There is yellow, and then there is the YELLOW of the mariposa lily, Calochortus clavatus. Remarkable in its brightness and purity, its yellow is one of the most intense and vibrant concentrations of color I have seen in the chaparral.
It is relatively uncommon, and this is one of a few seen along trails in Rocky Peak Park, and the Simi Hills. Of the varieties listed in the Jepson Manual, this appears most similar to the slender mariposa lily (Calochortus clavatus var. gracilis).
The insect emerging from the flower is a small bee — probably a species of Perdita (Andrenidae). These bees were found on several of the mariposa blossoms along the trail. They were usually near the gland near the base of each petal, and partially hidden by the club-like hairs that gives the species its name.
The bright orange-red coloration of these immature large milkweed bugs (Oncopeltus fasciatus) is a warning to predators that they taste bad. Like monarch butterflies, they concentrate foul-tasting compounds from the narrow-leaf milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis) in their bodies.
Following several instars (molts), the nymph is transformed into the adult insect.
The photograph is from a run at Sage Ranch on July 23, 2007.
Perfectly sized to work the minute central disk flowers of golden yarrow, a tiny insect — perhaps a syrphid fly — hovers a few millimeters from the plant, assessing the risk of continuing to feed.
The compound flower head of the golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum) is about the size of a green pea (10mm), and the individual disk flowers at its center are about 1/5 as large (2mm).
