Ephedra sp. I put a guess up on iNaturalist and my guess was wrong—I figured it would be—but someone with more insect knowledge suggested Darkling Beetles, Family Tenebrionidae. Maybe I’ll investigate further soon. I’m fairly certain this is Eaton’s Lipfern, Myriopteris rufa. Nylon Hedgehog Cactus, Echinocereus chloranthus Echinocereus coccineus ssp. transpecosensis Star Cloak Fern, Notholaena […]
A Peek Into The Chihuahuan Desert Botanical Gardens
New Mexico Agave, Agave neomexicana Now that’s a deer/antelope/sheep fence! Cowpen daisy, Verbesina encelioides Queen butterfly Tree cholla, Opuntia imbricata Beaked yucca, Yucca thompsoniana Finally I’m starting these west Texas posts! It was after lunch when we arrived close to Fort Davis and the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute and Botanical Gardens. Chris had found the […]
Bushwhacking in Sam Houston National Forest
In mid-October Chris mentioned that he wanted to go look for a particular rare plant, Bartonia texana, aka Texas screwstem. It is frequently on the list of protected plants we survey for but here’s the kicker, the photos available for this plant are few and not many people see this plant. It also doesn’t have […]
Exploring Mission Tejas State Park Part III
The final post for Mission Tejas State Park! A few little morsels between photos but a write-up at the end! Indigo Milk Cap, Lactarius indigo: I was so excited to see this! The state park had shared a photo on social media a few days prior to our hike of this cool mushroom and I […]
Exploring Mission Tejas State Park Part II
Hidden away on the Olen Matchett Trail near a remote corner at the front of Mission Tejas State Park are a set of old CCC tubs. Constructed when the CCC workers had set up camp to construct the state park, the tubs are a few feet downhill from a spring. Before our dinner the night […]
Hanging Around Camp at Mission Tejas State Park | Wordless Wednesday
(Ok, so nearly wordless, but you can’t quite tell here but the piece of wood to the right of the fire pit, there’s a pipe coming out of it. yes, that’s the water source. It’s usually near the electrical outlet, typically near the parking. Let me say, getting water when smoke is blowing your direction […]
Exploring Mission Tejas State Park Part I
Salvia azurea Liatris elegans Passiflora lutea Oak mistletoe, Phoradendron leucarpum, I think! American Pokeweed, Phytolacca americana Texas Bull Nettle, Cnidoscolus texanus Black walnut, Juglans nigra Before we arrived at the state park that last weekend in October, Chris had noted that there was some kind of trail run going on in the park. I was […]
West, To the Mountains
*Photos are from my phone, sorry for the sketchy quality* Planning Thanksgiving campouts can be tricky. Is it going to be too cold? Rainy? Sunny and cold is one thing, rainy and cold is another. A few months ago we sat down and made our camping reservations for the year, which you have to do […]
Lepidopterans at Mission Tejas State Park
Campsite six at Mission Tejas State Park turned out to be a great spot in the late fall afternoon sun to butterfly watch. I think I’ve seen hackberry emperors around a few times before but I’ve never spend a lot of time watching them, so I wasn’t even sure that’s what it was when I […]
Flora, Fauna, and Fungi at Lake Livingston State Park | Part II
White Heath Aster, Symphyotrichum ericoides I think this is likely late goldenrod, Solidago altissima. Either way, an open field of goldenrod flanked by bushy bluestem is my kind of fall scene! Bushy Goldentop, Euthamia leptocephala. Solidago’s look-alike cousin. The trail we were on when I saw this mushroom was an elevated boardwalk. I hadn’t seen […]
