planet_earthstar's Favourites

Small juvenile green turtle, part of a group of 6 turtles that were collectively rehabilitated and released by NOAA program staff ~5 miles off Pearl Harbor Oahu. These animals were simultaneously released with passive drifters, described in Figure 2 of this study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.2034

Chaparral Broomrape (Aphyllon tuberosum) Small, native plant growing at side of fire road by Chamise shrub upon which it is parasitic. Color is lavender-purple. Corollas are 10-18 mm long. Peak bloom time: April-May.

Members of the Broomrape family are all root parasites. The Aphyllon (formerly Orobanche) genus is fully parasitic. Its members have no green leaves capable of photosynthesis, therefore they can’t use sunlight for energy. Others, like Castilleja and Pedicularis, are hemiparasitic, meaning that they have photosynthetic green leaves, but also derive some of their nutrients from nearby plants.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=13614

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 155.

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, p. 225.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 109.

Monterey County Wildflowers, Trees & Ferns https://montereywildflowers.com/orobanchaceae-xcastilleja/