Cholla Bloom
The Teddybear Cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii) was blooming in Joshua Tree National Park during our spring 2016 visit. This are is known as the Colorado Desert, though it is a section of the Sonoran Desert. Flowering is an essential step in the reproductive cycle of this plant. Apparently, bees are a common pollinator and likely mutualist of this species. Notice that this flower is not overly showy -- it was actually hard to see if visually in the bright sunlight. Given this, I wonder how it effectively attracts its pollinator -- is there a distinctive odor or perhaps some sort of pigment in the ultraviolet spectrum?
The spines provide protection against herbivory and likely also help the plant thermoregulate and thus conserve water.
Cholla Bloom
The Teddybear Cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii) was blooming in Joshua Tree National Park during our spring 2016 visit. This are is known as the Colorado Desert, though it is a section of the Sonoran Desert. Flowering is an essential step in the reproductive cycle of this plant. Apparently, bees are a common pollinator and likely mutualist of this species. Notice that this flower is not overly showy -- it was actually hard to see if visually in the bright sunlight. Given this, I wonder how it effectively attracts its pollinator -- is there a distinctive odor or perhaps some sort of pigment in the ultraviolet spectrum?
The spines provide protection against herbivory and likely also help the plant thermoregulate and thus conserve water.