#malacothamnus

[thebashfulbotanist]

Here's a plant that you're not likely to see outside of the Southwestern US or Baja California: Malacothamnus, the bush mallow. Although fairly recognizable at the genus level, they're extremely hard to ID to species. They're typically found in very early successional areas that have experienced recent fire. This plant, from the San Gorgonio wilderness, was growing in an area heavily burned in the 2016 Valley Fire.

Because several species of Malacothamnus are endangered and as a whole they're so challenging to tell apart, it's best to avoid disturbing them, whenever possible.

[crudlynaturephotos]

[coyote-mints]

Malacothamnus fasciculatus, chaparral bush mallow

[brittanyeburgard]

Today I took a break from the home studio to work with some fresh material of this cute new species of Malacothamnus (bush mallow) that I'm illustrating for @keirmorse, a PhD candidate at @californiabotanicgarden. Keir is working to untangle the knots of Malacothamnus taxonomy- a daunting task that puts the challenge of drawing them into perspective! The mass of hairs covering nearly every surface and the complex geometry of the flowering structures make it difficult to render accurate and legible illustrations. I'm so grateful to have live plants to work with (and for the excuse to take a walk in the garden 😁). Using only pressed and dried specimens and photos would have had me cursing these lovely plants. But thanks to the garden's conservation effort and Keir's expansion of the Malacothamnus species in the living collection, I can shower them with the love they deserve. 💚 #Malvaceae #Malacothamnus #mallow #bushmallow #botany #plants #nature #art #science #research #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration  #illustration #plantart #CalBG #nativeplants (at California Botanic Garden) https://www.instagram.com/p/CA3pJsRgnt6/?igshid=619alfk65e91

[crudlynaturephotos]

[crudlynaturephotos]

[sdnativebees]

Diadasia nitidifrons

(By K. James Hung)

This dashing blue-eyed blonde is Diadasia nitidifrons, whose name means something like "thoroughly hairy thing with a shiny forehead." You can see both of these characteristic in this photo! Bees in the genus Diadasia are sometimes called "chimney bees," because females have a tendency to construct chimneys out of soil that lead from their underground burrows. 

As with many other Diadasia species (most of which are found in the American Southwest and Mexico), D. nitidifrons is a specialist pollinator of the Malvaceae (mallow family). In San Diego, this bee is most often found in scrub habitats foraging on the chaparral bush mallow (Malacothamnus fasciculatus), although it also visits checkermallows (Sidalcea sp.) and apricot mallows (Sphaeralcea sp.). There are a few other members of the Diadasia genus that specialize on other plant groups--I will discuss these in the future too! :)

The next time you walk past a nicely blooming chaparral bush mallow, take a look inside the flowers--you may find a cute little Diadasia staring back at you!