Summer Oddities

This summer I was fortunate enough to take a few small trips where I came across some unusual organisms and of course amazing soil. With this blog entry I'd like to share a few of these.

The first oddity falls in the fungal designation.I came across this giant "puffball" hiking in Nevada just outside of Paradise Valley (northern NV). As evidenced by this organism not all of the state is a dry desert. The hike followed a creek that had various drainages contributing to it. This guy was in one of the wetter microclimates. The chapstick tube in the lower left corner gives you an idea of the scale of this fungi! I left the fungus in tact, but my best guess is that this is a West Giant Puffball (Calvatia booniana) commonly found in arid to semi-arid regions in late spring or summer. 

 Puffball fungi are ascomycetes, which have acsospores that release into the air. 

This puffball is filled with millions of spores!

The next specimen is a plant, but with animalistic tendencies! California Pitcher Plant a.k.a. Cobra Lily (Darlingtonia californica) is a canivorous plant. This plant can consume insects for nutrients. This is achieved by trapping insects inside the "pitcher" part. The long stem is hollow (see bottom left plant) except for very fine hairs and a slippery substance along the walls. The insects have difficulty getting out since the opening is not straight up. They eventually tire and are "digested" by the plant. These plants are known to produce an enzyme that breaks down the insect for absorption. 

CA Pitcher plant found in Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

The last notable encounter from this summer are serpentine soils/rocks. Note: serpentine is California's state rock! These soils develop from serpentine rocks that are composed of a variety of minerals. The minerals are similar in that they have an iron magnesium silicate backbone. The rocks weather (break-down) into soil. The serpentine soils have chemistry that is different from most in that there is a larger amount of magnesium than calcium. These quantities are typically in reverse in most soils. So why does this matter? Well, the plants that grow on these soils must be able to deal with this shift in soil chemistry. Serpentine soils have many "endemic" plants. This means there are plants growing in this soils that are specifically adapted and may only grow in this specific type of soil. Some examples are Leather Oak (Quercus durata), Milkwort Jewel Flower (Streptanthus polygaloides), and Kaweah River phacelia (Phacelia egena). Other plants such as Jefferey Pine (Pinus jeffreyi) and Incense Cedar (Calocedrus decurrens) are capable of growing on serpentine and less chemically challenging soils.

Serpentine soils in Plumas National Forest

Serpentine rock in Shasta-Trinity National Forest.