Plant reproduction Reference Libraries
Seed drilling is a method used by farmers in order to have a more unified, crop-yielding season. The first known use of seed drilling was in 1500 BC by the Sumerian. At this time, they were using a single tube. Later, in the 2nd Century BC, the Chinese developed a multi-tube iron drill. This facilitated in a larger crop planting allowing them to feed their large population. The first...
Seed saving is the preserving of seeds from mature vegetables, herbs, and flowers used in subsequent years along with bulbs and tubers. Home gardeners have saved seeds for generations and the practice is now becoming common with organic farmers as well as permaculturists. Growers will clone plants so as not to produce seeds keeping the plant “true to type” to the parent plant. True to...
Apiology is the scientific study of honey bees, a subdiscipline of melittology (the study of all bees), which is a subdiscipline of entomology. Melittology comprises of more than 17,000 species other than the honey bee. Apiology includes apicology, which is the study of honey bee ecology. Honey bees are often chosen as a study group to answer questions on the evolution of social systems....
The Souimanga Sunbird (Cinnyris sovimanga), is a small passerine bird of the sunbird family, Nectariniidae. It is native to the islands of the western Indian Ocean where it occurs on Madagascar, the Aldabra Group and the Glorioso Islands. The Souimanga Sunbird can be found in a variety of habitats from mountain forests to mangroves and scrubland as well as in parks, gardens and other...
The Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis), also known as the Yellow-bellied Sunbird, is an Asian sunbird. The Olive-backed Sunbird is common across southern China to the Philippines and Malaysia down to northeast Australia. Originally from mangrove habitat, the Olive-backed sunbird has adapted well to humans, and is now common even in fairly densely populated areas, even forming their nests...
The Purple Sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus), is a sunbird that is part of a group of very small Old World passerine birds. It is an abundant resident breeder across tropical southern Asia from the Persian Gulf to Southeast Asia. One to three eggs are laid in a suspended nest in a tree. This species is found in a variety of habitats with some trees, including forest and cultivation. Purple...
The Palestine Sunbird (Cinnyris oseus), also known as the Northern Orange-tufted Sunbird, is a small passerine bird of the sunbird family which is found in parts of the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa. It is similar to the Orange-tufted Sunbird (Cinnyris bouvieri), found further south in Africa. It occurs in areas with high temperatures and dry climate from sea-level up to an altitude of...
The Bombyliids are a large family of flies with hundreds of genera. Their life cycles are not well known. Adults generally feed on nectar and pollen, thus are pollinators of flowers. They superficially resemble bees, thus are commonly called bee flies, and this may offer the adults some protection from predators. The larval stage are predators or parasitoids of other insect eggs and larvae....
The bumblebee is a flying insect of the genus Bombus in the family Apidae and a relative of the common honeybee. The bumblebee feeds on nectar and gathers pollen to feed its young. They are beneficial to humans and the plant world alike, and tend to be larger than other members of the bee family. Most bumblebee species are gentle. From this comes their original name: "Humblebee". Bumblebees...
PHOTO CAPTION: Megachile centuncularis (L.) a European leaf-cutter bee, cutting a Wisteria leaf. Photo taken by Keith Edkins The Megachilidae are a family of mainly solitary bees. They carry pollen in specialized structures called scopae. These scopae are located under the abdomen, rather than on the hind legs like in the honey bee. Megachilidae are commonly known as mason and leaf cutter...
