https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/this-flower-is-really-a-fungus-in-disguise/
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Wow that’s amazing!
My immediate thought at the start of the article… “oh, the fungus is just scaffolding off the plants structure…”
Nope!
Yellow-rays will get a closer look on bioblitzes from here out, me thinks!
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Yellow eyed grass is already bizarre, from my side of the pond.
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TBF, anyone trying to identify Xyris in Guyana (the center of diversity of the genus) from iNat photos has probably already lost their mind. :)
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We have a similar fungus in western North America, the Mustard Flower Rust (Puccinia monoica, for example, Obs. 21527258). In this case, the “flowers” are modified leaves colored by the yellow surface rust. This has caused a bit of confusion on iNat IDs.
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It’s difficult enough in New Jersey!
How Bob came to find X. chapmanii is more than I know! (X. caroliniana, X. chapmanii, X. curtissii, X. difformis, X. fimbriata, X. jupicai, X. montana, and X. torta are the NJ species, by my count.)
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