Hello folks who wonder if the quote "Sharing is caring" should have the certain conditions may apply asterisk besides it since it does not apply to infectious diseases,
We live in a world where it is getting harder and harder with every passing day to order a pizza for a group of a large size with a single type of topping. But despite those differences there are some things that universally everyone pretty much agrees on. Those being that every generation thinks the next generation is lazier than their generation while the newer generation always thinks the older generation never thought outside the box and always played safe.
One case of that is evident in how plants evolved. You see, plants are divided into two main categories: Flowering plants (Angiosperms) and non-flowering plants (Gymnosperms). Flowering plants are those that are popular on Instagram every spring while posting a photo of one of the non-flowering plants might even cause you to lose followers. Examples of non-flowering plants are redwoods, pines, cedars, spruces characterized by needle shaped leaves and cones instead of fruits or flowers.
Back in those times when non-flowering plants evolved, there was no reliable way to run background checks on insects, so they decided to stick to the services of the wind for their pollination needs. This all changed when the flowering plants evolved who started to conduct some shady business with their pollinators to spread their genetic material around. Why is it shady you ask, read about it here.
Now these male cones might look innocent at first, but a little flick will mimic the scenario of a strong wind blowing along. And just like that they will release a pollen cloud. (*pollen allergy sufferers gasp)
Since the pollen was up for grabs, I decided to take a closer look.
Wind, when you are not expecting it just makes everything worse. The difference between a good hair day and a terrible hair day is a gust of wind. But combating the wind when you do not want it, is not just limited to just humans. Different creatures have novel ways of dealing with it. Before we look at that, let take a moment to appreciate this Lorquin's admiral butterfly just idling around like it does need to worry about whether Kim Kardashian will ever find true love ever again.
But then, strong winds start to blow. At that point it can decide to use its energy to fly away just because it did not want to surrender to authoritarian powers. It will end up keeping its pride but use valuable energy drifting in the wind unable to control the direction of its flight. Or it can simply take inspiration from grasses and bend its wings to let the winds pass through. Below is the butterfly opting for the latter choice.
Hummingbird Sage is a beloved plant among gardeners in California for its attractive flowers and pleasant scent. Below is what it looks like.
If you ever touched this plant, you will find it similar to touching a towel and after touching this plant your fingers will carry a fruity aroma. Now this is by design. When you look closer at this plant, you will find every part of this plant is covered in tiny sticky hairs called trichomes. These sticky trichomes contain resin and serve as a self-defense mechanism to protect it from insects that might end up eating its leaves.
Although this discourages crawling insects from walking up this plant, it catches smaller flying insects by surprise. Non-biting midges looking for a place to land after constantly flying around to find mates, might casually land on this plant, only to find this motel only allows check-ins, no check-outs. Too late! And soon, other midges meet the same fate as their friends only to have this plant serve as a midge graveyard.
And I was lucky (or unlucky) enough to see one that recently checked-in to this motel. "Did you at least get life insurance for your family?" I asked it while it was struggling for its life.
Every effort to break free just makes it more exhausted and inch closer to the grim reaper. "PLEASE DELETE MY BROWSING HISTORY!" it shouted as its final words. Below you can see it struggling to get rid of the sticky resin on its legs. (Also, a mite on the midge makes a cameo appearance).
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