Fireweed blankets the floor of a burnt forest in Kooteney National Park in British Columbia. The plant is not named because of its association with previously burnt landscapes, but because in autumn the leaves turn a brilliant red-orange colour resembling flames.
I have seen several wood lilies in the Rocky mountain parks but this is the first and only yellow variant I have come across. It was surrounded by the more typical rust coloured form. Unfortunately these plants are becoming more rare as people continue to try to transplant them, with little success, to their gardens.
Another photo from the vault. This was a few years ago in Jasper National Park. A goldenrod crab spider, which is an ambush predator, managed to catch a much larger bumble bee when it visited a chive flower to collect nectar. The spider hides under or adjacent to flowers and waits for a pollinating insect to come by. You would think that the bee would be able to fly away in time, but the spider is very quick and has powerful, fast acting venom which is injected into the prey to paralyze it. The spider holds on while the venom takes effect and then devours its meal as is. No web making required.
Owen Slater Photography 