Leaf Rust Fungus / Puccinia monoica

I love coming across Rust Fungus on mustard plants of the Arabis genus. This very small (macro shot) pseudoflower was growing on Silver Rockcress/Alpine Smelowskia at
Plateau Mountain, Kananaskis, way south of Highway 40, on July 2nd.

"Puccinia monoica is a rust fungus of the genus Puccinia that inhibits flowering in its host plants (those of the Arabis genus) and transforms host behavior in order to facilitate sexual reproduction to pass on its genes. Infection occurs when the fungus sends its throughout the stem of the mustard plant, siphoning off some of the nutrients of its host. However, to reproduce, Puccinia monoica must exchange genes with the Puccinia inside another mustard plant. The fungus sterilizes the plant, preventing it from sending up its own flowers. Instead, the fungus forces the infected plant to turn clusters of its leaves into brilliant "flowers" (pseudoflowers)." From Wikipedia.

Something must be up with Flickr today - hardly any activity going on.