The Rebirthing Bush
Species: Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa)
Habitat: Found on slopes, washes, and other well-drained areas throughout Grand Canyon National Park and the southwestern Sonoran Desert.
Image Location: Plateau Point, Grand Canyon, Arizona
Public Land: Grand Canyon National Park
Description: A bush that in times of severe drought drops its leaves to hunker down for survival. When the rain comes again, even a light shower, the leaves return and it expresses its joy for life in dozens of daisy-like bright yellow flowers.
Each spring after a winter of good precipitation, brittlebush blooms blanket the inner walls of the Grand Canyon brightening the landscape with their masses of daisy-like yellow flowers. The shrubs which have evolved in the harsh, dry conditions of their desert habitat have adapted a special strategy to survive heavy drought. Like a lizard that loses its tail when caught by a predator, the brittlebrush shed their leaves in especially arid times only to grow them back and bloom again when the rain returns, akin to coming back to life several times in a season.
This image was taken at Plateau Point on the Tonto Platform off the main corridor trail in the Grand Canyon. My friends and I backpacked there in April of 2023 when I was working on a story about desert spring for bioGraphic Magazine. We intended to complete the whole trail from South to North Rim. We were turned back by heavy snowmelt run-off that created impassable water over the trails. We heard stories of a couple people who attempted the crossing that were carried off with their backpacks and all so we decided not to attempt it. The water poured over the North Rim with such force that it eroded the canyon walls along the northern portion of the trail during the first two days of our hike. Large boulders fell onto the trail blocking passage and reminding us that the force of nature still rules supreme. We rerouted back out to the South Rim, but I dream of returning to complete the trek one day.
Prints: Fine art print on acid free, 100% cotton, bright or warm white, textured surface, archival quality paper. For more about papers I use click here.
Species: Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa)
Habitat: Found on slopes, washes, and other well-drained areas throughout Grand Canyon National Park and the southwestern Sonoran Desert.
Image Location: Plateau Point, Grand Canyon, Arizona
Public Land: Grand Canyon National Park
Description: A bush that in times of severe drought drops its leaves to hunker down for survival. When the rain comes again, even a light shower, the leaves return and it expresses its joy for life in dozens of daisy-like bright yellow flowers.
Each spring after a winter of good precipitation, brittlebush blooms blanket the inner walls of the Grand Canyon brightening the landscape with their masses of daisy-like yellow flowers. The shrubs which have evolved in the harsh, dry conditions of their desert habitat have adapted a special strategy to survive heavy drought. Like a lizard that loses its tail when caught by a predator, the brittlebrush shed their leaves in especially arid times only to grow them back and bloom again when the rain returns, akin to coming back to life several times in a season.
This image was taken at Plateau Point on the Tonto Platform off the main corridor trail in the Grand Canyon. My friends and I backpacked there in April of 2023 when I was working on a story about desert spring for bioGraphic Magazine. We intended to complete the whole trail from South to North Rim. We were turned back by heavy snowmelt run-off that created impassable water over the trails. We heard stories of a couple people who attempted the crossing that were carried off with their backpacks and all so we decided not to attempt it. The water poured over the North Rim with such force that it eroded the canyon walls along the northern portion of the trail during the first two days of our hike. Large boulders fell onto the trail blocking passage and reminding us that the force of nature still rules supreme. We rerouted back out to the South Rim, but I dream of returning to complete the trek one day.
Prints: Fine art print on acid free, 100% cotton, bright or warm white, textured surface, archival quality paper. For more about papers I use click here.
Species: Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa)
Habitat: Found on slopes, washes, and other well-drained areas throughout Grand Canyon National Park and the southwestern Sonoran Desert.
Image Location: Plateau Point, Grand Canyon, Arizona
Public Land: Grand Canyon National Park
Description: A bush that in times of severe drought drops its leaves to hunker down for survival. When the rain comes again, even a light shower, the leaves return and it expresses its joy for life in dozens of daisy-like bright yellow flowers.
Each spring after a winter of good precipitation, brittlebush blooms blanket the inner walls of the Grand Canyon brightening the landscape with their masses of daisy-like yellow flowers. The shrubs which have evolved in the harsh, dry conditions of their desert habitat have adapted a special strategy to survive heavy drought. Like a lizard that loses its tail when caught by a predator, the brittlebrush shed their leaves in especially arid times only to grow them back and bloom again when the rain returns, akin to coming back to life several times in a season.
This image was taken at Plateau Point on the Tonto Platform off the main corridor trail in the Grand Canyon. My friends and I backpacked there in April of 2023 when I was working on a story about desert spring for bioGraphic Magazine. We intended to complete the whole trail from South to North Rim. We were turned back by heavy snowmelt run-off that created impassable water over the trails. We heard stories of a couple people who attempted the crossing that were carried off with their backpacks and all so we decided not to attempt it. The water poured over the North Rim with such force that it eroded the canyon walls along the northern portion of the trail during the first two days of our hike. Large boulders fell onto the trail blocking passage and reminding us that the force of nature still rules supreme. We rerouted back out to the South Rim, but I dream of returning to complete the trek one day.
Prints: Fine art print on acid free, 100% cotton, bright or warm white, textured surface, archival quality paper. For more about papers I use click here.