kristiehui's Journal

On 6th October I had another lab session at Jeanne-Mance Park where we got to walk into the trees for fungi observations. One that caught my attention was the Trametes cubensis. It is a bracet fungus and belongs to the family Polyporaceae [reference: Global Biodiversity Information Facility, https://www.gbif.org/species/2548276]. Though it was found isolated and dried, getting a little rusty and probably in decay, its relatively huge size (about palm size) and hemispherical shape stood out from the rest. Recently, there is a still a debate as to whether this fungus is the species cubensis or lactinea, whether these are the same fungus, or whether one has been mis-identified. An accurate ID would still require further researches on its characteristics, mostly by compare and contrast with other fungi species.

Following up on the field lab at Jeanne-Mance Park conducted on Sept 15, I have decided to work on the phylogenetic placement of Asian Lady Beetles and here are my identifications:
Kingdom Animalia, Phylum Anthropoda, Class Insecta, Order Coleoptera, Family Coccinellidae, Genus Harmonia and Species Harmonia axyridis.
A common adaption that I have noticed among my 10 observations is the presence of a pair of antennae. It consists of multiple kinds of receptors and helps them sense the environment to find food and detect enemies. This plays a significant role for their habitat fit in and increases their chance of survival (under natural selection). As for lady beetles, they have exceptionally bright colours and distinctive spots as a unique adaption. It makes them unappealing to predators and makes it easier to survive.