on Aphanes sp leaf
Top of a rocky peak, ~2700m. Cool fly!
@RBCM This is the third record of the species in Canada.
Confused by this one! Definitely looks like a Polygala, but not sure what species it would be. Looks a bit like P. vulgaris, from Europe...
50-100 plants, most in flower. Leafy stolons present. Unusual occurrence for a species associated with interior BC.
Madwort? Damp gravely area beside lake. Bit weedy, sometimes cattle. Blue Lake, South Okanagan Grasslands Protected Area, Osoyoos, BC, Canada
Awesome find by @rambryum and @iancruickshank on Physcocarpos canes along river. Super tiny.
leaf spot fungi on Vaccinium?
Champion Lakes Provincial Park, West Kootenays, BC
Formerly Anabaena azollae. Strands of vegetative cells, plus a few nitrogen-fixing heterocysts (the larger cells) which are surrounded by sheaths. Extracted from Azolla filiculoides by squishing a piece of the fern on the microscope slide using the back of a spoon. 400x magnification.
Observation of the fern at:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/189172422
Around 5pm today in the middle of the road. Large 3ft or more snake. Hisisng, loud, almost like a rattle noise. But no tail rattle. Defensive while I kept distance. Aggressive. Never took its eyes off me. Opened mouth often. No teeth. Black eyes. Black tongue. Large center. Moments prior a large barred owl flew past my windshield and watched me as I approached snake. An epic moment in my day. I was going to pick up my son who was with a native medicine woman.
?
on cedar bark
Basal squamules sparse and diminutive. Podetial cups with terminal holes and distinctly flared margins (>1.5mm). Esorediate.
Probably braunii, but indusia entire. Many plants in talus under sitka alders. None of the plants showing bulbils on rachis.
In crack of dry asphalt laneway. AI says Gypsophila paniculata but seeds >5 and inflorescence wrong. Spergula & Spergularia have sepals alternating with petals- I don't see it in this.
Seeds (see last picture) not winged but with lines or ridges.
Hopefully someone will correct or confirm this. Thanks.
maybe? on Betula
@fmcghee - legitimately shocked to see you haven't already posted this
on planted rhododendron beside parking lot
On shale Bluff
Growing in sandy shoreline at Nels Bight.
Castle Wildland PP. Mossy seep on south-facing cliff.
Small remaining patch of sandy dune-like habitat. In final photo, this sedge is on the left with Carex macrocephala (Large-headed/Bighead Sedge) in the centre/right side for scale.
Island in Hague Lake, Cortes I.
Host: Columbia Manzanita Arctostaphylos columbiana
I've never seen a tree that was identified as Betula x utahensis. I've read that it has characteristics of B. papyrifera and B. occidentalis. When I first saw this tree at a distance, I assumed it was B. occidentalis, and many characteristics seemed right for that species. When I examined it more closely, I found things that didn't fit. The leaf was not broadly ovate and had more veins pairs than expected. The bud was very pointed. The glands on the twigs were less abundant than I expected. All of these are more like B. papyrifera, so I wonder if it could be Betula x utahensis.
specimen collected June 21, 2023; mature seeds collected September 17, 2023; material under curation by Frank Lomer
Captured in passing, as I was unaware of S. integerrimus infrataxa at the time...I am sharing this observation with hope that someone will go collect a specimen. Please take me with you ;)
E.C. Manning Provincial Park - Spruce Bay of Lightning Lake. BC, Canada.
@johndreynolds @markegger I went through all my Castilleja photos from the Elk Valley after John sent this one (https://inaturalist.ca/observations/90396920). This is the closest I have to John's observation. No specimen collected, however
Castle Mountain, Elk Valley, BC, Canada
Collected and in RBCM collection
Growing with P. gastonyi, but less common.
Most easily distinguished from P. gastonyi at first glance by flatter overall growth form, growing close to the rocks rather than outward from them.
Leaflets also sitting flat in plane & proportionally a little wider, all combining to give more flat and green appearance. Total frond length always relatively small. More often growing in crevices and overhangs, as compared to small ledges with P. gastonyi, although both could overlap.
Stems with a few long hairs (less than gastonyi, although not a clean distinction), but underside of leaflets hairless.
The two differences that I found most consistent were:
1) The base of leaflets taper gradually to a green triangular point where attaching to the central stem (with a small transition to a dark stem), as opposed to the leaflets having a concave heart-shaped base with a distinct dark stem attached at the middle.
2) The presence of a notch creating a small lobe near the base of some of the leaflets (often the lower ones and/or terminal segment).
Compare with P. gastonyi: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/69444545