Bigseed Dodder
Cuscuta indecora
This clump of spaghetti-looking material is a parasitic dodder, Cuscuta indecora, and is growing on a Catclaw Acacia (Acacia greggii) at Mesquite Wash in Maricopa Co., Arizona, USA. Sept. 2009.
Photographed in the Wickenburg Mts., Yavapai Co., Arizona. 06 Sept. 2008.
VINE: Numerous fleshy, orange-yellow stems twine and drape over other
plants. Stems attach to and parasitize the supporting plants by means of
haustoria - root-like structures that penetrate the host plant.
LEAFLESS: Leaves are reduced to scales or essentially absent. Not
photosynthetic - the plant obtains all energy and nutrients from its host.
FLOWERS: White flowers borne in clusters. Petals and sepals are thick,
fleshy turning a rich brown color after anthesis. There are several similar
species of Cuscuta in the Sonoran Desert region - this one has the
showiest flowers - they are visited by butterflies and other insects.
RANGE: Frequent throughout the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and Mexico at
roadsides, near agriculture and river flood plains and in major washes.
FRUIT: Dry four-seeded capsules.
UNARMED.