco, Paraíba).
"Isocarpha megacephala" is an annual or perennial herb up to tall. Leaves are up to long. One plant produces several flower heads, each across (thus larger than the other species) each head on a long flower stalk, each head with 200-300 white disc flowers but no ray flowers.


Santa Rosa Island National Monument


Goodenia elderi

Goodenia elderi is a species of flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae and is endemic to inland areas of Western Australia. It is an erect or virgate shrub with linear, more or less bunched stem leaves, and spreading racemes of white or yellow flowers.
Description.
"Goodenia elderi" is an erect or virgate shrub that typically grows to a height of . It has linear, more or less bunched stem leaves long and wide. The flowers are arranged in spreading racemes or thyrses long on a peduncle up to long with linear bracts up to long at the base. Each flower is on a pedicel up to long with linear bracteoles up to long. The sepals are linear, long, the corolla white or yellow, long. The lower lobe of the corolla is up to long with wings about wide. Flowering mainly occurs from September to January and the fruit is an elliptic capsule long.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Goodenia elderi" was first formally described in 1874 by Ferdinand von Mueller and Ralph Tate in the journal "Botanisches Centralblatt" from material collected "on sandy places near Warangering" during an expedition funder by Thomas Elder. The specific epithet ("elderi") honours Thomas Elder.
Distribution and habitat.
This goodenia grows in sandy soil between Karalee west of Coolgardie and Queen Victoria Spring north of Zanthus in the Coolgardie, Great Victoria Desert, Murchison, Nullarbor and Yalgoo biogeographic regions of inland Western Australia.
Conservation status.
"Goodenia elderi" is classified as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Prunus trichantha

Prunus trichantha, ( "hairy petal Tibetan cherry"), is a species of "Prunus" native to the Himalayas (Tibet, Sikkim and Nepal), preferring to grow at 2800–3900m. It is typically a tree 2-10m tall.


Monodora laurentii

Monodora laurentii is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo. Émile De Wildeman, the Belgian botanist who first formally described the species, named it after Marcel Laurent, the Belgian botanist who collected many plant specimens in the regions along the Congo River.
Description.
Its papery leaves are smooth on their upper and lower surfaces. Its petioles are 5-8 millimeters long. Its flowers are solitary and axillary. Each flower is on a pedicel 17-20 millimeters long. Its flowers have 3 sepals that are 4 by 12 millimeters. Its 6 petals are arranged in two rows of 3. The outer petals are 12 by 42 millimeters and arched. The inner petals are 10 by 13 millimeters. Its purple fruit are 8 by 2.2 centimeters with 5 lateral ribs. Each fruit has about 12 shiny brown seeds that are 12 millimeters long.
Reproductive biology.
The pollen of "M. laurentii" is shed as permanent tetrads.
References.


Elaphoglossum serpens

Elaphoglossum serpens is a rare species of fern that grows only on Cerro de Punta, the highest mountain in Puerto Rico. The fern grows at one location, where there are 22 known specimens. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 1993.
The fern was described in 1947 from specimens found at Monte Jayuya. This habitat was cleared for construction and the plant was extirpated. It was later located on Cerro de Punta. This fern is an epiphyte which grows on the trunks of the tree species "Lyonia rubiginosa" var. "stahlii". There are only six trees that together host the 22 ferns. This mountain summit is coveted for its ideal location for communications facilities and construction of these facilities has led to destruction of part of the forest there.
This fern produces a few fronds of two different types. The sterile frond is up to 19 centimeters long with a blade at the end measuring up to 8 centimeters long by 3.5 wide. The fertile frond is up to 18 centimeters long and has a smaller blade, up to 4 centimeters long and only about a centimeter wide.
The fern grows on mossy tree trunks in the elfin forest on the highest peak on the island of Puerto Rico. This cloud forest has a short, dense canopy no more than about 7 meters tall. It is very wet, windy, and has saturated soils poor in nutrients.
Because this plant is known from only one location, habitat destruction or disturbance in that area could result in the extinction of the species. The mountain peak was strongly impacted by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. Many permits have been requested by entities interested in building structures in the area, an activity that has caused plant destruction in the past.


Acer buergerianum

Acer buergerianum (trident maple; ) is a species of maple native to eastern China (from Shandong west to southeastern Gansu, south to Guangdong, and southwest to Sichuan), Taiwan and Japan.
Description.
It is a small to medium-sized deciduous tree reaching a height of 5–20 m with a trunk up to 50 cm diameter. The leaves are in opposite pairs, 2.5–8 cm long (excluding the 2–5 cm petiole) and 3.5–6.5 cm broad, hard, glossy dark green above, paler below, usually with three lobes; on mature trees the lobes forward-pointing and with smooth margins, on young trees with more spreading lobes and serrated margins. The flowers are produced in spring, yellow-green, in pendulous corymbs; they are small, with five greenish sepals and five yellow-white petals about 2 mm long, and eight stamens. The fruit is a samara with two winged seeds, each seed 4–7 mm diameter, with a 15 mm wing; the wings are forward-pointing and often overlapping each other.
The species is variable, and a number of varieties have been described:
A few trees have consistently unlobed leaves; these were first described as a variety "A. trifidum" var. "integrifolium" Makino ("A. trifidum" is an old synonym of "A. buergerianum"), but are now not distinguished from the species. Occasional unlobed leaves also occur on most trees with otherwise normal three-lobed leaves.
Cultivation.
It is widely grown in temperate regions as an ornamental tree. It was introduced very early to Japan, where its name translates as "China maple". More recently, it was introduced to Europe and North America in 1896, and is now occasionally grown in parks and large gardens there. Mature examples may be seen at Westonbirt Arboretum in England, the Esveld Aceretum in Boskoop, Netherlands, Arnold Arboretum in Boston, Massachusetts and many other locations.
Bonsai.
Trident maple is a popular choice for the art of bonsai and responds well to techniques that create leaf reduction and ramification. It is suitable for many style and sizes of bonsai.
Cultivars.
Several interesting cultivars have been developed, many of these bear Japanese names. Notable cultivars include 'Goshiki Kaede' (striking pink and green variegation), 'Kifu Nishiki' (roundish, almost un-lobed leaves), 'Mino Yatsubusa' (dwarf with long, narrow leaves) 'Mitsubato Kaede' (distinctive cork-like trunk) and 'Naruto' (strongly incurved leaf surface).


Gagea filiformis

Gagea filiformis is an Asian species of plants in the lily family, native to Russia (Altay Krai), China (Xinjiang), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Mongolia.
"Gagea filiformis" is a bulb-forming perennial up to 10 cm tall. Flowers are yellow or yellow-green.


Solms-laubachia himalayensis

Solms-laubachia himalayensis is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. The specific epithet "" is from the Latin, meaning "Himalayan".
Description.
"Solms-laubachia himalayensis" grows as a herb from to tall. The racemes feature from 6 to 25 flowers. These flowers are purple or lilac with a yellow centre. Its fruits are lanceolate and measure up to long. Its brown seeds are ovate. The plant flowers from June to August and fruits from July to October.
Distribution and habitat.
"Solms-laubachia himalayensis" is a high-altitude species growing naturally in Nepal, the western Himalayas and Tibet. Its habitat is alpine tundra, in hills or on scree, typically from to altitude. Along with "Ranunculus trivedii", it is the highest altitude flowering plant on record. In 1955, specimens were discovered at by Narendra Dhar Jayal on an expedition to Kamet mountain in present-day Uttarakhand.


Morchella spongiola

Morchella spongiola is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae. It was first described scientifically by Jean Louis Émile Boudier in 1897.


Annona macroprophyllata

Annona macroprophyllata is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is native to El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico. John Donnell Smith, the American botanist who first formally described the species, named it after its large leaves (Latinized forms of Greek , makrós and , phúllon).
Description.
A bush reaching 3-4 meters in height. Its membranous, elliptical leaves are 4-6 by 2-3.5 centimeters and have rounded or slightly indented tips. The leaves are hairless on both surfaces. Its petioles are 2-3 millimeters long. Its solitary flowers are on 1-2.7 centimeter long pedicels. Its oval sepals are 3-4 millimeters long and covered in rust-colored shaggy hairs. Its outer petals are 20 by 5-7 millimeters and covered in fine hairs. The mature, thick, fleshy, outer petals have an outer surface that is green at the base and yellow at the tip, while its inner surface has pink and red highlights. Its inner petals are rudimentary. Its ovaries are hairless.
Reproductive biology.
The pollen of "A. macroprophyllata" is shed as permanent tetrads.
Distribution and habitat.
It has been observed growing at an elevation of 1,110 meters.
Uses.
Bioactive molecules extracted from the leaves have been reported to have alpha-glucosidase inhibitor activity.


Acacia pinguifolia

Acacia pinguifolia, commonly known as the Fat-leaved wattle or Fat-leaf wattle, is endemic to South Australia, and is listed as an endangered species. It is in the Plurinerves section of the Acacias.
Distribution and habitat.
It is found on the southern Eyre Peninsula and has a disjunct population near Finniss in the south Lofty region. It mainly grows in sandy or hard alkaline soils, in open scrub or woodland.
History.
The species was first described in 1947 by the botanist John McConnell Black, from a specimen collected on the Finniss River near Lake Alexandrina, in South Australia. The species epithet, "pinguifolia", derives from the Latin adjective, "pinguis" ("fat") and the compounding root, "-folius" ("-leaved") to give a Botanical Latin adjective which describes the plant as being "fat-leaved".


Iris pseudocaucasica

Iris pseudocaucasica is a species in the genus "Iris", it is also in the subgenus "Scorpiris". It is a bulbous perennial from central Asia, within the Caucasus (in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) and in Iran, Iraq and Turkey. It has
Description.
It is not to be confused with "Iris caucasica", although in the same sub-genus of iris, they are different plants. It differs from "Iris caucasica" by having yellowish green or blue flowers.
"Iris pseudocaucasica" has a bulb of 1-1.5 cm diameter.
It generally has 3-4 leaves, when fully grown these reach a height of between 4–18 cm long and between 1-2.8 cm wide at the base of the plant, but averagely, they are 1-1.5 cm wide. They are generally lanceolate shaped, channelled, glossy green above with a greyish-green below, with a white cartilaginous margin.
The large leaves normally obscure the flower stem, which can reach a maximum height of tall.
It has generally 1-4 flowers per stem.
It blooms in the UK between April and June. In Armenia. it flowers from March to May and fruits from May to June.
The flowers can also be described as translucent yellow or icy blue, or creamy yellow, or light bluish–violet.
The flowers have a perianth tube of 3–4 cm long and bracts 4–5 cm long. It has large winged standards, which are about 2 cm long. The pale blue forms have falls that have a yellow wavy crest.
It has an ellipsoid capsule, (produced after flowering) which is about 3.5 cm long, producing seeds about 4 mm long.
Biochemistry.
As most irises are diploid, having two sets of chromosomes, this can be used to identify hybrids and classification of groupings. It has a chromosome count: 2n=20.
It has been studied in Iran during a karyotypic study in 2013, with Iris songarica, Iris aucheri and Iris sisyrinchium.
Taxonomy.
The specific epithet is derived from 'pseudo' from the Greek word meaning 'false' and 'caucasica' meaning from the Caucasus.
It was first published in 'Vĕstnik Tiflisskago Botaniceskago Sada. Moniteur du Jardin Botanique de Tiflis' on pages 40–41 in 1916 by Alexander Alfonsovich Grossheim.
"Iris pseudocaucasica" is an accepted name by the RHS, and it was verified by United States Department of Agriculture and the Agricultural Research Service on 4 April 2003, and then updated on 13 March 2017.
It is listed in 1995 in 'Vascular plants of Russia and adjacent states (the former USSR)' by Czerepanov, S. K.
Distribution and habitat.
It is native to temperate regions of Asia.
Range.
"Iris pseudocaucasica" is found in South East Turkey, North Eastern Iraq, North and North western Iran and the former USSR state of Armenia, (part of Southern Transcaucasia). It also can be found in Azerbaijan, and Nakhichevan, East Anatolia.
Within Armenia, it is distributed in Yerevan (central part of Urts mountain range) and Meghri (Aygedzor, Vardanadzor, Gudemnis, Shvanidzor, and Nyuvadi towns) regions. Due to the loss of the irises natural habitat, which has been caused by an expansion of the local mining industry, it has become a 'threatened' plant and is becoming rarer to find.
In Iran, it is found along the lakeside of the Chalus Gorge, north of Tehran, with in rock crevices, and within Jahan Nama, Golestan,
Only yellow-flowered forms of the species have been recorded in Turkey.
Habitat.
It prefers the clay, stony hillsides, screes and mountain steppes. It is found at altitudes of between above sea level.
Cultivation.
It is hardy to USDA Zone 4.
It prefers to be cultivated in well-drained soils with a high rock/stone content, that are in full sun but are protected from winter damp.


Balaka samoensis

Balaka samoensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Arecaceae. It is endemic to Samoa.


Calocidaris micans

Calocidaris micans is a species of sea urchins of the Family Cidaridae. Their armour is covered with spines. Calocidaris micans was first scientifically described in 1903 by Ole Mortensen.


Crivellia

Crivellia is a genus of fungi in the family Pleosporaceae. It is a monotypic genus, containing the single species Crivellia papaveracea, which causes leaf blight of opium poppy. The fungus is found in Europe, Australia, India, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, USA and Zambia.
"Agent Green" in Colombia.
In 2000, the government of Colombia proposed dispersing strains of "Crivellia" and "Fusarium oxysporum", also known as Agent Green, as a biological weapon to forcibly eradicate coca and other illegal crops.
The weaponized strains were developed by the US government, who had conditioned their approval of Plan Colombia on the use of this weapon, but ultimately withdraw that condition. In February 2001, the EU Parliament also issued a declaration specifically against the use of these biological agents in warfare.


Dinteracanthus


Epidermophyton floccosum

Epidermophyton floccosum is a filamentous fungus that causes skin and nail infections in humans. This anthropophilic dermatophyte can lead to diseases such as tinea pedis (athlete's foot), tinea cruris, tinea corporis and onychomycosis. Diagnostic approaches of the fungal infection include physical examination, culture testing, and molecular detection. Topical antifungal treatment, such as the use of terbinafine, itraconazole, voriconazole, and ketoconazole, is often effective.
"E. floccosum" is one of the 2 species in the genus "Epidermophyton". During the 20th century, this species was the fourth most common cause of dermatophytosis in North America. This ascomycete has a worldwide distribution but is more commonly isolated from patients in tropical and subtropical areas. The non-soil associated fungus has no specific growth conditions and shows characteristic smooth club-shaped macroconidia under the microscope.
History and taxonomy.
The fungus was first isolated in 1870 from a tinea cruris patient in Germany by Carl Otto Harz, who named it "Acrothecium floccosum". Being unaware of Harz's work, Castellani and Sabouraud identified the species again in 1905 and 1907, respectively, and both placed the fungus into the genus "Epidermophyton". "Epidermophyton" is one of the three dermatophyte fungal genera; it is distinct from the other two genera ("Microsporum" and "Trichophyton") for the absence of microconidia. In 1930, based on the principle of priority, Langeron and Milochevitch renamed the fungus "Epidermophyton floccosum" to recognize Harz's contribution in identifying the species first, as well as his extensive morphological descriptions.
Another fungus, originally named "Epidermophyton stockdaleae", is a dark-brown, soil-inhabiting species that is morphologically and molecularly distinct to "E. floccosum" for its longer conidia and 7% NaCl tolerance. "E. stockdaleae" is also clinically differentiated from "E. floccosum" by its ability in perforating hair. Due to the presence of microconidia, "E. stockdaleae" is now considered a synonym of "Trichophyton ajelloi", hence "E. floccosum" is currently the only species in the genus "Epidermophyton".
Growth and morphology.
The filamentous non-soil associated fungus does not require any specific growth condition in culture. "E. floccosum" does not grow on urease culture, has low osmotolerance, and is unable to form perforating organs. The colonies have khaki suede-like flat surfaces and grow moderately rapidly, reaching maturity within 10 days. The reverse is reddish-brown. Colonies are initially flat, but the centre of which later becomes raised and folded, with the periphery submerged. On rich media like Sabouraud agar, colonies usually degenerate into white pleomorphic tufts within several weeks, and sometimes exude a red-brown pigment into its agar.
"E. floccosum" has septate, hyaline hyphae. Its key features are the smooth, thin-walled, club-shaped macroconidia and the absence of microconidia. The macroconidia are borne singly or in clusters of 2 or 3; they are 20–40 μm in length and 7–12 μm in width, consisting of 1 to 9 septa. The narrow base and broad, club-shaped apex of the macroconidium have been compared in shape to a beaver tail.
The fungus reproduces asexually through chlamydoconidia, which are resting spores that are abundant in culture. Arthroconidia are also abundant in the culture, emerging as swollen cells alongside macroconidia formation; these thick-walled spores are resistant to heat and drying conditions.
Pathology.
Infection.
"E. floccosum" causes superficial diseases such as tinea pedis (athlete's foot) and tinea cruris, and less commonly tinea corporis and onychomycosis. Similar to other fungal dermatophytes, "E. floccosum" can invade keratinized tissues including skin and nails. A recent clinical case has also demonstrated its capacity of infecting eyes, causing keratitis. It does not perforate hair or hair follicles. This anthropophilic dermatophyte preferentially infects humans and rarely infects animals, thus lab animal experiments are found to be unsuccessful. "E. floccosum" is more infective than most dermatophytes. Chronic infections are rare, therefore maintenance of the species relies on rapid transmission between hosts. The infection typically stays within the nonliving conidified layer of host epidermis, since the fungus cannot pierce through living tissues of individuals with normal immunity. However, it has been found to cause invasive infections in immunocompromised patients, demonstrating severe onychomycosis, skin lesions, and subcutaneous nodules.
Spread.
"E. floccosum" can remain viable for long periods of time by producing arthroconidia in skin scales. Arthroconidia are thick-walled spores with higher resistance to drying and heat conditions than mycelium. Arthroconidia formation allows "E. floccosum" to survive for years in showers, baths, swimming pools, towels, blankets, sheets, shoes and other clothings. The fungus commonly spreads by contact in showers and gym facilities.
Treatment.
"In vitro" studies have found that several agents are effective against "E. floccosum". Disease-specific topical treatments for "E. floccosum"-related infections are usually effective, commonly with the use of terbinafine, itraconazole, and ketoconazole.
Diagnosis.
When causing the same disease, clinical demonstrations of "E. floccosum" are generally indistinguishable from other dermatophytes, except for tinea pedis: infections involving "E. floccosum" can demonstrate marked scaling in patient's toe and sole and produce punctate lesions nearby. Brownish macules could derive from some of these lesions.
Traditionally, diseases are diagnosed with physical and Wood's lamp examinations. Unlike some "Microsporium" species, "Epidermophyton, as well as" "Trichophyton" do not fluoresce under the ultraviolet light of a Wood's lamp. Fungal cultures further distinguish "Epidermophyton" from other dermatophytes based on the absence of microconidia. Molecular advances have decreased the time of identification from 3–4 weeks to 3–4 days. Samples obtained from patient nail, hair, and skin scale can undergo PCR-RFLP, which distinguishes between 12 dermatophyte species based on their individual restriction enzyme profiles, including one for "E. floccosum". A real time PCR protocol is also available for the specific detection of "E. floccosum", allowing identification as fast as 4 hours after sample lysis.
Habitat.
"E. floccosum" has a worldwide distribution but is more commonly found in tropical and subtropical areas. Historical fungal infections have been reported in US military in Vietnam and British Army in Southeast Asia. "E. floccosum" was considered the fourth most common cause of dermatophytosis in North America. Accounting for around 20 percent US cases and 44 percent Asian cases, it is also the third most common cause of tinea pedis worldwide, following "Trichophyton mentagrophytes" and "Trichophyton rubrum".


Kunzea sulphurea

Kunzea sulphurea is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to Western Australia.
The erect and compact shrub or tree typically grows to a height of but can reach as high as . It blooms between September and November producing yellow flowers.
Often found on dunes, ridge tops and seasonally wet flats in the South West and Great Southern regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy soil types.


Ptenothrix maculosa

Ptenothrix maculosa is a species of globular springtails in the family Dicyrtomidae.


Eunoe crassa

Eunoe crassa is a scale worm described from off Punta Arenas, Chile in the South Pacific Ocean.
Description.
Elytra 15 pairs (presumably). No distinct pigmentation pattern. Anterior margin of prostomium rounded. Lateral antennae inserted ventrally (beneath prostomium and median antenna). Notochaetae distinctly thicker than neurochaetae. Bidentate neurochaetae absent.


Trophodiscus almus

Trophodiscus almus is a species of starfish in the family Astropectinidae. It is found in fairly deep waters in the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan and around the Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is very unusual among starfish in that it broods its young on its upper surface. Its common name in Japanese is "Komochi-momiji".
Description.
"Trophodiscus almus" is a five-armed pentagonal starfish growing to a diameter of about . It has a wide disc and short, bluntly pointed arms. The aboral (upper) surface is slightly convex and is covered in paxillae, umbrella-shaped structures with spiny margins. The paxillae are larger near the inter-arm areas and smaller at the centre of the disc and near the arm-tips. The madreporite is about half way from the centre of the disc to the margin, the anus is small, and there are respiratory structures known as papulae between and concealed by the paxillae. A notable feature are the 13 to 20 large calcareous plates, wider than they are long, that extend around the margins of each arm. There seem to be two different colour forms of this starfish. Some individuals have a bright red or orange-red aboral surface and a paler, reddish-brown oral (under) surface. Other individuals have a yellowish-green aboral surface and yellowish-brown oral surface. In both cases, the superomarginal plates are paler and contrast with the other parts.
Distribution.
"Trophodiscus almus" was thought to be endemic to the Sea of Okhotsk from where it was first described by the American zoologist Walter K. Fisher in 1917 from material collected by the marine research vessel . More recently it has been discovered in the Sea of Japan and the waters around Hokkaido. Its depth range is and it is fairly uncommon. In the Sea of Japan it is found on muddy sand bottoms where the water temperature is .
Biology.
Juvenile starfish of this species are brooded on the aboral surface of the female between the paxillae. Up to sixteen young have been found on one adult, the juveniles being either reddish-orange or greyish-green. The colour of the offspring does not always coincide with that of the parent, the greyish-green form sometimes being found on the red adults. Brooding the young in this location is very unusual among starfish, and the only other species known to do it are the sister species, "Trophodiscus uber", from the Sea of Okhotsk, "Leptychaster kerguelenensis" from the extreme south of the Indian Ocean and "Ctenodiscus australis" from the Southern Ocean.


Sclerotinia spermophila

Sclerotinia spermophila is a plant pathogen, infecting red clover, but can also be considered an animal pathogen.


Centruroides noxius

Centruroides noxius is a species of scorpion native to Mexico.
Description and behavior.
This species grows from 3.5 to 5 cm in length, its body is dark in color, usually black or brown, and its legs and pedipalps are generally light, this species does not have a specific color pattern since it can be found with other colors. Since most scorpions are nocturnal, they usually hide in litter and debris, or in loose barks of trees and bushes, it is mostly terrestrial, but it has also been reported to rise on rough surfaces.
Distribution and habitat.
This species is native to Mexico, in the states of Nayarit, but also in Jalisco and Sinaloa. it is also found in other Latin American countries, such as Chile, but it is not known how it got there. It is mainly found in dry arid places, areas of limited vegetation, in sandy and rocky soil and sometimes in human dwellings, it has been reported close to sea level, with 500 m elevation.
Reproduction.
Mating lasts about 10 minutes, with the male controlling the female with his tweezers to avoid being bitten by her, they reach sexual maturity between 8–11 months of age, reproduction is ovoviviparous, with a gestation period of 4–5 months, the female of the aluz between 30 and 60 pups. the puppies become independent at 2 or 3 weeks of age, as they can be eaten by the mother.
Diet.
It feeds mainly on small invertebrates, such as crickets, spiders and beetles. juveniles usually feed on micro-crickets and small flies.
Venom.
It is the most venomous scorpion in Mexico and one of the most dangerous in Latin America, it has highly lethal neurotoxins for mammals, which attacks the sodium and potassium channels, the venom changes the functioning of nerves and muscles, to the point of the respiratory system and the heart stop working. This species has a median lethal dose of 5 micrograms for 20-gram mouse. Two peptide toxins have been identified in the venom: noxiustoxin, which targets voltage-gated calcium channels and calcium-activated potassium channels, and Cn2 toxin, which targets the mammalian voltage-gated sodium channel (VGSC) Nav1.6.


Melaleuca depressa

Melaleuca depressa is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, bushy shrub with clusters of yellow or cream flowers on the ends of its branches in spring.
Description.
"Melaleuca depressa" usually grows to a height of about but in some situations to . Its leaves are arranged alternately, are long and wide, oval to elliptic or narrowly so. The leaf stalk is very short and the end is pointed but not sharp.
The flower are a shade of cream to yellow and are arranged in heads on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering, or sometimes in the upper leaf axils. Each head has between 2 and 6 groups of flowers in threes. The petals are long and fall off as the flower opens. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower, each bundle containing 9 to 13 stamens. Flowering occurs from July to November but mainly from September and the fruit which follow flowering are woody capsules long with part of the sepals remaining as teeth.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Melaleuca depressa" was first formally described in 1904 by Ludwig Diels in "Botanische jahrbucher fur systematik, pflanzengeschichte und pflanzengeographie" under the heading "Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae occidentalis:Beitrage zur Kenntnis der Pflanzen Westaustraliens, ihrer Verbreitung und ihrer Lebensverhaltnisse" ("Contributions to the knowledge of the plants of West Australia, where they are found and their conditions of existence"). The specific epithet ("depressa") is from the Latin "depressus" meaning "flattened from above, somewhat sunken at the centre", although it is not clear why Diels chose this epithet.
Distribution and habitat.
"Melaleuca depressa" occurs in the Geraldton and Northampton districts in the Avon Wheatbelt and Geraldton Sandplains biogeographic regions. It grows in sandy soils over sandstone and limestone.
Conservation status.
This species is classified as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Mycosphaerella caryigena

Mycosphaerella caryigena is a fungal plant pathogen.


Methylomonas methanica

Methylomonas methanica is a Gram-negative bacterium that obtains its carbon and energy from methane, a metabolic process called methanotrophy. It is found in lakes, ponds, freshwater sediment and marshy ground. They are motile, the cells are rod-shaped.


Karenia brevis

Karenia brevis is a microscopic, single-celled, photosynthetic organism in the genus "Karenia". It is a marine dinoflagellate commonly found in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It is the organism responsible for the "Florida red tides" that affect the Gulf coasts of Florida and Texas in the U.S., and nearby coasts of Mexico. "K. brevis" has been known to travel great lengths around the Florida peninsula and as far north as the Carolinas.
Each cell has two flagella that allow it to move through the water in a spinning motion. "K. brevis" is unarmored, and does not contain peridinin. Cells are between 20 and 40 μm in diameter. "K. brevis" naturally produces a suite of potent neurotoxins collectively called brevetoxins, which cause gastrointestinal and neurological problems in other organisms and are responsible for large die-offs of marine organisms and seabirds.
History.
Karenia brevis was named for Dr. Karen A. Steidinger in 2001, and was previously known as Gymnodinium breve and Ptychodiscus brevis. The classification of "K. brevis" has changed over time as advances in technology are made. It was first named "Gymnodinium brevis" in 1948, but was later changed to "Gymnodinium breve", which correlates with the guidelines of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature. In 1979 it was categorized under the genus Ptychodiscus and named "Ptychodiscus brevis" as new research showed it fit better under this genus because of its morphology, biochemistry, and ultrastructure. Then in 1989, scientists agreed this organism should be referred to as its original name ("G. breve"). It was then reclassified and transferred to the new genus "Karenia", which was established at the University of Copenhagen in 2000.
"Karenia brevis" was first identified in Florida in 1947, but anecdotal reports in the Gulf of Mexico date back to the 1530s. Outbreaks of "K. brevis" have been known to occur since the Spanish explorers of the 15th and 16th centuries, as documented by Spanish explorers like Cabeza de Vaca. These explorers noted large fish kills that resemble the die offs seen in present-day due to "K. brevis". C.C. Davis confirmed these die offs were due to "K. brevis" in 1948.
Ecology and distribution.
"Karenia brevis" has an optimum temperature range of , an optimum salinity range of 25-45 Practical Salinity Units (PSU), has adapted to "low-irradiance environments," and can utilize both organic and inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus compounds to survive. In its normal environment, "K. brevis" will move in the direction of greater light and against the direction of gravity, which will tend to keep the organism at the surface of whatever body of water it is suspended within. The swimming speed of "K. brevis" is about one metre per hour and the organism can be found throughout the year in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico at concentrations of ≤ 1,000 cell per liter.
Scientists have been unable to determine a definitive geographic range for "K. brevis" specifically because it is difficult to separate from the ten other species of "Karenia", but "K. brevis" is the most common species occurring in the Gulf of Mexico.
"Karenia brevis" is the causative agent of red tide, which occurs when the organism multiplies to higher than normal concentrations. During these events the water can take on a reddish or pinkish coloration, giving these explosions in the "K. brevis" population the name of Florida Red Tide. These algal blooms caused by "K. brevis" produce brevetoxins, which can result in significant ecological impacts through the death of large numbers of marine animals and birds, to include marine mammals. Large scale fish kills are known to occur due to these Florida Red Tides caused by "K. brevis". Fish species through the food chain are impacted, up to and including large predatory species such as sharks, as well as species typical in human consumption.
Gabriel Vargo of the University of South Florida states that, "There is no single hypothesis that can account for blooms of  "K. brevis"  along the west coast of Florida". However, like most algae, their occurrence and survival depends on a variety of factors in their environment including water temperature, salinity, light, and nutrients/compounds present in the water.
Under favorable conditions, toxin-producing dinoflagellates such as "K. brevis" flourish and grow to high concentrations, an event termed a "harmful algal bloom" or a "HAB". While there are many different types of these HABs and the effects can vary, "K. brevis" is the causative agent of Florida Red Tides. Due to the toxin that "K. brevis" produces, these red tides can be detrimental to marine life and can even affect human populations along coasts where they occur.
Impact on human health and activities.
In areas where "K. brevis" is found at normal population levels, the organism is not known to cause harm to human health. It is only at times of unchecked population growth, resulting in harmful algal blooms, when the organism is of concern to human health and activities. The same cannot be said of shellfish harvested and consumed from these algal bloom areas. The brevetoxins released by "K. brevis" can be found in the flesh of shellfish during Florida Red Tides, potentially causing a condition known as Neurotoxic Shellfish Poisoning (NSP) in humans. Although no recorded human deaths have occurred from NSP, the poisoning does result in nausea, vomiting and a variety of neurological symptoms. Other than NSP, the effects on human health during Florida Red Tide are thought to be limited to respiratory and eye irritation to susceptible persons on the water or close to the shore of areas impacted by the Red Tide, and irritation of skin directly exposed to Florida Red Tide waters. Persons with pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma, emphysema or COPD may be more susceptible to harm from the respiratory irritation caused by "K. brevis" and may be advised to remain away from coastal areas during periods of Florida Red Tide.
The uncontrolled mass explosions of "K. brevis" populations resulting in Florida Red Tide also has a significant financial impact on the affected coastal areas. The primary source of revenue generation in many of the communities affected by "K. brevis" red tides is tourism. During periods of red tides this important source of revenue is often lost to the impacted coastal communities of Florida, often on the scale of tens of millions of dollars.
This particular protist is known to be harmful to humans, large fish, and other marine mammals. It has been found that the survival of scleractinian coral is negatively affected by brevetoxin. Scleractinian coral exhibits decreased rates of respiration when there is a high concentration of "K. brevis".
Detection and monitoring.
Traditional methods for the detection of "K. brevis" are based on microscopy or pigment analysis. These are time-consuming, and typically require a skilled microscopist for identification. Cultivation-based identification is extremely difficult and can take several months.
The traditional methods of detection and monitoring of "K. brevis" blooms from field measurements is labor-intensive and suffers from practical limitations on achieving real-time detection or monitoring. The "Brevebuster" is a deploy-able instrument that can be deployed on automated underwater vehicles or on stationary platforms that can optically detect the Florida red tides. A molecular, real-time PCR-based approach for sensitive and accurate detection of "K. brevis" cells in marine environments has therefore been developed. A real-time nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NASBA) assay has been developed for detection of "rbcL" mRNA from "K. brevis". NASBA is sensitive, rapid and effective, and may be used as an additional or alternative method to detect and quantify "K. brevis" in the marine environment.
Another technique for the detection of "K. brevis" is multiwavelength spectroscopy, which uses a model-based examination of UV-vis spectra. Methods of detection using satellite spectroscopy have also been developed. Satellite images from Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) ocean color sensor, identify "K. brevis" by making use of its chlorophyll fluorescence and low backscattering characteristics. In addition to methods of detection of cells of "K. brevis", enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) have been developed for detecting brevetoxin in shellfish, are more sensitive than the standard mouse bioassay, and as of 2008, were being considered by the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference for regulatory use.


Hesperoyucca newberryi

Hesperoyucca newberryi, commonly known as the Grand Canyon Quixote plant or Newberry's yucca, is a plant species endemic to Arizona. It is found only in Mohave and Coconino Counties, on the walls of canyons near the Colorado River.
"Hesperoyucca newberryi" is a perennial forming a rosette. It is semelparous (flowering once then dying). Leaves are narrow, up to long but usually less than across. Flowering stalks are up to tall, bearing cream-colored flowers. The fruit is a dry, egg-shaped capsule about long.


Tillandsia streptocarpa

Tillandsia streptocarpa is a species of flowering plant in the Bromeliaceae family. This species is native to Bolivia, Peru, Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil.


Eucalyptus subcrenulata

Eucalyptus subcrenulata, commonly known as Tasmanian alpine yellow gum, is a species of small to medium-sized tree that is endemic to the highlands of Tasmania. It has smooth bark, glossy green, lance-shaped to egg-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three, white flowers and hemispherical to bell-shaped fruit. It is similar to "E. johnstonii", "E. vernicosa" and "E. urnigera".
Description.
"Eucalyptus subcrenulata" is a tree that typically grows to a height of , sometimes a tall, straight tree to , and forms a lignotuber. It has smooth, pale grey to brown or yellowish bark, often with horizontal black scars. Young plants and coppice regrowth have stems that are square in cross-section, sometimes with a wing on each corner and sessile leaves, arranged in opposite pairs. These leaves are egg-shaped to round, glossy green, long and wide with small teeth on the edge. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, lance-shaped to egg-shaped, the same shade of glossy green on both sides, long and wide, tapering at the base to a petiole long. The edge of the leaves sometimes have small teeth, the veins are at an angle greater than 45° to midrib and the leaves have a strong spicy aroma when crushed.
The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in groups of three on an unbranched peduncle long, the individual buds sessile. Mature buds are oval, long and wide with a rounded to beaked operculum. Flowering occurs from November to May, peaking between January and March, and the flowers are white. The fruit is a sessile, woody, hemispherical to bell-shaped capsule long and wide with the valves at rim level or slightly above.
Taxonomy and naming.
"Eucalyptus subcrenulata" was first formally described in 1929 by Joseph Maiden and William Blakely in Maiden's book "A Critical Revision of the Genus Eucalyptus", from specimens he collected near Mount Field East in 1906. The specific epithet ("subcrenulata") is derived from the Latin "sub-" meaning "somewhat" or "not completely" and "crenulatus" meaning "having small, rounded teeth", referring to the leaf edges.
This eucalypt is in the subgenus "Symphyomyrtus", section "Maidenaria", series "Semiunicolores" along with two other Tasmanian species, Tasmanian yellow gum ("E. johnstonii"), varnished gum ("E. vernicosa") and two mainland species, Mt Imlay mallee ("E. imlayensis") and Nunniong gum ("E. elaeophloia". Eucalypts in section "Maidenaria" have cotyledons with two lobes, flower buds in leaf axils and with two opercula, stamens with versatile anthers and flattened seeds with a ventral hilum. The species in the series "Semiunicolores"have smooth bark, juvenile leaves mostly arranged in opposite pairs and with toothed margins, glossy green crown leaves, flower buds in threes and sessile fruit.
"Eucalyptus johnstonii" tends to occur at lower altitudes than "E. subcrenulata" and "E. vernicosa", usually a small-leaved shrub, at the highest. It is also similar to urn gum ("E. urnigera") in series "Orbiculares" but that species is distinguished by its urn-shaped fruit. The mainland species have more greyish leaves.
Distribution and habitat.
"Eucalyptus subcrenulata" grows on exposed ridges, plateaus and slopes in subalpine woodland on the central and western highlands of Tasmania, including in the Mount Field National Park and Great Western Tiers. It also occurs with "E. coccifera" in the more exposed subalpine woodlands.
Use in horticulture.
Tasmanian alpine yellow gum grows best in well-drained soil in a sunny location. It is frost resistant but must be kept watered. It is recognised as being very cold-tolerant in both New Zealand and Britain. Evans (1986) even identified "E. subcrenulata" as being a promising species for planting in milder areas of the United Kingdom.


Manilkara spectabilis

Manilkara spectabilis is an uncommon species of tree in the sapodilla family.
In 1997, the IUCN were mistakenly under the impression that a specimen in the USA, collected in 1899 from a site near Limón in the Atlantic coastal forests of Costa Rica was the only specimen that had ever been collected for of the species, and therefore assumed it might be an endemic to this location. Based on this supposition, the species was provisionally declared 'critically endangered'. It had in fact been collected in Nicaragua in 1951 already, and after being declared 'critically endangered' it was soon found elsewhere in eastern coastal Costa Rica by local researchers.


Melaleuca holosericea

Melaleuca holosericea is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae which is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, rare shrub similar to other pink-flowered species in the "Melaleuca scabra" group.
Description.
"Melaleuca holosericea" grows to about high, rarely taller. The leaves and branches are often covered with a dense covering of soft, silky hairs. The leaves are long and wide, linear in shape, almost circular in cross section and tapering at the end.
The pinkish flowers are arranged in heads up to diameter at the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering, each head containing between two and five groups of flowers in threes. The petals are long and fall off as the flower opens. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower, each bundle containing between 7 and 9 stamens. The main flowering period is in early spring and is followed by the fruit which are woody capsules about long.
Taxonomy.
"Melaleuca holosericea" was first formally described in 1844 by Johannes Conrad Schauer in "Plantae Preissianae". The specific epithet ("holosericea") is from Ancient Greek, meaning "entire, complete or whole" and "silk", referring to the silky hairs on the branches and leaves.
Distribution and habitat.
This melaleuca occurs in the Clackline, Toodyay and Northam districts in the Avon Wheatbelt and Jarrah Forest biogeographic regions. It grows in sandy and gravelly soils on undulating plains and ridges.
Ecology.
"Melaleuca holosericea" has been found to be resistant to "Phytophthora cinnamomi"
Conservation status.
"Melaleuca holosericea" is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife.


Devils Postpile National Monument

Devils Postpile National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located near Mammoth Mountain in Eastern California. The monument protects Devils Postpile, an unusual rock formation of columnar basalt. It encompasses and includes two main tourist attractions: the Devils Postpile formation and Rainbow Falls, a waterfall on the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River. In addition, the John Muir Trail and Pacific Crest Trail merge into one trail as they pass through the monument. Excluding a small developed area containing the monument headquarters, visitor center and a campground, the National Monument lies within the borders of the Ansel Adams Wilderness.
History.
The monument was created in 1911 as Devil Postpile National Monument, but is widely referred to as Devils Postpile National Monument, and has been officially styled as plural without the apostrophe since the 1930s. The monument was once part of Yosemite National Park, but discovery of gold in 1905 near Mammoth Lakes prompted a boundary change that left the Postpile on adjacent public land. Later, a proposal to build a hydroelectric dam called for blasting the Postpile into the river. Influential Californians, including John Muir, persuaded the federal government to stop the demolition and, in 1911, President William Howard Taft protected the area as a National Monument.
Flora and fauna.
The flora and fauna at Devils Postpile are typical of the Sierra Nevada. The monument area contains animals and plants such as black bears, pine martens, mule deer, coyotes, quaking aspen, black cottonwood, alder, and willows, as well as many wildflowers, such as cinquefoil and alpine shooting star. Dark-eyed juncos and white-crowned sparrows are common in the summer.
Access.
The most common method for accessing Devils Postpile is via the mandatory shuttle bus operated by Eastern Sierra Transit Authority in the summer months, followed by a 1/4 mile walk. The shuttle route begins at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area's Adventure Center and makes several stops throughout the valley and begins operating when the Reds Meadow Road opens in the summer, and continues through Labor Day weekend.
Devils Postpile is also accessible on foot from Mammoth Lakes by hiking over Mammoth Pass and into the Reds Meadow Valley. During the winter months, there are no services available, but adventurers can visit the site via cross-country ski or snowshoe.
Devils Postpile.
The name "Devils Postpile" refers to a dark cliff of columnar basalt. Radiometric dating indicates the formation was created by a lava flow at some time less than 100,000 years ago. The source of the lava is thought to have been somewhere near Upper Soda Springs campground at the north end of Pumice Flat on the floor of the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River, from where it flowed to the site of the Postpile. Estimates of the formation's thickness range from to . The lava that now makes up the Postpile was near the bottom of this mass.
Because of its great thickness, much of the mass of pooled lava cooled slowly and evenly, which is why the columns are so long and so symmetrical. Columnar jointing occurs when certain types of lava contract while cooling.
A glacier later removed much of this mass of rock and left a polished surface on top of the columns with very noticeable glacial striations and glacial polish.
The Postpile's columns average in diameter, the largest being , and many are up to long. Together they look like tall posts stacked in a pile, hence the feature's name. If the lava had cooled perfectly evenly, all of the columns would be expected to be hexagonal, but some of the columns have different polygonal cross-sections due to variations in cooling. A survey of 400 of the Postpile's columns found that 44.5% were 6-sided, 37.5% 5-sided, 9.5% 4-sided, 8.0% 7-sided, and 0.5% 3-sided. Compared with other examples of columnar jointing, the Postpile has more hexagonal columns. Another feature that places the Postpile in a special category is the lack of horizontal jointing.
Similar structures.
Although the basaltic columns are impressive, they are not unique. Basalt columns are a common volcanic feature, and they occur on many scales (faster cooling produces smaller columns). Other notable sites include Svartifoss in Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland, Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, Fingal's Cave in Scotland, Titan's Piazza of the Mount Holyoke Range in Massachusetts, the Garni Gorge in Armenia, the Cyclopean Isles near Sicily, Sheepeater Cliff at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Basaltic Prisms of Santa María Regla in Huasca de Ocampo, Mexico, the "Organ Pipes" formation on Mount Cargill in New Zealand, Gilbert Hill in Mumbai, Organ Pipes National Park in Australia and the "Column Cape" (Russian: Mis Stolbchaty) on Kunashir Island, the southernmost of the Kuril Islands, Cerro Colorado and Mar Brava (Ancud) in Chile. Columnar basalt can also be seen in a high desert dry river falls area just north of Lajitas, Texas. The much more massive Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming is superficially similar but consists of a phonolite porphyry, formed by the intrusion of igneous rock.


Gran Quivira National Monument


Phoenix caespitosa

Phoenix caespitosa ("caespitosa" - Latin, clumped or tufted) is a species of flowering plant in the palm family native to the Arabian Peninsula and the deserts of Somalia. This species grows in large clumps near oases or underground springs. The trunks are short, often subterranean, in readily clumping clusters with 3 m leaves divided into 15 to 45 cm, bluish-green leaflets.


Acacia betchei

Acacia betchei, commonly known as red-tip wattle, is a shrub belonging to the genus "Acacia" and the subgenus "Phyllodineae" endemic to eastern Australia.
Description.
The shrub typically grows to a height of with glabrous slender branchlets that have a dark red colour. The thin green straight to incurved phyllodes have a narrowly linear shape. The phyllodes have a length of and a width of with an obscure midrib.
Taxonomy.
The species was first formally described by the botanists Joseph Maiden and William Blakely in 1927 as published in the "Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales". It was reclassified as "Racosperma betchei" in 1987 by Leslie Pedley then transferred back to the genus "Acacia" in 2001. It is often confused with "Acacia adunca".
Distribution.
It is found along the tablelands of the Great Dividing Range from north-eastern New South Wales from around Torrington in the south extending to south eastern Queensland to around Dalveen in the north. It is found in sandy granite based soils as a part of forest communities.


Eulagisca gigantea

Eulagisca gigantea is a scale worm that is widely distributed around Antarctica and the Southern Ocean at depths of about 40 to 700m.
Description.
"Eulagisca gigantea" can grow to a length of and a width of . It is dorso-ventrally flattened and has 40 segments with 15 pairs of elytra. The prostomium is oval and the back part is concealed by a nuchal fold. The lateral antennae are inserted terminally on the anterior margin of the prostomium. The notochaetae are about as thick as the neurochaetae, but bidentate neurochaetae absent. The eversible proboscis bears a pair of large jaws and is about a quarter of the length of the whole organism. It is a greyish-brown colour and without patterning.


Aeranthes antennophora

Aeranthes antennophora is a species of orchid native to Madagascar.


Penicillium multicolor

Penicillium multicolor is an anamorph species of the genus "Penicillium" which produces alpha-L-fucosidase, tilactase, sclerotiorin, 8-O-Methylsclerotiorinamine, multicolosic acid and isochromophilones.


Arlington State Forest

Arlington State Forest covers in Arlington, Vermont in Bennington County. The forest is managed by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation for timber resources and wildlife habitat.


Polygonum striatulum

"Polygonum striatulum", the striped knotweed or Texas knotweed, is endemic to the U.S. state of Texas but cultivated as an ornamental elsewhere. It occurs there in sterile prairies, granitic soils, and in places that are seasonally moist, at elevations of .
"Polygonum striatulum" is a perennial herb that spreads by means of underground rhizomes. Leaves are lanceolate, up to long, the leaves in the upper part of the plant decidedly larger than those closer to the ground. Inflorescences are at the top of the plant and also at the tips of branches, each with 2–6 white to pinkish flowers.


Tylopilus virens

Tylopilus virens is a bolete fungus in the family Boletaceae found in Asia. It was described as new to science in 1948 by Wei-Fan Chiu as a species of "Boletus"; Japanese mycologist Tsuguo Hongo transferred it to "Tylopilus" in 1964. The fruit body has a convex to flattened cap that is in diameter. The tubes on the cap underside are up to 2 cm long, while the roundish pores are about 1–2 mm wide. The mushroom is similar in appearance to "Tylopilus felleus", but unlike that species, has a greenish cap when young. "T. virens" typically grows near the conifer species "Keteleeria evelyniana". It has elliptical spores measuring 11–14 by 5.5–6 µm.


Uromyces musae

Uromyces musae is a plant pathogen infecting bananas.


Acacia merinthophora

Acacia merinthophora, also known as zig-zag wattle, is a tree or shrub belonging to the genus "Acacia" and the subgenus "Juliflorae" that is endemic to western Australia.
Description.
The openly branched to weeping tree or shrub typically grows to a height of . It has pendulous, flexuose and ribbed branchlets that are sericeous between the ribs. Like most species of "Acacia" it has phyllodes rather than true leaves . The sessile phyllodes are strongly incurved with a quadrangular cross-section. The yellow-green glabrous phyllodes have a length of with a width of around and have four main nerves. It flowers from May to September producing yellow flowers. The simple inflorescences are found singly or in groups of two or three in the axils. The subsessile flower-heads have an obloid to shortly cylindrical shape with a length of and a diameter of and are sub-densely pack with golden coloured flowers. The firmly chartaceous seed pods that form after flowering have a straight and linear shape that are constricted between the seeds. the length of the pods are up to and a width of and are antrorsely strigulose with broad yellow margins. The seeds inside the pods are arranged longitudinally. The shiny mottled brown seeds have a peripheral line that is a darker brown and an oblong to elliptic shape with a length of and a terminal creamy yellow aril.
Taxonomy.
The species was first formally described by the botanist Ernst Georg Pritzel in 1904 as part of the work by Pritzel and Ludwig Diels, "Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae occidentalis. Beitrage zur Kenntnis der Pflanzen Westaustraliens, ihrer Verbreitung und ihrer Lebensverhaltnisse" as published in the journal "Botanische Jahrbucher fur Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie". It was reclassified as "Racosperma merinthophorum" by Leslie Pedley in 2003 then transferred back into genus "Acacia" in 2006.
The specific epithet is derived from the Greek language from the words "merinthos" meaning "cord or string" and "phoreo" meaning "carry or wear" in reference to the long thin shape of the phyllodes.
Distribution.
It is native to Wheatbelt, Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia from around Koorda in the north to Coolgardie in the east and Narrogin in the west where it is found in low-lying areas, on hillsides and sandplains growing in rocky sandy soils often around granite outcrops where it is a part of shrubland communities.


Astartea scoparia

Astartea scoparia, commonly known as common astartea, is a shrub endemic to Western Australia.
The shrub typically grows to a height of and produces white flowers.
It is found along the coast of the Peel, South West and Great Southern regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy-loamy soils.


Streptomyces cellulosae

Streptomyces cellulosae is a bacterium species from the genus of "Streptomyces" which has been isolated from garden soil . "Streptomyces cellulosae" produces fungichromin.


Bessemer Park

Bessemer Park is a public park in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. Created in 1904, it was named for Henry Bessemer, the inventor of the eponymous steelmaking process. The name is appropriate, since Chicago's most productive steel mill, the U.S. Steel Southworks, was located just a mile away.
The park was created by the South Park Commission as part of a new neighborhood park system in Chicago. Living conditions for immigrants in search of the "American dream" had become intolerable because of overcrowding. Most people didn't own cars. Other parks were too far away. Park superintendent J. Frank Foster conceived a new type of parkland for population-dense areas—parks providing "breathing spaces" and a host of other amenities, from public bathing to organized recreation. The Olmsted Brothers and the architects Daniel H. Burnham and Co. were engaged to design the entire park system, including Bessemer Park.
Bessemer Park boasts a gated and beautifully landscaped nature garden planted with a wide variety of native flowering trees, shrubs and forbs.


Staatsburgh State Historic Site

The Staatsburgh State Historic Site preserves a Beaux-Arts mansion designed by McKim, Mead, and White and the home's surrounding landscape in the hamlet of Staatsburg, Dutchess County, New York, United States. The historic site is located within Ogden Mills & Ruth Livingston Mills State Park. The mansion, a New York State Historic Site, is considered a fine example of the great estates built during the Gilded Age.
History.
In 1792, Morgan Lewis, the third Governor of New York, purchased an estate covering of about and commissioned the construction of a colonial-style house on the site of the present day mansion. In the summer of 1824, on his visit to the United States, the Marquis de Lafayette dined there on his way upriver to visit Lewis' brother-in-law, Chancellor Livingston.
In 1832, this first house was destroyed by a fire, said to be an act of arson committed by disgruntled tenant farmers. After the fire, Morgan Lewis and his wife, Gertrude Livingston, a sister of Chancellor Robert R. Livingston, immediately replaced the structure with a Greek Revival mansion with 25 rooms. The house was inherited in 1844 by Morgan Lewis's daughter Margaret and her husband Maturin Livingston; and in 1847 by the couple's son Maturin Livingston Jr. (1816–1888).
In 1890, Ruth Livingston Mills, the great-grand daughter of Morgan Lewis and the mother of Ogden L. Mills, Secretary of the Treasury, inherited the estate. Not long afterwards, Ruth Livingston Mills and her husband, the financier and philanthropist Ogden Mills, commissioned a remodeling and enlargement of the mansion to the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White; the principal architect was Stanford White. Work started in 1895 and when completed in the following year, he had turned the house into a Beaux-Arts mansion with 65 rooms, 14 bathrooms, and 23 fireplaces. The work is reported to have cost about $350,000. As part of the process, a coal-powered electricity plant was constructed near the Hudson River to supply the electric lights in the mansion, which was also equipped with central heating. The mansion was used as a residence and for entertaining by the family; they owned five homes in total, and stayed at Staatsburgh mainly during the fall season between mid-September and the Christmas holidays. During this time, they hosted house parties, balls, and dinners. At the remainder of the year, the family stayed in one of their other residences in New York City, Paris, Newport, Rhode Island, and California. Before her death, Ruth Livingston Mills began acquiring lands surrounding the estate. After her death in 1920, Ogden Mills continued to purchase the surrounding property, enlarging the acreage of the property to total over , the size of the mansion grounds at the time that it was given to the state of New York. In 1929, the property was passed on to their son, Ogden Livingston Mills and upon his death in 1937, on to his sister Gladys Mills Phipps.
In 1938, Gladys Mills Phipps donated the house and of land to the state of New York as a memorial to her parents. As a State Historic Site, the estate is operated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. In 1988, the Friends of Mills Mansion were organized to support the preservation and educational work at the site.
Design.
The outside of the mansion features a massive portico, balustrades, pilasters, and floral festoons. The central part of the mansion is layered into a basement, three floors, and an attic. In the north and south wings, there is a subbasement, a basement, and two floors. Ceilings in the older part of the building dating prior to the enlargement (the first floor of the central part) are about high, whereas the ceilings of the later construction (first floor of the north and south wings) can be about high. The interior of the building is decorated in French styles of the 17th and 18th century. However, some architectural elements of the previous home have been preserved in the process.
Preservation.
The Mills Mansion poses several challenges to preservation: On the outside, a gray sprayed concrete finish which was added later as a preservation measure needs to be removed and replaced with a more suitable surface treatment. At the same time, the decorative cornice and many decorative elements need to be either restored or replaced. On the inside of the building, wall paint and furnishing fabrics are in need of replacement, marble and wooden surfaces need to be cleaned and the objects of the mansion's collection need to be conserved.
References.
Notes
Further reading


Sminthurinus elegans

Sminthurinus elegans is a species of springtails in the family Katiannidae. It is found in Europe.


Iroquois County State Wildlife Area

The Iroquois County State Wildlife Area is an Illinois state park that occupies in northeastern Iroquois County, near the border with Indiana. The nearest municipality is Beaverville, Illinois, and the nearest exit on a limited-access highway is Exit 302 on Interstate 57 (Chebanse, Illinois).
Ecology.
The Iroquois County State Wildlife Area is a surviving remnant of the Great Kankakee Swamp, a 5,300 sq mi (14,000 km²) expanse of wetland that once drained the slow-flowing Kankakee River valley. The glacial melt episode that marked the conclusion of the Wisconsonian glaciation washed a fan of sand, silt, and sediments westward from Northwest Indiana into Northeastern Illinois, and this outwash plain, which remained damp or wet year-round, became the home of a significant quantity of habitat-specific wetland plants and insects.
History.
The Kankakee Swamp wetlands were the home of many beaver and other fur-bearing mammals, which led to the nearby locality being incorporated as the municipality of "Beaverville." The nearby towns of Chebanse and St. Anne pay tribute to the area's French-Canadian fur-trading heritage.
During the great drainage of the Kankakee Swamp, starting in the late 19th century, ditches were dug all over eastern Iroquois County to drain the outwash plain. While most of the ditched land became fertile farmland, the sands of far-northeastern Iroquois County resisted profitable farming activity.
In 1944 a predecessor agency of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) began to acquire the land of the future Iroquois County State Wildlife Area. The population of the greater prairie chicken had crashed in Illinois, and the state hoped the flagship species could be induced to rebuild a breeding population in the new sanctuary.
Today.
Attempts in the 20th century to reintroduce the greater prairie chicken to northeastern Iroquois County failed. State naturalists believe the wildlife area is too wet to be a good home for this species. The IDNR adaptively reused the failed prairie-chicken ground as a place to hunt whitetail deer, doves, pheasants, quail, rabbits, and squirrels. These game activities continue in their respective hunting seasons.
The Iroquois County State Wildlife Area is today a mosaic of sand dunes and wet prairie habitats. The juxtaposition of the sand and wetland has created a rolling savanna landscape of trees and grass, classified as an oak barren. The dominant oak tree is the black oak, often found on relatively infertile, sandy ground. The black-oak savanna is one of the largest native grassland remnants in Illinois. Prairie forbs include the blazing star and hairy puccoon.


Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge

The Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge is a 12,941 acre (52.4 km2) National Wildlife Refuge located in Washington County, Mississippi. Named after the Yazoo tribe, it was established to provide waterfowl and other migratory birds in the Mississippi Flyway with nesting, feeding, brooding, and resting habitat.
The refuge also serves as the headquarters for the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex, and is maintained with an eleven-person staff with a fiscal year 2005 budget of $2,097,000.
The refuge office also administers 12,800 acres (51.8 km2) of Farmers Home Administration (FmHA) transfer properties: 42 fee title tracts and 12 easements. A Cooperative farming program provides 3,942 acres (16.0 km2) for local farmers to use.
History.
In the early 1900s, natural habitat supplemented by agricultural crops provided excellent waterfowl hunting in and around the refuge area. Records indicate that ducks, geese and swans were abundant throughout the wintering season. Hunters came from as far away as New England to participate in the sport.
Land acquisition began under authority of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act in 1936 with the initial purchase of 2,166 acres (8.77 km2). In March, 1937, an additional 639 acres (2.59 km2) were purchased with plans to acquire 20,000 acres (80 km2). The refuge remained unstaffed from 1936 until 1956. In 1959 the refuge office was built.
The Service was given permission to purchase additional land in 1960 under the provision of Section 5928 of the Mississippi Code of 1942, re-compiled by Governor Ross R. Barnett. Various tracts were purchased from individuals and hunting clubs until a total of 12,471 acres (50.5 km2) was reached on July 30, 1969. As land acquisition progressed, habitat management was diversified for mourning doves, wood ducks, Canada geese and colonial wading birds, along with endangered and resident species. A nucleus flock of wild turkey was introduced in 1970. In 1992, the Service purchased the 470 acre (1.9 km2) Cox property bringing total refuge area to 12,941 acres (52.4 km2).
Topography.
Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge's 12,941 acres (52.4 km2) of undulating Delta soils range from heavy clay to silt loam and limited sand ridges (hot spots). Most farm area is classed as prime agricultural land. Elevations range from in the main drainage to in agricultural areas.
Yazoo NWR's primary feature is a 4,000+ acre (16 km2) oxbow lake named Swan Lake which formed thousands of years ago when the Mississippi River abandoned a segment of riverbed. In years past, Silver Lake Bayou flowed into the oxbow lake, accelerating the deposit of silt and sediment on the lake bottom, making the lake more shallow. Recently, the Corps of Engineers constructed a new channel to divert silt-laden waters around Swan Lake. Weirs and water control structures maintain water levels in the oxbow lake while the new channel diverts silt-laden flows around the north side of Swan Lake and into Steele Bayou. The Corps project successfully prevents the accelerated build-up of sediment that has reduced water depths in Swan Lake.
The past meanderings of the Mississippi River have created a "ridge-and-swale" topography on the refuge that varies by in elevation. From above sea level in the swamp to on sandy ridges, this mixture of elevations translates into a diversity of habitats for wildlife. Refuge staff have utilized this rolling landscape and through the years have installed 96 water control structures creating over 70 impoundments which have provided a myriad of habitats for migratory waterfowl, colonial wading birds, alligators, and other wildlife.
Since 1968, approximately 2,000 acres (8 km2) of marginal agricultural lands have been reforested on Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge. Reforestation has been accomplished by direct-seeding with acorns and with seedling plantings. At least 20 tree species have been planted on refuge lands. These plantations, some of which are among the oldest on record, now provide unique opportunities for researchers to study the development process for the restoration of bottomland hardwoods over time. Reforestation on Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge catalyzed similar habitat restoration on other refuges and private lands throughout the southeast region.
Habitats vary from bottomland hardwoods to cypress swamps and agricultural fields. Emphasis is placed on providing food for wintering waterfowl, which utilize the refuge in large numbers, at times exceeding 250,000 birds. These foods consist of corn, milo, rice, wheat, etc. and moist-soil plants. The refuge has over 70 water management units and has restored over 2,000 acres (8 km2) of marginal agricultural land to bottomland hardwoods.
Wildlife and protected species.
A unique opportunity for intensive moist-soil management occurred when the refuge purchased 240 acres (0.97 km2) of abandoned catfish ponds known today as the Cox Ponds. The ponds were reshaped to provide optimal bottom and side slopes, and each pond has its own water control structure and drain. Irrigation wells provide a permanent water source for each pond, giving the refuge broad management options. A rotating cycle of management treatments in these 14 ponds provides habitat for waterfowl, shorebirds, long-legged waders, and other water birds. Some ponds are managed as moist-soil areas while others provide deep water habitat. Frequent visitors to the Cox Ponds include white ibis, glossy ibis, little blue and great blue herons, great egrets, snowy egrets and a wide variety of wintering dabbling and diving ducks. Habitat is provided for southward-bound shorebirds (about 20 species) from July 15 to November. In 2003, the first documented brood of black-bellied whistling ducks in Mississippi was photographed here. In August 2004, as many as thirteen grown ducks plus a brood of eight were observed, indicating an increasing population of this tropical species.
The well-established wood duck nest box program produces about 2,000 wood duck hatchlings a year. The boxes are prepared early in the year and checked frequently during nesting season to track hatches and remove non-viable eggs.
In addition to waterfowl, the white-tail deer is abundant; hunting is allowed for most native game species except waterfowl.
Opportunities for wildlife observation are excellent with good access to a diversity of habitats. The American alligator is a common site in refuge lakes and swamps. The endangered Louisiana black bear are occasionally observed. During fall, winter and spring, numerous visitors travel refuge roads to observe the diverse wildlife which includes white-tailed deer, wild turkey, waterfowl, bobcat, and otter.
Facilities.
The refuge features two wildlife observation areas:
The all-time-favorite for many visitors is the American alligator. A common resident of the refuge's many sloughs, streams, lakes, and shallow ponds, alligators can often be seen on warm spring days basking on logs or banks, or floating motionless. Common alligator locations are Holt Collier Horseshoe Pond, Alligator Pond, Lizard Lake, Deer Lake, and Alligator Alley.
Hunting and fishing.
Yazoo National Wildlife Refuge offers excellent white-tail deer, squirrel, rabbit, and raccoon hunting opportunities. The deer muzzleloader and deer archery hunts are among the most popular hunts in the State. Because Yazoo NWR was established to provide sanctuary for migratory waterfowl, the refuge is closed to duck hunting. ATVs are prohibited on refuge roads and trails; however, all refuge roads are open to foot traffic except where posted.
The refuge is closed to fishing due to high levels of pesticides such as DDT and Toxaphene which are found in fish, water and sediment samples taken on the refuge.