Rio Bosque Wetlands Biological Treasure Hunt

Honey mesquite has rounded big and floppy, drooping branches with feathery foliage and straight, paired spines on twigs. This tree normally reaches 20–30 ft (6.1–9.1 m), but can grow as tall as 50 ft (15 m). It is considered to have a medium growth rate. Honey mesquite coppices due to latent buds underground, making permanent removal difficult. A single-trunked tree that is cut down will soon be replaced by a multi-trunked version.

It flowers from March to November, with pale, yellow, elongated spikes and bears straight, yellow seedpods. The seeds are eaten by a variety of animals, such as scaled quail. Other animals, including deer, collared peccaries, coyotes, and jackrabbits, feed on both pods and vegetation. less ↑

This plant grows to about 7 m (23 ft). It has light brown bark, usually short, straight spines 1 to 3 centimeters long, twice-compound leaves, and numerous small yellowish flowers appearing in elongate spikes. The tightly twisted seedpods (legumes) are up to 5 centimeters long and very much resemble turned screws. This morphology may have been an evolutionary defense against seed predators such as bean weevils (Bruchinae). The pods germinate after being scarified in the digestive tracts of animals that eat them. less ↑

Atriplex canescens has a highly variable form, and readily hybridizes with several other species in the Atriplex genus. The degree of polyploidy also results in variations in form. Its height can vary from 1 foot to 10 feet, but 2 to 4 feet is most common. The leaves are thin and 0.5 to 2 inches long.

It is most readily identified by its fruits, which have four wings at roughly 90 degree angles and are densely packed on long stems.

This species blooms from April to October. less ↑

This is one of many wildflowers in the Aster family that produces showy yellow flowerheads during the summer and fall. Like other species in its genus, the flowerheads of Bitterweed have very distinctive petal-like rays with broad 3-toothed tips. Bitterweed is also distinguished by its very narrow leaves (less than 1/8" across) that are nearly filiform; they often occur in short clusters along the stems. Other Helenium spp. in Illinois have wider leaves and they prefer habitats that are more damp. less ↑

Pluchea sericea, commonly called arrowweed, is a rhizomatous evergreen shrub of riparian areas in the lower Sonoran Desert and surrounding areas. It is common in the lower Colorado River valley of California, Nevada and Arizona, as far east as Texas, and in northern Mexico where it often forms dense impenetrable thickets. Arrowweed can reach over 3 meters in height, their long straight stems were used by Native Americans to make shafts for arrows. less ↑

Populus deltoides is a large tree growing to 20–40 m (66–131 ft) tall and with a trunk up to 1.8 m (5.9 ft) diameter, one of the largest North American hardwood trees. The bark is silvery-white, smooth or lightly fissured when young, becoming dark gray and deeply fissured on old trees. The twigs are grayish-yellow and stout, with large triangular leaf scars. The winter buds are slender, pointed, 1–2 cm long (.039–0.79 inches), yellowish brown, and resinous. It is one of the fastest growing trees in North America. In Mississippi River bottoms, height growth of 10–15 ft per year for a few years have been seen. Sustained height growth of 5 foot height growth and 1 inch diameter growth per year for 25 years is common.

The leaves are large, deltoid (triangular), 4–10 cm (1.6–3.9 in) long and 4–11 cm (1.6–4.3 in) broad with a truncated (flattened) base and a petiole 3–12 cm (1.2–4.7 in) long. The leaf is very coarsely toothed, the teeth are curved and gland tipped, and the petiole is flat; they are dark green in the summer and turn yellow in the fall (but many cottonwoods in dry locations drop their leaves early from the combination of drought and leaf rust, making their fall color dull or absent). Due to the flat stem of the leaf, the leaf has the tendency to shake from even the slightest breeze. This is one of the identifying characteristics.[5]

Excerpt from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Populus_deltoides less ↑