8I just got back from an 8 day camping trip in the Florida Keys with my Marine Chemistry Class. Along with sightseeing in Key West and enjoying coconuts on pristine beaches, I had to take a few trips into the wild to find carnivorous plants in their habitat. So I convinced one of my classmates to come along and hike Big Pine Key.
The habitat we encountered was very different than the longleaf pine forests I was used to. Instead of sandy soil with grasses, the ground was almost completely limestone. Shrubs and palms grew in cracks, but the forest was dominated by stunted slash pines.
We followed the trail while I looked for Pinguicula pumila. It wasn't very long until I spotted the first plant.
There was plenty of color variation of the flowers. One was almost yellow.
Others were violet.
One plant was much redder than the others, despite being in heavier shade.
I found a larger plant a little further up the trail.
Not far away, a few Tillandsias were growing on a buttonwood tree near a marsh.
There were also some key deer on a nearby road
It is interesting finding a carnivorous plant in a rockland rather than the usual wetlands that I am accustom to. I kept a lookout for Catopsis in Key Largo and Castellow Hammock after reading reports of the plants growing there. Unfortunatly, there were none on the trail. Plenty of Tillandsias thought.
The habitat we encountered was very different than the longleaf pine forests I was used to. Instead of sandy soil with grasses, the ground was almost completely limestone. Shrubs and palms grew in cracks, but the forest was dominated by stunted slash pines.
We followed the trail while I looked for Pinguicula pumila. It wasn't very long until I spotted the first plant.
There was plenty of color variation of the flowers. One was almost yellow.
Others were violet.
One plant was much redder than the others, despite being in heavier shade.
I found a larger plant a little further up the trail.
Not far away, a few Tillandsias were growing on a buttonwood tree near a marsh.
There were also some key deer on a nearby road
It is interesting finding a carnivorous plant in a rockland rather than the usual wetlands that I am accustom to. I kept a lookout for Catopsis in Key Largo and Castellow Hammock after reading reports of the plants growing there. Unfortunatly, there were none on the trail. Plenty of Tillandsias thought.