Picture-winged Flies (Stictomyia longicornis) on Prickly Pear Cactus in Arizona
A mystery (finally!) solved - watching Stictomyia Picture-winged Flies on Prickly Pear Cactus
A Good Life
Miscellaneous Wanderings and Maunderings
A Good Life
Miscellaneous Wanderings and Maunderings
Plants
Watching Dodder – A Fascinating Parasitic Plant
Marveling and photographing Dodder, an astonishing parasitic plant, in Southwestern Colorado.
“Cotton Balls” on Fourwinged Saltbush – Galls formed by Cecidomyid Midges
Photographing Midge-induced cotton-ball galls on Fourwinged Saltbush in Southwestern Colorado.
Rust Gall on Juniper in Southwestern Colorado
I’ve been fascinated by galls lately. Most of the galls I’ve looked at have been induced by insects. This one, though, is caused by a Rust fungus. I’m thinking that it’s one of the Gymnosporangium genus, probably Cedar-Apple Rust, Gymnosporangium…
Galls on Utah Juniper in Southwestern Colorado – Gall Midge (Walshomyia sp A)
I’ve seen these strange flower-like growths on Utah Junipers here in Southwestern Colorado for years, but have not known what they were. I assumed they were galls, but was having a heck of a time figuring out what type of…
Prickly Pear Cactus Blossoms
I was hiking on one of my favorite trails around Cortez, Colorado this week and came across a strange sight. There were what appeared to be low-growing Rose gardens underneath the Juniper trees. The contrast of the pink, yellow and…
Colorado Claret Cup Cactus – Happy Summer Solstice
I was hiking one of my favorite trails here in Cortez, Colorado a couple of days ago and came across these Colorado Claret Cup Cactus flowers. The morning sun was just catching the brilliant red flowers, making them glow, while…
Dwarf Lousewort (Pedicularis centranthera)
In the Spring of last year (late May of 2022) I was hiking through an old Pinyon-Juniper forest here in Southwestern Colorado. This was at about 6500′ of elevation. I kept seeing an odd ooking plant, usually growing beneath Juniper…
Aspen Twoleaf Tier Caterpillars
In mid-June of 2021, I was hiking along a river in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains. Their were Aspens trees lining the trail. The sun shone through the Aspen leaves, making them glow. It was very pretty, and I stopped to…
Tumbleweed Shield Lichen
I first saw these strange organisms on a patch of bare rock next to a trail at the Carpenter Natural Area in Cortez, CO. They were obviously Lichens, but they weren’t attached to the ground. They were scattered in loose…