Shoots of cucumber weed (Parietaria pensylvanica) on a trailway near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
 | Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Winter rosette of leaves of woolly-white (Hymenopappus artemisiaefolius) on a trailway near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Rosette of leaves of baby blue eyes (Nemophila phacelioides) on a trailway near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Bermudagrass, easily identifiable by its wiry, horizontal runners (stolons) that root directly into the sand at their joints, on a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Bloomin plant of cursed buttercup (Ranunculus sceleratus) on a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Winter basal rosette of Carolina geranium (Geranium carolinianum) on a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Some leaves on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Winter basal rosette of fiddle dock (Rumex pulcher), accompanied by a creeping stolon of Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon), growing on the exposed sandy shore of Lake Somerville, Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Vetch(?) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
This photograph of the exposed, sandy shore of Lake Somerville illustrates a classic ecological phenomenon known as drawdown zone zonation or "strandline" vegetation. The bright green plants are growing in distinct, wavy bands that perfectly trace the historical waterlines of the lake as it slowly receded. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Leaves of dock(?) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A lush basal rosette of the cursed buttercup (Ranunculus sceleratus) growing in the damp sand of the Lake Somerville drawdown zone, just below the fresh footprint of a passing feral hog. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A sprawling, multi-stemmed mat of annual trampweed (Facelis retusa) growing on the sandy shore of Lake Somerville, Texas. This tough winter annual is a member of the aster family and a close relative of native cudweeds. It is easily identified by its narrow, gray-green leaves that feature distinctly blunted or notched tips (retuse) and bright white, woolly undersides. At the center of the plant, there are small, tight flower heads beginning to form at the tips of the stems. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Basal rosette of seaside brookweed (Samolus valerandi; often treated in North America as ssp. parviflorus), growing on damp, exposed sand near the Birch Creek Unit of Lake Somerville State Park. This semi-aquatic primrose-family plant forms a tight “water-cabbage” rosette when water levels drop; later it typically sends up a stem with small white flowers as conditions warm. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A robust winter basal rosette of Texas vervain (Verbena halei) growing on the sandy upper shore of Lake Somerville, Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Leaves of salt-marsh fleabane (Pluchea odorata, Pluchea purpurescens)(?) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Annual trampweed (Facelis retusa) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Leaves of Carolina bristlemallow (Modiola caroliniana) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A sprawling, multi-stemmed mat of annual trampweed (Facelis retusa) on sand of a lake shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A perfectly symmetrical winter basal rosette of a yellowcress (Rorippa species, likely Southern marsh yellowcress, Rorippa teres) blooming on the exposed sandy shore of Lake Somerville. This native wetland pioneer is a member of the mustard family (Brassicaceae). During the cooler months, it forms this flat, circular spray of deeply cut (pinnatifid) leaves to anchor firmly in the shifting sand while maximizing sun exposure and avoiding cold winds. At the very center, the plant has just begun to bolt, producing the tiny, four-petaled yellow flowers characteristic of its family. Texas, February 28, 2026
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Zonation of exposed, sandy shore of Lake Somerville near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Green mat of terrestrial water-starwort (Callitriche terrestris) on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Basal rosette of seaside brookweed (Samolus valerandi) on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Bright lime-green cushions of Texas balloonwort (Sphaerocarpos texanus) on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
A symmetrical, bright green mat of terrestrial water-starwort (Callitriche terrestris) growing on the exposed sandy shore of Lake Somerville. This tiny, native semi-aquatic plant behaves as an opportunistic pioneer on recently exposed mud and sand. When a seed germinates on bare, unobstructed ground, it sends out highly branched, creeping stems that radiate outward at an equal rate, rooting at the nodes as they travel. This uniform, radial growth is what creates the nearly perfect circular "cushion" seen here. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Seaside brookweed (Samolus valerandi) on a sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Green mat of terrestrial water-starwort (Callitriche terrestris) growing on the exposed sandy shore of Lake Somerville. Closer to the lake’s edge, individuals of this same species growing in puddles or shallow water will look remarkably different. When submerged or growing in saturated mud, the plant physically alters its cellular growth, producing leaves that are much larger, thinner, and distinctly elongated to maximize their ability to capture diffused light and dissolved gases underwater. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Salt-marsh fleabane(?) and terrestrial water-starwort on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Seedling of salt-marsh fleabane(?) on exposed shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Some plant on exposed shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Young plant of sow thistle (Sonchus oleraceus) on exposed shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Rosette of leaves of some plant on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Lake Somerville Trailway, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Bluish-green, scale-leaved sprig on exposed sand near the Birch Creek Unit of Lake Somerville State Park—very likely a young saltcedar (Tamarix sp.). Saltcedar is an invasive riparian shrub/tree that can appear sporadically on newly exposed reservoir margins when water levels drop, after seeds or fragments move through the Brazos River Basin watershed. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Creeping plant of frog-fruit (Phyla incisa, Lippia, fogfruit) on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Weathered stump of an oak on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Mud flats and various water birds on a shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Animal skull on exposed sandy shore near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Fresh shoots of cucumber weed (Parietaria pensylvanica) on a trailway near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
Hemispheric liverwort (Reboulia hemisphaerica) and moss on a trailway near Birch Creek Unit of Somerville Lake State Park. Texas, February 28, 2026
| Pintail Trail, Burleson County, Texas, United States |
