maaliskuu 28, 2023

Dandelions from Mertensia

On that note. There's many Taraxacum species naturalized in the U.S. but they require keying out with fertile (flower AND seed) material. Here's a drive my friend made with all the literature if you want to get started: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1-8tska5SI5hT2u2JjlO5vSlfyBFogOiW

Julkaistu maaliskuu 28, 2023 05:26 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 9, 2022

huhtikuu 7, 2022

Cabrillo Tide Pool IDs

Here's just some links I found while trying to ID snails...

CA tide pools: http://californiatidepools.com/snails/
Management plan that includes species list: https://escholarship.org/content/qt4c57b1bc/qt4c57b1bc.pdf?t=p4tdhi
Document put together by the park: https://www.nps.gov/cabr/learn/intertidal-field-guide.htm

Julkaistu huhtikuu 7, 2022 10:33 AP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 5, 2022

Black Knot - never knew

A. morbosa only grows on Prunus species. Apparently...
So if it looks like black knot but is on something else... what is it?

Julkaistu huhtikuu 5, 2022 12:52 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

syyskuu 24, 2021

Ichneumonid vs. Braconid - Now I finally get it!

You'd think I would have gotten around to looking this info up sooner but here it is. I knew it had to do with the wing venation but not the specific to look for. So, taking pics, try to get good ones of the wings. The hind wing is nearly impossible when they are landed but if possible, seems like the better determinant.

Ichneumonids are distinguished from their sister group Braconidae mainly on the basis of wing venation. The fore wing of 95% of ichneumonids has vein 2m-cu (in the Comstock–Needham system), which is absent in braconids. Vein 1rs-m of the fore wing is absent in all ichneumonids, but is present in 85% of braconids. In the hind wing of ichneumonids, vein rs-m joins Rs apical to (or rarely opposite) the split between veins Rs and R1. In braconids, vein rs-m joins basal to this split. The taxa also differ in the structure of the metasoma: about 90% of ichneumonids have a flexible suture between tergites 2 and 3, whereas these tergites are fused in braconids (though the suture is secondarily flexible in Aphidiinae).

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/47199-Ichneumonidae

Julkaistu syyskuu 24, 2021 02:21 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 7, 2021

Veronicas, ugh! Grey field vs Bird's Eye vs Slender

They are tough, and there's also V. filliformis, though it's much less common. V. polita has hairs on the stems that are spreading and noticiably a mix of lengths. That's probably definitive.

Generally, V. persica flowers are nearly as large as the leaves, or at least as wide as the leaves, or more than 0.5 cm. V. polita flowers are definitely smaller than the leaves, not as wide as most of the leaves, and under 0.5 cm. V. persica has much longer flower stems, easily longer than the length of a leaf. V. polita stems tend to be shorter and they don't stick out a whole lot above the leaves.

Both of those have leaves clearly longer than wide and fairly densly bunched. If you find something similar with tiny, roundish leaves well spread out along the stem and flower stems like 4 times as long as the little leaves you probably have V. filiformis.

from srall on post by michaelmorris

Julkaistu huhtikuu 7, 2021 04:24 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 2 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

kesäkuu 11, 2019

How to tell Rhodobaenus tredecimpunctatus and R. quinquepunctatus apart...

Ironweed Curculio versus Cocklebur Weevil

from borisb
tip of elytra black (extent variable) = Rhodobaenus quinquepunctatus
tip red = Rhodobaenus tredecimpunctatus

"black tip" in quinquepunctatus may be reduced to margin, leaving a subapical spot isolated. This form is a look-alike.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/26708814

Julkaistu kesäkuu 11, 2019 03:07 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

toukokuu 28, 2019

toukokuu 24, 2019

toukokuu 13, 2019

Catchweed vs Rough bedstraw

Catchweed has much narrower leaves, much more obovate (wide near the tip) than rough. Also rough almost never has more than 6 leaves in a whorl, catchweed usually does. In person catchweed is "grabbier" than rough, but that's subtle even if you have them side by side.

Julkaistu toukokuu 13, 2019 01:01 IP. käyttäjältä javiehweg javiehweg | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti