Monday, May 11, 2015

Seashore Finds

I hope you remember the sunrise shots i showed you last week, from the beach only 3km from our house, yet i have just seen the sunrise for the first time. When the sun was already a bit up there, at 7:00am our time, the heat was already a bit intense driving me to seek refuge from the shadows of some vegetation. There i found a lot of interesting subjects too. Last time i showed the morning moon at the west. Here i will show you some unusual finds as well.

Pulang Bato (Red Rock) at the distance

  
This tree gave a formidable presence being alone at the shoreline giving a bizarre thrunk as shown above. I intensely looked at it thinking it experienced stresses in the past, to have those very unusual convolutions and contours at the base. I suppose it was not the waves that pounded it through time, but perhaps men inflicted harm on it. It was able to heal itself very well despite its difficult past! 

A trunk that experienced decades of unusual circumstance! At this age, we say it is a trunk with character! And it can produce long paragraphs of descriptions or discussions. 

 I looked up and these wonderful flowers amazed me. They are thoroughly inviting with those loud colors.

 There is a lot of inflorescence borne at the stem tips devoid of leaves. And the stems fully exposed to the sun borne the leaves in palmate arrangement.

 Some blackish brown pods bearing black seeds arise on bigger stems. I wonder if birds pollinated them too, as i didn't see any bird that time. If those seeds are fertile, then this tree could probably be brought by the waters here.

I posted this in Facebook asking for identification, which eventually surfaced as Sterculia foetida, or calumpang in the vernacular. Some search in the net showed medicinal values that even can be useful for diabetis.

  Another unusual find i had that morning are these pods, obviously dried fruits of some vines. They are also hanging from the Sterculia foetida tree posted above. However, i don't know the identity of this vine.

A lot of these dried pods are scattered on the trunks, but they are totally wilted that didn't allow me to know how the vegetative plant looks like.

I cannot touch them as they are high up on the tree. But they look hollow which might render them float on the sea after falling on the ground. Those sepals as wings will also allow them to reach distant places, where they can eventually germinate and continue the species.

26 comments:

  1. What an interesting tree! I love seeing old trees like that which have obviously had an interesting history. They make me feel quite humble, thinking of all of the damage that humans have done to the planet while they have been growing. It is always interesting to look up into the trees and see what is living there!

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    1. Hi Nick, when you are living in a country like ours where population is so high, it really is a shame and embarassing that a lot of other living things suffer from human's or inhuman actions. I guess it is survival of the fittest or carrying capacity is already depleted.

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  2. Really nice finds. I love strolling through a coastline and discovering natural wonders and little details. Thanks for sharing these with us!

    Mersad
    Mersad Donko Photography

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    1. If only i have more time, i would love to do this more often. But when you work in the city jungle walking in zones like this is already a luxury. Thanks for the visit.

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  3. How fascinating! Were all these finds on the same tree? I would say that tree has character for so many reasons. It would be curious to discover all its stories!

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    1. Hi Beth. You are right, as i discussed above there's a lot of stories that can unfold by just looking at this tree, and the subjects around it. Those 3 last pictures are from vines that climbed the particular tree. The black pods are the fruits of that tree.

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  4. What a wonderful finds so close to home, thank you for sharing

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    1. And thanks for visiting too Klaraau01. I wish to go back for more.

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  5. The next time you go exploring that part of the province take me with you. So many gorgeous things to see.

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    1. Yes Maria, going out with you in any travel anywhere would be very interesting and fruitful. I know how your trips produce lots of wonderful photos. Come, let's explore together.

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  6. Those seed pods are a thing of beauty.

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    1. Yes Fun60, they really are beautiful, aren't they!

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  7. What lovely shots!

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  8. What a lovely spot, so many lovely finds. The tree trunk does have an interesting shape. I love the pretty seed pods. And I love the view of the water.. beautiful post and photos. Enjoy your day!

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    1. Yes eileeninmd, if only i have more time for photowalk. But as it is all my time at home are devoted to tending and photographing my hoyas, haha!

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  9. Gnarly tree and lovely flowers!

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  10. This find is a wonderful treat to see - the barkm the flowers, the fruit....

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    1. It is a beautiful tree with exceptional past! maltreated and stressed

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  11. You had a great adventure there, it seems. It's good that the trees are so resilient and those red blooms are very pretty.

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    1. Yes Bettyl-NZ, i had a good time. And the sunset photos i took which i blogged before this one, are lovely too.

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  12. Interesting..I always learn something from your expertise Andrea.. I wish we could learn to respect nature and not harm it as we do so often.. Thank you for linking into Nature Notes...Michelle

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  13. I love this tree...so different!

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