Wooly Sunflowers

These are, I believe, Wooly sunflowers (Eriophyllum lanatum), spotted on the Beaver Ponds trail out of Mammoth Hot Springs. The Beaver Pond trail gets a lot of traffic, and must be the most heavily-traveled six-mile hike in the Greater Yellowstone area. But it's worth a visit for the flora. The continual changes of slope, drainage, and aspect create a wealth of micro-habitats and a diversity of flora. The Wooly sunflower likes sunny, well-drained rocky areas for example. June 2009.