http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/2012/03/15/the-dancing-flowers-of-makhtesh-gadol/ A World to Explore Mon, 13 May 2013 21:14:50 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/2012/03/15/the-dancing-flowers-of-makhtesh-gadol/comment-page-1/#comment-7518 Mark Wilson Fri, 16 Mar 2012 05:02:43 +0000 http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/?p=5673#comment-7518 I love it, Lyn! So much fun. Thank you! You provided the key to identifying the last one, and I’ll check into the others later today. What a pro.

]]> http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/2012/03/15/the-dancing-flowers-of-makhtesh-gadol/comment-page-1/#comment-7513 Susan Thu, 15 Mar 2012 22:16:19 +0000 http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/?p=5673#comment-7513 I guessed the iris! (thanks to Lyn’s previous instruction)
Beautiful shots, and no sign of wind-shake.

]]> http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/2012/03/15/the-dancing-flowers-of-makhtesh-gadol/comment-page-1/#comment-7512 Lyn Loveless Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:23:22 +0000 http://woostergeologists.scotblogs.wooster.edu/?p=5673#comment-7512 Hi, Mark –
How could I NOT respond to a post entitled “Dancing flowers?”
Now, I don’t know the Israeli flora – but here are my thoughts about the floral gallery that you put up…
The first two photos are clearly Orobanchaceae, parasites, as you note. In the SW, the genera might be Orobanche or Conopholis, but I think you are right in your ID as Cistanche tuberosa.
The second species, again, is probably what you have called it – white broom, Retama. Of course, although Ephedra is in Israel, you know that Mormon tea as actually a gymnosperm, with cones, and this is clearly an angiosperm. Good ID!
Three- the purple with rose throat – is Anagalis arvensis, Scarlet Pimpernel – a widespread weedy species. Tiny flowers, but very pretty.
The fourth – I’m stuck – I can’t tell the flower size, but it strikes me as a “geranium” thing – Maybe Erodium televivense?
The two “Daisies” are indeed “daisy-like” species, hard to say what. The yellow may be Melampodium. The white could be one of many things.
The pale pink four-petaled flower is in the Brassicaceae, the mustard family. My guess might be Eruca sativa, but without leaves or fruit pods I’m not sure. It could also be Raphanus – wild radish.
And finally -your “orchid” is an iris – Gynandriris monophylla, I think. But they are very orchid-like. Israel has some COOL orchids, including the Ophrys orchids which look like perched wasps, and attract wasps to pollinate them in a mechanism called “pseudocopulation.” You can figure that one out.
LOVELY plants. I hope you are having a good trip.

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