We started taking pictures early
this morning (S580), just images from inside and around the Hosteria,
including one of Angie checking her emails while we were waiting for
breakfast. Accommodation with internet services get an extra star on
my rating system of Chilean facilities, an important means of staying
in touch with elderly parents and kids back home while enjoying
yourself on the other side of the planet.
Our cactus program for the day
consisted of looking for another recently described Copiapoa,
C. megarhiza ssp. parvula. Ricardo & Ingrid had sent me a copy
of their original description for this plant, as ssp. quedbradiza,
(meaning fragile, brittle, referring to the neck between the plant
body and taproot that so easily snaps) for comment and I had passed it
on to the BCSJ editor for consideration for publication in a future
edition. It was unfortunate that the article was delayed and
eventually withdrawn by the authors so that it could be published in a
different journal, but the delays provided the opportunity for other
authors to publish their description in the German Journal. It seems
that all is fair in love and cactus nomenclature. There are lots of
stories in cactus history of people receiving the glory for other
people's careful studies and efforts. It also creates an uncomfortable
climate where you need to be careful what you say to whom, in case it
is used or passed on to others who will use it for their own
glorification. Let's hope that we can get back to some more civilized
ethics and gentleman-like behaviour in this respect. Have I been
living too long in England to expect that there is room in the world
for such gentleman-like behaviour?
S581 took us to the end of a
track off the 'Copiapó loop road' that we had followed in 2003. This
track took us through incredibly arid desert, although the presence of
Tillandsia landbeckii, providing a thick blanket of ground
coverage, suggested that the area benefits from frequent fogs. In
2003, Benjy had refused to get out of the car here, protesting that he
did not want to get his trainers dirty looking at 'grass'. Later he
had to eat his words when we found C. megarhiza growing close
to the road. But that was much closer to Copiapó.
Bart had discovered this spot in
2004 and wanted to show us what he had found. During our stay with
Ricardo & Ingrid, at the end of the trip, they confirmed that our
images were taken at the same spot that they had intended to be the
type locality. The track ended at the foot of the hills and as soon as
we started walking up the slopes we started finding the plants. They
were not looking too happy, dehydrated and in need of a good wash.
While I had categorised Bart as one of the mountain goat breed of
cactophiles, Juan and Florencia seemed to have wings that carried them
quickly to the tops of numerous hills. Did they have access to
Startrek's 'beam-me-up, Scotty' technology? Reports from the hill tops
indicated that plants there were generally larger and in better
condition, perhaps receiving more benefit from recent fogs.
As I am looking through the
images while preparing today's report, I wonder if there is more than
one taxon at this location. Some plants are tubercled while others
clearly have their areoles arranged in ribs. On a clear day. it should
be possible to see the entrance to Quebrada El Leon from the hilltop
view point at S581. Were the tubercled plants here Copiapoa
leonensis or just young plants of C. megarhiza ssp parvula
or are the two taxa synonymous? How do they differ from C. echinata
that grows further south? All are described as 'dried up hedgehogs' by
Angie. I'd better get some more Chilean wine in for a gathering of
cactus friends over the Christmas period to discuss such weighty
matters. Hope that we can remember our conclusions the next morning.
S582 was a similar location to
S581, but a further 10 km or so east, further in land. We spread out
and examined different hillsides. I found quite a few Eulychnia
breviflora, many dead, some alive with honey coloured woolly
fruits. Eventually I also spotted some very dehydrated globular plants
that I suspect would plump up to look identical to the parvula
plants at the previous location.
We assumed that the trend of
'less humidity and therefore less cacti, the further inland we'd go'
would continue and decided to take a look somewhere else. I can't
quite remember why, but we decided to take a look at 'the other side'
of these hills, i.e. the south facing hills along Ruta 5, and found a
reasonable point to leave the Pan Am almost opposite the new Copiapó
Airport (S583). My instinct said that we'd find no Copiapoa
here, the location was just 'wrong'. The car tyres started to struggle
in the deep fine sand and there was every chance of getting seriously
stuck. The other two cars (yes, even Florencia's Berlingo) seemed to
fare better. My instinct has been proven wrong before, but not this
time. As I remember, there was an Eriosyce, (either a southern
form of E. taltalensis or E. confinis?) growing at the top. Juan, Bart, feel free to chime in - you
saw the plants!
There was still time left and
the silhouette of the Morro Copiapó beckoned on the horizon. We took a
turning to Puerto Viejo, a variable quality dirt road. For some
unknown reason, we overtook a dog, running at some 35 km p. hr through
the desert, while we were probably averaging 45 km p. hr. He must have
been on his way to a hot date, because there was no evidence of anyone
/ thing chasing him or being chased by him. We made a brief stop
(S584) as we approached the coast, but apart from the typical low
desert scrub, no plants were reported.
And so on to
S585, near the
saddle of Morro Copiapó; the same spot visited in 2003. We knew what
to expect and were not disappointed: Copiapoa marginata, with
quite a few in flower, and Eriosyce (Thelocephala) odieri, this
time more shrunk and therefore more difficult to find than in 2003.
Not a bad day for cactus
spotting!
