Tag Archives: plains sunflower (Helianthus petiolaris)

A few of my favorite things #3

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Flowers and the many faces of those who visit them…

A mason wasp (Monobia quadridens) and a white-faced tachinid fly (Archytas apicifer) sharing the bloom of a wild carrot (a.k.a. bishop's lace or Queen Anne's lace; Daucus carota) (20080422_04440)

a mason wasp (Monobia quadridens) and a white-faced tachinid fly (Archytas apicifer) sharing the bloom of a wild carrot (a.k.a. bishop’s lace or Queen Anne’s lace; Daucus carota)

Brownbelted bumble bees (Bombus griseocollis) foraging on aromatic buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) (20080713_09651)

brownbelted bumble bees (Bombus griseocollis) foraging on aromatic buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)

A black and gold bumble bee (Bombus auricomus) weighing down a plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) (20080727_10335)

a black and gold bumble bee (Bombus auricomus) weighing down a plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris)…

A metallic sweat bee (Augochloropsis metallica) visiting a different bloom on the same plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) (20080727_10337)

…and right next door, a metallic sweat bee (Augochloropsis metallica) visiting a different bloom on the same plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris)

A female southern carpenter bee (Xylocopa micans) piercing the base of a pink Texas skullcap (Scutellaria suffrutescens) (20080727_10366)

a female southern carpenter bee (Xylocopa micans) piercing the base of an amazingly hardy pink Texas skullcap (Scutellaria suffrutescens)[1][2]

A scoliid wasp (Campsomeris plumipes) enjoying the furry bloom of woolly croton (a.k.a. hogwort or doveweed; Croton capitatus)(20080809_10694)

a scoliid wasp (Campsomeris plumipes) enjoying the furry bloom of woolly croton (a.k.a. hogwort or doveweed; Croton capitatus)

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Notes:

  1. Beautiful bit of adaptation in this case.  The carpenter bee is too large to fit into the flower, and it lacks a tongue long enough to reach from the opening to the base of the bloom.  So these ingenious insects pierce the base of the flower with their mandibles so they can reach through the hole and access the nectar.  Clever!
  2. This herb draws in hummingbirds and insects in large numbers.  It can be entertaining to watch the varied horde compete for the blooms.

Her name is Patience

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She is an ambush predator.  She understands the meaning of diligence.  She epitomizes calm.  She knows how to wait.

A female green lynx spider (Peucetia viridans) perched on the petals of a plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) (20080704_09121)

She is young, this spider, yet already she demonstrates keen intellect.  Find the food others need to survive, then become a statue at its edge.  Soon they will come.  And soon she will dine.

A female green lynx spider (Peucetia viridans) hiding on the leaf of woolly croton (a.k.a. hogwort or doveweed; Croton capitatus) (20080809_10702)

She, too, is young, though older than the first.  In the dim light of an overcast day, she is all but invisible as she watches the stem leading to the plant’s flowers.

A female green lynx spider (Peucetia viridans) clinging to the leaf of purple morning glory (a.k.a. common morning glory; Ipomoea purpurea) (20081011_13666)

She is mature, pregnant even, and soon to create an egg sac.  Not her first, I think, for the year is late.

Close-up of a female green lynx spider (Peucetia viridans) sitting on the leaf of purple morning glory (a.k.a. common morning glory; Ipomoea purpurea) (20081011_13693)

She hangs effortlessly and becomes a part of the leaf, unmoving yet seeing in all directions.  She is an ambush predator, and soon she will eat.

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All photos are of female green lynx spiders (Peucetia viridans):

[1] Perched on the petals of a plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris); taken at White Rock Lake in Dallas.

[2] Hiding on the leaf of woolly croton (a.k.a. hogwort or doveweed; Croton capitatus); taken at the family farm in East Texas.

[3-4] Clinging to the leaf of purple morning glory (a.k.a. common morning glory; Ipomoea purpurea); taken at the family farm in East Texas.

Waiting for the light

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Life sometimes feels like a flower holding its breath in anticipation of sunshine.  It’s as though the night is the hardship and stress we all feel, and the day to come is the promise of a better season.

And sometimes the night seems to go on forever, to last an eternity.  Yet the bleak torment must eventually give way to sunrise.

It’s simply a matter of patience and perseverance.

Plains sunflowers (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) facing east just before sunrise (20080726_09939)

Before sunlight spilled over the trees on the eastern shore of White Rock Lake, these plains sunflowers (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) began their methodical turn toward daylight.  They would spend the rest of the day following the sun’s progress across the sky.

A water lily (Nymphaea sp.) waiting for sunrise before opening its petals (20080809_10484)

Floating atop the still waters of Big Cypress Bayou, this water lily (Nymphaea sp.) held its bloom in anticipation of sunshine slowly creeping over the trees on the opposite bank.

Find your own sunshine

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A plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) facing east before sunrise (20080726_09931)

If dawn refuses to give up its golden rays because the hour is as yet too young, I recommend you look around to see if you can find your own sunshine.  Sometimes it works for me.

[a plains sunflower (a.k.a. petioled sunflower or prairie sunflower; Helianthus petiolaris) facing east before sunrise; I discovered it along with its friends on the northern shore of White Rock Lake near Pelican Island]