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Mather
Field Vernal Pools |
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Brother Alfred
Brousseau, © St. Mary's College |
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common
name |
White Meadowfoam |
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scientific
name |
Limnanthes alba |
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family |
Limnanthaceae (meadowfoam) |
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habitat |
wet grassland, seeps, pools |
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size |
plant up to 12 inches tall;
flower about 2.5 cm across |
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fun
facts |
This plant may save the whales because
its seeds produce an oil which can be used to lubricate
(make slippery with oil) machinery. |
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| description |
Member of the meadowfoam family. The lower stems and leaves
have long silky hairs. The outer sepals are also hairy. Note the
distinctive venations
(arrangements of veins) on the petals which serve as nectar
guides for pollinators.
There are no other species of large white
flowers at Mather Field which could be confused with White
Meadowfoam. Meadowfoam is not common in the Mather Field vernal
pools and grassland. |
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| life
cycle |
White Meadowfoam is an annual. It germinates in wet areas
soon after the rains begin in the fall. Its oily seeds float and
in particularly wet years the plant can occupy vast areas. White
Meadowfoam can bloom as early as March, often while its roots
and leaves are still under water. |
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| ecology |
Meadowfoam is pollinated by solitary
bees. The bees gather pollen and nectar to feed their
offspring and, in so doing, pollinate the plant. Their large,
oily seeds may be highly nutritious to some insects, birds and rodents. |
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| How
can Meadowfoam save whales?
Whale
oil, made from the blubber of sperm whales, can
lubricate fine machinery, even under conditions of high
heat and friction. As a result it is used to lubricate
fine machinery. Many, many whales are killed every year
to supply this need. Meadowfoam seeds contain an oil
which is very similar to the whale oil. Commercially
grown meadowfoam oil may someday replace whale oil and
eliminate the need to kill these magnificent creatures
for their fat. |
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