Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A typical life cycle involves flightless females giving live birth to female nymphs—who may also be already pregnant, an adaptation scientists call telescoping generations—without the involvement of males. Maturing rapidly, females breed profusely so that the number of these insects multiplies quickly. Winged females may develop later in the season, allowing the insects to colonize new plants. In temperate regions, a phase of sexual reproduction occurs in the autumn, with the insects often overwintering as eggs.
The term "big cat" is typically used to refer to any of the five living members of the genus Panthera, namely the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard, as well as the non-pantherine cheetah and cougar.
Hover flies, also called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. In some species, the larvae are saprotrophs, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects.
The Schokari sand racer is a species of psammophiid snake found in parts of Asia and Africa. Psammophis schokari aegyptius has been elevated to species status. Many people refer to snakes in the genus Psammophis as colubrids, but this is now known to be incorrect—they were once classified in the Colubridae, but our more sophisticated understanding of the relationships among the groups of snakes has led herpetologists to reclassify Psammophis and its relatives into Lamprophiidae, a family more closely related to Elapidae than to Colubridae.
The yellow-billed kite is the Afrotropic counterpart of the black kite, of which it is most often considered a subspecies. However, DNA studies suggest that the yellow-billed kite differs significantly from black kites in the Eurasian clade, and should be considered as a separate, allopatric species.
The Ryukyu long-tailed giant rat or Ryukyu rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is the only extant species in the genus Diplothrix. It is found only in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.
The Ghana rufous-nosed rat, also known as the West African Oenomys, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland and seasonally flooded agricultural land, it has also been observed in secondary high forest habitat.
Solanum cajanumense is a species of plant in the family Solanaceae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
Myzus persicae, known as the green peach aphid, greenfly, or the peach-potato aphid, is a small green aphid belonging to the order Hemiptera. It is the most significant aphid pest of peach trees, causing decreased growth, shrivelling of the leaves and the death of various tissues. It also acts as a vector for the transport of plant viruses such as cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), potato virus Y (PVY) and tobacco etch virus (TEV). Potato virus Y and potato leafroll virus can be passed to members of the nightshade/potato family (Solanaceae), and various mosaic viruses to many other food crops.
Melangyna novaezelandiae is a hoverfly endemic to New Zealand. It is a generalized pollinator of a large range of plants that are both native and exotic to the New Zealand flora. M. novaezelandiae is widespread throughout New Zealand, including in agricultural environments. The larvae of this species feeds on other arthropods and may have uses as a biocontrol agent.
Chaetosiphon fragaefolii, the strawberry aphid, is a bug species in the genus Chaetosiphon found in the United States (Arizona), Argentina and Chile.
Chirostoma attenuatum – also known as slender silverside – was featured in the 2009 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the American Fisheries Society. They are found in Patzcuaro, Central Mexico. The species is at risk of being extinct. Eight helminth species, type of parasitic worms, including Posthodiplostomum minimum, Allocreadium mexicanum, Bothriocephalus acheilognathi, a cyclophyllidean cysticercoid, Arhythmorhynchus brevis, Spinitectus carolini, Capilaria patrcuarensis, and Eustrongylides sp., were discovered in 195 Chirostoma attenuatum fish from Lake Patzcuaro from October 1989 to December 1990. Posthodiplostomum minimum had the highest frequency and intensity; it had the most impact in harming the Chirostoma attenuatum fish.
Hipposideros alongensis, known as the Ha Long leaf-nosed bat, is a species of bat in the family Hipposideridae. It is endemic to Vietnam. It is listed as a vulnerable species by the IUCN.
Leucadendron conicum, the garden route conebush, is a flower-bearing shrub that belongs to the genus Leucadendron and part of the fynbos form. The plant is native to the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape, where it occurs in the Langeberg, Outeniqua Mountains, Tsitsikamma Mountains, Elandsberg and Garden Route plain.The shrub grows to be 6 m and bears flowers from October to November.
Serruria altiscapa, the stately spiderhead, is a flower-bearing shrub that belongs to the genus Serruria and forms part of the fynbos. The plant is native to the Western Cape and occurs at Blokkop in Villiersdorp as far as the Hottentots-Holland Mountains.
Arisaema heterophyllum, the dancing crane cobra lily, belongs to the monocotyledonous flowering family Araceae. It is a perennial, rhizomatous herb native to East Asia. It has a spadix inflorescence and can be recognized by its green spathe and comparatively smaller central leaflet.
