After the storm: A view of a patch of forest in El Yunque rainforest, before and after hurricane Maria.

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This is a view from the Iguaca Aviary, of a patch of forest 

in El Yunque rainforest, before hurricane Maria.

The same place, after Maria.

Pelexia adnata (Sw.) Poit. ex Rich 1818, Bosque de Rio Abajo, Puerto Rico

Most afternoons, when it doesn't rain, I jog in the forest trails.  Most of the vegetation by the trail sides is either ferns or weeds, but occasionally I see something unusual.  A few weeks ago I noticed this orchid.  However the flowers are tiny and the plant is small so it hardly stands out from the surrounding plants.

Cranichis tenuis Reichenbach f. 1865, found some dew covered flowers today.

Today I visited a population of Cranichis tenuis in the Maricao forest.  I was surprised to find only seven plants, when last year were dozens.  The place where they grow is not often visited by people so human influence is not suspect.  I visited the place early in the morning and found these flowers covered with dew.  I like how the flowers look.

Anolis gundlachi, the yellow chinned anolis in El Yunque forest, Puerto Rico

I saw this Anolis in el Yunque forest.  The anolis was in a shady area under the canopy.  It kept moving away and hiding which didn't make taking his photos any easier.

Gonatista grisea, a mantis, seen in the Rio Abajo forest, Puerto Rico

A friend, Alberto Alvarez, noticed this mantis had come into one of the Department of Natural and Environmental resources buildings in the forest.  We took photos of the insect and after that firmly but in a gentle manner, invited the mantis to leave the inside of the building and return to the forest.  We were successful in this.  No mantis were harmed during the taking of these photos.

Vanilla planifolia Jacks. ex Andrews 1808, "in situ", in the Rio Abajo forest, Puerto Rico

I found this orchid some years ago during a hike in the Rio Abajo forest.   The orchid was growing over several living trees, on stumps and on some places crawling over the fallen branches and the leaf litter.   In this small spot of the forest the stems of this orchid were all over the place.  However my enthusiasm over finding this plant was tempered by the fact that I could not find any evidence that the stems that were under eye height, and therefore accessible to being photographed, had ever bloomed.  Some of the stems were fifty or more feet up in the trees and I surmised that it was there, where the plant was exposed to the greatest sunlight, that the flowers were produced.

I visited the plants every year on what I suspected was its blooming season, but I could not locate any evidence that it had bloomed.   Then about two weeks ago, I noticed that some of the stems were producing inflorescences, luckily a few were low enough that I could take photos of the flowers.

 

The flowers last a single day, I have noticed that the inflorescences have one flower open at a time.  The inflorescences attract ants, you can see them around the bases of the flower buds.   The inflorescences are not uniformly distributed through the stems.  Almost all of the inflorescences I found were on the stems that were getting the most sun.  None of the stems that were growing on the deep shade had flowers and neither did the undersized stems that were crawling on the ground.   

                                                                                                   

This orchid is used to produce commercial vanilla, it is native of Mexico.    This orchid seems to be doing quite well on its own.  I have only found a single seedling, it growing at the base of a huge teak tree.  Unfortunately, the small plant didn’t survive when snails attacked it.    All the other plants I have seen have been either large adults or pieces that have fallen from the canopy and are starting to produce roots and climbing growths.

Anolis cristatellus, in the RIo Abajo forest, Puerto Rico

What orchid seed actually looks like; The seeds of Oeceoclades maculata being released from a seed pod in the Rio Abajo forest, Puerto Rico

Most orchid growers are unfamiliar with the appearance of the seeds of orchids.  From time to time one sees questions in forums of the Internet of people that have brought "monkey orchid seeds" and are unable to tell if they got actual orchid seeds or some other types of seed.   Orchid seeds are quite small, almost dust like, so if any that has brought the "monkey orchid seeds" gets anything resembling a normal seed, it surely isn't an orchid seed.

I was hiking through the Rio Abajo forest and stumbled upon a group of Oeceoclades maculata with open seed capsules.  I decided to gently shake the stems that held the seed capsules so that they would release the seeds.  In the photos you can see how tiny the seeds are and how the wind quickly wafts them away.

The effect of drought on a Cochleantes flabelliformis, "in situ" in the Rio Abajo forest in Puerto Rico

The plant had a fruit in February 2015

The plant in February 2015

The driest months of the year in Puerto Rico are March and April.  In May the rainy season starts.  But in 2015 we have not received any significant amount of rain in the forest during the month of May.  The forest is unusually dry for this time of the year.  Many plants look dehydrated and in a poor state.  I went to see a Cochleantes flabelliformis that I had seen in February, to see how it was faring during the drought.  As you can see it has lost almost all its leaves.  I was sad since I had counted on taking photos of its flowers when it bloomed again.  I will be monitoring this plant to see if it will survive and recover once the rains start.

Epidendrum jamaicense Lindley 1853, in la Sierra de Luquillo

On the fourth of May, I went on a long hike in El Yunque national forest.  I wanted to see if there were orchids blooming in the elfin woods forest.  I was stunned by what I found.    The elfin forest is located in one of the wettest spots in the island of Puerto Rico.  But on this visit I found that the forest was dry.  Normally every surface in the forest is either wet or sopping wet.  But no this time, the tree trunks were dry.   For the first time on one of my visits I could not find a single Lepanthes orchid with open flowers.

The forest was windy and cool.  When you walk in this forest usually the soil is wet and puddles are ubiquitous.   In this date the soil was moist and there were no puddles on sight.  Some of the creeks had so little water flowing that you had to get close to them to see it.

There were very few orchids with flowers, among those was Epidendrum jamaicense.  I had never seen this orchid with flowers before.  In fact if it hadn’t had flowers I would have thought they were plants of the ubiquitous Epidendrum ramosum.   The plants were growing in a tree along with Epi. angustifolium and Epi. ramosum.   They were the only Epidendrum that I saw with flowers, all others had seed capsules.  A single plant of Epi. angustifolium had a bud close to opening.

Unlike its relative, Epidendrum boricuarum, Epi. jamaicensis, as far as I now is not in cultivation locally.  It is probable that this is due to the fact that it is not as common as boricuarum and few people are familiar with it.   It produces only a few nodding flowers in a hanging inflorescence.  

Cyclopogon elatus (Sw.) Schltr. 1919, a native orchid in a shaded ravine in the Rio Abajo forest

Today I visited a shaded ravine deep inside the Rio Abajo forest, near the center of the island of Puerto Rico.  This plant was growing near a tiny creek that flowed between the haystack hills.  I almost missed seeing it due to its small stature and dull colored flowers.  But because it was early morning, sun rays were coming at an angle and one of them hit the inflorescence and made it stand out from the rest of the vegetation.  The area has very tall trees which means the forest floor is quite gloomy.  There is a population of manaca palms, Calyptronoma rivalis in the place.  The palms are still young, they were planted there by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources.  The place had many interesting plants but I was there only briefly and barely had time to see a small patch of the ravine.  The place is quite safe from visitors as it can only be reached after an strenuous walk through rugged terrain.

Epidendrum anceps Jacq. 1763, The flowers of 2015 in comparison with those I found in the same place in 2011

January 2015

January 2015

February 2011

February 2011

A few years ago I found a clump of stems of Epidendrum anceps growing in the crest of a hill in the Maricao forest. Since then, I visit these plants once a year to check how they are doing and to photograph the flowers.  In 2011 the clump had an inflorescence with green flowers.  In 2015, only one of the inflorescences had not suffered damage.  It was not clear what had damaged the inflorescences before they had finished their growth.  The only one with flowers had a distinct purple color in the edge of the lip.  Apparently, rather than all the stems being a single plant, the clump is composed of two plants growing very close together.  Hopefully next year I will be able to photograph both colors of flowers side by side.

A baby puertorican boa startles and delights

This baby Puertorican boa surprised, startled and delighted the personnel of the Puertorican Parrot project by spending the day wrapped around the rails of one of the paths in the aviary.  It was quite festy and would try to bite if someone got too close.  It provided me with a rare occasion to use my 100mm macro lens on an animal.  After I took a number of photos gently but firmly, I coaxed the snake to leave the rail and to move to the vegetation.  The little snake eventually slithered down the rail and moved away.  I did this at night fall so that it would not fall prey to daytime predators.

Commelina diffusa Burm. f., growing in the grounds of the Iguaca aviary.

The diminute flowers of this plant are so blue they are quite eye catching in spite of their small size.

Ipomoea repanda Jacq. seen while hiking in the upper reaches of El Yunque forest

I photographed this blooming vine while hiking in El Yunque forest at an altitude of 3,000 feet over sea level.  Mr. Omar Monsegur was the person that gave me the ID of this plant.

A normally terrestrial orchid growing on a palm tree, Prestoea montana

In the upper parts of the sierra palm forest, in El Yunque, it is so wet that sometimes the layer of plant material clinging to the trunk of trees and palms can sustain plants that normally would only grow on the ground.  Unfortunately, the plant had no flowers that would aid identification.  However the plant looks like a Erythrodes sp. a kind of orchid common at roadsides in the forest.

The largest flock I have seen to date of Puerto Rican parrots (Amazona vittata) in the Rio Abajo forest.

Since the first releases of the Puerto Rican parrot in the Rio Abajo forest, it has become almost commonplace to see, in certain parts of the forest, small flocks foraging or roosting.  These flocks can vary in size, but in my experience, 20 to 30 birds together has been the upper range for these groups.  Sometimes I walk in the forest to enjoy the clear afternoons that follow the thunderstorms of that start after noon and to see if I can catch a glimpse of the wild birds. 

Seeing PR parrots fly over the forest, during these walks, is always an inspiring sight.   Today, as I was walking around the forest just before nightfall I saw a flock sitting on a leafless tree.  The moment I saw the group of birds I was thrilled.  It was clear this was a very large group for the species.   From the photos I took I can count 45 birds on the tree.   I took several photos but since light was falling quickly and the birds kept moving, this one probably has the most birds together.   In my knowledge this is the largest flock ever documented on a photo.

I could not help but recall an article that I read many years ago, in which the authors said “…we personally doubt the current population exceeds 50 individuals and may even be much smaller.  We predict that Puerto Rico is about to lose another of its native birds.”¹  I am happy to say that thank to the work of many, many highly dedicated people, this is one prophecy that didn’t come to pass.   Of course our work is not done yet, but as this photo attest, we are on our way.

Recher Harry F, and  Recher, Judy T.  1996.  A contribution to the knowledge of the avifauna of the Sierra de Luquillo, Puerto Rico.  Caribbean Journal of Science.  Sept-Dec. 1966

Maxillaria coccinea, in Puerto Rico's cloud forest

Maxillaria coccinea flowering in the Puertorican cloud forest

Many seedpods can be seen developing on the different inflorescences

Under the mother plant there are many seedlings growing between mosses

on the bare rock face.

A visit to Max. coccinea habitat

On April 7, 2007 I was in the Rio Grande area in some official business and sacrificed I my lunch hour to make a side trip to the Caribbean National Forest. I wanted to take a look at some orchids whose growth and development I have been observing for several years. The weather was rainy with spells of hard rain and fog interrupted by moments of strong sunlight and then back to rain again. The particular plants I wanted to see are easily reached but I had a hard time photographing them because of the rain. I also had to take in account the fact that the area where they grow was filled by an invasion, one could almost dare say an infestation, of tourists. I waited for moments when there were no tourists nearby to avoid drawing attention to the plants. I noticed to my dismay that some had disappeared. A large, almost four feet tall plant of Epidendrum longicarpum was gone, also missing were several good sized plants of Epidendrum borincanum. However the most surprising thing was that only very few plants of Lepanthes woodburyana could be located and the disappearance of Lepanthes sanguinea. These plants were abundant in the area and it used to be that with even with the slightest effort you could locate several plants of L. woodburyana a one or two of L. sanguinea. I have no idea why there were not there, it is extremely unlikely they were collected. Most of the other small flowered orchids were present in good numbers. Maxillaria coccinea is locally common and in favorable habitat is one of the plants most often found in fallen logs and branches. The goal of my visit was to photograph a plant in full bloom. It appears that I arrived slightly late in the season as I found a large number of pollinated flowers.The weather in the area where these M. coccinea thrive is very wet and every surface is covered with plant life of some sort. I know several people that have tried to cultivate the Puerto Rican Maxillaria coccinea, all have failed even though some have used quite ingenious methods to keep the plants in a level of humidity that would be conductive to their survival. It is unclear exactly why plants eventually deteriorate and die but the best guess I can make is that the plants needs a combination of very high humidity, mild temperatures and substrate that are almost impossible to replicate in the hot tropical lowlands without some sort of artificial means. These plants are found at an altitude of 3500 feet in an area that is a National Park and therefore they are safe from the typical threats of habitat destruction and over collection. The area where they grow is visited daily by hundreds, sometimes thousands of tourists but they are usually respectful of the rules and their impact in the area appears to be little. The plants are safe mainly due to the fact that the terrain is so treacherously slippery that most visitors are justly afraid of leaving the trails and having a deadly fall. This is not an idle consideration, in the past imprudent visitors have come to grisly ends by unwisely venturing into the slippery forest floor away from the trails.The plants are growing in an area that is protected from the sun most of the day but that does get full sun for a few hours in the afternoon. There are plants growing all over the place but there were few growing in exposed situations most are under the cover of bushes. The ones in deep shade are small and few flowered.The area where the plant was found receives constant and precipitation almost year round in the form of rain, drizzle, and fog. The area where these plants grow is dominated by sierra palms inter sped with many other kind of tress. Most of the trees are of small stature due to a combination of soil and climate factors.

Temperature: It can range from the high eighties in the middle of the day in the peak of summer to the middle fifties at night in the peak of winter. When I have visited the forest the temperatures have fluctuated between 65F and 75F.

Substrate: Trees, rotten logs, branches, and rocks.Lightning: Light to heavy shade, best growth and flowering in light shade. Watering: The area gets rain almost daily and the soil is saturated and never dries up.

Humidity: 100% at night and only slightly lower during the day.Blooming: I don’t know the blooming season of this species but in this visit many plants had flowers.

Light: A constantly shifting mixture of full sun and cloud filtered light, the orchids were under medium sized bushes that protected them from full sun but allowed a fair amount of light to stricke the orchids underneath.