Author Archives: Sebastian Marquez

Snapshot: Tarictic Hornbill

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

I’ve previously shown some of the mammals that are native members of the Philippine fauna. But probably the most conspicuous elements are the birds. It’s a very large and diverse assemblage. Take this Tarictic Hornbill (Penelopides samarensis) that I grabbed a … Continue reading →

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Snapshot: Metrosideros macropus

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

One of the more divergent taxa of Ohia (Metrosideros spp.) on O’ahu is M. macropus. Here is one of the red flowered form found on Lanihuli. Aside from the bigger leaf and longer petiole, M. macropus is also distinctive in having … Continue reading →

Posted in Botany | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Studia Mirabilium article template

Posted on April 1, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Insert picture here. Blah Blah Blah Amazing Blah Lobeliad! Blah Blah Blah Blah Awesome! Blah Blah Awesome!! Blah Blah Awesome!!!! Blah Blah Cyanea! Trematolobelia! Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah Super Awesome! Blah Blah Gnarly! Blah Blah Depauperate 😦 Blah Blah … Continue reading →

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Gems of Nuuanu

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Today’s short post will highlight some of the neat plants we came across hiking the many nooks and crannies of Nuuanu Valley. Even though it is bisected by the Pali Hwy, the plant life is still pretty diverse.

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Mahalo Dr. Hume!

Posted on March 24, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

The long line at the Kapalama post office on a Saturday morning was absolutely worth it; today I received my copies of Hume and Walters’ Extinct Birds. I’ve been reading it all day and it’s wonderful! It is a great primer on … Continue reading →

Posted in Natural History | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Snapshot: Cyanea crispa flowers

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Work and weather have kept me away from the mountains lately. Hopefully it will change soon. In the meantime, here are some shots I took a while back of the rare Cyanea crispa in flower for your enjoyment. The infloresence … Continue reading →

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Snapshot: Iliahi outliers

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Here’s a picture of a strange sandalwood (Santalum freycinetianum) up in the northern Ko’olaus. Typically this species has dull, droopy leaves. As you can see in this individual has glossy leaves that do not looked wilted. The non-native Indian sandalwood … Continue reading →

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A wet day in a dry forest

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

We hiked into West Makaleha gulch to check out the neat dry forest found there. It did turned into a rain soaked adventure. Still, seeing some unique species made the soggy, slippery trek was worth it. In dry hindsight anyway…

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Snapshot: Alani

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Alani (Melicope spp.) are among the most speciose plants groups here in Hawai’i. I haven’t mentioned them much here at Studia Mirabilium because, frankly, I’m not that good keying them out yet. This one, however, stood out. The more common … Continue reading →

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Enigmatic Honolulu Palm Tree

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Sebastian Marquez

Tucked amongst the other massive palm trees at Foster Botanical Garden is this little unassuming guy. Yet, as you can see above, this palm has a fence built just for it. This native loulu (Pritchardia lowreyana) has an interesting backstory … Continue reading →

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