Arquivos de periódicos de agosto 2021

06 de agosto de 2021

Manitoba Yellow Waterlilies

@cdh asked me for more info on Yellow Waterlilies (Nuphar) in Manitoba - so I am reworking my answer to that specific question into this journal post in the hope that it is useful to someone else as well.

At the current state of knowledge we have only two species of Nuphar found here.

The leaves of N. microphylla do not get larger than 10 cm long while N. variegata leaves are generally 7-35 cm in length; flower size has a similar pattern - N. microphylla 1-5 cm and N. variegata 5-11 cm. This size difference is the main characteristic I have been using for my ids to date.

Other things to look for are:

  • N. microphylla has a red disk with 6-10 rays, globose fruit with no decaying stamens at its base, a narrow v shaped sinus on the leaf;
  • N. variegata has a green or yellow disk with 7-25 rays, fruit is constricted above with decaying stamens at its base when young and a closed or narrow sinus on the leaf.

My source for all these details is Scoggan's Flora of Manitoba - still usable after all these years once I figure out the changes in the names.

As to why only N. variegata as opposed to N. lutea and all the rest- my suspicion is that N. variegata has better adaptation to the long cold winter :) Scoggan describes N. microphyllum as occurring in the southern half of the province with the northernmost collection at Cranberry Portage and N. variegatum occurring in the southern four-fifths of the province with the northernmost collection at Reindeer Lake

Have fun looking for them both!

Posted on 06 de agosto de 2021, 03:02 PM by marykrieger marykrieger | 0 comentários | Deixar um comentário

16 de agosto de 2021

Lactuca in Manitoba - more puzzles :)

Lactuca

Native

Lactuca biennis (Moench) Fernald - Tall Blue Lettuce

  • (BC AB SK MB ON QC NB PE NS NL-N NL-L) Vascan
  • blue flowers, leaves irregularly pinnatifid, ; pappus brown, achenes nearly beakless2
  • biennial2
  • swampy or moist places; boreal forest 1

Lactuca canadensis Linnaeus - Canada Wild Lettuce

  • (MB ON QC NB PE NS) Vascan
  • yellow flowers
  • rare, boreal forest 1

Lactuca floridana (Linnaeus) Gaertner - Woodland Lettuce

  • (MB ON) Vascan
  • blue flowers
  • leaves petiolate, toothed and often also pinnatifid, pubescent on the underside of the main veins; pappus white 1
  • margins of woods, boreal forest1
  • rarely observed

Lactuca ludoviciana (Nuttall) Riddell - Western Lettuce

  • (SK MB) Vascan
  • yellow or blue flowers, leaves mostly pinnatifid, spinulose margined and more or less prickly on the mid-rib beneath and strongly glaucous, pappus white, achenes distinct soft filiform beak, 2
  • along riverbanks, parklands1
  • rarely observed

introduced

Lactuca serriola Linnaeus - Prickly Lettuce

  • Vascan
  • yellow flowers
  • leaves copiously spinulose-denticulate, spinulose bristly on mid rib underneath and tending to turn with one edge up2
  • very common; roadsides, slough margins, waste places, cultivated land; throughout Prairie provinces1
  • previously known as Lactuca scariola

Mulgedium

Native

Mulgedium pulchellum (Pursh) G. Don - Blue Lettuce

  • (BC AB SK MB ON QC) Vascan
  • blue flowers
  • leaves entire, lower leaves may be more or less lobed; pappus white, achenes with short firm beak2
  • perennial2
  • common...cultivated lands and roadsides, throughout Prairie provinces1
  • previously known as Lactuca pulchella or Lactuca tatarica var pulchella

What I am going to try out

looks like habitat, flower color / number and leaves are the most helpful things - with a nod to the color of the pappus - that is the fluffy stuff attached to the seed to help it drift on the wind.

the prickly ones...

  • if the plant is in proximity to human disturbance and the flower is yellow and the leaves are turned to be perpendicular to the ground- edge to the sky >>> Lactuca serriola
  • if the plant is along a river (or other damp to wet ground) and the flowers are yellow or blue >>> Lactuca ludoviciana (L ludoviciana tends to have more flowerheads (12-20) over L serriola (5-12))

the non-prickly ones....

  • if the flowers are blue and the pappus is white and the upper leaves are entire and the plant is commonly seen >>> Mulgedium pulchellum / Lactuca pulchella (two names for the same plant)
  • if the flowers are blue and the pappus is brown and the leaves are pinnatifid and the plant is in a wet spot in the boreal>>> Lactuca biennis (especially if the plant is 2 meters or taller)
  • if the flowers are blue and the pappus is white and the leaves are pinnatifid and the plant is at a forest edge in the boreal>>> Lactuca floridana
  • if the flowers are yellow >>>Lactuca canadensis

References

  1. Budd, A.C.; Looman, J., Best, K.F., Budd's Flora of the Canadian Prairie Provinces, 1979 Ottawa
  2. Scoggan, H.J, Flora of Manitoba, 1957 Ottawa
Posted on 16 de agosto de 2021, 02:45 PM by marykrieger marykrieger | 0 comentários | Deixar um comentário

18 de agosto de 2021

iNaturalist in the classroom - an upcoming CWF webinar August 26, 2021

from CWF

You Are Invited!

Please join us online on August 26, 2021 at 3:00-4:00 p.m. ET for a webinar using iNaturalist.ca to engage people and collect data.

Join Michael Leveille on Thursday, August 26, 2021 at 3:00 p.m. ET as he showcases how he has incorporated iNaturalist into the classroom. During COVID-19 he created an incredible series of 23 virtual field trips around the Ottawa Area for Grades 5 to 8. Come join our CWF webinar to discuss ways to incorporate outdoor learning and iNaturalist into the classroom.

About Michael: Michael Leveille (Swampy on iNaturalist.ca) is a science educator and an artist of prehistoric life. Educated at the University of Ottawa, he has worked at the Canadian Museum of Nature and at St-Laurent Academy School in Ottawa.

Mr. Leveille believes that experiential learning across multiple disciplines is a valuable education tool. His Macoun Marsh study site and outdoor classroom is used as a center for conservation, geological, and meteorological studies.

Posted on 18 de agosto de 2021, 03:56 PM by marykrieger marykrieger | 0 comentários | Deixar um comentário

29 de agosto de 2021

What is the City Nature Challenge?

Four days dedicated to documenting all the living things that share our planet, especially those near where we live.

This community science event started in 2016 as a rivalry between two cities: Los Angeles and San Francisco. Each year since more cities have joined in the fun with the 2021 event drawing participation from 419 communities around the globe. Last year was the first year that Winnipeg took part.

The City Nature Challenge is an opportunity for iNaturalist observers and identifiers to work together to build skills and knowledge in the community. Last year's challenge saw 2,432 observations of 423 species contributed by 63 observers in the Winnipeg region.

Are there things you would like to see happen as part of our CNC activity in the Winnipeg region? Would you like to help out with the coming event? Do you know other people or organizations that might be willing to participate in 2022? Feel free to reach out in the comments or message @marykrieger with questions, comments, ideas and concerns. If you know of someone who would like to start a City Nature Challenge in another location in Canada, encourage them to reach out to davidd@cwf-fcf.org at the Canadian Wildlife Federation.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Further reading:

City Nature Challenge at the Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) https://cwf-fcf.org/en/explore/inaturalist/cnc/

City Nature Challenge website https://citynaturechallenge.org/

Posted on 29 de agosto de 2021, 01:48 PM by marykrieger marykrieger | 13 comentários | Deixar um comentário

30 de agosto de 2021

Solidago - tipping the jigsaw out of the box

Here's the list of goldenrods that we would like to be able to identify that occur in Manitoba and/or Saskatchewan and/or North Dakota

Euthamia

Solidago


  • Subsection Triplinerviae

    • Species Solidago gigantea (MB/SK/ND)
      -- Variety Solidago gigantea var. gigantea (MB)
      -- Variety Solidago gigantea var. shinnersii (MB/SK)

    • Species Solidago canadensis (MB/SK/ND)
      -- Variety Solidago canadensis var. canadensis (MB/SK)

    • Species Solidago altissima (MB/SK/ND)
      -- Variety Solidago altissima var. altissima (MB/SK)
      -- Variety Solidago altissima var. gilvocanescens (MB/SK)

    • Species Solidago lepida (MB/SK)
      -- Variety Solidago lepida var. salebrosa (MB/SK)
      -- Variety Solidago lepida var. lepida (MB/SK)



  • Subsection Glomeruliflorae



  • Subsection Squarrosae



  • Subsection Junceae



  • Subsection Solidago



  • Subsection Nemorales

    • Species Solidago nemoralis (MB/SK/ND)
      -- Subspecies Solidago nemoralis subsp. decemflora (MB/SK)
      -- Subspecies Solidago nemoralis subsp. nemoralis (MB)

    • Species Solidago mollis (MB/SK/ND)


  • Subsection Maritimae



  • Subsection Humiles





  • Section Ptarmicoidei



  • hybrids

    • Species Solidago ×lutescens (MB/SK) aka Oligoneuron x lutescens
    • Species Solidago ×bernardii (MB) aka Oligoneuron x bernardii

  • Posted on 30 de agosto de 2021, 03:03 AM by marykrieger marykrieger | 9 comentários | Deixar um comentário

    the first group - Solidago Section Ptarmicoidei

    Foolhardily sorting pieces into groups and having a go at the 'easy' ones

    You will see my local observer bias in this page - this resource is oriented at someone who is learning the plants around them. They expect to encounter these plants again and again as they visit and revisit the places where they make observations. The first hurdle for this is to learn what is expected to be found based on past experience - yours and those who have come before - and then to be ready to recognize the exceptions - the unexpected.

    In this way, observers are primed to document more thoroughly those individual plants that don't fit the expectations as well as being able to more efficiently document the commonly known things by showing in their images just what is needed to confirm the id.

    Now back to the puzzle...

    Section Ptarmicoidei https://inaturalist.ca/taxa/556079-Ptarmicoidei

    these are the plants that were once spun off into their own genus Oligoneuron and then got sucked back into Solidago. They all have their flower heads organized as corymbs which gives them a general wide at the top flattened profile https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corymb

    So the corollary is that flowerheads need to be present ( in bud, in flower, in seed) to separate these plants (until you become very familiar with your particular group of goldenrods and how they grow year round) and an image of the flowerhead from the side showing the corymb form should be included in the observation - if the flower is floppy or the wind is blowing, I have found you can stand close to the plant so the stem is braced against your pant leg and take the photo you need - if you have a better strategy, feel free to share below.

    Remember it is possible to identify to Section without going all the way to species - so once you see that corymb on a solidago you can go ahead and id to that level - then in this section you only have 8 candidates to deal with in N. America ( and only 3 in our locality plus a hybrid - bonus!)

    Here's the list... once you have the corymb documented, check that you have an image showing the distinct features (suggestions from other identifiers are welcome!) and either a description or a wide shot to give an idea of the habitat - your identifiers will be so relieved to stop muttering under their breath 'but where's the...'

    Species Found locally Frequency locally habitat key features ( # observed in North America) Other places found in North America
    Solidago rigida MB/SK/ND2, 3 commonly observed prairies, open woods1 - needs lots of sun, does not like taller neighbours, tolerates drought well felty surface, avoided by grazers, sturdy stems, stem leaves often pressed vertically against the stem (4,000+) AB, ON, AL, AR, CO, CT, DC, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, NE, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, WI, WV, WY3
    Solidago ptarmicoides MB/SK/ND2, 3 frequently observed dry, sandy, usually calcareous soils, cracks in rocks, limestone pavements, rocky outcrops, grassy slopes, prairies1 low tufted plant, white flowers, looks almost like an aster (1000+) NB, ON, QC, AR, CO, CT, GA, IA, IL, IN, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, NH, NY, OH, OK, SC, SD, TN, VT, WI, WV, WY3
    Solidago riddellii MB/ND2, 3 rarely observed wet prairies, oak savannahs and marshy ground1 leaves that are folded along the midrib1 (400+) ON, AR, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, OH, SD, WI3
    Solidago maheuxii aka Solidago X maheuxii MB3 not yet Parents S. rigida × riddellii (1) VT3
    Solidago houghtonii - absent wet depressions in sand dunes and limestone alvars1 (50+) ON, MI, NY3
    Solidago nitida - absent prairies and open woods1 (50+) AR, LA, MS, OK, TX3
    Solidago ohioensis - absent wet areas in sand dunes, marshes, riverbanks1 (450+) ON, IL, IN, MI, NY, OH, WI3
    Solidago vossii - absent wet prairies1 (10+) Michigan endemic3
    1. J.C. Semple. Solidago https://uwaterloo.ca/astereae-lab/research/goldenrods
      check out the very lovely detailed range maps on this site as well as the lively descriptions

    2. VASCAN https://data.canadensys.net/vascan/search?lang=en
    3. Nature Serve https://explorer.natureserve.org/
    Posted on 30 de agosto de 2021, 05:23 PM by marykrieger marykrieger | 1 comentário | Deixar um comentário