Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent plumage. Starlings are native to Europe, Asia and Africa, as well as northern Australia and the islands of the tropical Pacific. Several European and Asian species have been introduced to these areas as well as North America, Hawaii and New Zealand, where they generally compete for habitats with native birds and are considered to be invasive species. The starling species familiar to most people in Europe and North America is the common starling, and throughout much of Asia and the Pacific, the common myna is indeed common.
A daylily or day lily is a flowering plant in the genus Hemerocallis, a member of the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae. Despite the common name, it is not in fact a lily. Gardening enthusiasts and horticulturists have long bred daylily species for their attractive flowers. Thousands of cultivars have been registered by local and international Hemerocallis societies.
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon.
Hemerocallidoideae is the botanical name of a subfamily of flowering plants, part of the family Asphodelaceae sensu lato in the monocot order Asparagales according to the APG system of 2016. Earlier classification systems treated the group as a separate family, the Hemerocallidaceae. The name is derived from the generic name of the type genus, Hemerocallis. The largest genera in the group are Dianella, Hemerocallis (15), and Caesia (11).
Asphodelaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Asparagales. Such a family has been recognized by most taxonomists, but the circumscription has varied widely. In its current circumscription in the APG IV system, it includes about 40 genera and 900 known species. The type genus is Asphodelus.
Tube-dwelling anemones or ceriantharians look very similar to sea anemones but belong to an entirely different subclass of anthozoans. They are solitary, living buried in soft sediments. Tube anemones live inside and can withdraw into tubes, which are composed of a fibrous material made from secreted mucus and threads of nematocyst-like organelles known as ptychocysts. Within the tubes of these ceriantharians, more than one polyp is present, which is an exceptional trait because species that create tube systems usually contain only one polyp per tube. Ceriantharians were formerly classified in the taxon Ceriantipatharia along with the black corals but have since been moved to their own subclass, Ceriantharia.
Stypandra is a small genus of rhizomatous perennials in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae. They are native to Australia and New Caledonia.
In biological classification, taxonomic rank is the relative level of a group of organisms in a taxonomic hierarchy. Examples of taxonomic ranks are species, genus, family, order, class, phylum, kingdom, domain, etc.
Geitonoplesium is a genus of a sole species Geitonoplesium cymosum, the scrambling lily. It is a member of the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae. They grow naturally as scrambling vines in rainforests, drier forests and woodlands, of eastern Australia, the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea, Fiji, New Caledonia, Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island.
Chamaescilla is a genus of Australian herbs in the subfamily Hemerocallidoideae within the asphodel family. They have grass-like basal leaves and tuberous roots. The flowers have six petals and six stamens. The seed capsules contain black, glossy seeds.
Tricoryne is a genus of perennial herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae. All species are native to Australia with two species extending to New Guinea; within Australia they occur in all 6 states and the Northern Territory.
- Tricoryne ancepsR.Br. - New Guinea, Queensland
- Tricoryne corynothecoidesKeighery - Western Australia
- Tricoryne elatiorR.Br. - Yellow Rush-lily - all 6 states plus Northern Territory
- Tricoryne humilisEndl. - Western Australia
- Tricoryne muricataBaker - Queensland
- Tricoryne platypteraRchb.f - New Guinea, Queensland
- Tricoryne simplexR.Br. - New South Wales
- Tricoryne tenellaR.Br. - Mallee Rush-lily - Western Australia, South Australia
Caesia is a genus of herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, native to Australia, New Guinea, Madagascar and Southern Africa. The mostly 3-lobed seed capsules contain rounded black seeds. The genus was named in honour of Federico Cesi (1585-1630), an Italian scientist.
- Caesia alpina Hook.f. - alpine grass-lily - New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria
- Caesia calliantha R.J.F.Hend. - blue grass-lily - New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia
- Caesia capensis(Bolus) Oberm. - Cape Province of South Africa
- Caesia chlorantha F.Muell. - New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia
- Caesia micrantha Lindl. - New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, Queensland
- Caesia occidentalis R.Br. - Western Australia
- Caesia parviflora R.Br. - pale grass-lily - Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia
- †Caesia rigidifolia F.Muell. - Queen Victoria Springs in Western Australia but extinct. Last recorded near Zanthus in 1875.
- Caesia sabulosaBoatwr. & J.C.Manning - Cape Province
- Caesia setifera Baker - Queensland, Western Australia, Northern Territory, New Guinea
- Caesia subulataBaker - Madagascar
- Caesia viscida Keighery - Western Australia
Thelionema is a small genus of tufted perennials in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae. All three species, which were previously placed in the genus Stypandra, are native to Australia. These are:
Caesia parviflora, the pale grass lily, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, native to Australia, being found in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia.
Dianella nigra, is a perennial herb of the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, found in New Zealand. The bright blue berries are attractive to birds, but they are very bitter and are not considered edible by humans, and may be poisonous if eaten in large amounts.
Phormium is a genus of two plant species in the family Asphodelaceae. One species is endemic to New Zealand and the other is native to New Zealand and Norfolk Island. The two species are widely known in New Zealand as flax and elsewhere as New Zealand flax or flax lily, but they are not closely related to the Northern Hemisphere's flax, which is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and has been used by humans since 30,000 B.C.
Corynotheca is a genus of herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, first described as a genus in 1878. The entire genus is endemic to Australia.
- Corynotheca asperataR.J.F.Hend - Western Australia, Northern Territory
- Corynotheca flexuosissimaR.J.F.Hend. - Western Australia
- Corynotheca lateriflora(R.Br.) F.Muell. ex Benth. - Northern Territory
- Corynotheca licrotaR.J.F.Hend. - Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia
- Corynotheca micrantha(Lindl.) Druce - Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia
- Corynotheca pungensR.J.F.Hend. - Western Australia
Hensmania is a genus of herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, first described as a genus in 1903. The entire genus is endemic to the State of Western Australia.
- Hensmania chapmaniiKeighery, Fl. Australia 45: 486 (1987)
- Hensmania stoniellaKeighery, Fl. Australia 45: 486 (1987)
- Hensmania turbinata(Endl.) W.Fitzg., Proc. Linn. Soc. New South Wales 28: 106 (1903)
Stawellia is a genus of herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, first described as a genus in 1870. The entire genus is endemic to the State of Western Australia.
- Stawellia dimorphanthaF.Muell., Fragm. 7: 85 (1870)
- Stawellia gymnocephalaDiels, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 35: 100 (1904)
Pasithea is a genus of herbs in the family Asphodelaceae, subfamily Hemerocallidoideae, first described as a genus in 1832. It contains only one known species, Pasithea caerulea, native to Peru and Chile in South America.
