The Bitch is normally much more interested in zoology than botany, but the passionate insistence of conservationist-photographer Rick Cruz persuaded her to check out his portfolio of some of Florida's rarest plant specimens. Cruz's new exhibit includes shots of the moss-loving orchid cranicus mucosa, recently rediscovered in Fakahatchee Strand after not having been sighted for more than 100 years."I really never was too interested in photographing [orchids]; I'm primarily a landscape photographer," Cruz recalls. "But when I went exploring with [Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve biologist] Mike Owens, we saw a ghost orchid, the most beautiful orchid I've ever seen. When I heard about the near-extinction of some of these plants -- which include bromeliads and ferns as well -- it triggered a need in me to document and show people our Everglades need further protection."
Cruz later found a trove of fifteen ghost orchids and a colony of rare air plants in a swath of the Fakahatchee -- known now as Cruz Slough in his honor. "My knack is to find what the average person would miss," the photographer says. The exhibit runs through June 27 at David's Café II, 1645 Meridian Ave., Miami Beach.