We took a drive to Copiapo recently to accompany Dave on a business trip. You might remember this town. It is the same place that the Chilean miners were trapped in the mine for 39 days back in September of 2010. Taking the scenic route turned out to be a beautiful experience. The flowers in the desert in spring are really spectacular!
Alstromeria paupercula
Caesalpinia angulata
Beware of this flower. It grows on large creeping vines and smells like roadkill to atract flies for pollination. Ironically it is the only host plant for the native black swallowtail (the only swallowtail butterfly in Chile) that feeds on this plant to collect a toxin that makes it inedible to predators (just as monarchs back home feed on milkweed).
Solanum remyanum
These fields of purple flowers were so incredible. It is hard to capture it on film, but the flowers go on and on.
Senna cumingii
2 comments:
Those flowers are so beautiful! So interesting about the road kill flower. Yuck!
Gorgeous flowers and pictures You are quite talented!
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