Chicago Natural History Museum Blir&EiTIN Formerly ^eum News Published Monthly for the Museum's Membership Vol. 19 JANUARY, 1948 No. 1 NEW MURAL SHOWS PLANT LIFE OF COLOMBIA'S HIGH ANDES BIZARRE AS A SCENE FROM ANOTHER WORLD IS THE 'PARAMO." A PAINTING BY STAFF ARTIST ARTHUR G. RUECKERT (HALL 29) By J0S6 CUATRECASAS so-called "paramo," extending across north- exposed to constant precipitation and strong curator of colombian botany ern South America from Venezuela to Co- winds. Such severe weather alternates with In Colombia, as in other tropical American lombia and southward to Peru and Bolivia. clear days of strong sunlight. The nights countries, marked belts of vegetation corre- The paramos occupy the most elevated are always cold and in the highest parts spond to altitudinal levels. Each of these regions of the Andes, where special climatic (more than 13,000 feet above sea level) are belts is characterized by distinctive types conditions prevail. Because of the sudden frequently snowy. The ground usually is of plant life found within its boundary. changes in weather, they are usually cold saturated with water; in large areas it is One of these ecological formations is the and wet, generally covered with fog or swampy, and interspersed with pools. The Page i CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM BULLETIN January, 191,8 soil is black, peaty, and highly acid. Mostly a collective term for a group or formation is covered by the cylindrical mass; and in it is very deep, except in the highest of frailejones. the upper portion below the rosette of normal places, where the vegetation is sparse be- The frailejones belong to the Composite leaves is a mass of dry and twisted leaves, tween the rocks and gravel. family, which includes such common plants giving it a thick club-shaped appearance. The altitudinal limits of the paramo are as the sunflower, chrysanthemum, and aster. LEAVES HAVE WOOLLY COAT not precise, since they vary greatly accord- Within this great family of such diversity ing to the topography, ranging from about in form and color, no plants are perhaps so The leaves of frailejon are elliptic-oblong 10,000 feet above sea level to 13,500-14,000 striking in appearance as the frailejon. or lanceolate, long and narrow, thick and feet, the beginning of permanent snow. Technically it belongs to the genus Espeletia, stiff. They are covered by a dense, white Located in the tropics, the normal climate a name given by the scientist Mutis in honor or pale coat of woolly or cottony hairs. The of these high mountains presents a much of a viceroy of Colombia, Jos'; de Espeleta. dense hairiness and faded color contribute greater contrast to that of the lower zones The dominant species depicted in the mural to the unique appearance of the plants. of the same mountain ranges than to that which gives character to the entire scene, is Certain species of Espeletia (about seventy of the Alps, for example, since the lowest Espeletia Lopezii, abounding especially in have been described) have a very short stem zones of the Andes, near sea level, have depressions and valleys of the slopes, and that does not elongate with age; these plants, torrid temperatures. here shown in its various stages of develop- like the young individuals of taller species, A typical Colombian paramo with its ment. spread their large white rosettes over the extraordinary plant life can be seen in a Aside from the characters which define ground like a cluster of agave leaves. When new mural recently added to the series in Espeletia scientifically, the group is dis- the frailejones bloom, the flower stalks arise Martin A. and Carrie Ryerson Hall (Hall 29 tinguished by having all the leaves bunched from the axils of the living leaves. The at the of the —Plant Life). The painting, by Staff Artist top stem to form a rosette. inflorescences may be much longer than the Arthur G. Rueckert, is based upon materials, The stem may be short, in which case the leaves, but often they barely exceed them. photographs and data obtained by the writer rosette rests upon the ground; but often it Their branches are densely woolly and the over a period of years. is simple, straight, and pole-like, with the declined or nodding flower heads are pro- Actually this mural shows a scene from rosette at its tip. As the stem grows, new tected by hairy involucres. In full flower one of the most beautiful and least visited leaves appear and the old ones dry, but their the similarity of the flower head to a small paramos of Colombia, namely, the western persistent, densely overlapping— sheaths cover sunflower is evident. The rays are generally portion of the extreme southern part of the and protect the stem only in very old yellow, but in a few species white. The in- Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, also called Sierra plants do these masses of dead leaves fall florescences consist of many heads, or in Nevada de Chita. This sierra extends spontaneously. This produces the remark- some species only of a few, and in some about eleven miles from north to south in able appearance characteristic of these there is a single head. the Cordillera Oriental in the state of plants—in a well-developed individual the Although the forms here described are the BoyacS. The crests of the mountains con- lowest portion is the most slender part, a most general and typical of the frailejones, sist of quartzite, are heavily covered by naked and woody stem; the middle portion some species deviate from this type, but are glaciers and snow, and attain a maximum not characteristic of paramo vegetation. The elevation of 17,000 feet (Alto de Ritacuva). smallest frailejones are E. Weddellii of Vene- The highest point of the Nevada seen in the FUN AT THE MUSEUM- zuela and E. Caldasii of Colombia, with mural is the Pan de Azucar, at 15,600 leaves one or two inches long, and usually feet, QUIZ YOURSELF with a table-like structure to the north called with a single flower head nodding at the Pulpito del Diablo (devil's pulpit). The 1. What is the difference between the tip of a slender stalk. These are true tongue of the glacier lies at an altitude of scale on a mandolin and the scale on a herbaceous plants, like the other stemless approximately 14,100 feet. The rocky peak pangolin? species of this genus. at the left is Los Guasguines and the peak 2. Would you take a pair of Atlantic skates The species possessing stems are herbace- at the right is Campanario. The valley with you on a winter vacation? ous in the beginning, but soon become represented is called Las Lagunillas. The 3. Do tufted puffins come with icing or are woody. Their tall stems are woody, but moraine extending towards the north below they stuffed with fish? retain a soft center (pith) and are hollow the glacier forms the mountain called Silla 4. Would you close an envelope, or a fruit near the base. Although the frailejones are Larga (13,500 feet), and the small lake at jar, or neither, with a Weddell's seal? unbranched, there are some Espeletias with the base is the Laguna Pintada. This part 5. Would you play a black drum with a branched stem, and one species found in of the scene shows the continental divide sticks or a fish-pole? forested areas {E. neriifolia) is a robust, separating the waters reaching the Rio 6. Is it true or false that stonecats never much branched tree, as high as 35 feet. The Magdalena on the west from those flowing molest birds or cause a disturbance at average height of woody species of Espeletia into the Orinoco on the east (behind the night? is that represented in the mural, that is, scene). 7. Where would you look for a squirrel from knee-high to two or three times the glider? At an airport? A playground? height of a man. SAME FAMILY AS SUNFLOWER Or in a forest in Australia? Some species have thick, leathery, grayish The presence in the landscape of plants 8. What are the difficulties of arranging a green leaves, while in others the hairy cover- of extraordinary appearance provides a bouquet of sea lilies in a Venus flower ing is smoother, appearing to be completely spectacular effect, and of these the most basket? flattened and pressed, silky and of a silvery conspicuous is the frailejon. The fore- 9. Would you look for a red hind with a luster. ground, the bottom of the valley, shows lasso, a hook and line, or a shotgun? Locally the frailejon plants have certain the frailejonal, at an elevation of 12,000- 10. Duckbills are toothless, have fur, lay uses. Their resin has been exploited in 12,600 feet, where this formation is at its eggs, and nurse their young. What are local industries. The leaves are used in best. they? the paramos to make beds, and the wool of The name frailejon was given because of For the answers, visit the Museum. the leaves is separated to stuff pillows and a fancied monk-like appearance of these To confirm what you find, watch for answers mattresses. The inhabitants of the region plants, especially if seen in fog or mist, which will be published in the next issue of use it to plug their ears, as protection against when from a distance they could be mis- the Bulletin. cold, and employ the leaves for the same taken for men.