Snowplant, Beardstongue (Pentstimon), and California Cone Flower. Capulin Snowplay Area, Sandia Peak Highway, Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Sandia Mountains rise abruptly above Albuquerque to the east and slope gently (more or less) further to the east on their trailing edge. The updraft from the Rio Grande Valley at their base drops moisture as it goes over the 10,000 foot crest, and makes the forests on the east side some of most well watered in the Southwest. You can tell by the abundant wildflowers, and rich bird life. Here we have another selection of flowers from Capulin Snowplay Area on the slopes of the Sandia, just off the Sandia Crest Highway. Snowplant is a parasitic plant that is fed by a fungus on the roots of trees, similar to the Indian Pipes we have here in Maine, but as you see, much more colorful. The purple Pentstimon replaces the more common red Penstimon of the lower slopes at this elevation, and the California Coneflowers grow in large masses in the wetter meadows and along the edges of parking areas. Sony Rx10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Snowplant at ISO 200 @ f4 @ 1/500th, Pentstimon at ISO 250 @ f4 @ 1/500th, Coneflower at IS0 100 @ f5.6 @ 1/800th.