Kathy was the one to get the star yesterday for catching my title mistake. The email notification had the mistake. However, I caught it as soon as I hit the publish button. In the same way, like slamming your hand in the door. You see it coming but the signal to the brain can’t stop it. LOL
Wing-rib Sumac (Rhus copallinum) is one species in the genus of yesterday’s email title. It will have some great fall berries. Where was my head? LOL! Thanks Kathy for catching the mistake 🙂
Next the mystery! This is Wavy-leaf Thistle (Cirsium undulatum) with a Formica ant on it. Nothing unusual about that right?
Here is a closer look at the ant. Now the mystery. I have noticed in the last few days, ants that were dead on the phyllaries. Today, I looked closer. Maybe something stuck the ants on one of the hard bristles. Time to get up close!
This was the first pair of dead ants I examined.
See where the red arrow points to the resin under the bristle?
Do you see it?
Still closer!
The ant struggles to free itself, but the resin has firmly captured a prey. I do not know why the thistle developed such a feature. I have read recently about another plant that someone figured out it was doing something similar. They discovered it was getting nutrients from the insects that stuck to it. So maybe?
So only two of my flora references mention that this thistle even has resin on the phyllaries, Manual of the Vascular Plants of Texas (Correll and Johnston) and Volume II Flora of Missouri (Yatskievych). Moreover, not all the ants are getting stuck.
Now that I am looking closer, not only were ants getting stuck, additionally a Convergent Lady Beetle (Hippodamia convergens) got caught too!
And finally, a smile!
Keep looking!
The more you know, the more you see and the more you see, the more you know.
4 Comments
What great detective work – and who would have thought that the Plant captures insects. Gotta be a scientific paper out there somewhere!
What great detective work – and who would have thought that the Plant captures insects. Gotta be a scientific paper out there somewhere!
I’m feeling a little sorry for the struggling ant in the video. It finally gives up to await its fate. The dispassionate face of Nature.
Horrible way to die. Better to be gobbled. Thanks.
How very interesting!