BIOL111_THU_Gannon_Kandage_Wang's Journal

Recently, researchers have studied Trametes versicolor (commonly known as turkey-tail) tenaciously, looking for medicinal value in the fungi. One study had a combination of the lichen’s mycelium, as well as it’s fermented substrate being added to human peripheral cells using in vitro processes. The result was an increased activation of what are known as natural killer cells, more specifically monocytes and lymphocytes. Therefore, the turkey-tail has capabilities of boosting the human immune system, and studies are continuing to see if T. versicolor has any medicinal uses for treating several forms of cancer such as breast and prostate cancer.

One of the observation I found in Mont royal in Montreal on October 7 is Bracket fungi. When I observe it, it grew on a dead wood. They are in the mushroom family and have been used in folk medicines for centuries. And they could also be ground to powder and used in teas because they usually have hard and woody body. They can also be be carved into works of art and beautiful jewelry sometimes due to this special feature.

On 7 October 2021, I located a Blackfoot Polypore, known scientifically as Polyporus leptocephalus, on the slopes of Mont Royal in Montreal, QC, Canada. I spotted it growing by the base of a large tree in the autumn, the season in which it is commonly found, along with late spring and summer. The fungus is classified as parasitic. It lives upon or near trees and can spread, causing a white rot on the tree. However, the tree can survive such a fungus, and so Polyporus leptocephalus can be seen as a seasonally recurring fungus. Though Polyporus leptocephalus is most common in Europe, it is also found throughout North America, including Canada, and more specifically, Quebec. Many fungi are used in the culinary arts and consumed; however, Polyporus leptocephalus has a slightly bitter taste and it is too tough to be used in the culinary setting. Physically, Polyporus leptocephalus can vary among forms but exhibits caps that are about 2-6 cm in diameter. Under its cuticle, the mushrooms are typically white, connected to a relatively thin stem.

Being a part of the Plantae kingdom, plantains (Genus Plantago) are angiosperms that fall under the order Plantaginaceae.

The angiosperms all undergo sexual reproduction where two gamete cells fuse to form a diploid cell, but they require other factors for this to occur and for the resultant seeds to spread. Many flowering plants have pollinators such as bees. Other species' seeds spread after the plant has been consumed by another animal, and some, such as plantains and dandelions, largely depend on the wind to spread seeds and produce the next generation.

Plants in the genus Plantago have made several adaptations to ensure their survival as weeds in the city such as the resistance to both drought and flooding. Thus, they can easily exist by the side of a building, or in the crack of a sidewalk where the water supply is likely to be inconsistent.

The phylogeny placement of the American Aster falls most closely within the Daisy family. Its most recent ancestors include the Smallhead, Purplestern, and Douglas asters. The Daisy family resides within a larger category of Eudicots, a subsect of flowering and seed plants.

The angiosperms in my observations all share a common adaptation crucial to their survival. All of these plants flower. Flowering, though also beautiful to look at, has a more important purpose: to help plants seed and reproduce. The flowering plants and their nectar invite insects and other animals to pollinate and help them reproduce.

The Dwarf dandelion, as pictured in one of my observations, has a unique adaptation to help it reproduce. The yellow dandelion flower transitions into the signature grey fluff. This fluff enables the dandelions seeds to be carried easily by the wind, enabling its reproduction without the help of an insect.

The plant of Genus Oxyria in my observation, its placement in OneZoom is at Plantae --> Angiosperms --> Caryophyllales --> Polygonaceae.

The common characteristics of plants in my observations --- they are all terrestrial plants, need water, sunshine, air and nutrition, grow and develop, reproduce and have a life process from birth to death.

One of the unique plant in my observation is mosses, mosses has the unique adaptation that it do not blossom or bear seeds. They reproduce as spores like fungi.