http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition BBG Scientists Explore Plants of the World Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:18:21 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Just back from Norfolk where I gave talks at ODU & NBG. The 1st on Anacardiaceae, 2nd on PNG. Pistacia chinensis is planted all over town! http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=916 Nothing says summer like a fresh, local, tree-ripened peach. As I was eating one this morning, it broke in two along the pit, exposing the seed inside. This of course is the perfect opportunity for a botany lesson! A peach is a fruit type known botanically as a ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=906 We saw a lot of animals on our Costa Rica trip that were interesting, but did not make it into the blog yet. Here are some pictures with ID’s where we have them. If you know any of these species, please add identifications by posting a comment and I’ll update ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=873 We got back at 3AM. We'll have a few more CR posts over the next couple of days to share some more pictures and adventures with you. http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=872 Acacias are some of the most ubiquitous trees in the Neotropical dry forest. We have collected several acacia species at Las Baulas National Park, some of which exhibit remarkable plant-ant interactions. The trees provide the ants with room and board and the ants provide protection for the plant. [caption id="attachment_864" align="alignleft" ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=863 Gerry and Susan chose three distinct environments for us to focus our collecting during this trip. Since this is the beginning of the rainy season, we hoped to find plants that had not been seen on their earlier collecting trips. We were able to collect over 100 plants during this ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=855 Tonight and every night for the next few months the zoologists from the Goldring Marine Biology Research Station will be scanning the beaches of Playa Grande for Eastern Pacific Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas). This is the time of year when female green turtles come ashore to lay their eggs. [caption ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=843 Fieldwork on Tuesday included a walk along the black-sand beach and up onto the only “mountain” (really more of a hill) in the park. Here are some of the interesting plants and animals that we saw. [caption id="attachment_821" align="alignleft" width="548" caption="Flowering vine in the Apocynaceae."][/caption] This Apocynaceae vine was collected previously ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=820 On New York City beaches one can find various shells and other signs of animal life that wash up onshore. However, beachcombers looking for botanical treasures are often left empty-handed, except for driftwood or the fruits of hickory (Carya spp.), walnut (Juglans nigra), invasive water chestnut (Trapa natans; not the ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=794 As we trek through the field, I can’t help but think of the young people I teach at BBG and at the Brooklyn Academy of Science and the Environment (BASE).  I know that they would be as captivated as we are at the diversity and beauty of the plants and ... http://www.bbg.org/blogs/expedition/?p=761