The floor of the local mesquite bosque has been bereft of greenery throughout the autumn, winter, and spring. One of the first substantial monsoon storms brought color to the woodland floor – an effusion of fresh, young plants erupting from the soil. Also visible in this image are mesquite pods. Millions of these highly nutritious pods have fallen from velvet mesquites in the valley during the past couple of weeks, providing a keystone food source for a tremendous variety of pod-eating wildlife.