Wild Wildlife: High-Altitude Pollination

I was in Boulder, briefly, this past week, and I was not eaten by a mountain lion (something I was, I admit, a little afraid of). In fact, I saw no large mammals at all (apart from people), which was no hardship at all, really, when you consider that most of them could kill you. I was a little more frustrated by the cruel, taunting attitudes of the local birds, who either refused to stand conveniently next to measuring devices so that I could determine whether they were ravens or crows or else hid in trees, cheeping like finches or crossbills or who knows what and staying determinedly concealed by leaves.

Insects were my friends, though; they were so focused on nectar that they couldn’t have cared less if I took pictures of their pollinating activities. It made me wonder whether there’s anything different about pollination at high altitudes, the way there are different rules for baking; and then I wondered if all plants in the Denver/Boulder area consider themselves members of the Mile-High Club.

If so, they’re not telling…

{A note: I do write all text and take all pictures. Please do not reproduce either without my permission.}