For Us, a New Way to Look at the Desert- LONG, VERY LONG

WARNING-- This is in three parts, and it is VERY long with probably too many photos, but we wanted to share this. edited here---and as Santiago suggested for all, we reduced the size of all photos to not exceed 640 pixels wide.

Day One
After two days with las ecomujeres---Debra and Pacifica---, Chris, a young researcher from UC Berkeley who is visiting BA, Jamie who works for the Preserve, and us armed with a new macro lens, we will NEVER look at the desert in the same way.
On the first full day of the visit from las ecomujeres, we joined with Chris and off we went to San Roque. We parked near the old church. It was quite windy---the enemy of photography and floppy dog ears.

----but what fun we had. And what an education


That picture was taken a year ago before the roof collapsed---sad.

But we have always looked at flora in that area as mainly a bunch of gray and dull green scrub brush---how little we knew.


I decided to try the new lens on one of those common green and red succulents that grow everywhere, and saw a very different plant.



Later Debra explained that those tiny bubbles are salt control---they collect salt to attract the water, and also work to release too much salt.
Then I quickly saw how we were going to spend the next few hours.

Debra studying a plant and educating everyone


Chris studying a plant close up


Pacifica checking out a plant


By that church in about a 20 x 30 foot area, in what looked like that gray scrub brush, Debra identified over 30 different plants—we were amazed. And then we took a very short walk beyond the gate and by the time we left, she had identified over 50 different plants----many of them quite tiny , a whole new world for us

Here are only a few of the plants we looked at. I would name them all, but I am waiting for Debra’s book to be finished so I can carry it along. She left me a beautiful CD of some of the plants she has studied, but I need to study it. She, however, when she had time is going to identify them for me on a Picasa Album.







The keys give an idea of the size of some of what we were looking at---and closer up of the same plant






Debra investigating this


And closer

Debra having a close look



And Chris trying to hold it still in the wind so I could focus on the tiny stem---took several tries to get close to a good focus.


Hope someone finds the coin I left behind.


And closer

And Thanks to Chris who helped focus and hold these still




Loved the also neon insides of these


Well, that is way more than enough for Day One---but we will never look at those areas of scrub brush the same—we will always be wondering what precious diversity and beauty is hiding.

One last one for Part One---it shows the power of the prevailing winds. This Elephant Tree is hugging the ground.






[Edited on 5-17-2010 by DianaT]

Part One Day Two

Day Two---Photos by John and Diana

On Day two Jamie, his wife Elide and his two youngest children joined us. Because of their shared interests in the ecology of Baja, we had connected Debra to Jamie via e-mail , and Chris really wanted to meet Jamie regarding plant research in our area. As both Debra and Chris both said, Jamie does not just work for the Preserve, he loves the preserve and knows the preserve well. But Jamie was also anxious to learn from them.

The focus for day two was one specific cactus near San Hipolito that Jamie knew about that previous researchers said was unique to the San Hipolito area. And, we wanted to see the wash near Punta Chorros so Chris could show us the hybrids in which he so interested.
Where the special plant is----approximately, and I sure hope anyone who goes to look for it is very careful---the village was told by the last researchers there that they need to protect it.



The discussions begin


With no fruit or flowers, Debra was not sure---she knew it was some type of hedgehog but something did look a little different.

Here it is


To me it looked the same as many others, but Debra took careful pictures and notes and upon her return to the states she checked the archives from the San Diego Natural History Museum Department of Botany Baja Section and found it---Echinocereus maritimus ssp. hanc-ckii. The information shows that it has only been collected near the San Hipolito area, but she will verify with the curator of the collection. We had fun tromping around looking for more.

Except Tommy Dog and the two young ones were more fascinated with their own finds.


Tommy so loves all children, but he also likes to collect rocks. Not good for his teeth!


But he always sticks close to Camila


And we always end up with so many photos of Camila---easy to see why.



We moved to the other end of town to check things out. There was a local couple there collecting metal---the husband a cousin of Elide and the wife the sister of a friend of ours in BA---but then again, I don’t think we have met anyone in that area that is not a relative of someone in BA.

He enjoyed telling the group about the medicinal uses for a few of the plants---interesting information



And she warned us about the many rattle snakes in the area---we left Tom and Maggie in the car, and I was VERY careful


This area seems like it would be of interest to anyone interested in geology. Quite interesting formations


And I was fascinated by this rock as Elide and Camila used it to file their nails


A couple of flowers in the area--- the first one is quite tiny, and the second one is easy to recognize.




I love the way plants manage to take root and begin to take over solid rock.


And Camila teaching the finer points of photography to her little brother.


And before we left San Hipolito, one of Elide’s cousins was kind enough to let us use her bathroom---gave the baby goat a chance to think he was going to sneak in the house.


So Next comes the wash near Punta Chorros ---

[Edited on 5-16-2010 by DianaT]

Part Two of Day Two Photos by John and Diana

So the three vehicles took off over the dirt roads toward Punta Chorros---we were last in line, never the best place to be on dirt roads.

Our destination ---the wash that holds the hybrids in which Chris is interested and why he is visiting Bahia Asuncion. He learned about this location from a research paper completed in the early 1980’s


As Chris explained to us novices, the hybrids appear where different soils come together---in this case, the desert on one side and dunes on the other.

Chris grabbing a couple of samples.


Explaining the samples to Jamie


The samples--- The one on the top of the picture bred with the one at the bottom of the picture and created the sample second from the top. The second sample from the bottom is another hybrid created by the first hybrid mating with one of the original parents. It all sounds a little kinky, but was very interesting.


Some soil and sand coming together


Elide joined the fun with her kids where there was wet clay area---and of course, Tommy Dog had to join in.



The last researcher who spent too much time in the wash.


Elide is one of those people who spots things quickly. We would have walked right past this fossilizing whale bone if she had not pointed it out. When we looked closer, we could see that there were more buried---we left for others to enjoy.




Then she spotted this horny toad and they blend in so well with the ground. ---OK, they are not toads, they are lizards, but we have always called them horny toads. They are great as they look like tiny dinosaurs.


Chris on the dunes we all agreed need protection


A lonely beginning of a plant colony on a dune.


And where did that dog get such a long tongue!


The study group in the strong wind!


And the day ended with dinner at our place and Elide surprised Jamie with his birthday cake—made by a local woman and it was the best tres leches cake that we have ever had. I was a little slow with the camera---cake was too good.


There would be no face plant, but Elide would not let Jamie off without some frosting on his face!


Debra lamenting the end of her piece of cake


The older daughter, Edna, and her friend, Lupita, managed to show up just in time for cake! Then they were thoroughly entertained by Pacifica teaching them how to fold a origami crane. Chris provided the paper.


Pacifica made us a beautiful origami and small shell mobile---the picture did not come out, so we will have to take more when we are back.
We so very much enjoyed this little adventure and learned so much, and we will now look at the desert in a new way.
Thank you for joining us on this very long winded two day adventure.



[Edited on 5-17-2010 by DianaT]

Trip

Diana T, Thanks for sharing.

Thanks to the four of you---glad you enjoyed our adventure and understood. --- it was a really special time.

Debra has been busy identifying these photos and some of our other flower photos in a picasa album we created and I may need to go back and name these plants in this thread.

However, our favorite identifications she has posted so far are



Canis maggicus var. lenguilongicus

And



Canis thomasii var. rupestris (rupestris means: rock loving!)

Wonderful identifications.



[Edited on 5-16-2010 by DianaT]

The hybrids are something----we would have just walked by them and not had a clue as to what was happening in what we ended up calling the x rated wash.

Debra does plant walks in Mulege and she will be back to visit---maybe we could talk her into doing just one walk in Asuncion, even in the dunes right there. She is bilingual---and her book will be bilingual.

I believe there would be more people in town interested and then maybe, just maybe they might be a tiny bit more careful when they bring in the big machines and scrape the dunes clean!

Those rather dull looking scrubby bushy areas really are hiding an incredible amount of beautiful and fragile diversity. If nothing else, I hope our little adventure will encourage a few more to get up close and personal with these areas----but watch out for things that bite--scorpions, wasps, snakes, etc.

We hope to be back REAL soon and watch for us crawling around in the dunes with the cameras.

On edit---I mentioned on another thread that I went back and resized all of these on photobucket so they would not exceed the 640 size, but I really suggest that people resize the pics before putting them on photobucket. The photobucket resizing made a very noticeable difference in the photos.

[Edited on 5-16-2010 by DianaT]

Thanks---and it is good to be slow and pay attention---it is the getting up and down to take a closer look that gets more difficult.

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS USM Macro

Twas an early Anniversary present and we found no interest financing----ah heck, it will also be my birthday and Christmas present.

This new hobby may require that one of us goes back to work!

Exquisite!

Baja Desert Rat and Mulegena----thank you very much, really happy you enjoyed this. We learned so much and cannot wait to do it again.


Debra you put in A LOT of work on those web pages and we so appreciate it. I am working on the common names---Latin names, well maybe--- but at least I will be able to say something more than cute little purple flower.

Next time, we will try to find even more species!

Diana