What’s in a name? When it comes to some Sky Island species, the answer is as potentially terrifying as it is intriguing. Given that Halloween is just around the corner, now is the perfect time to contemplate local species whose names are linked to the lord of the underworld or some other evil avenue.
Witness devil’s claws—several species of local forbs that grow veritable grappling hooks of seed pods evolved to catch onto passing mammals for transport near and far. If one suddenly latches onto your foot as you trod incautiously by it, then you may find yourself telling the plant to “go to the devil.”
Less worrying is our Lucifer hummingbird, a locally rare species whose flaming purple throat inspired its name. “Lucifer” translates to “light-bearing”—a clear reference to the male’s reflective and bedazzling gorget.
Up in the higher reaches of some mountains grows a tall herbaceous plant called false hellebore. Part two of the name references the use of unrelated Old World plants in curing madness. Since the young plant somewhat resembles wild onions called ramps, some people find out the hard way that the “hell” part of the name can come in the form of a dangerous dose of toxic alkaloids.
Ever wonder how Lucifer gets around? Enter the Devil’s coachman. I have occasionally come across this non-native rove beetle in the Sky Islands. Its jet black color, combined with the stink it can release from a pair of scent glands, earned it the fanciful moniker.
Deviating from species alluding to devils, but staying up in the mountains, look for a bright orange jelly fungus called witch’s butter. The name stems from Swedish and Scandinavian folklore surrounding witchcraft. This attractive fungus grows on dead wood.
Women of ill repute or mystic practices—take your pick—are alluded to once again in the form of a local lepidopteran. If a huge blackish moth with a wingspan that seems more fitting for a bird suddenly flies at you, then perhaps you too might have dubbed it a “black witch.” I have been personally startled by these mostly monsoonal insects on more than one occasion, my mind perhaps interpreting it as a bat in the heat of the moment. Referred to in Mexico by native people since Aztec times as “mariposa de la muerte” (“butterfly of death”), it was believed that when there is sickness in a house and this moth enters, the ill person dies.
Feel fortunate that the gorgon copper, a handsome butterfly, fails to make it to our area. Otherwise, you might permanently resemble a marble statue after gazing upon this rather arresting species.
Likewise vampire bats have never been recorded in our area, though don’t rule out a northward range expansion thanks to global warming—they loom not that far away in western Mexico.
While all of the above examples involve mostly fanciful human imaginations, sometimes a species’ has a common name linked to evil or nefarious concepts that is actually fitting. Such is the case with our black widow spiders, whose venom can be life-threatening at times. Witness also the Gila monster. It is perhaps the only real species—no offense to the Loch Ness Monster—on Earth that bears such a title. Given that it’s one of only a handful of lizards on the planet capable of delivering a venomous bite, who could argue with its name? In reality, short of picking one up (bad idea) you would have to be supremely unlucky to get nipped by the largest lizard in the U.S.
If you ever contemplate touching or picking up a Gila monster, keep in mind that we refer to that in science as “natural selection”—a process that might permanently remove you from the gene pool!
Summing up the joy of our end-of-month holiday and its links to various wild creature, perhaps William Shakespeare said it best: “Fillet of a fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting, Lizard’s leg and owlet’s wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.” Enjoy Halloween!
Vincent Pinto and his wife, Claudia, run Ravens-Way Wild Journeys, their nature adventure and conservation organization devoted to protecting and promoting the unique biodiversity of the Sky Islands region. RWWJ offers a wide variety of private, custom-made courses, birding and biodiversity tours. Visit ravensnatureschool.org