Tosohatchee WMA, June 18, 2014

We visited Toso early in the morning to see what flowers the early summer rains had brought.

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Beehead Rd, looking east

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Carolina wild petunia (Ruellia caroliniensis, Acanthaceae)

Native

An insect had eaten the bottom out of the blossom on the left.

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Zarzabacoa comun (Desmodium incanum, Fabaceae)

Not native

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Southern beeblossom (Gaura angustifolia, Onagraceae)

Native

Note aphids on main stem.

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Leavenworth's tickseed (Coreopsis leavenworthii, Asteraceae)

Native

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Pitted stripeseed, piriqueta (Piriqueta cistoides, Turneraceae)

Native

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Helmet skullcap (Scutellaria integrifolia, Lamiaceae)

Native

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Blackeyed susan (Rudbekia hirta, Asteraceae)

Native

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American bluehearts (Buchnera americana, Orobanchaceae)

Native.

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Blue mistflower (Conoclinium coelestinum, Asteraceae)

Native

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Oblongleaf twinflower (Dyschoriste oblongifolia, Acanthaceae)

Native

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Seaside primrosewillow (Ludwigia maritima, Onagraceae)

Native

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Coastalplain St. John's-wort (Hypericum brachyphyllum, Clusiaceae)

Native

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Fourpetal St.John's-wort (Hypericum tetrapetalum, Clusiaceae)

Native

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Largeflower rosegentian (Sabatia grandiflora, Gentianaceae)

Native

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Rustweed (Polypremum procumbens, Tetrachondraceae)

Native

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Dogfennel (Eupatorium capillifolium, Asteraceae)

Native

A common "weed" of disturbed grounds.

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Smallfruit beggarticks (Bidens mitis, Asteraceae)

Native

Found only this one specimen.

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Winged loosestrife (Lythrum alatum var. lanceolatum, Lythraceae)

Native

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Wolf spider (Family Lycosidae)

Native

A relative of tarantulas.

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St. Nicholas Rd, looking north.

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Nuttall's meadowbeauty (Rhexia nuttallii, Melastomataceae)

Native

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Rosy camphorweed (Pluchea baccharis, Asteraceae) Native

Note the clasping leaves, which separates this species from similar Pluchea.

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Axilflower (Mecardonia acuminata subsp. peninsularis, Plantaginaceae)

 Native, Florida endemic

A common species, found in bogs, marshes, pond margins, and ditches. Blooms summer and fall. The ones photographed here were found in the boggy ditch on the west side of St. Nicholas Rd. In previous posts, I had misidentified these plants as savannah false pimpernel (Lindernia grandiflora), also in the Plantaginaceae family.

The genus is named after Antonio Meca y Cardona, who founded the botanical gardens in Barcelona, in 1784.

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Starrush whitetop (Rhynchospora colorata, Cyperaceae)

Native

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Yellow colicroot (Aletris lutea, Nartheciaceae)

Native

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Yelloweyed grass (Xyris spp., Xyridaceae)

Native

There are many species of Xyris in Florida, and they are difficult to identify. The yellow one above might be X. difformis. The white one might be X. caroliniana.

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 Orange milkwort (Polygala lutea, Polygalaceae)

Native

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Button rattlesnakemaster (Eryngium yuccifolium, Apiaceae)

Native

I believe this is the first time I've found this species in Toso. It was growing on the west side of St. Nicholas Rd.

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Tarflower (Bejaria racemosa, Ericaceae)

Native

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Wood sage; Canadian germander (Teucrium canadense, Lamiaceae)

Native

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Marsh gentian; seaside gentian (Eustoma exaltatum, Gentianaceae)

Native

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Coastal rosegentian (Sabatia calycina, Gentianaceae)
Native

This small, lone Sabatia was found on the east side of Fish Hole Rd. It's unusual because it has 7 corolla lobes. According to Wunderlin & Hansen, S. calycina usually has 5 to 6 corolla lobes, sometimes 7. This species is found in floodplain forests, pine flatwoods, and pond margins. It blooms in summer. On an earlier visit I had found several S. calycina plants growing further south along Fish Hole Rd.

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Baldwin's eryngo (Eryngium baldwinii, Apiaceae)

Native

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White-tailed deer

As we were exiting Toso, we spotted this doe and her fawn feeding at the edge of the woods along Beehead Rd.

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