Chestnut Dapperling

Fungi > Agaricales

The Chestnut Dapperling (Lepiota castanea) is a small, attractive, yet lethally toxic gilled mushroom native to temperate woodlands across Europe. First described scientifically in 1881 by French mycologist Lucien Quélet, this delicate member of the family Agaricaceae...

Spreading Pellitory

Plants > Urticaceae

Spreading Pellitory (Parietaria judaica), also known as pellitory-of-the-wall or sticky-weed, is an exceptionally resilient perennial herb belonging to the nettle family, Urticaceae. Renowned for its ability to grow directly out of vertical mortar joints in ancient...

Western Hercules Beetle

Invertebrates > Coleoptera

The Western Hercules Beetle (Dynastes grantii), also known as Grant’s rhinoceros beetle, is among the largest and most impressive insects native to North America. Inhabiting mountainous pine-oak woodlands of the American Southwest, mature males boast monumental...

Chocó Screech Owl

Birds > Strigiformes

The Chocó Screech Owl (Megascops centralis) is a secretive, nocturnal raptor endemic to the extraordinarily biodiverse Chocó bioregion of Central and northwestern South America. Formerly treated as a subspecies of the vermiculated screech owl, morphological and vocal...

Southern Cassowary

Birds > Casuariiformes

The Southern Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius) is an ancient, flightless ratite native to the dense tropical rainforests of northeastern Australia, New Guinea, and neighboring archipelagos. Ranking as the third-tallest and second-heaviest bird on Earth, it is instantly...