Psilostrophe tagetina [Wooly Paperflower]: Another Example

[Andrea B.]

Blum, A.G. (2022) Another Example of Psilostrophe tagetina (Nutt.) Greene (Asteraceae) Woolly Paperflower. Flowers photographed in ultraviolet light, visible light and mixed UV+blue+green light. LINK

 

Aster Way, El Dorado at Santa Fe, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

09 October 2021

Wildflower

 

Synonyms:

• Psilostrophe cerifera var. biennis
• Psilostrophe tagetinae

 

Comment:

This very cheery, late-blooming Paperflower had scads of flowers in its corymbiform arrays forming large mounds along the local roadside. Like the its cousin P. cooperi, this flower is quite UV-absorbent with some iridescence.

 

References:

1. Allred, Kelly W., Jercinovic, Eugene M., Ivey, Robert DeWitt (2021) Flora Neomexicana III: An Illustrated Identification Manual, Second Edition, Part 2. Psilostrophe Key, page 191. Print on demand at lulu.com.

2. SEINet Arizona-New Mexico Chapter (acc 20 Jan 2022) Psilostrophe tagetina.

This is a southwestern biodiversity organization making use of the Symbiota portal software.

3. Wildflowers of New Mexico (acc 20 Jan 2022) Psilostrophe tagetina

Website published and maintained by George Oxford Miller.

4. Blum, A.G. (2013) Psilostrophe tagetina (Nuttall) Greene (Asteraceae) Woolly Paperflower. Flowers photographed in ultraviolet and visible light. http://www.ultraviol...ly-paperflower/

 

 

Equipment [Panasonic S1R-broadband + Nikon 105mm f/4.5 UV-Nikkor]

 

Visible Light [f/11 for 1/2.5" @ ISO-800 under Skylight with Baader UVIR-Block Filter]

 

 

 

Ultraviolet Light [f/11 for 20" @ ISO-800 with SB-140 UV-Flash and BaaderU UV-Pass Filter]

^{Three UV-flashes were made in the 20" interval.}

 

 

 

UV+Blue+Green [f/11 for 40" @ ISO-3200 under Skylight with U330(2.0mm) + S8612(2.0mm)]

 

 

[Fandyus]

This flower sure does look dead in UV.

Thanks for sharing.

[Guest]

Fandyus, That made me curious to think why does it look dead?
 

Andrea, Can you determine which type of insect pollinators this flower is targeting (or avoiding) by the UV signature?

[colinbm]

Great photos Andrea.
Sure is no free lunch with that flower in UV.

[Andrea B.]

Paperflowers have nectar, so they are probably pollinated by bees, bumblebees, wasps and other nectar-seeking insects. I don't have any specific information about Psilostrophe pollinators. I've certainly seen bees on Paperflowers. I can't remember if I saw any butterflies, but it was rather late in the season for those guys when I found these flowers. There are so many pollination strategies offered by flowers that it can be difficult to know which one is specifically at work unless an online search turns up some specifics.

 

Against an arid desert floor or against semi-arid, scrubby roadside dirt, a UV-absorbing flower like this is likely visible to insects both because of contrast - dark against light or green against white/gray - and because of color. The yellow would probably be detected by the bee's green receptor. Bees would also be alert to edge contrasts against background. (See UV+Blue+Green version above.)

 

It is also known that UV-absorption offers protection for reproductive parts. So it is possible that UV-absorption has nothing to do with attracting pollinators to Paperflowers.

 

Remember that nothing living ever sees the Paperflower as it looks in the reflected UV-photograph. That photo represents only one "channel" of its pollinator's trichromatic - or possibly tetrachromatic - vision.

[Fandyus]

6 hours ago, Blazer0ne said:

Fandyus, That made me curious to think why does it look dead?
 

Andrea, Can you determine which type of insect pollinators this flower is targeting (or avoiding) by the UV signature?

It's matte gray, almost like someone heated it up in low oxygen conditions and turned it into charcoal.