I decided to show this little flower separately as well. It really is just so cool.
Tropaeolum polyphyllum. In Chile and Argentina (where it is endemic to the local mountains) it is called “soldadito grande de la cordillera” – the great little soldier of the mountains. It grows at altitudes of up to 3,000 meters (this particular specimen was actually photographed right around the 3,000-meter mark) on bare, rocky scree slopes, rather than along open water as the other succulent plants in these mountains prefer; yet, far from being a dried-up, prickly weed, it is a robust, vibrant flower.
Orange spots of mountain little soldier on the scree.
