#Wildflowers evolved fast enough to survive a historic #drought

By Andrei Ionescu
March 13, 2026

Excerpt: "A potted #ScarletMonkeyFlower can look fine one day and collapse a few days later if you forget to water it. But out in the wild, some populations of this same species made it through #California’s brutal four-year drought.

"The wildflowers didn’t survive because the drought 'wasn’t that bad,' or because the plants found hidden water. They survived because, according to a new study, they evolved fast enough to keep up.

"The researchers tracked scarlet monkeyflower populations in #Oregon and California for more than a decade.

"The team reports something scientists have long discussed but rarely captured in nature from start to finish: climate-driven decline, rapid genetic adaptation across the whole genome, and then recovery in some populations.

"In other words, '#EvolutionaryRescue' happening in the real world, not just in theory or in lab experiments."

Read more:
https://www.earth.com/news/wildflowers-evolved-fast-enough-to-survive-a-historic-drought/

#Superblooms #Evolution #ClimateChangeAdaptation #Flowers #ClimateChange #ExtremeDrought #Wildflowers

Superbloom outlook: Will San Diego County’s deserts explode in color this spring?

Amber Coakley
Sun, February 1, 2026

Excerpt: " 'We’re going to have a warmup into the 80s this week,' Rood said. 'A heatwave can ‘doom the bloom.’ Some of the shallow-rooted flowers can get stressed if we warm up too much and/or don’t get another round or two of soaking rain.'

"For a true superbloom to unfold, several pieces need to fall perfectly into place: well-timed rain, mild temperatures, no sudden heat spikes — and no invasions from hungry caterpillars or aggressive plants like Sahara mustard, which 'has been coming back in some areas with a vengeance,' according to Rood.

"Even with the uncertainty, early visitors to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park aren’t leaving disappointed.

"Big, showy wildflowers are already making appearances, including desert sunflowers, desert lilies, sand verbena, dune evening primroses, brown-eyed primroses, datura, and chuparosa. Brittlebushes are poised to light up hillsides soon, while smaller blooms like desert dandelions, poppies, purple phacelia, and desert fivespots are just getting started."

Read more [includes photos]:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/superbloom-outlook-san-diego-county-204527263.html

#Superblooms #ClimateChange #California

***BONUS EPISODE!***

Meet TOSHA STIMAGE, the newest artist/collaborator in ANCESTRAL FUTURISM, the ongoing public art installation at Presidio Tunnel Tops!

* Also meet the program's founder, FAVIANNA RODRIGUEZ
* Learn all about Ancestral Futurism
* Get a glimpse of Tosha's contribution, SUPERBLOOMS
* Plan to attend the launch party this Sunday!

All this and more up now at the link in our bio. Also available wherever you get #podcasts.

📸 L–R, Felipe Romero, Alex Grant, Parks Conservancy, courtesy Tosha Stimage, Jeff Hunt

#BIPOC #art #artists #Presidio #parks #publicart #racism #colonialism #genocide #plants #animals #nativeplants #nativehabitat #TunnelTopsSF #PresidioTrust #superblooms #AncestralFuturism #storytelling #SanFrancisco #WereAllInIt

Y'all gotta check out the gorgeous new column by California-based essayist and journalist Miles W. Griffis that explores #queer iconography and identity through the lens of landscape in the American #Southwest.

His debut explores the flamboyance of #SuperBlooms and the way that floral terms used to demean effeminate men have been boldy reclaimed and embraced by the #LGBTQIA+ community.

Celebrate beauty. It's that simple.

(Also! #Follow Miles: @mileswgriffis)

https://www.hcn.org/articles/south-confetti-westerns-the-flamboyance-of-wildflower-blooms

#California #SuperBlooms: Map shows exact locations of recent -#wildflower sightings

https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2023/superbloom-map/

#NorCAL #SuperBlooms #Sonoma #Napa #flowers #Blooms

https://sfstandard.com/arts-culture/san-francisco-bay-area-superbloom-mustard-season/