#plantae

[snototter]

An African corkwood tree (Musanga cecropioides) in Uganda

by Julien NKS

[mycoblogg]

Whats the difference between lichen, moss, mould and mushrooms if they're all fungus? Aren't they all the same sorta thing?

so, interestingly, all of these groups are very different !! instead of naming the differences, let me quickly explain what exactly these organisms are.

lichen :

lichens are symbiotic organisms, meaning they are in themselves the product of a relationship between different organisms. to simplify it, lichens are big part fungus, & smaller part algae (protista) or cyanobacteria (monera). these different forms of life together create lichen, which grows on trees, rocks, leaves, mosses & sometimes other lichens !! to read more about lichens, check out @/lichenaday's blog :-)

moss :

mosses are actually not fungi at all !! they are small, flowerless plants. they grow on trees & in soil. :-)

mould :

mould is a type of structure that fungi can form - it is entirely fungal. it reproduces through airborne spores :-) there are many different types of mould ; some are toxic, some are used medicinally, & some are saprotrophs. (note : slime moulds & water moulds are unrelated to fungal moulds !!)

mushrooms :

so, lots of people think mushrooms are a species of fungus, but they are not. "mushroom" refers to the fruiting body of a fungus ; what a mushroom is to a fungus is comparable to what a flower is to a tree - the part that reproduces !! not all fungi produce mushrooms (e.g. moulds, which do not have fruiting bodies as the entire organism is able to release spores). there are currently only 14 000 discovered fungi that produce mushrooms !! more fungi that don't produce mushrooms include mildew, yeast & lichen.

so, yes !! they're all quite different in structure, cells & function in the ecosystem.

[rattyexplores]

Beautiful button orchid growing on a palm tree.

17/01/24 - Dischidia nummularia

QLD:WET - Cairns

[neopianbiologyproject]

A Comprehensive Look at Neopian Apples

[-> Part 1 <-] [ Part 2A ] [ Part 2B - coming soon]

The Neopian Biology Project has identified >90 items with the word "Apple" in the name that are worth considering as species candidates.

Previously, I tried to categorize these items in roughly alphabetical order, but this time I've tried a new approach. Essentially, I made a few "buckets" that a candidate could fall into, and hoped that by correlating candidates to buckets, the trickier determinations could be made easier.

Because there are 90+ "apple" candidates, I won't be posting every single apple's information. However I will be linking their Jellyneo pages, and you can always find information relevant to the project on our spreadsheet.

First up:

Part 1: Apples that aren't apples

These are candidates that may qualify as distinct species, but are only referred to as "apple" colloquially, and are not actually apples.

These are:

Blue Ice Apple - From space; alien.

Imposter Apple [sic] - "That's no apple!" Possibly a common orange.

Flat Apple Fruit - Neither apple nor Flatfruit

Grapple - Not to be confused for the Grapple Apple.

Pearapple - Species of pear.

Triapple

Arnapple

Blackapple - See below.

Dewy Apple

Pineapple

Pyrapple - Possibly a pineapple. See below.

Many of these species make reference to tasting like an apple, which in these cases I have chosen to take as unironic comparisons rather than some joking "it tastes like an apple because it is an apple!" These specimens also all have un-apple-like (unapfellich) features that make them easy to consider them non-apples, at least morphologically.

The two exceptions/uncertainties are the Pyrapple and Blackapple.

The Pyrapple is not an apple, for certain, but may be a Pineapple. We'll either explore it in another post about Neopian Pineapples, or in its own post, but not here.

The Blackapple requires a closer look:

I hope the inside is not as black as the outside.

There isn't much to go off of here. This specimen is from Apple Bobbing, but if you take all the Apple Bobbing specimens together, this isn't a good indicator of apfellichkeit ("apple-ness"). Both non-apple and apple species are mixed up in Apple Bobbing, and some of the apple species are qualifying candidates while some are variants of other apples (we'll discuss this more in the next part).

The description is also very typical of Apple Bobbing and specimens from the Haunted Woods in general — that specific brand of Neopets humor that hints at something that should concern you, but won't tell you the full extent of the problem or how it occurred. This kind of description has influenced me greatly as a writer and is also the bane of my existence as a scientist.

The deciding factor for me here is that the Blackapple isn't a Black Apple, or a Blackened Apple as we'll see some of later. Blackapple is a new word, akin to the made-up "Triapple," "Arnapple," and "Pineapple" above. Because of this, I have been swayed to consider the Blackapple a unique, non-apple species.

Next up:

Part 2A: Apple cultivars ->

[naturalist-journal]

[wikipediapictures]

Isolepis setacea

[lostdeviantartcollages]

vegetable I

[kendraw]

Finally got around to revamping my oc, Aurum! He's… A terrible person :D;; haha He's one of my buddy @leeviathans's Plantae species, and he's also the father of one of Lee's characters as well! (tho said fella doesn't want anything to do with him- for good reason.) He's based on a golden delicious apple & a pitcher plant! The latter is a bit of a secret for most folks- since he doesn't broadcast that part of his lineage out in the open. I tried to sneak subtle nods to it in his design! ;)

[augmentedpolls]

Ooooo, hi hi! I've got a poll! What's everyone's favorite kingdom? Not like a monarchy lol, but Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, Protista, Archaeabacteria, or (Eu)Bacteria! I really like Fungi! :D

[indiegame]

some of my favorite japanese maples from today

[queenoffoliage]

Finished just in time for Halloween AAAAAA! Here's my plantae OC trio as classic horrors!

Venus as a venomous vampire, Wheatly as a wicked witch and Pudica as a powerful poltergeist! (..The alliteration theming was unintentional I only noticed as I typed it lol)

[snototter]

A pink sundew (Drosera capillaris) in Alachua County, Florida, USA

by Noah Mueller

[k-botany]

Zebrina

Tradescantia sp L.

Fam: Commelinaceae

The wild beauty of Tradescantias, captured in my garden, in the forest, and on the street. 🌿🌸

[rattyexplores]

Moss growing on a old rope.

30/07/23 - Bryophyta sp. - farmland, near remnant

[q2k]

[naturalist-journal]