Download SONORAN DESERT LIFE

SONORAN DESERT LIFE:
UNDERSTANDING, INSIGHTS &
IDENTIFICATION
Gerald A. Rosenthal
AVAILABLE FOR SALE AND DISTRIBUTION: SPRING, 2008
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400 superb photographs to aid in understanding the wonder and
complexity of the Sonoran Desert and its inhabitants.
Describes in depth, and beautifully illustrates 315 plant species.
Enables the reader to identify correctly the stunning beautiful plants
of the Sonoran Desert.
Provides coverage of the commonly found annuals, perennials,
cacti, shrubs, and trees.
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Special help in distinguishing between plants that can be easily
confused and incorrectly identified.
A host of desert creatures are pictured; fascinating aspects of their
behavior and contributions to desert life are described and
explained.
An easy-to-understand glossary that covers more than 200 simply
described technical terms.
Provides a thoughtful and insightful understanding of this special
and unique ecosystem.
Considerable materials are provided for the more advanced reader
including keys to species, genera, and families.
Digital images provide a detailed, multi-faceted picture of a given
plant.
Carried easily when you venture out to enjoy the desert.
Designed to enable the whole family to better understand, and
more fully enjoy their time together in this special place of
continued wonder.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
06 Setting The Stage: The Sonoran Desert
10 How To Use This Guide
13 The Botany That Is Helpful To Know
20 A Final Suggestion
21 Cacti
50 Yuccas & Others
61 White, White-Green & Green
116 Yellow
179 Red, Pink, Magenta & Purple
210 Orange & Apricot
218 Blue, Violet & Lavender
238 Large Trees & Shrubs
288 For the Advanced Reader
310 Glossary
314 References
315 Acknowledgments
315 Technical Aspects
316 About the Author
317 Index
ILLUSTRATED DESCRIPTIONS PROVIDE ADDED INSIGHT
INTO THE LIFE OF MANY SONORAN DESERT DWELLERS
One of the few birds that is capable fully of
holding its own against a rattlesnake. One
authority described it as: “Because of its
lightening quickness,
the Roadrunner is one of the few animals that
preys upon rattlesnakes. Using its wings like a
matador's cape, it snaps up a coiled
rattlesnake by the tail, cracks it like a whip and
repeatedly slams its head against the ground
till dead.” A little gruesome, but highly
effective, especially when dealing with such
a formidable reptile.
Another insect that utilizes this plant is the
tarantula hawk wasp. This animal seeks out
and disables, using her potent venom, the far
more massive tarantula spider. She can emerge
victorious because the spider has to bite the
wasp to prevail, it lacks venom. The stinger of
this wasp can reach 1/3 inch.
The vanquished prey is dragged into a
suitable burrow where it is infected with a
single egg. The paralyzed arachnid provides
food for the newly emerged wasp larva in a
protracted feeding ritual that is quite
grotesque. Interactions between insects and other organisms truly display the
complexity and intricacy of evolution to its fullest.
The male phainopepla (left) and his female
companion are avid consumers of the fleshy
berries of the mistletoe (Phoradendron
californica). This food source is of such
importance that they will not produce off
springs if mistletoe is not abundant. As a result,
they favor sites such as arroyos that support
mesquite bosques—a primary source of
mistletoe hosts. These birds carry the mistletoe
fruit to the top of the tree where they feed.
Defecated seeds, which can survive the
digestive system, often fall onto a tree limb.
The seed sprouts and the parasite grows into the living host tissues. This
phainopepla feeding behavior is believed to be a principle means by which
mistletoe is distributed throughout the community of desert legumes.
The desert tarantula is a long-lived arachnid,
females can reach 20 years, the tarantula spider
maintains the same burrow for years. While
appearing formidable, it is generally a gentle
and shy creature; however, it can be provoked
to bite. The relative size of the two combatants
has been reasonably approximated.
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EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND DRAWINGS SIMPLIFIES LEARNING THE FUNDAMENTALS THAT ADDS REAL ENJOYMENT TO THE DESERT EXPERIENCE.
PLANT DESCRIPTIONS AND IMPORTANT VISUAL DETAILS ENABLES THE
READER TO IDENTIFY PLANTS OF INTEREST WITH CONFIDENCE AND CERTAINTY.
CRUCIFIXON THORN (Canotia holocantha)
CELESTRACEAE (bittersweet)
Overview:
forms a
shrub-like
tree with a
small but
stocky trunk
with thin,
spine-tipped
branches.
Flowers:
white to
greenish
yellow;
corolla: 5
petals.
Inflorescenc
e: small,
axillary
racemic
clusters.
Calyx: 5
triangular
sepals.
Leaves:
almost scale-like, spartan foliage.
Stem: bark: light green to light brown, deeply furrowed; highly resinous branches.
Handlens: 5 stamens and a 5-celled ovary that is supported by accessory tissues.
Fruit: much of the plant is covered with dark, dried, and persistent, 5-segmented
capsules that house
dark-brown, winged seeds.
Notes: black, cushion-like structure at the base of twigs and flowers. Food
production (via photosynthesis) essentially delegated to the twigs.
Overview:
highly
branched,
strongly
scented
shrub with
an open,
lacy appearance
and foliage
clustered
tightly
around the
stem,
particularly
at their
nodes.
Flowers:
yellow,
corolla: solitary, tiny, 5 clawed petals.
Calyx: 5 yellow-green sepals; soft white pubescent on the inner surface.
Leaves: ovate to oblong, dark and evergreen, opposite, sessile, and composed of 2
fused leaflets that appears as a single, thick, deeply lobed leaf.
Handlens: 10 prominent, golden-yellow stamens. Simple pistil with long, silky, and
white pubescence.
Fruit: a small, woolly ball (capsule), about the size of a small pea. At maturity,
splits into 5 sections, each bearing a single nutlet.
Notes: when the leaves are crushed, phytochemicals are released to create a
pungent fragrance. Highly effective shelter plant for many cacti. Mormons
employed this plant as a cancer remedy, and it is still a part of current-day, herbal
medicine. Creosote bush is one of the most abundant members of the Arizona
Upland Zone; often forming extensive, homogeneous communities remarkably free
of intrusion by other plants. It is repudiate to be one of the most drought-resistant
plants of the North American deserts. This favorable property results in large part
from its diminutive foliage that is coated with waxy-like materials that minimize
leaf surface water loss. Additionally, this shrub grows an extensive root system that
effectively scavenges moisture from the soil. During the driest parts of summer,
these tissues are able to extricate the last vestiges of soil moisture.
Creosote's ability to compete so effectively may also reflect its production of
allelochemical(s) which are released into the soil—thereby inhibiting the
establishment and development of potentially competitive plants. They create a
growth-inhibiting zone that simply keeps competitors at bay.
Given its wide distribution and success, it is little wonder that about five dozen
species of insect rely upon this shrub for sustenance and shelter; about
two dozen bees gain nourishment from its flowers. It is most interesting that
another particularly successful desert inhabitant, brittlebush, Encelia farinosa,
is also reputed to produce growth-inhibiting allelochemical(s).
Many galls result from abnormal plant growth caused
by the feeding activity of entrapped insects in their
immature forms. The immature insects is engulfed and
protected by the growing gall which also serves as a
food source for the developing insect. Eventually, an
adult emerges from the gall. This gall was created by
the fly, Asphondylia auripila [Cecidomyiidae]; other flies
in this family make other galls, primarily on the leaves.