Having missed last week's $10K treasure hunt, I decided to hunt for another treasure myself this weekend: the Tiburon Mariposa Lily, which grows only in Tiburon and nowhere else in the world. ONLY in the Ring Mountain Preserve in Tiburon. So I headed there yesterday to try my luck. 1/n - ThreadSky

sfhiker.bsky.social • 13 days ago

Having missed last week's $10K treasure hunt, I decided to hunt for another treasure myself this weekend: the Tiburon Mariposa Lily, which grows only in Tiburon and nowhere else in the world. ONLY in the Ring Mountain Preserve in Tiburon. So I headed there yesterday to try my luck. 1/n

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sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

This area is interesting geologically as well as archaeologically. There are large boulders scattered around here some displaying petroglyphs carved by the Miwoks. I wasn't able to spot any though. I need to come back for it. 2/n
https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=19244

sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

Tiburon Mariposa Lili (TML) blooms only for a few weeks a year, starting late May. There were a many wildflowers on the trail, but no TLMs. I was disappointed. Then I came across two Marin Parks volunteers: Doug and Belle. 3/n

sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

They showed me a TML specimen. I was a few weeks too early, though. The flower hadn't bloomed yet -- the plant looked a stalk of grass. But they also pointed me to a trail where there are more of them. 4/n

sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

Luckily, I was able to find a better looking one. Doug mentioned that the TLM only grows here because of the unusual geology of the mountain. I guess the plant adapted to the high magnesium content in the serpentine soil and it can't spread elsewhere. 5/n

sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

TLM was identified in by a plant enthusiast in 1971. It is endangered and protected by the California Endangered Species Act. 6/n https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calochortus_tiburonensis

sfhiker.bsky.social•13 days ago

There are other rare species here, for example Oakland Star Tulip. 7/n

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