Tag Archives: America

Ischigualasto Provincial Park

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Ischigualasto Provincial Park

Maybe you will see a fossil at Ischigualasto Provincial Park.

  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park is an area containing interesting geological features, located in Argentina’s north west, in South America.
  • ‘Ischigualasto Provincial Park’ is also known as ‘Parque Provincial Ischigualasto’, and ‘Valle de la Luna’, or when translated from Spanish, ‘Valley of the Moon’.
  • An area of 604 square kilometres (233 square miles) is covered by Ischigualasto Provincial Park, and the area is said to resemble a moonscape.
  • The UNESCO World Heritage Convention declared Ischigualasto Provincial Park as a World Heritage Site in 2000, along with the adjoining Talampaya National Park.
  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park is located in primarily a desert habitat, with hot and dry conditions and continual wind.
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Ischigualasto Provincial Park
Image courtesy of AHLN/Flickr
  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park is the home to only a little vegetation, that includes trees, shrubs and cacti.
  • Notably, Ischigualasto Provincial Park consists of numerous fossils, ranging from vegetation, fish, mammals and dinosaurs, and it is one of the most significant fossil areas in the world.
  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park has multiple rock formations that have been formed by wind erosion; and cliffs also exist in the park.
  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park is a protected area, and it was given provincial park status in 1971.
  • Ischigualasto Provincial Park was originally the home of indigenous Americans until the Spanish intruded, and the park hosts significant ancient rock art and archaeological sites.
Bibliography:
Ischigualasto Provincial Park, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ischigualasto_Provincial_Park
Ischigualasto / Talampaya Natural Parks, 2015, UNESCO World Heritage Convention, http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/966

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Toilet Paper

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Toilet Paper

Could you live without toilet paper?

  • Toilet paper is an invention typically used to clean body waste off oneself, without using direct hand contact.
  • Light and soft pulped paper is the typical material of toilet paper, and it may be layered one to three times, making it one to three ply paper.
  • Toilet paper generally breaks down in sewage systems, making it moderately environmentally friendly, although it is not always the case with the product manufacturing process.
  • ‘Toilet paper’ is also known as ‘toilet roll’, ‘dunny paper’, ‘bathroom tissue’, ’tissue’, and ‘bathroom paper’, and the product is commonly stored in a bathroom, on a rod attached to a wall or a floor base, as a dispenser.
  • Generally, a sheet of toilet paper is almost square in shape and is usually around 10 centimetres (4 inches) across, or a little longer than it is wide.

Toilet Paper, White, Ten Random Facts, Lavender, Pattern, Invention, Bathroom, Hook,

  • Paper, similar to toilet paper for wiping body waste, has been evident since 500 AD in Chinese culture.
  • Although most often white in colour, toilet paper can depict a printed pattern, or it can be other bright colours, such as purple, blue or green; and it is usually purchased as a continuous length, rolled onto a cardboard tube that is sometimes scented.
  • One of the costs of producing toilet paper around the world is the loss of 27,000 trees each day, the amount required to produce approximately 83 million rolls.
  • Modern toilet paper is commonly accepted to have been invented in 1857 by Joseph Gayetty, from the United State’s New York, although the invention was largely ignored until the prominence of indoor toilets in the 1900s.
  • Toilet paper substitutes that have been used in the past include corn cobs, snow, water, wool, vegetation, rags, lace, wood shavings, seashells and sponges, although in the early stages, the modern invention was not without its hazards, as splinters from the product were not uncommon.
Bibliography:
Huskey D, Toilet Paper wasn’t Commonly Used in the United States Until the Early 20th Century, 2012, Today I Found Out, http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/07/toilet-paper-wasnt-commonly-used-in-the-united-states-until-the-early-20th-century/
McRobbie L, Toilet Paper History: How America Convinced the World to Wipe, 2009, Mental Floss, http://mentalfloss.com/article/23210/toilet-paper-history-how-america-convinced-world-wipe
Toilet Paper, 2015, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilet_paper

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Lindheimer’s Beeblossom

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Lindheimer’s Beeblossom

Lindheimer’s beeblossoms must be a bee favourite.

  • Lindheimer’s beeblossoms are perennial plants that produce an abundance of flowers, although in some areas they are grown as annuals.
  • The Lindheimer’s beeblossom plant has the scientific name Oenothera lindheimeri, and it was previously known as Gaura lindheimeri, and it is from the family Onagraceae, the family of evening primroses or willow herbs.
  • ‘Lindheimer’s beeblossoms’ are also known as ‘Leindheimer’s clockweed’, butterfly bush’, ‘clockweed’, ‘gaura’, ‘white gaura’, ‘pink gaura’ and ‘Indian feather’.
  • Lindheimer’s beeblossoms are native to the United State’s southern states of Texas and Louisiana, in North America.
  • The height of Lindheimer’s beeblossom plants range from 50 to 150 centimetres (20 – 59 inches), and they have small green leaves.

Lindheimer's Beeblossom, Plant, Vegetation, Pink, Flowers, Bloom, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • Lindheimer’s beeblossom plants generally bloom during the months of summer and autumn, and sometimes spring.
  • The flowers of Lindheimer’s beeblossoms are 2 to 3 cm (0.8 to 1.2 inches) in diameter; are generally coloured white or pink, with four petals and long stamens; and they grown on long flexible stems that cause the flowers to ‘flutter’ in the wind.
  • Lindheimer’s beeblossoms are commonly grown for decorative purposes in gardens or pots, and they prefer sunny conditions.
  • Lindheimer’s beeblossoms are hardy plants and have received the Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society, however, they are considered a weed in some areas.
  • The common name ‘Lindheimer’s beeblossom’ is derived from the name of the Texan botanist Ferdinand Lindheimer, who was of German descent, and the flowers of the plant attracts bees, as well as butterflies.
Bibliography:
Guara lindheimen, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaura_lindheimeri
Guara lindheimen, 2015, Dave’s Garden, http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/590/#b
\Gaura lindheimeri ‘Whirling Butterflies’, 2015, Perennials.com, http://www.perennials.com/plants/gaura-lindheimeri-whirling-butterflies.html

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Enchanted Well

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Enchanted Well

Don’t toss a coin into this Enchanted Well!

  • The Enchanted Well is a pool of water located in a limestone cave near Itaetê, in eastern Brazil, in the state of Bahia, in South America.
  • The Enchanted Well is situated outside of, but near the Chapada Diamantina National Park, as well as the Una River.
  • ‘Enchanted Well’ is also known as ‘Poço Encantado’ in Portugese, and it is not to be confused with the waterfall of the same name – Cachoeira Poço Encantado.
  • The Enchanted Well is found in a dolomite cave, and it contains one of the few populations of blind catfish, said to have the scientific name Rhamdiopsis krugi, that are endemic to the area.
  • The Enchanted Well is known primarily for its highly transparent water, enabling people to be able to see through to the cavern floor.
Enchanted Well, Water, Blue, Clear, Transparent, South America, Ten Random Facts, Flickr
Part of the Enchanted Well
Image courtesy of Danielle Pereira/Flickr
  • Depths of the Enchanted Well reach approximately 60 metres (197 feet), and it is up to 110 metres (361 feet) wide and its widest point.
  • Approximately 7000 tourists visit the Enchanted Well each year, and to visit the site, an entrance fee is payable.
  • The cave of the Enchanted Well is home to more than ten species of bats, and is sometimes visited by frogs and snakes.
  • The Enchanted Well was closed to visitors for three years, from 2008 to 2010, and was reopened in early 2011, although due to its fragile ecosystem, numbers of visitors are limited in each group, and swimming in the water has been banned since 1990.
  • The Enchanted Well is best visited during April to September, due to the angle of the sun that lights up the clear blue water.
Bibliography:
Chapada Diamantina: Poço Encantado é reaberto para visitação, 2011, Governo do Estado da Bahia, http://www.setur.ba.gov.br/2011/03/11/chapada-diamantina-poco-encantado-e-reaberto-para-visitacao/
Enchanted Well, 2003, Eco, http://www.eco.tur.br/english/ecoguides/diamantina/ecopoints/caverns/encantado.htm
Karmann, I, 2000, Caverna do Poço Encantado, Chapada Diamantina, Bahia: patrimônio geológico e biológico, SIGEP, http://sigep.cprm.gov.br/sitio091/sitio091.htm

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Raccoon

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Raccoon

Did you see the sneaky raccoon pass by a few minutes ago?

  • Raccoons, also known as ‘common’, ‘North American’ and ‘north’, are mammals native to forests of North America, although they are found in other areas, as they readily adapt to their environment.
  • The scientific name of a racoon is Procyon lotor, and it is from the family Procyonidae, the family of some New World mammals, and there are up to 22 subspecies of the animal.
  • Raccoons generally grow to be 40 to 71 centimetres (16 to 28 inches) in length and weigh 2 to 10.4 kilograms (4 to 23 pounds).
  • The face of a raccoon features a black mask, so the animal is sometimes called a ‘masked bandit’; and its fur is mostly coloured white and grey, and occasionally brown.
  • Raccoons have uniquely sensitive front paws, and the mammal has sharp hearing and smelling senses.

Raccoon, Animal, Mammal, Family, Captive, Ten Random Facts, Flickr

Raccoon
Image courtesy of Daniel Spiess/Flickr
  • Raccoons typically give birth in spring, to as many as seven kits at a time, with an average of five; and they have an average lifespan of 12 to 16 years.
  • The intelligence of a raccoon can allow the mammal to open somewhat complex locking devices, and have a memory that lasts three years, and it can also untie or unscrew objects.
  • The diet of raccoons typically consists of insects, eggs, fish, berries and nuts, while birds and mammals are sometimes eaten.
  • Raccoons live in trees or rock shelters, sometimes venturing into urbanised habitats where they are often considered a pest; and they have been introduced into Asia’ Japan and some European countries.
  • Historically, raccoons have been hunted for their fur, as well as for food, and some communities still use them for meat.
Bibliography:
Raccoon, 2013, A-Z Animals, http://a-z-animals.com/animals/raccoon/
Raccoon, 2015, National Geographic, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.au/animals/mammals/raccoon/
Raccoon, 2015, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raccoon

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Wood Frog

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Wood Frog

Wood frogs are wonders of natural science.

  • Wood frogs are frogs native to forests that feature pools of water, in northern parts of North America.
  • The scientific name of a wood frog is Lithobates sylvaticus and it is from the family Ranidae, the family of true frogs.
  • Wood frogs grow to lengths of around 3.5 to 7.6 centimetres (1.4 to 3 inches), and they deter predators with their poison glands and shrill noises they can make.
  • Typically, a wood frog is coloured brown, brown-red or tan in colour, and occasionally green or grey, and it has a dark band covering its eye.
  • The diet of wood frogs typically consists of  insects, algae, worms, molluscs, and amphibious eggs and larvae.

Wood Frog, Brown, Animal, Amphibian, Sit, Dark, Ten Random Facts

Wood Frog
Image courtesy of Dave Huth/Flickr
  • Wood frogs shut down during freezing winter temperatures, and they survive the freezing/thawing process numerous times due to the content of glucose and urea in their system, which reduces dehydration and the formation of ice in their cells.
  • Female wood frogs lay up to 3000 eggs in temporary water pools, that later hatch into tadpoles, then morph into adults; and they generally only reproduce once in their life, which is 3 to 5 years.
  • Wood frogs generally live alone in wet forest habitats during summer, and live in hilly habitats during winter.
  • Male wood frogs have a brighter coloured skin tone, although they are generally smaller than females, and the females usually live longer than the males.
  • Deforestation of their natural habitat threatens certain populations of wood frogs, although the population as a whole is not under threat at this stage.
Bibliography:
Kiehl K, Lithobates sylvaticus, 2015, Animal Diversity, http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Lithobates_sylvaticus/
Wood frog, 2015, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_frog

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