Patrick Murphy

This plant was photographed in southern Colorado near the New Mexico border.  The plant was growing on the margin of the Piedra River where it meets the Navajo Reservoir (and the San Juan River) in Navajo State Park.  Photograph was taken July 27, 2001 by Patrick Murphy.   Is this Gaura neomexicana ssp. coloradensis?  It is way out of its range, but it looks a lot like it.

  Definition of Ecotone - a transition zone between two ecological communities usually exhibiting competition between organisms common to both.  In terms of biological communities, these "in between" areas are typically the most productive and diverse zones on the landscape.