"occurring in the Puna grasslands of the Andes in Peru, Bolivia, the north of Chile and the west of Argentina at between 3200 and 4500 metres altitude... Yareta is well-adapted to high insolation rates which are typical of the highlands, and cannot grow in shade... Many yaretas are over 3,000 years old."Kuriositas has about a dozen more photos, and some additional ones are here. Via Neatorama.
Photo credit: szeke.
Is it sone kind of fungus or lichen-type thing?
ReplyDeleteIt's not a fungus. And not a lichen.
ReplyDeleteIt's a little teeny tiny plant in the same family (Umbellifers) as carrots and Queen Anne's Lace.
Don't be fooled! They're really Tribbles, come to take over our inhabitable deserts!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you know the carrot is a cultivar of Queen Anne's Lace.
ReplyDeleteIt seems ambiguous in your statement, is that normal to reference them as 2 different things?
You are correct that Queen Anne's Lace is a wild carrot, but behaviorly (re invasiveness) and in culinary terms, I consider them to be separate entities.
ReplyDelete