Two Flies Resting Overnight in Sticky Monkeyflower (Mimulus aurantiacus var. aurantiacus)
The flower has not yet been pollinated: the white receptacle is still open to accept a pollinator. Chaparral area along Trail 8 overlooking Searsville Lake, before local sunrise. 7:46 am. [Now I learn that my well-loved "Mimulus" has been replaced by Diplacus aurantiacus ssp. aurantiacus, according to CalFlora. Just when I had almost learned the Latin name, the rug is jerked out from underneath. Science and nomenclature march on...]