Month: June 2013 (Page 4 of 5)

Seed of the Week: Live Oak Acorn

Our mysterious mystery seed from last week was indeed an acorn, as many of you guessed. It was probably from a live oak, possibly from the coast live oak, Quercus agrifolia, although that isn’t sure.

acorn-oak

Clues that it might be an acorn included the discolored area on the left side. It seemed like it might have had a cap originally, like acorns have.

There aren’t too many species of oaks with long, narrow acorns, mainly the live oaks.

Are coast live oaks even found in Arizona? Well, there is one at The University of Arizona Arboretum in Tucson. I have to admit the acorns look a bit darker red in the photographs on that site. I did read that the acorns can be variable.

What do you think about the photograph at this art site. Look similar?

What do you think?

 

Bug of the Week: At the Hummingbird Garden

We have a garden dedicated to hummingbirds in a park not too far from our home. It has a small pond with water lilies and a number of flowers to attract hummingbirds.

Damselfly-nice-close

I’m not sure the people who tend it have noticed, but it is also a wonderful garden for insects.

assassin-bug-nymph-even-better

The hummingbirds benefit from the insects and spiders, too. They use the spider webs for their nests and regularly feed on small insects.

bee-in-water-lily

Maybe it should be called a “wildlife” garden.

What do you think?

Mystery Seed of the Week 161

Our mystery seed this week is a true mystery.

mystery-seed-160-new-size

I found this in a “gutter” along a road in Sierra Vista, Arizona. There were no trees or shrubs around that could have produced it. It was probably carried there during a recent rain storm.

As you can see, it is pretty large as seeds go.

mystery-seed-160-new-close

If you shake it, you can hear a large seed inside the thin shell-like coating. You can see the seed tip peeking out of the bottom on the right.

Hint:  I think the discoloration at the other end, the left side of the photograph, helps indicate what it might be.

Please leave a comment if you recognize this mystery seed.

I will reveal what I *think* it is next Tuesday. Edit: The answer is now posted.

 

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