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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Oak Galls: A Strange Biology Indeed!, W. John Hayden
Oak Galls: A Strange Biology Indeed!, W. John Hayden
Biology Faculty Publications
Anyone who takes the time to look closely at several branches of oak will soon find one or another peculiar anomaly among the leaves and twigs. One can easily find structures resembling Ping-Pong balls, hard knots, fluffy tufts, horns—either single or clustered, or irregular thickenings, to mention just a few possibilities. These abnormal growths are galls, structures caused by the presence of small insect larvae living inside the tissue of the plant. Galls can be found on a wide variety of plants. They are common, for example, on the stems of goldenrods, and the leaves of maples, but oaks are …
Hybrid Oaks: Full Of Vexation And Wonder, W. John Hayden
Hybrid Oaks: Full Of Vexation And Wonder, W. John Hayden
Biology Faculty Publications
Distinguishing different species of oak in the forests of eastern North America can be challenging. For one thing, there are simply a lot of different species to sort out. A recent reference (Stein et al. 2003), describes 50 species in the genus Quercusoccurring naturally east of the 100th meridian, and 90 species are distinguished for all of North America north of Mexico (Nixon 1997). With so many species to parse, confident identification requires careful study of leaves, stem and leaf hairiness, and fully mature acorns with their caps. But care is not always enough, because in addition to the …
Plants, Processes, Places: Sensory Intimacy And Poetic Enquiry, John Ryan
Plants, Processes, Places: Sensory Intimacy And Poetic Enquiry, John Ryan
Research outputs 2011
As an arts-based research approach, poetic enquiry has been theorised and applied recently in the social sciences and in education. In this article, I extend its usage to eco-critical studies of Australian flora and fauna. The Southwest corner of Western Australia affords opportunities to deploy arts-based methodologies, including field poetry, for celebrating the natural heritage of a region of distinguished biodiversity. I suggest that lyric practices in places such as Lesueur National Park and Anstey-Keane Damplands in southern Perth can catalyse embodied engagements with flora. The outcome of these practices is the invocation of the multiple senses— including the proximities …
2011 Wildflower Of The Year: White Oak, Quercus Alba, W. John Hayden
2011 Wildflower Of The Year: White Oak, Quercus Alba, W. John Hayden
Biology Faculty Publications
Emblematic of strength and longevity, white oaks grace the deciduous forests of eastern North America.