As a departure from the regular natural fodder I present in this blog, this post is a little different. This will be an effort to solve a natural puzzle. I came across this interesting plant, or what's left of it, in a pasture in the Red Hills. I first noticed the whitish figures in a clumpy mass raised above the soil surface. Giving it a kick with my boot, it was easily extracted. Examining it further, I noticed spines around the bases of the white, circular forms. My first thought was that cattle in the pasture had eaten some yucca leaves clear to their bases. But the small spines present implied otherwise. Something definitely had chewed on this plant--some tough critter that can handle spines. What's your idea about this natural mystery? The plant? The animal involved?
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| The whole clump had spines at the base of each of the circular features. This is obviously a plant and suffered at the demands of a hungry or deranged animal. |
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| Closer up, you can see the spines around the bases of each plant or part of the plant. All the parts were eaten to their bases. |
Hmmmm. I'm going to have to think about this one. :)
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