10/12/23 Report - Exploring Florida Nature: Passiflora Incarnata. Under Capilla San Miguel. Watching the Surf. Updated.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

One Blossom of Passion Flower in Bloom.

The "passion flower" was discovered in 1569 by Spanish explorers in Peru who saw the flowers as symbolic of the passion of Christ and as a sign of Christ's approval of their efforts, which became the origin of the scientific and common names.

I took the above picture a couple days ago when I found one large plant in bloom.

The Passion Flower is one of the most intricate and amazing flowers that you might be able to discover while metal detecting in Florida and other areas of the southeast United States.  I took this picture of a single blossom, but the vine covered several small trees.  There were many flowers in blossom simultaneously.  I'd estimate twenty or thirty at least.

There are several varieties. Some produce fruit and some produce only very small flowers.  Some produce a green fruit a little larger than a golf ball that contains a lot of seeds, but is edible, nutritious, and is said to have many medicinal properties.  

You can purchase Passion Flower plants at Lowes and Home Depot, but not all varieties, including most of those sold in stores, produce fruit  

Butterflies lay their eggs on specific plants that they know their caterpillars will eat. Zebra longwings host on Passionflower: 1. Corkystem  passionflower (Passiflora suberosa) 2. Purple passionflower, Maypop (Passiflora incarnata) 3. Yellow passionflower (Passiflora lutea) 4. White-flowered Multiflower or …

You might find some varieties, such as those known as corkystems, in your own yard if you know what to look for. They are small and do not produce the large showy flowers like the one shown above.  There is a good chance that you'll find the leaves partially eaten by either the zebra longwing or fritillary butterfly caterpillars, the two very common Florida butterflies that host on passion flowers.

It is truly amazing how much you can discover in nature while metal detecting and your world becomes larger and more amazing.  You might remember how I discovered Zebra longwing butterflies roosting one evening while metal detecting in a wooded area.  

When metal detecting inland areas, take care to notice plants that might appear out of place or other potential clues.  

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Atlixco, Pue.- Within this town of Puebla it is common to hear legends, which have passed from generation to generation, about the existence of a pre-Hispanic temple or teocalli, which occupied the top of Cerro San Miguel before the arrival of the Spaniards, and the construction of the current chapel consecrated to the well-known archangel.

To date, no archaeological explorations had been carried out to prove or refute this belief; however, in recent archaeological salvage work, carried out by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico, through the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), vestiges were found that confirm, in this case, the veracity of these legends...

At this time, it is not possible to determine to which divinity the temple could be associated, since archaeologists point out that historical sources, such as the Indian Monarchy, of Fray Juan de Torquemada, and the oral tradition of Atlixco, refer that the deities to which the deities that were worshiped could be Quetzalcoatl (creator and civilizer of humanity), Tlaloc (rain giver) or Macuilxóchitl (one of the patrons of play, dance, pleasure and parties)...

Here is the link for more about that.

The INAH confirms the existence of a pre-Hispanic temple at the top of Cerro San Miguel, in Atlixco, Puebla

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Source: nhc.noaa.gov.

There is still some activity in the Atlantic.  You can see that above.  A long way off yet.

As I've said before, Oct. and Nov. have produced some good hunting and great finds the past couple of years.  Hopefully this year it will happen again, but at this point it doesn't look like it will be this week.

Surfguru Surf Chart for the Fort Pierce Inlet Area.

I didn't do real good with bottle hunting last summer and am eager to get a good low tide after all of the high tides we've had lately.  

We are still having some decent high tides - around three feet, and more to come.

Update:  The wind is now from the southwest.  I took a look at John Brooks, which had a lot of sand piled on the front beach.  Fort Pierce South Jetty had about a seven foot cut, but a relatively mushy slope with few targets.

Good hunting,

Pray for peace.

Treasureguide@comcast.net