Falcon
Fallow-deer
Fasciola
Felis manul
Fennec
Fennel
Fer de Lance
Ferret
Fescue
Feverfew
Fiddler Crab
Fig
Fig-wort
Filaria
File-fish
Finch
Firefly
Fish
Fish-hawk
Fish-louse
Fishes
Fissurellidae
Fistularia
Fistulina
Flagellata
Flamingo
Flatworm
Flatworms
Flax
Flea
Flounder
Fluke
Flustra
Fly-catcher
Flycatcher
Flying Fish
Flying Gurnard
Flying Lemur
Flying-fox
Flying-lemur
Flying-squrrel
Fool's Parsley
Foraminifera
Forest Fly
Forest-fly
Forficulidae
Forget-me-not
Fossa
Fowl
Fox
Fox-bat
Foxglove
Foxhound
Foxtail-grass
Francolin
Frasera
Fratercula
Fraxinella
Fraxinus
French Beans
French Oak
Frigate-bird
Fringillidae
Fringillidea
Fritillary
Frog
Frog-fish
Frogs
Froth-fly
Fruit-pigeon
Fucaceae
Fuchsia
Fucus
Fulmar
Fumariaceae
Funaria
Fungi
Furze
Fusus
Gadidae
Gadwall
Galbulinae
Galeidae
Galemys
Galeopsis
Galeorhinus galeus
Gall-fly
Galliwasp
Galls
Gamete
Gametes
Gannet
Ganoid
Gaper-shell
Gar-fish
Gar-pike
Garcinia
Garden-warbler
Gardenia
Garganey
Garlic
Garrot
Garrulus
Gasteropod
Gasteropoda
Gasteropods
Gasterosteus
Gastropod
Gastropoda
Gaur
Gavial
Gaviiformes
Gayal
Gazelle
Gazelle hound
Gean
Gebang Palm
Gecko
Gelada
Gelsemium
Gemma
Gemsbok
Genes
Genet
Genipap
Falcon is a name given for several species of medium sized birds of prey distinguished from hawks by their longer pointed wings, which give them greater speed in flight.
The fallow-deer is a medium-sized species of deer, standing about 1 meter tall and distinguished by the end of the antler being palmated (flattened and expanded). It is found wild in Asia Minor, but was introduced into Britain in the early part of the 15th century. Two varieties are found in Britain, one which is fawn coloured with white spots and the other dark brown.
Fasciola is a member of the order digenea.
see "Pallas cat"
The fennec is a small nocturnal desert fox found in north Africa and Arabia. It is nocturnal, and lives in burrows, and feeds on jerboas, lizards, small birds and the like.
Fennel is a perennial plant of the family Umbelliferae. It has an erect stem 80 - 100cm high, numerous leaves deeply divided into soft hair-like segments and large terminal umbels of yellow flowers. The plant is aromatic, and the leaves are used in cooking.
The Fer de Lance (Rat-tailed Snake) is one of the species of pit vipers found in the West Indies and tropical America. It grows to about 2 meters in length, has a deadly bite, and is variously coloured but usually reddish-yellow with irregular dark bands and spots.
The Ferret is the albino variety of a domesticated polecat used for driving rabbits from their burrows.
Fescue is a genus of grasses having numerous spikelets, each of several flowers, in a compact or spreading panicle.
Feverfew is a plant of the family Compositae. It bears numerous small heads of flowers on an erect stem, with the lower flowers borne on longer stalks so that the whole inflorescence reaches the same level. The flowers have white ray florets. The leaves are stalked, repeatedly cut, curled and delicate green.
The Fiddler Crab (Uca) is a genus of crustacean of the order Decapoda, family Ocypodidae.It gets its name from the male's distinctive larger claw which makes him look as though he is carrying a fiddle and bow. Fiddler Crabs are solitary, shore-living animals which inhabit burrows around the coast of Central and South America, Africa, the Middle East and Australasia.
Figs are plants of the genus Ficus, woody trees and shrubs from the Mediterranean and Asia Minor. The common edible fig is the fruit of Ficus carica, a small tree with large, rough, leathery leaves lobed like a hand, rough green branches and alsmost sessile fruits of peculiar internal structure, consisting of a large, much curved receptable on which are borne numerous unisexual flowers interspersed with hairs.
Fig-wort (Scrophularia) is a genus of flowering plants of the Order Sccrophulariaceae.
Filaria is a phylum nematoda.
The File-fish (Trigger-fish) are bony fishes found mostly in tropical and warm seas, distinguished by their hard mail-like scales, powerful jaws, and teeth adapted for biting through the shells of molluscs and stripping off pieces of coral to get at the soft parts for food. They are also called trigger-fish from the way the first spine of the dorsal fin snaps back when elevated.
The finch is a popular name of the Fringillidae.
Firefly is a popular name for winged insects possessing luminosity.
see "pisces"
Fish-hawk is an American name for the Osprey.
The fish-louse are several crustaceans of the order Ichthyophthira which are parasitic on fish.
see "pisces"
Fissurellidae is a family of gasteropodous molluscs resembling the limpets in appearance and habits, but differing in structure. They are generally too large for their shell, and so it appears that the shell is rudimentary.
Fistularia is a genus of acanthopterygious fish characterized by the elongation of the facial bones into a long fistula or tube at the extremity of which the mouth opens.
Fistulina is a genus of Fungi, allied to Boletus, found on old oak, walnut, ash, beech and horse chestnut trees. It is eaten in Europe grilled and is said to taste like broiled meat.
see "Mastigophora"
The flamingo is a bird of the genus Phoenicopterus allied to the ducks. The flamingo has long legs and stands about 180 cm tall. The beak is naked, lamellate at the edges and bent. Flamingos are generally pink or scarlet in colour and live in southern Europe and northern Africa around sea coasts and salt marshes.
Flatworm is a common name for phylum platyhelminthes.
see "flatworm"
Flax is a popular name of plants of the genus Linum, natural order Linaceae of which there are roughly 100 species. They are herbs or small shrubs with narrow leaves and yellow, blue or white flowers arranged in variously formed cymes.
The flea is several insects constituting the order Aphaniptera. They are small with two eyes, six feet and piercing stilets and a suctorial proboscis which is used to feed on the blood of animals. They can leap amazing distances.
A flounder is one of the flat-fishes, family Pleuronectidae, genus Pleuronectes. The flounder is found in the sea and near the mouths of large rivers around the British coast.
Fluke is a parasitic flatworm that causes rot and dropsy of the liver.
Flustra is an ectoprocta.
The fly-catcher is several species of insectivorous birds of the genus Muscicapa with a bill flattened at the base, almost triangular, notched at the upper mandible and beset with bristles. They perch on branches and wait motionless for passing insects which they dart at and catch with a snap of the bill.
The flycatcher is a small, dull-coloured, songless bird related to the shrike family. It is a summer visitor to Britain, and takes its name from the skilful way it catches small flies on the wing.
Flying fish is a name for several species of bony fishes in which the pectoral fins are lengthened and wing-like and serve to sustain the fish in its short flights through the air.
The Flying Gurnard (Trigla volitans) is a Mediterranean fish of the Gurnard genus.
The flying lemur is a mammal not related to the lemurs, but more nearly akin to the Insectivores, differing however, sufficiently to be placed in a distinct order, the Dermoptera. Flying lemurs are found from the Malay Peninsular to the Philipine Islands, are represented by several species, all arboreal in habit and feeding on leaves and fruit.
The flying-fox or fox-bat is a fruit-eating bat of the family Pteropidae including some of the largest of the bats, one species reaching 140 cm in length across the wings! Flying-foxes are found in Australia, Asia and Africa.
The flying-lemur is an insectivorous mammal native to India. They have a membrane which extends as a broad expansion from the nape of the neck to the tail which they use to glide when leaping from tree to tree.
The flying-squrrel is a genus of rodent animals of the squirrel family. The skin of the flank, extending between the fore and hind legs allows them to glide and make great leaps. Flying-squrrels are found in Europe, Asia and North America.
Fool's Parsley is a slender plant of the family Umbelliferae. It grows to 30 cm tall with dark green, doubly pinnate leaves, and terminal compound umbels of white flowers.
Foraminifera is an order of animals of low type belonging to the class Rhizopoda, sub-order Protozoa, furnished with a shell or test, simple or complex, usually perforated by pores called foramina from which the animals get their name.
The forest fly is a fly so called from its abundance in the New Forest. It is an external parasite on horses and cattle, is flat in form, leathery in consistency, and has legs specially adapted for clinging to the hair of its host. Although possessing wings, it rarely uses them. It is a pupiparous fly, giving birth to a single larva which quickly turns into a pupa.
The forest-fly is a two-winged fly parasitic on birds and quadrupeds.
see "earwig"
Forget-me-not is a common British plant of the natural order Boraginaceae found growing in damp or wet places. It is a pretty flower considered as the emblem of friendship throughout Europe.
The fossa is a large carnivorous mammal found in Madagascar. It is about the size of an otter, but is related to the civet and mongoose. It is brown in colour, has a long tail, short legs, teeth like a cat's and lives mainly in trees feeding on birds and small mammals.
The term fowl was once used as a synonym for bird, but since around 1900 the term fowl has come to refer to birds of the genus Gallus. They resemble the pheasants, but the crown of the head is generally naked and furnished with a fleshy comb, the base of the lower mandibles also bears fleshy lobes (wattles).
The fox is an animal of the genus Vulpes closely allied to the dog, with a straight bushy tail, elongated pupils and erect ears. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable and omnivorous, consuming small animals, eggs, honey and refuse.
see "Flying-fox"
Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) is a common British flower of the natural order Scrophulariaceae. It grows on banks and pastures. The flowers are campanulate and resemble the fingers of a glove, hence the name. Foxglove posesses diuretic, narcotic and sedative qualities which are used in medicine. It is also deadly in sufficient quantity.
The Foxhound is a breed of dog bred for chasing foxes. The foxhound is smaller than the staghound, its average height being about 53 cm. Foxhounds were bred by crossing the old English bloodhound with the greyhound to blend speed with stamina and scent.
Foxtail-grass is a grass of the genus Alopecurus so called because of the close cylindrical panicle in which the spikelets of flowers are arranged which look rather like a fox's tail.
The francolin is a genus of birds belonging to the same family as the partridge which they resemble except for one or more strong and sharp horny spurs on the tarsi.
Frasera is a genus of plants of the natural order Gentianaceae containing seven species of erect perennial herbs native to North America.
Fratercula is a genus of web-footed birds which contains the puffin.
Fraxinella is a species of dittany. It is an ornamental herbaceous annual plant cultivated for its fragrant leaves and rose-coloured flowers.
Fraxinus is a genus of deciduous trees of the order Oleaceae which includes the ash.
French Beans is a twining annual plant with alternate leaves on footstalks composed of three oval pubescent folioles. The seeds are shaped rather like a kidney, and from this the plant gets its alternative name, the Kidney Bean.
The French Oak is a tree of the genus Catalpa. It contains a lot of tannin in its bark.
The frigate-bird is a tropical, web-footed bird of the family Pelecanidae. The male bird reaches 1 meter in length, including the tail, but the body is comparatively small. The bill is longer than the head, hooked at the end and sharp. The wings are very large, and the bird has a wing span of over 2 meters.
Fringillidae is a large family of conirostral birds comprising the finches.
Fringillidea is the Finch family of birds. They are a large family of small seed-eating birds found in all parts of the world. Fringillidea belong to the order Insessores, section Conirostres. They are distinguished by having a sharply-pointed, conical, and in most cases strongly-formed, bill suitable for crushing seeds and other hard objects.
Fritillary is a genus of plants of the order Liliaceae, native to northern temperate regions.
The frog is an anura with four legs, four toes on the fore feet and five on the hind. The feet are more-or-less webbed. The body is naked and has no ribs and no tail. The tongue is fleshy and attached in front to the jaw but is free behind so that it can be protruded.
see "Cheironectes"
see "frog"
The froth-fly is an insect of the family Cercopidae, the larvae of which is found in a frothy exudation on plants (Cuckoo-spit).
Fruit-pigeons are pigeons of the genus Carpophagus. They have brilliant plumage and are found in India and Australia. They are so named because they eat nothing but fruit.
Fucaceae is a natural order of dark-coloured algae consisting of olive-coloured inarticulate seaweeds distinguished from other algae by their reproductive organs which consist of archegonia and antheridia, contained in common chambers, united in club-shaped receptacles at the ends of the fronds.
The fuchsia is a plant of the order Onagraceae. It has erect, much-branched stems, smooth, rather thick pointed leaves, and drooping heavy flowers borne singly in the axils of leaves towards the end of the branches. The flowers have coloured, fleshy calyx and tubular corolla, usually of different colours or shades of the same colour, and long deep-purple filaments bearing cross-set anthers.
Fucus is a genus of seaweeds of the family Fucaceae comprising several common seaweeds with a flat or compressed forked frond, sometimes containing air vessels.
The fulmar is a sea bird which lives on the sub-arctic shores of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Fumariaceae is a small natural order of exogenous plants closely allied to Papaveraceae. The species are slender-stemmed, herbaceous plants, generally erect, though some climb by means of their twisting leaf-stalks.
Funaria is a genus of mosses.
Fungi is a large natural order of cryptogamous plants, Fungi agree with algae and lichens in their cellular structure, which is, with few exceptions, devoid of anything resembling vascular tissue; but differing from them in deriving their nutrition from the body on which the grow, not from the medium by which they are surrounded.
see "Gorse"
Fusus is a genus of gasteropodous molluscs nearly allied to Murex with a spindle-shaped univalve shell.
Gadidae is a family of malacopterous fish including the cod, ling and haddock.
The gadwall (Anas strepera) is a species of duck. It is common in North America, and rare in Britain. It is not so large as a mallard and has long pointed wings and a vigorous and rapid flight.
The galbulinae are a family of tropical American fissirostal birds allied to the trogons and kingfishers.
Galeidae is the tope family of small sharks.
The galemys are a genus of mammals allied to the shrews. They live in burrows at the sides of streams and feed on insects.
Galeopsis is a genus of plants of the natural order Labiatae characterized by the equally five-toothed calyx. They are herbaceous plants with square stems usually clothed with sharp bristly hairs, nettle-like leaves on long stalks, and red, white or yellow labiate flowers.
see "Tope"
Gall-fly is a name for several hymenopterous insects of the family Cynipidae, which form galls, each species prefering a different plant. The gall is due to an iritating fluid which the insect deposits on the plant along with its egg.
The galliwasp is a species of lizard about 30cm long and stout and plump. It is generally brown in colour and is native to the West Indies and was particularly common in Jamaica during the 19th century.
Galls (gall-nuts) are a vegetable excrescence produced by the deposit of the egg of an insect in the bark or leaves of a plant.
A gamete is one of the two cells which fuse together to commence reproduction.
see "gamete"
The gannet (solan goose) is a British sea bird of the genus Sula, family Pelecanidae. It is about 1 meter long and the plummage is dirty white or grey. The bill is straight, and about 15 cm long.
The ganoids are an order of fish characterized by angular, rhombic, polygonal or circular scales composed of horny or bony plates covered with a thick plate of a glossy enamel like substance.
The gaper-shell is a lamellibranchiate mollusc common on British coasts. It has a rectangular shell and burrows in sand and mud.
The gar-fish (sea-pike, gar-pike, sea-needle) is a long and slender sea fish of the genus Belone, about 90cm long. The head projects forward into a very long sharp snout. The sides and belly are of a bright silvery colour and the back is green.
see "Gar-fish"
Garcinia is a genus of plants of the natural order Guttiferae.
The garden-warbler is a migratory song-bird which visits Britain from the end of April to September. It is about 15cm long, the head and upper surfaces are greenish brown and the underside is brownish white.
Gardenia is a genus of trees and shrubs of the natural order Cinchonaceae. They are native to trpoical Asia and Africa and have pretty white or yellowish flowers and a powerful fragance.
The garganey is a small British duck.
Garlic is a perennial plant of the family Liliaceae with an edible bulb divided into segments known as cloves.
Garrot is a popular name of ducks of the genus Clangula. They are oceanic ducks with a bill shorter than the head, and are widely distributed over the temperate regions of Europe and America.
Garrulus is a genus of insessorial birds of the crow family.
The gasteropods are a class of mollusc, consisting of animals inhabiting a univalve shell, although some of the group are wholly devoid of a shell. Generally the shell is cone-shaped and spiral. The distinguishing characteristic is the foot, which is broad, muscular and disc-like and attached to the ventral surface.
see "Gasteropod"
see "Gasteropod"
Gasterosteus is a genus of fish which comprises the sticklebacks.
see "gasteropod"
see "gasteropod"
The gaur (or gour, seladang) is one of the larget of the ox tribe found in the mountain jungles of India and Malaya. It is renowned for its shoulder hide, which even when dried is often more than 5cm thick, and was used to make shields.
The gavial (Gavialis gangeticus) is the Indian crocodile. It is characterized by narrow, almost cylindrical jaws which form a very long elongated muzzle. It has 120 teeth, of equal length, and the feet are webbed.
The Gaviiformes are an order of birds. These are the divers or loons. They are water birds with legs set very far back and webbed feet. The bill is long and pointed for catching fish.
The gayal (Mithan) is a species of ox related to the gaur and domesticated in north-east India.
The gazelle (Gazella dorcas) are various species of small, fast running antelope (the Gazellinae).
see "Saluki"
The gean (Prunus Avium) is a wild cherry tree found in Britain. It has fruit which are red when unripe, and a deep purple or black when ripe. The timber can be used for making furniture.
The gebang palm (Corypha gebanga) is a fan-leaved palm of south east Asia. Sago is extracted from its pith and its leaves are used for thatch, hats, baskets and bags. The root is used in medicine and the fibres of the leaf stalks are used for making ropes, nets and cloth.
The Gecko are a family of nocturnal lizards (Gekotidae) characterized by the general flatness of their form, especially of the head, which is rather triangular. The body is covered on the upper part with numerous round prominences or warts and the feet are rather short with toes nearly equal in length and furnished with flattened suction pads which enable the gecko to run up perpendicular walls.
The gelada (Theropithecus) is a dark, shaggy-maned baboon found in Ethiopia of the family Cercopithedcidae.
The gelsemium is a woody vine found in Asia and southern America.
A gemma is a small cellular body that separates from the mother-plant and starts a new one. It is common in moss and liverwort.
The gemsbok (Oryx gazella) is a large powerful member of the antelope family inhabiting the plains of South Africa.
Genes are hereditary information material arranged in a single row along the length of each chromosome.
The genet is a digitigrade carnivorous mammal of the family Viverridae. It is about the size of a small cat, but longer. Genets were used in Constantinople (Istanbul) to catch rats. The genet is common around the mediterranean.
Genipap is the fruit of the Genipa americana tree, of the natural order Rubiaceae. It is about the size of an orange and has a pleasant vinous flavour.