Day 253: The source of much taxonomic frustration earlier in the week, Musk Monkeyflower is one of those spots where Arnie (the Park's Plant Ecologist and my Natural Resources supervisor) plants his feet firmly in his era and refuses to budge. Maybe it's the euphony of the undulant m-sounds in "Mimulus," flowing off the tongue like sweet syrup, or perhaps it's the attraction of alliteration in Musk-Mimulus-Monkey. I cannot get him to say "Erythranthe" for all the tea in China and in a way, I can understand his reluctance. What I was not prepared to encounter was a refusal to acknowledge the greater family, Phrymaceae. Monkeyflowers are no longer part of the Scrophulariaceae and you'd think Arnie might be glad of an easier word to pronounce, but no, he stands firm in the outdated nomenclature despite my repeated assaults on his wall of resistance. It's a friendly engagement (or at least we haven't come to blows about it YET), and I'm still hoping to win him over with banter.
Erythranthe moschata is one of the smaller monkeys (although not nearly as tiny as E. breweri, whose little pink flower would fit in the diameter of a pencil eraser). It's notable for its somewhat viscid and densely hairy leaves and the absence of any vivid markings in the throat. It's regarded as "uncommon" in the Park, but may be found near seeps below 5500'. Like other monkeys (except the mammalian ones, of course), it enjoys having wet feet.
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