#weird nature

[withdreamsofhereafter]

Orchids

[lichenaday]

Pulchrocladia ferdinandii

Lacy coral lichen, Biblically-accurate-angel lichen (I made this one up)

Almost forgot that this is the whole point. This fruticose lichen is endemic to southern Australia, where it grows on dry, sandy or acidic soils. It grows in large cushions (15 cm tall, 75 cm wide) of rigid, perforate pseudopodetia. It is whitish-cream to yellowish in color, and isn't known to produce apothecia, but produces globose pycnidia on the irregularly-branching, tips of the pseudopodetia. The official description of this lichen refers to it as "horny," which I am choosing to believe refers to the horn-like structure of the thallus, not to its desire to jump some bones. But if I am mistaken, go off, queen, you can get it. P. ferdinandii looks similar to sister-species P. retipora, but is overall larger, and prefers dryer habitats than the latter. And before you ask no, we don't know why it looks like this, so let's just appreciate that it does and that we are blessed to be able to see it.

images: source

info: source | source | source | source

[rosieandthemoon]

In St Augustine, FL

[amnhnyc]

Here's a parasitic plant that smells like a rotting corpse: jackal food (Hydnora africana)! Unlike many plants, which use chlorophyll and photosynthesis to derive nutrients from the Sun, this species attaches itself to host plants instead, siphoning off their nutrients. Found in arid parts of southern Africa, including South Africa and Namibia, the stench of the jackal food’s fruit attracts a variety of animals including jackals, porcupines, and moles. What does it taste like? Its flavor and texture have been compared to that of a potato. 

Photo: arditolastico, CC BY-NC 4.0 ,iNaturalist

[spltlvlhous]

i like birds nature got real weird w it

[rebeccathenaturalist]

So here's the latest weird nature thing I've run across. I'm currently in Vancouver (WA, not BC) and parked next to this in a cute little neighborhood. I noticed this well-established Chinese arborvitae (Platycladus orientalis) in someone's yard had these weird sprigs of pale yellow, almost cream foliage. My first thought was that somehow these were developing without chlorophyll, maybe through a genetic quirk, but the pattern was too uneven.

Upon further research (as in, I put it on iNaturalist) it looks like the culprit is a fungus, Pestalotiopsis funerea, one of several plant pathogens that can cause tip blight. I'm used to seeing brown foliage as a sign, such as on western red cedar (Thuja plicata), but the lighter hue threw me off since I usually see it in plants that developed without chlorophyll.

Apparently it especially affects older foliage on the tree or bush, especially that which is very crowded and therefore more prone to dampness and fungal infections, and in individuals that are more stressed due to heat, drought, or cold spells. Recommended treatments include pruning affected branches while sterilizing your loppers in between each branch, and keeping the plant well-trimmed so the foliage doesn't become too crowded, as well as watering it plenty to avoid drought stress.

[plague-memoria]

[jenfoundabug]

Dasymutilla vestita, a species of velvet ant, in southern New Mexico, US. Despite their name, velvet ants are actually wasps. The females, like the one in this picture, don't have wings and can inflict an extremely painful sting. However, they're non aggressive and will only sting in self defense. Males have wings and cannot sting.