Warning: Do Not Climb This Tree!

 (Léase en español / Read in Spanish)

I don’t know what it is about boys, but they love to climb trees. I have fond childhood memories of trying to get to the very top of trees in our neighborhood and local parks. But listen up boys! ... Do NOT try to climb this tree!

Here is the answer to this month’s Mystery Macro. There were some nice tries at guessing, but... It isn’t a lizard or a toad, or an animal of any kind. The guesses of ‘chocolate chip mountains’ and ‘little mountains of sand’ were certainly clever, but also incorrect. The guess of ‘beet, carrot or squash’ at least landed in the correct category: flora. However the closest guess would have to be “I think it is a prehistoric rose vine.” But since that is also not correct, no one wins the prize dinner. Sorry folks. Maybe next time.
 
Here is the full size picture from which the Mysterey Macro was taken:

Still need some explaining? Well you probably picked up on the clue: “Don’t climb

The Monthly Mystery Macro misterioso del mes

Cada mes ponemos un reto de macro misterioso. He aquí el reto de septiembre:

Each month we post a mystery macro challenge. Here is the one for September:  

La vid del canario

 (Read in English / Léase en inglés)

Encontramos esta bella flor que subía el tronco de un árbol grande. La planta se llama la vid del canario.

Se cultiva como planta ornamental en muchas partes del mundo, pero se cree que

The Canary Bird Vine

 (Léase en español / Read in Spanish)

We found this beautiful flower growing up the trunk of a large tree.
This is the Canary Bird Vine.

It is grown as an ornamental plant in various parts of the world, but it is believed to

The Passion Flower

 (Léase en español / Read in Spanish)

If you were hoping to see exotic, this is it! (Well, sort of. More on that later...) Allow us to introduce you to the Passionflower. We found this plant growing in a passage way which led to the first place we stayed in Tarija.

Passiflora incarnata

Its principal characteristic is the strange form of its flowers. As you can see, they

La flor de pasión

 (Read in English / Léase en inglés)

Si está ansioso de ver algo exótico, ¡eso es! (Bueno, más o menos. Luego explico...) Aquí le presentamos la flor de pasión. Encontramos esta planta en un pasillo en camino a donde nos quedábamos las primeras semanas in Tarija.

Passiflora incarnata

 
Su principal característica es la peculiar forma de sus flores. Como se ve, tienen

Belleza compacta- un habitante

Cuando yo me observé más detenidamente una de las fotos de la 'Belleza Compacta', vi un insecto increíblemente pequeño. Mire a eso:

¡¿Bicho?!

 (Read in English / Léase en inglés)

Belleza compacta- desde otros ángulos

He aquí otras fotos de la flor que en una entrada anterior llamé Belleza Compacta:

Este tercera foto abajo es de un racimo aun más pequeño que las flores. Parece

Belleza compacta

Esta foto es de la Lantana camara de la familia Verbenaceae. La variedad de flores en el género Lantana es increíble. Me asombran los detalles intrincados de estas flores tan chiquitinas. (Por si acaso que no se lo fijo, estos son las puntas de mis dedos al lado izquierdo de la foto.)

Se cultiva en muchas partes del mundo, aunque se cree que originalmente es nativa de la Valle Baja del Río Grande de Texas, EE.UU. Algunos nombres comunes son:camará, lantana, bandera española, confite, frutillo y cariaquito.

Actualizada: Para ver más fotos de este ramillete de flores, véase "Belleza compacta- desde otros ángulos".

 (Read in English / Léase en inglés)

Compact Beauty- An inhabitant

When I looked more closely at one of the pictures I took of  'Compact Beauty', I saw an incredibly small insect. Check this out:

Bug?!

 (Léase en español / Read in Spanish)

Compact Beauty- additional angles

Here are some more photos of the flower in an earlier post that I called Compact Beauty:

This third photo below is of a cluster even smaller than the flowers. It appears to be

Compact Beauty

The photo below is the Lantana camara, from the family Verbenaceae. There is an incredible variety in the Lantana genus. I am amazed at the intricate details of such tiny flowers. (And in case you didn't notice, those are the tips of my fingers on the left side of the photo.)

It is grown in many parts of the world, although it is believed to be indigenous to the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the United States. Some common names are: Spanish Flag and West Indian Lantana. It is also known as the Red Sage, Yellow Sage or Wild Sage. However it is not even in the same family as the Sage or the Sagebrush.
 
Update: To see additional photos of this tiny bouquet of flowers, please read "Compact Beauty- additional angles".

 (Léase en español / Read in Spanish)