Smilax or Greenbriar, also called cat-briar.
 

    "Found within three rods of Flint's Pond a rose-breasted grosbeak's nest. [And one fresh egg (three on the 4th).] It was in a thicket where there was much cat-briar, in a high blueberry bush, some five feet from the ground, in the forks of the bush, and of very loose construction, being made of the dead gray extremities of the cat-briar, with its tendrils (and some of this had dropped on the ground beneath), and this was lined merely with fine brown stems of weeds like pinweeds, without any leaves or anything else,-a slight nest on the whole. Saw the birds.
    ....     Cat-briar in flower, how long? Allium not out".

Non del tutto in tema, ma  ...      ;-)

    "Briar. A rare glimpse of Briar the mystery cat! Many have known Jennifer for years but have yet to see her cat, Briar. When the house is very, very quiet and no one makes any sudden moves, Briar comes out of one of her many hiding places and is a wonderful, loving creature. Despite her sensitive nature, she has lived in 4 states and countless households with Jennifer, comforting her through college, vet school, and beyond. Note her look of alarm at being caught on film".

    Un po' di     fonts     "bestiali"  ...       ;-)

    e in particolare feline

http://doghause.com/downloads/f_catsmeow.zip
http://doghause.com/downloads/f_carriecatsh.zip
http://doghause.com/downloads/f_dingbatcats2.zip
http://doghause.com/downloads/f_kittyprint.zip
http://doghause.com/downloads/f_pyramidpurr.zip

Mimosa quadrivalvis (Schrankia uncinata)

"Sensitive Briar Known as Bashful Briar due to its sensitive leaflets which fold when touched and aptly named Devil's Shoestrings and Cat's claw because of its abundantly barbed stems".

Smilacaceae Liliopsida Smilax bona-nox Cat-briar

http://biocourse.bio.tamu.edu/graduate-students/neilla/madfamrz.htm
http://biocourse.bio.tamu.edu/graduate-students/neilla/madgenqs.htm
http://www.cnas.smsu.edu/bullshoals/Floristics/plcomplete.asp?ID=7975

"Smilax bona-nox Common Name: Cat Briar Family: Liliaceae - 32 Habitat: Bluffs Bluffs; soil rocky; steep southwest-facing slope"
"Smilax trinervula, Miq. China: fruit eaten. Vernacular name: Cat Briar. Ref. READ".

"Smilax (Smilax spp.) is a perennial vine that causes problems in many fruit crops, from blueberries to peaches. Smilax is also called green-briar or cat-briar and is found throughout the southeastern U.S. It is a native plant and approximately nine species can be observed in Georgia. Smilax is a perennial species that thrives in wooded or thickened areas. It is characterized by thick, tough stems and waxy, heart or arrow shaped leaves. However, the most noticeable feature are the numerous thorns that are found along the stems and leaves (in certain species) of smilax. Smilax produces small, inconspicuous flowers and berry-like fruit. These fruits are readily eaten by birds that are the primary means of spread.  ........."

"LARVAL HABITAT: The larvae of Ae. grossbecki are most common in flooded woodlands where mature Red Maple, Sweet Gum Oak and Beech are the dominant trees. In southern New Jersey, Holly replaces Beech as an indicator and the larvae frequently occur in borrow pits where sand has been extracted for land fill. Cat Briar is a common plant at both latitudes. Decomposing leaves add tannins to the aquatic habitat and in most cases, habitat water is so dark that a white dipper submerged more than 2 ft below the surface cannot be clearly detected".
        guerra chimica:
"Keener was asked about the "plant from hell," the prickly vine with the potato-like root called green briar or cat briar and "wait a minute," because if it "catches on you, you WILL wait a minute to untangle." Keener said it is a Smilax; the non-thorn variety is sought after for wedding bouquets. The prevalent thorny version can be killed with effort: Paint undiluted Round-Up on a fresh-cut stump; mix surfactant with the chemical if spraying it so that it can be absorbed by the waxy leaves; put the top of the vine in a bucket of Round-up and top with a brick so that the plant sucks up the chemical over time. It may take 30 days to see results from spraying and requires repeated applications. Round-up is only absorbed by green tissue, so it is not dangerous to tree bases".

 "Oldest known flower is identified" "A tiny fossilized plant, barely 1 inch tall and resembling today's black pepper plant, has been identified by scientists at Yale University as the oldest known flower. It lived 120 million years ago, and its flower was probably a drab green or beige. Botanists were not so much surprised to find a fossil flower more than 5 million years older than anything previously discovered as they were by the plant's humble size and appearance. - Because the fossil had characteristics of the two large branches of modern flowering plants, scientists said, the plant could be their common ancestor and represent a kind of missing link needed to understand plant evolution. Nearly all the world's plants that bear seed, about a half-million species, are likely descendants of the small plant. - The discovery, being reported today in the journal 'Science', was made after Dr. David W. Taylor saw a published description of the fossil, which had been dug up in southeastern Australia and labeled a fern. Examining detailed photographs of the fossil under a microscope, Taylor and Dr. Leo J. Hickey identified the plant as a flowering angiosperm - with fruit surrounding its seeds. - Similar flowering plants can be found today in marshes. Gardeners as well as botanists might recognize similarities between the Koonwarra plant and wild yams, cat briar, lizard's tail, and the black pepper plant." (K.C. TIMES, 2/9/90.)
 
 

E ora per rilassarvi ....

                                  The Magic Cat Play
                                                  http://www.richmondreview.co.uk/library/thomas03.html#one