Sandfood
Encyclopedia
Pholisma sonorae, commonly known as Sandfood, is a rare and unusual species of flowering plant
endemic to the Sonoran Desert
s to the west of Yuma, Arizona
in the California
Yuha
and Colorado Desert
, and south in the Yuma Desert
, where it is known from only a few locations.
, its fleshy stem extending up to two meters-six feet below the surface and emerging above as a small rounded or ovate form. It may be somewhat mushroom-shaped
if enough sand blows away to reveal the top of the stem. It is a parasitic plant
which attaches to the roots of various desert shrub
s such as wild buckwheats
, ragweed
s, pluchea
s, and Tiquilia plicata
and T. palmeri
to obtain nutrients.
As a heterotroph
, the Pholisma sonorae plant lacks chlorophyll and is grayish, whitish, or brown in color. It has glandular scale-like leaves along its surface. The plant obtains water not from its host plants, but through stoma
ta in its leaves. The plant blooms in centimeter-wide flowers which are pink to purple in color with white margins.
.
use.
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
endemic to 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...
s to the west of Yuma, Arizona
Yuma, Arizona
Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. It is located in the southwestern corner of the state, and the population of the city was 77,515 at the 2000 census, with a 2008 Census Bureau estimated population of 90,041....
in the 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...
Yuha
Yuha Desert
The Yuha Desert is a section of the Sonoran Desert located in the Imperial Valley of California; south of Interstate 8, west of El Centro, CA, and north of the international border....
and 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...
, and south in the Yuma Desert
Yuma Desert
The Yuma Desert is a lower-elevation section of the Sonoran Desert in the southwestern United States and the northwest of Mexico. It is in the Salton basin. The desert contains areas of sparse vegetation and has notable areas of sand dunes. With an average rainfall less than 8 inches each...
, where it is known from only a few locations.
Description
Pholisma sonorae is a perennial herb which grows in sand dunesDune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
, its fleshy stem extending up to two meters-six feet below the surface and emerging above as a small rounded or ovate form. It may be somewhat mushroom-shaped
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
if enough sand blows away to reveal the top of the stem. It is a parasitic plant
Parasitic plant
A parasitic plant is one that derives some or all of its sustenance from another plant. About 4,100 species in approximately 19 families of flowering plants are known. Parasitic plants have a modified root, the haustorium, that penetrates the host plant and connects to the xylem, phloem, or...
which attaches to the roots of various desert shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s such as wild buckwheats
Eriogonum
Eriogonum is the scientific name for a genus of flowering plants, in the family Polygonaceae. The genus is found in North America and is known as wild buckwheat. This is a highly species-rich genus, and indications are that active speciation is continuing...
, ragweed
Ragweed
Ragweeds are flowering plants in the genus Ambrosia in the sunflower family Asteraceae. Common names include bitterweeds and bloodweeds....
s, pluchea
Pluchea
Pluchea is a genus of flowering plant in the Asteraceae family. Members of this genus might be known as camphorweeds, plucheas, or less uniquely "fleabanes". Some are called sourbushes. There are at least 40 species in the genus. They are native to tropical and warm temperate areas...
s, and Tiquilia plicata
Tiquilia plicata
Tiquilia plicata , is a perennial, subshrub-like plant of lower elevation deserts in the Boraginaceae family - Borage or the Forget-me-nots. It is found in the southwestern United States and Northern Mexico, in the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, Sonora, and Baja California...
and T. palmeri
Tiquilia palmeri
Tiquilia palmeri is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common name Palmer's crinklemat. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it grows in sandy desert areas. It is a woody perennial herb producing a white-barked, shaggy-haired stem...
to obtain nutrients.
As a heterotroph
Heterotroph
A heterotroph is an organism that cannot fix carbon and uses organic carbon for growth. This contrasts with autotrophs, such as plants and algae, which can use energy from sunlight or inorganic compounds to produce organic compounds such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins from inorganic carbon...
, the Pholisma sonorae plant lacks chlorophyll and is grayish, whitish, or brown in color. It has glandular scale-like leaves along its surface. The plant obtains water not from its host plants, but through stoma
Stoma
In botany, a stoma is a pore, found in the leaf and stem epidermis that is used forgas exchange. The pore is bordered by a pair of specialized parenchyma cells known as guard cells that are responsible for regulating the size of the opening...
ta in its leaves. The plant blooms in centimeter-wide flowers which are pink to purple in color with white margins.
Uses
This was an important food item for certain desert-dwelling Native American peoples, including the Cocopah and the Hia C-ed O'odhamHia C-ed O'odham
The Hia C-eḍ O'odham , also known as Areneños, Sand Papagos, or Sand Pimas are a Native American peoples whose traditional homeland lies between the Ajo Range, the Gila River, the Colorado River, and the Gulf of California...
.
Status
The plant is rare and declining as its habitat of shifting dune sands is lost to development and damaged by off-road vehicleOff-road vehicle
An off-road vehicle is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with deep, open treads, a flexible suspension, or even caterpillar tracks...
use.