Wildflower series - Moraea stricta

These are my I-just-can't-get-enough flowers to photograph. Moraea belong to the iris family and they are really easy to miss because the flowers only open in the afternoon and close by sunset and they only bloom for a few days before they wither.

They are very difficult to photograph at the moment because we have constant wind and the flower is on a very long, thin stalk that moves constantly. The insects are also very busy with the flowers, pollinating them in the small window of opportunity that there is. The flowers are so small, they are visited by solitary bees and for once, this little bee didn't mind me, it was too busy collecting nectar.

This flower is almost finished and the ants are taking a turn to get nectar. Lurking in the background is a bug that probably feeds on the seeds. As you can see, these flowers have formed plenty of seed pods.

One of their common names is Bloutulp, meaning "blue tulip" and they are common in grasslands. This genus of plants is poisonous to livestock although I have read that people eat the underground corm. Perhaps they are safe to eat if cooked, or harvested in a certain season.