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Enciso, Martín Fernández de

(Encyclopedia)Enciso, Martín Fernández de märtēnˈ fĕrnänˈdāth dā ĕnthēˈsō [key], fl. 1509–19, Spanish conquistador and geographer. Commanding the supply ship for the colony planted (1509) near Carta...

Hula, Lake

(Encyclopedia)Hula, Lake, or Lake Huleh both: ho͞oˈlā [key], Arabic Bahr al Hulah, near sea-level lake formed by a natural dam of basalt, NE Israel; the Jordan River exits from its southern end. In ancient times...

Ormerod, Eleanor Anne

(Encyclopedia)Ormerod, Eleanor Anne ôrˈmərŏd [key], 1828–1901, English economic entomologist. She aided the Royal Horticultural Society in forming a collection of insect farm pests and was awarded the Flora m...

Lawson, John

(Encyclopedia)Lawson, John, d. 1711, English explorer of North Carolina. He came to the Carolinas in 1700 and within the next few years traveled approximately 1,000 mi (1,600 km) through its unexplored parts. His d...

Brown, Robert

(Encyclopedia)Brown, Robert, 1773–1858, Scottish botanist and botanical explorer. In 1801 he went as a naturalist on one of Matthew Flinders's expeditions to Australia, returning (1805) to England with valuable c...

May Day

(Encyclopedia)May Day, first day of May. Its celebration probably originated in the spring fertility festivals of India and Egypt. The festival of the Roman goddess of spring, Flora, was celebrated from Apr. 28 to ...

Michaux, André

(Encyclopedia)Michaux, André äNdrāˈ mēshōˈ [key], 1746–1802, French botanist. He collected botanical specimens in Europe and Asia. In 1785 he was sent by the French government to establish nurseries in the...

Saguaro National Park

(Encyclopedia)Saguaro National Park, 91,443 acres (37,021 hectares), SE Ariz. Contained within the desert park are many examples of the saguaro cactus (Cereus giganteus), a monumentally proportioned, now rare speci...

speleology

(Encyclopedia)speleology spēlēŏlˈəjē [key], systematic exploration of caves, popularly called spelunking. It includes the measuring and mapping of caves and reporting on the flora and fauna found in them. One...

Przhevalsky, Nikolai Mikhailovich

(Encyclopedia)Przhevalsky, Nikolai Mikhailovich nyĭkəlīˈ mēkhīˈləvĭch pərzhĭvälˈskē [key], 1839–88, Russian geographer and explorer in central and E Asia. He made five major expeditions—one to the...

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