Twenty Minutes of Silence

For our second blog assignment we were asked to sit quietly in an outside setting such as a park or a  backyard. To be truthful, it was had to get excited about sitting still and quiet for 20 minutes. But I did it, and it wasn't bad. In fact, as my 20 minutes elapsed I was enjoying my silence.

What I saw: one Crow, one Sparrow, two Bumble Bees, Orange Trees, Palm trees, Heavenly Bamboo, Asparagus Ferns, and the list of plants could keep growing. As far as the abiotic (non living) environment I saw: fallen foliage from multiple plants, a little black beetle (turned upside down), soil, and large rocks. But what interested me was the Orange Tree that was to my left.

Can you see the white covering the leaf closest to the camera?

It interested me so extensively that before returning to my house I stuck my head a little closer into the tree. So close in fact I discovered an Orange covered in thick white cotton!

Can you see how the white is present where the Orange was detached from it's stem?

At first I thought it was covered in bird droppings left by the Sparrow I had seen earlier in the tree but, after I picked the Orange I observed that the white crust was almost buried inside the Orange's peel. So I Google searched for possible causes. What I found was an example of Parasitism. Or rather a relationship between the small bug Icerya Purchasi and the Orange. According to UC Davis' Management Guide for Icerya Purchasi these bugs feed from Orange Trees "[extracting their] plant sap" and eventually if the infestation is uncontrolled will "[reduce] the vigor" from the tree's overall production of fruit and quality of health. Two common characteristics of a parasite-host relationship.

Looks Ok on the inside! 

If you are interested in cultivating Oranges or are experiencing an infestation on your Orange Tree UC Davis' Management Guide also had wonderful information on controlling the Icerya Purchasi using it's natural predator(s) (e.g. the vedalia beetle). Thank's for listening!