The tropical-looking bird of paradise plant (Strelitzia reginae) is actually a native of sub-tropical South Africa. But it certainly has the pizzazz of a tropical plant, especially when being visited by a colorful gold dust day gecko seeking to sup on the flower’s nectar.
Posted in response to Becky’s April Squares challenge theme of ‘Top.’ See more responses here.
This fiery skipper butterfly was feeding on top of a cluster of tree heliotrope flowers, some open, some about to bloom. It was one of a host of insects buzzing around the tree.
Posted in response to Becky’s April Squares challenge theme of ‘Top.’ See more responses here.
I noticed this orange hibiscus catching the sunlight and returned to it a few minutes later with my camera. But, close up, I saw that it was past the top of its bloom and starting to fade. Still pretty though.
Posted in response to Becky’s April Squares challenge theme of ‘Top.’ See more responses here.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Fantastic Florals.’ See more offerings here.
This seemed like a good theme to post a few photos, of different colored flowers, from my last visit to Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, back in February.
Top photo: It took me a while to identify this as Petrea volubilis, also known as purple wreath, queen’s wreath, and sandpaper vine, because the long blue parts are actually calices, not petals. The flowers are the smaller darker blue centers most easily seen on the blooms to the left side.
Second Photo: A lavender version of the cattleya maxima orchid was first found in Ecuador in 1777. The yellow stripe down the center of the lip is characteristic of all forms of cattleya maxima, of which this alba variation is one. For more information about the history of cattleya maxima, visit chadwickorchids.com/content/cattleya-maxima.
Third photo: Yellow plume flower (Justicia aurea) is a blaze of color in a sea of green.
Fourth photo: Yes, there are green flowers, including this Anthurium ‘Princess Alexia Jade.’
Bottom: New Guinea Trumpet Vines (Tecomanthe dendrophila) produce a fantastic array of white-tipped pink flowers.
For more information about Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, go to htbg.com.
The rather showy display of a heliconia colgantea at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden. For more information about Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, go to htbg.com.
This young praying mantis was perched on an agave attenuata, but its tail-up pose, and the direction of the photo, give at strange appearance.
This week’s Friendly Friday challenge theme is ‘Yellow.’ See more responses here.
This is a good excuse to post more photos of bees foraging on bright yellow māmane flowers. Māmane (Sophora chrysophylla) is endemic to Hawaii, but while its flowers attract many insects, the seeds are highly toxic. The endangered palila, one of the last endemic Hawaiian honeycreepers, is a bird that feeds mostly on the māmane’s immature seed pods without any ill effect.
This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Country or State Flower.’ See more offerings here.
The country flower for the USA is the rose and I don’t have photos of those. The state flower for Hawaii is the hibiscus and, while I have lots of those, they’re all of Chinese hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis). The state flower is the native yellow hibiscus (Hibiscus brackenridgei) and I have none of those. The native hibiscus is not often seen in the wild and is currently considered an endangered species, but it is used as an ornamental in domestic gardens.
Having struck out on the two proper responses to this challenge, I’ve chosen to post photos of the official flower of the Big Island, the red ʻōhiʻa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha). A member of the myrtle family, ʻōhiʻa lehua is endemic to Hawaii. It’s one of the first trees to colonize lava flows. It’s able to survive in such a tough environment because its roots grow down into lava tubes and other voids in the lava and tap into the moisture there.
Recently, ʻōhiʻa trees have been attacked by a fungus which can cause the trees to die within a very short time. This disease, known as Rapid ‘Ohi’a Death, is caused by two new types of Ceratocystis fungus.
Graham's Island 