The head waters of the Cache la Poudre River are in Rocky Mountain National Park and it winds its way along 126 miles of scenic beauty to join the South Platte River near Greeley, Colorado. You can climb the mountains along this river on a scenic drive out of Fort Collins along state highway 14.

The formation of what we call the Rocky Mountains is a long complex tale of mountain building, erosion, innundation, and subsequent mountain building (orogeny). The rocks that form the walls of the Cache La Poudre canyon are metamorphic gneiss made from Precambrian age granites of the Ancestral Rocky Mountains which were heated and compressed during the Laramide Orogeny between 80-55 million years ago.

The gneissic banding seen in this photo is not only beautiful but tells the story of heat an compression experienced by these ancient granites on their way to becoming the metamorphic gneiss seen here.

In this image the foliation or layering of the gneiss is visible. The immense pressure and high temperature experienced by the granite while metamorphosing into gneiss is what produced the sculpture you see.

From the size of the rocks in the Cache La Poudre river bed and along the bank in the foreground, you can tell that large amounts of water moving rapidly through this area in the past pushed these heavy monsters down stream.

Scenes like this are why the Cache La Poudre River has been designated a national scenic river.

This is and example of Bird’s Foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus from the pea family Fabaceae. This plant is both a native and an introduced species to all parts of the US and Canada. It is widely used for hay to feed livestock and serves as a food source for deer, elk, geese, ducks, and pheasants.

This is an example of the Rubber Rabbit Brush (Ericameria nauseosa)
This plant reminds me of Prairie Broomweed (Amphiachyris dracunculoides) that grows all around where I live. Rubber Rabbit Brush will be eaten to a limited extent by livestock but it is valuable to wildlife during the winter.

This is a closeup of the flower head of the Rubber Rabbit Brush. This plant is part of the Daisy family (Asteraceae) but has flowers that do not make you think Daisy flower at all.

In the last image, you see an example of Western Aster (Symphyotrichum ascendens) another member of the Asteraceae family which produces beautiful, tiny lavender flowers with yellow disk florets. The USDA says that this plant is sometimes mixed in with other seed types to help stabilize disturbed or damaged soils. Beautiful as well as useful.

All these sights and creatures can be seen and enjoyed on a short day’s drive up the Cache La Poudre River Canyon just west of Fort Collins, Colorado on state 14. Worth the trip, and good for your soul.

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I saw Mesa Greggia for the first time during 2016. They are gray green leaved with pearly white flowers that sit on a stem well above the surrounding vegetation. I knew upon first sight that this flower was something I had never photographed before.
Mesa Greggia was first collected for scientific study by a man named Josiah Gregg in New Mexico during the late 1840’s. You can read more about his story at the California Native Plant Society website. Apparently, Dr. Gregg died in California in 1850. He had been sending some of his specimens to Asa Gray at Harvard University for classification and naming. Dr. Gray named this species Greggia camporum in his honor in 1852. Camporum is the latinized version of the Spanish word Campos which means the plains. Thus, the original name for this species meant Greggia of the plains. Unfortunately, the rules of naming genera and species prohibit the reuse of a genus name and as it happened there was a prior validly named genus Greggia in the literature since 1788. So, Greggia camporum was renamed Nerisyrenia camporum in 1900. The new genus name translates as neros which means flowing and Syrenia which was a mustard genus found in eastern Europe and Central Asia which resembles this species. So, its name now means flowing Syrenia-like mustard of the plains.

From a distance, the white flowers of this species are like a beacon. Nerisyrenia camporum, as you might have guessed by now, is a member of the Brassicaceae or Mustard family. The family is also called Cruciferae by some authorities because the four petals common to Mustard flowers are arranged like a cross. Most Mustard flowers are yellow, this is the first white one I’ve seen.

While out taking pictures of this year’s (2017) spring arrivals, I stopped to catch the first Mesa Greggia’s of the season. What you see here is a flower-loving fly (Apoceridae) with long, straw-like mouthparts delving into a Mesa Greggia flower. I have never seen this kind of fly before! This fly is a member of a family with but a single genus containing 150 species worldwide. It’s nice to know that I haven’t seen everything yet, and the surprises are gifts of discovery.

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The plants pictured here were photographed in Red Rock Canyon State Park near Hinton, Oklahoma. They are of the species Equisetum hyemale in the Horsetail family Equisetaceae.

Scouring Rushes or Horsetails as they are sometimes known are an ancient species of plants related to the ferns. Like the ferns they do not produce seeds and reproduce by making spores. They have been doing this since the Carboniferous period some 300 million years ago.

The cylindrical stems of these plants are evergreen and consist of hollow joints or sections stacked up to produce unbranched stems 2 to 3 feet tall. The surface of these sections are ridged and a narrow black-green band or sheath of tiny leaves forms between each section.
The high silica content of these plants and the ridges on the sections make these plants useful for scrubbing or scouring, hence their common name.

They like sandy or loamy soils with plenty of moisture, they tolerate clay or limestone rich soils, and can be found along the margins of streams, rivers, ponds, and other habitats where their feet can stay wet. Their presence can, in certain drier areas, can indicate a natural spring or seep is nearby even when flowing water is not visible. While these plants were from Oklahoma, they occur in suitable habitats all over the U.S. and Canada. They are cultivated by gardners and escapees from cultivation have become pests in South Africa and Australia.

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I was out in mid-April this year and photographed this perfect example of Erodium texanum also known as the Texas Stork’s Bill. If you know geraniums, you will notice how similar the the leaves of Texas Stork’s Bill are to them. In fact, both Stork’s Bills that occur in Texas are in the Geranium family (Geraniaceae). Read more about the Texas Stork’s Bill here, here, and here.

Here are some other examples of Texas Stork’s Bill that I photographed several years ago. Notice the large purple flowers and the geranium-like leaves.

In all of these photos of Texas Stork’s Bill, you have a few individuals in proximity to one another and all of these produced flowers in March and April.

This image shows the Red Stem Stork’s Bill, Erodium cicutarium, a cousin of Texas Stork’s Bill from Eurasia. Here you can see the lobes cut into the palmately compound leaves and the multi-flowered umbel. Notice in the background there are many, many other individuals of this species covering the ground in view.

Both species of stork’s bill get their name from the way their seed pods grow to resemble the head and long beak of a stork. Notice here, along the stems you can see how strongly hairy these plants are when compared to the almost invisible fuzziness of Texas Stork’s Bill and geraniums.

This image was taken on the 20th of February, you can see a tiny Red Stem Stork’s Bill in flower. (the knife blade is 1 inch wide at the edge of the picture) This species was introduced in the US in the seventeen hundreds, most likely because it is edible (Webb, Robert H.; Steiger, John W.; Newman, Evelyn B. 1988. The response of vegetation to disturbance in Death Valley National Monument, California. U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1793. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. 69 p.)(USGS). It reproduces prolifically and has become a competitor to cool season farm crops. It has invaded all 50 of the United States and all of Canada. Remarkable plant.

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On a photo safari in the spring of 2019, I had the opportunity to see a close relative of the Fringed Puccoon. Lithospermum caroliniense, the Carolina Puccoon is found growing in sandy soils of grassland or open woodland in many parts of Texas. You can learn more about them, here and here.

Anytime I see a narrow leaved wildflower with yellow tubular flowers, I tend to think of the Fringed Puccoon. The plant pictured here had the fuzzy, narrow, stalkless leaves like the Fringed Puccoon but the fringes of the five flower petals and the length of the tubular flowers were wrong for that species. Lots of things can account for flower malformations like poor growing conditions, insect damage, and genetic mutation. This time it was the delight of seeing a species unknown to me. (This is akin to the elation you feel when you hunted and found easter eggs. At my age, I am continually reminded that I haven’t seen it all, just barely scratched the surface. Hurray!)

Here you can see the fuzzy surfaces of the sepals and the leaves as well as the long tube of a flower past its prime. Close inspection will also reveal unopened flower buds which means that these guys flower progressively which prolongs the beauty of the plant during the spring.

The puccoons belong to the forget-me-not family (Boraginaceae) and their genus name means stone seed. If you visit inaturalist.org, you can see many good pictures of the Carolina Puccoon. Beauty is where you find it, get out and look, you’ll be surprised what you find.

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This image shows the tiny flower of the Red Stem Stork’s Bill, Erodium cicutarium. It is a non-native wildflower that is found throughout most of the US. It belongs to the Geranium family, Geraniaceae; and along with henbit, it makes pink flowers early in the spring before the grass gets going.  You can see in this picture the reddish flower stems and the hairiness of this plant’s stems and leaves. Two of the three flowers visible have set seed and dropped their petals.

In this image, you can see the seed pods produced by the flowers. From the length and shape of the pod, you can see why some folks called these Stork’s Bill, or Pin Clover.

Many folks call these guys weeds and spend lots of money to rid their lawn of them.  I let them do their thing because they provide some color in an otherwise bland part of the year, and they feed the bugs and butterflies that are becoming active at this time. That said, they can become fairly large plants and can become  problematic when in large numbers. I control mine with therapeutic mowing; that way,  I get to enjoy their color, the nectar feeders get fed, and their remains become mulch for the grass. Everybody wins.

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I like Fringed Puccoons. They are a delight in the spring when things are perking up from their winter sleep and not much color is available for photographs. These fuzzy green plants with the ruffled yellow flowers belong to the Forget-Me-Not family Boraginaceae.

Depending on where you find them, you will see some variations in the way they look due to differences in growth conditions and possibly genetics. Notice here the long tubular flowers which terminate in petals that look like French Ruffles seen on shirts popular in the 1970’s and further back in time.

This image shows the fuzzy surface of their leaves and stems. Also, the tiny bee and the little black ant on the perimeter of an upper flower indicates that these flowers are a needed food source for many insects.

Sometimes, you will find Fringed Puccoons that aren’t as ruffled on the edges of their flowers as other examples. This is when your experience with many of these flowers pays off. You can notice the fuzzy surfaced leaves, clustering of the flowers near the top of the stem, and the five petals on the tubular flowers with some wrinkles on their edges. Also notice on the lower flower, the end of the pistil coming out of the center. Compare this to other images in this post and see if you can find any more like that.

Here is another individual that illustrates the arrangement of the flowers in Lithospermum incisum.

This specimen has a more open arrangement of its flowers, but still has the typical characters of Fringed Puccoon.

I have found this species in grassland environments in the Fort Worth area, and in West Texas where these were photographed.

Sometimes, you are treated to a situation where the light is right, the subject is gorgeous and a click of the shutter captures a moment of beauty.

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On a recent visit to Rocky Mountain National Park, I was able to photograph some of the plant and animal life that live in the alpine tundra ecosystem at the Forest Canyon Overlook, elevation: 11,716 feet. This is a little less than 2 and a quarter miles above sea level. How’s that for really, really high?

In this first image you see the glacial moraine that forms the wall of the Forest Canyon, a valley shaped by ancient glaciers. The rocks visible here were dropped by the glacier and were the pieces it used to abrade the walls and floor of the valley to produce what you see today.

This image shows the alpine tundra that exists above the treeline, in fact, tundra means land without trees. The wind and weather here is too extreme for tree growth and the grasses and other plants which live here are able to withstand the wind, cold and short growing season.

Here is a Dandelion, Taraxacum officinale. It is hugging the ground and is somewhat protected by the surrounding stones. I suspect the stones help shield it from the windy conditions and they absorb sunlight which may help warm the dandelion’s space.

Here is a Halictid bee on another dandelion. I was a little more than surprised to see insects and flowers at this altitude because grasses don’t need pollinators. My respect for the toughness of this kind of bee and for the dandelion has increased.

This image shows a Common Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). This is a new species for me. I love going places and discovering things I have never seen. It is one of the benefits of travel to exotic places and a blessing of the national park system. The leaves on this plant are very feathery, fern-like. Took me a good while to identify this plant and you can read more about these rascals here, here and here.
You would never guess this plant is kin to a sunflower but they both belong to the Daisy family: Asteraceae.

In this image, you can see my foot. This is generally a no-no for photographers, but I included it to give you some idea of the size of the Red Turnip Beetle (Entomoscelis americana, family:Chrysomelidae) that I spotted while tromping along the trail at the Forest Canyon Overlook. Most folks were zipping along the trail to see the canyon and to soak up the scenic mountains, as for me, I tend to keep my eyes peeled for interesting things to photograph.

In this last image, you can see a somewhat blurry image of this tiny little fellow. His coloration is remarkable and is why he caught my eye in the first place. This is another creature I have encountered for the first time in these high mountains far from any turnips. Stuff like this delights me with the questions it raises about where this beetle fits into an ecosystem in a difficult place to live. It is nice, at my age, to enjoy the feelings of wonder engendered by these encounters. You can visit here and here to learn more about this little fellow.

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Sandbells (Nama hispidum, family: Hydrophyllaceae) are wildflowers I generally see around April and May in my part West Texas. They are easily confused with Dakota Mock Vervain. I generally find these tough little plants growing in open areas with sandy soils. The first image shows an example of this species growing through the tarmac on the edge of a country road.

The second image shows how Sandbells tend to spread outward from a center where the roots extend into the soil. In both these images you can see the tendency for the outer margins of the leaves to cup downward. This and the fact that the leaves are not subdivided into many tiny leaflets helps distinguish this plant from Dakota Mock Vervain which may also be in bloom in the vicinity.

Note the 5 lobed, lavender, tubular flowers visible in this image. You can also see the ends of the pistils in white in the center, and the yellow center color. Notice how the margins of the leaves have robust almost spiny hairs along the margins. All of these characters are useful for distinguishing Sandbells from Dakota Mock Vervain. You can see Dakota Mock Vervain on this website, here, here, and here.

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Above is a beautiful example of Plains Zinnia (Zinnia grandiflora, family Asteraceae). Having never seen this species before, I spent about half a day with my field guides and internet resources trying to figure out the name of this plant.

Plains Zinnia can be easily confused with Wooly Paperflower (Psilostrophe tagetina) which has very similar flowers. Both species grow low to the ground in dry calcareous soils on sloped or flat ground. In this image of Plains Zinnia, note variable scalloping at the ends of the petals, and the 3-6 petals per flower.

Plains Zinnia differs from Woolly Paperflower in the arrangement of its leaves. In Plains Zinnia they are oppositely arranged whereas they are alternately arranged in Wooly Paperflower. This character is clearly visible in this image. Additionally, note the brownish red hue to the disk flowers. This is another way to distinguish Plains Zinnia from the paperflowers.

These plants are perennial and will reappear from the same root stock year after year making them colorful additions to native plant gardens.

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