Attack

Disclaimer: Not for the faint of heart....

These are the epitome of "pain in the ass", and no that is not a joke. These things can jump at you, literally. And what an awful name to give to such a violent organism...The Teddy bear cholla! They are the most deceiving cacti in the desert. They seem cute and cuddly when your far away and then they come bite you in the rear end, or in even worse places (Believe me there are much worse areas to have these things stuck to you).

One might think that it's easy business photographing these guys, but imagine being completely surrounded by them and a desert floor full of "pups" and getting as close as I did here. Add to the fact that I spent a good half hour at this particular cactus until I found something compelling enough to capture and was pretty dark when I finally left leaving me with an uneasy feeling of spending the next few hours with a pair of tweezers. However, as devilish as these cacti are, they are probably the most photogenic subjects in the desert (IMO). The way they catch the light is unbelievable. I wanted to get as in your face as possible with the cactus to show off how incredibly detailed and sharp their spines are. Couple that with an amazing display of light this evening and I captured one of my more unique images. Although a simple subject, it's the complexity of the patterns and the contrast of the smooth sky and pin sharp spines and color that make it unique to me. I haven't seen many photos like this that capture the true essence of the teddy bear cholla and I think I did a pretty good job representing that. Please, take the time to appreciate the smaller things in nature. And if you have any stories of getting stabbed by these I'll be glad to hear them so I can feel some comfort...Ok, that may have been mean, but I could always use a good laugh!

Teddy bear cholla- Arizona