Ghostflower
Encyclopedia
Mohavea confertiflora, the Ghost Flower, is a plant of the family Scrophulariaceae
. It is a native of the Southwestern United States
, southern California
, and Northwest Mexico
.
It is found growing in the arid conditions of the Mojave Desert
and the Sonoran Desert
(including Colorado Desert
), below 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) in elevation . It also grows in those deserts sky islands
habitat
s .
, which often grows in the same habitat. Mentzelia involucrata produces nectar to attract female bees of the genus Xeralictus.
In areas where their ranges overlap, Mohavea confertifolia attracts the same pollinators to its flowers through floral mimicry: Mohavea flowers contain marks that resemble female Xeralictus; these marks operate as a sign stimulus
to the male bee, which enters the flower and in doing so pollinates the Mohavea .
Scrophulariaceae
Scrophulariaceae, the figwort family, are a family of flowering plants. The plants are annual or perennial herbs with flowers with bilateral or rarely radial symmetry. Members of the Scrophulariaceae have a cosmopolitan distribution, with the majority found in temperate areas, including...
. It is a native of the Southwestern United States
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
, southern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and Northwest Mexico
Northwest Mexico
Northwest Mexico is a region of the United Mexican States, formed by the states of Durango, Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Sonora, Baja California and Baja California Sur...
.
It is found growing in the arid conditions of the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
and the Sonoran Desert
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It is one of the largest and hottest...
(including Colorado Desert
Colorado Desert
California's Colorado Desert is a part of the larger Sonoran Desert, which extends across southwest North America. The Colorado Desert region encompasses approximately , reaching from the Mexican border in the south to the higher-elevation Mojave Desert in the north and from the Colorado River in...
), below 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) in elevation . It also grows in those deserts sky islands
Sky Islands
Sky Islands is a 1993 Jazz album by Ramsey Lewis released on GRP Records.The album peaked at #4 on the Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.-Track listing:-Personnel: *Tony Carpenter - Percussion, Background Vocals...
habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
s .
Description
Mohavea confertiflora flowers March to April. This flower, which does not produce nectar, has adapted a morphology resembling the flower Mentzelia involucrataMentzelia involucrata
Mentzelia involucrata is a species of Mentzelia native to the Mojave and Sonoran deserts of North America. Its common names include sand blazing star and white-bract blazing star.-Description:...
, which often grows in the same habitat. Mentzelia involucrata produces nectar to attract female bees of the genus Xeralictus.
In areas where their ranges overlap, Mohavea confertifolia attracts the same pollinators to its flowers through floral mimicry: Mohavea flowers contain marks that resemble female Xeralictus; these marks operate as a sign stimulus
Fixed action pattern
In ethology, a fixed action pattern , or modal action pattern, is an instinctive behavioral sequence that is indivisible and runs to completion...
to the male bee, which enters the flower and in doing so pollinates the Mohavea .