Author: kmcnab

I spotted this light colored, very pretty flower while walking through the zoned off construction area on campus (whoops…). It’s delicate color caught my eye, and because I know St. Edward’s facilities staff usually plants native Texas species, I had to know what it was.

The Drummond’s wild petunia (Ruellia drummondiana) is a perennial plant native to Texas. It’s habitat ranges from woodlands edge, prairies, plains, meadows, pastures, to savannahs. Drummonds wild petunia grows pretty lavender flowers throughout the summer (which is interesting because I took this photo in November). The leaves are dark green above, and the flowers are around 42 mm long. This plant usually grows to be 1-3ft tall.

Drummond’s wild petunia has many benefits to wildlife in Texas. The flowers attract butterflies, in particular the Common buckeye (Junonia coenia) and are a common nectar source for many species.

The species is named after Thomas Drummond, (ca. 1790-1835), a naturalist who made a trip to America to collect specimens from the western and southern United States. His collections were the first made in Texas that were extensively distributed among the museums and scientific institutions of the world.

Check out my inaturalist post here.

Source: http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=RUDR

This weekend our research group spent several days down on the Gulf Coast. There are many interesting coastal species, but these bright flowers caught my eye by one of our research sites. This plant is known as Beach Sunflower (Helianthus debilis) and I found it growing right along the edge of the beach in the sandy dunes near the water. The stems of this flower are hairy and branched, sometimes red/brown mottled. Some of these Beach sunflowers rise up to 6 ft. tall. Leaves are usually lobed and the flower heads bear yellow rays and reddish disks. As you can see in the picture below, most of the flowers were beginning to loose their petals, leaving behind a dark brown/black mass.

The native habitat of this plant is on dunes and disturbed areas throughout coastal areas. This sunflower is quite salt tolerant, and grows in sandy soil in full sun. It is used for dune stabilization, and is especially useful on banks and slopes in beach-front situations.

Check out my iNaturalist post here.

Source: http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=HEDE4

On another walk around the pond near my work in Round Rock, I discovered these bright little flowers along side of the forested region of the park. The Sunflower Goldeneye (Viguiera dentata) is a 3-6 ft., open, bushy, many-branched plant that tends to grow in colonies. Its leaves are narrow and its numerous yellow, 1 1/2 in., daisy-like flowers appear at the tips of long, slender, leafless stalks.

Goldeneye is an extremely drought-tolerant plant and it’s distribution is from Central TX to AZ, through Mexico to Central America and Cuba. It is used as an ornamental because of it’s showy flowers. Wildlife such as nectar-bees, butterflies, and seeds-granivorous birds use this plant in many ways.
It is known as a larval host for bordered patch butterfly such as the Cassius Blue butterfly.

Find my iNaturalist post here.

Source: http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=VIDE3

During my breaks at work, I enjoy walking around the nearby pond and forest area. This small area of preserved land is home to quite a bit of biodiversity. Just off of the main trail I spotted this American holly (Ilex opaca). It was easy to spot with it’s bright red fruit and spiny-teeth leaves.

The American holly is typically an upright, evergreen tree that can grow up to 50 feet tall. It has many slender branches that form a dense pyramidal or oval crown of striking dark green color. Open-grown specimens, such as this holly, have branches that often extend to the ground. It is found on rich, moist soils of bottomland forests in East Texas, westward to Wilson County. The bark is light gray, tight, leathery, and roughened by wart-like growths and blotches on older specimens.

Holly boughs, especially those with fruits, are commonly used for Christmas holiday decorations such as wreaths.

See my iNaturalist post here.

Source: http://texastreeid.tamu.edu/content/TreeDetails/?id=48&t=H

Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) is a native Texas plant that grows to a medium-sized shrub with silvery to gray-green leaves, and beautiful purple flowers.  It is sometimes called “barometer bush” because flowering is triggered by humidity or high soil moisture after rains. This plant’s native range is from Northern Mexico through the Rio Grande Plains and Trans-Pecos, into New Mexico. It is extremely drought and heat tolerant and maintenance-free once established.

After a good rain, almost like magic, it explodes with hundreds of small purple flowers. It is frequently used in xeriscape flowerbed designs. Texas Sage loves the sun, and will struggle and grow weak and leggy in a shady location.

This Texas Sage shown below is outside of my work in Round Rock. This is the first time I have ever seen it’s flowers, and it was quite a site to see.

My iNaturalist post can be found here.

Source: http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ornamentals/nativeshrubs/leucophyllumfrutes.htm

http://austinnativelandscaping.com/leucophyllum-frutescens-texas-sage-cenizo-silverleaf-texas-ranger-barometer-bush-purple-sage/

I learned a few years ago about the importance of planting milkweed species for Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus), especially in Texas. I have two on my apartment patio, and recently they have been home to several monarch larva, or caterpillars. Monarchs are dependent on milkweed plants, which larvae eat nearly exclusively.

The entire larval stage in monarchs lasts from nine to fourteen days under normal summer temperatures. This little guy pictured below will emerge as a beautifully colored, black-orange-and-white adult.

They migrate to overwintering grounds, either in central Mexico for eastern monarchs or in California for western monarchs. Here they spend the winter clustered in trees until weather and temperature conditions allow them to return to their breeding grounds. North American monarchs are the only butterflies that make such a massive journey—up to 3,000 miles.

Many scientists are concerned about the eastern population of monarchs, which summer east of the Rocky Mountains. This group is occurring in ever smaller numbers, and its survival may be threatened by a series of natural disasters in the Mexican wintering grounds, as well as by reduced acreage of milkweed plants in their summer home.

Find my iNaturalist post here.

Source: http://monarchlab.org/biology-and-research/biology-and-natural-history/breeding-life-cycle/life-cycle/#larva

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/bugs/monarch-butterfly/

I wake up every morning to this beautiful Texas Ash (Fraxinus texensis) outside of my window. I live next to Walnut Creek in north Austin, and this tree is part of the riparian ecosystem near the creek.

The Texas Ash is a medium-sized tree with an oval crown. It’s range is from the Dallas area to Central Texas and west to the Edwards Plateau, on rocky limestone hillsides, bluffs, and ridges. You can identify it by it’s opposite and compound leaves that are 5″ to 8″ long, with 5 oval or round leaflets arranged pinnately. The leaf is dark green on top, much lighter below. 

Although I did not identify any flowers at this time of year, male and female flowers are borne on separate trees. Female flowers are in loose clusters appearing with the new leaves, while male flowers appear as dark, purplish clusters near the end of the twigs, often before the leaves. It’s bark is gray, with brown or black blotches, furrowed, with the interlocking flattened ridges common to the ashes. 

You can find my iNaturalist post here.

Source: http://texastreeid.tamu.edu/content/treedetails/?id=37

I saw these little beauty’s outside of Doyle hall on St. Edward’s campus.  This area is planted with several native Texas species such as this one, which attracts many insects. Humming around the yellow bells (Tecoma stans) were several busy bees and monarch butterflies, drinking the sweet nectar produced by this flower.

This irregularly shaped, deciduous shrub is normally 3-6 ft tall, but can reach 9 ft tall in the southern regions of the country.  It has several stems and slender, erect branches. The flowers are attached in clusters of large, trumpet-shaped, bright yellow flowers. Its natural range extends from south Texas west to Arizona and south through Mexico and Central America to South America as far as northern Argentina, as well as in southern Florida south through much of the Caribbean.

Click here for my iNaturalist listing.

Source: http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=TEST

The Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) has been my favorite tree since childhood. Our house growing up in Houston had a large Live oak in the front yard, with ample branches to climb and construct make-shift tree houses on. Walking around my apartment complex near Walnut Creek, I happened upon this beautiful Live oak (pictured below) and knew I had to make this my next biodiversity blog post.

The Live Oak is “the iconic tree of the South” (Arbor Day Foundation). This tree is commonly planted by arborist because it is known for it’s wind firmness, adaptability to various soil types and tolerance to soil compaction and salt spray. It’s wide canopy provides much shade by blocking out sunlight. The Live Oak grows to a height of 40–80 feet and a spread of 60–100 feet at maturity. It can live for centuries and it’s acorns provides food for many species including birds such as wood ducks, wild turkeys, quail and jays, and mammals such as squirrels, raccoons and white-tailed deer.

Find my iNaturalist post here.

Source: https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/treedetail.cfm?itemID=876

While walking through my apartment complex near Walnut Creek, I came across a blooming Trailing Lantana (Lantana montevidensis) near the side of the creek.

According to Austin Native Landscaping, Trailing Lantana is not a native Texas plant, but has adapted well to this area due to it’s drought-resistant behavior. This plant provides food and shelter for bees, butterflies and birds, making it an ideal garden plant. Trailing Lantana is on average 1.5 feet tall, lavender in color, and survives well in both full sun and part shade. For more information about this plant click here.

My iNaturalist post can be found here.