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Research Grade Species #1315: Asplenium platyneuron
Asplenium platyneuron Ebony Spleenwort
Ferns are plants from a genetic lineage that never developed the ability to make seeds. Plants that do make seeds make up the vast majority of plant biodiversity, but there are still about 4000 different species of ferns. In fact, reproducing via spores enables some advantages over what we call "flowering ( Read more... ) -
Research Grade Species #1310: Magnolia Serpentine Leafminer: Phyllocnistis magnoliella
A tiny moth, a 3mm long silvery white angel, lays its eggs on the underside of a leaf of a magnolia or tuliptree. A miniscule colorless caterpillar hatches and penetrates the bottom epidermis of the leaf, and begins eating. The caterpillar eats a trail through the chlorophyll-rich cells of the leaf, leaving a pale track behind. As the caterpillar ( Read more... ) -
Research Grade Species #1305: Xeromphalina campanella
I have recorded observations of this mushroom species twice, both during October of 2021. It isn't clear (since it's the only observation on my worksheet without a link to iNaturalist) which rang the bell to sound observation 1305, so I'll treat both equally.
These little orange mushrooms appear by the hundred on the dead wood of conifers trees, ( Read more... ) -
Research Grade Species #1300: Coleosporium solidaginis, goldenrod rust
Note: when I hit 1300 research grade species on iNaturalist, I started this post. This was almost exactly a year ago. I felt too busy to write about it at the time, so left it as a private post, and added another research grade species when I hit 1305. And then 1310. And so on. The current number is 1475. When will I feel like I have the time to ( Read more... ) -
(Untitled)
"Boston followed Philadelphia’s example by introducing a handful of gray squirrels to Boston Common in 1855...According to the former Boston mayor Nathaniel Bradstreet Shurtleff, writing in 1871, the squirrels simply died out."
I guess the squirrels that live in the Common now are not direct descendants of the 1855 introduction. They either filtered ( Read more... ) -
The Urbanization of the Eastern Gray Squirrel in the United States
I feel like I've blogged about this before, but here it is again, so I can reference it more easily as part of my research of Boston Common:
The Urbanization of the Eastern Gray Squirrel in the United States
Etienne Benson Journal of American History, Volume 100, Issue 3, December 2013, Pages 691-710, https://doi.org/10.1093/jahist/jat353 Published:
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Boston over time
I am planning an Urban Nature Walk to occur in Boston Common--kind of amazing I've never done one there before. While researching the history I read that the Common was basically on the shore when it was created. If you've ever been there, you don't have any sense that the ocean is nearby when you are in that part of the city.
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Research Grade Species #1295: Beefsteak Plant
For many years I have noticed a plant that pops up by my compost container in my back yard. I could tell the plant was in the mint family (square stems, aromatic when crushed) and it most closely resembles Basil, out of the few cultivated herbs I am familiar with. The mint family contains quite a few members that are both valuable herbs and ( Read more... )
