Protogyny is the condition in which the female reproductive organs (carpels) of a flower mature before the male ones (stamens), thereby ensuring that self-fertilisation does not occur. This happens in arum lilies and many wind-pollinated plants, such as grasses—although several grasses are self-pollinated, including common varieties of wheat, barley, oats. Examples of protandrous flowers areContinue reading “The Benefits of Protogyny in Flowers”
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Summer and Winter Constellations
Summer constellations are the constellations that are best seen in the evening night sky from late December to late March in the southern hemisphere. Many different constellations fill the evening sky in the southern hemisphere. Depending on your location and the season, different constellations can be seen. Southern circumpolar constellations can be seen all yearContinue reading “Summer and Winter Constellations”
Mutualism and Parasitism
Mutualism:The bees pollinating the flowers and the clownfish living in sea anemones, are classic examples of how organisms can mutually benefit from one another so that both organisms can thrive. When both organisms in a symbiotic relationship benefit, we call this mutualism. In the case of the bees and the flowers, bees need pollen toContinue reading “Mutualism and Parasitism”
Mudskippers
There are 32 types of mudskippers. The mudskipper has a dull yellow-brown coloured body. There is a black stripe on each of its flanks from its eye to the tail. Some fishes may also have a dark stripe on the back. Their cheeks have bluish-white spots, and their dorsal fin is red or brown inContinue reading “Mudskippers”
Carbon Sequestration by Mangroves
Mangroves provide a slew of benefits in addition to storing carbon, reducing flooding and erosion from storms, acting as nurseries for fish, and filtering pollutants from water. Straddling the interface of land and sea, mangrove forests are of two worlds. Their branches provide homes for lizards, snakes, and nesting birds, while their roots, when submerged, becomeContinue reading “Carbon Sequestration by Mangroves”
Brood Parasitism in South Africa
Brood parasites are birds that make use of host parents to brood and rear their young. They do not build nests of their own nor do they play any parental role in raising their offspring. (Greater Honeyguide) Only about 1% of all birds use brood parasitism as a breeding technique. Having a host family raiseContinue reading “Brood Parasitism in South Africa”
Migrating Birds
Migrating birds do not just point themselves in the right direction and hope for the best. Each species has its own traditional route. How migrating birds get from A to B Most routes follow obvious landmarks such as river valleys or coastlines. Some birds take winding routes around the coast. Others travel more directly, evenContinue reading “Migrating Birds”
Sustainable Fishing Techniques
Applying sustainable fishing practices and methods isn’t hard. We need to be aware of how fishing techniques affect aquatic wildlife and habitats. It is possible to fish sustainably. In some parts of the world, people have been doing it for thousands of years. Today, we can learn much from these old ways of fishing. TheContinue reading “Sustainable Fishing Techniques”
Jellyfish
Jellyfish have superpowers – and other reasons they don’t deserve their bad reputation. People rarely enjoy meeting a jellyfish. On the beach they appear limp, amorphous, and blistered in the sun. In the water it’s often a brush of a tentacle on exposed skin followed by a sting. They hardly evoke the serene elegance of aContinue reading “Jellyfish”
Gill Nets
Around the world, fishermen use low-cost nets that sit like fences on coastal sea floors. Known as gill nets, this type of gear is highly effective at catching fish when the mesh snags them by their gills. Unfortunately gill nets also catch a host of other species by mistake such as sardines, sharks along withContinue reading “Gill Nets”
Tourism Tails 