What's common between the two pictures? Well, the yellow matted one is dodder, the green clump is mistletoe....both grow on other plants.. at the the cost of the host ... former is complete parasite, the latter is semi-parasite...
I have seen both of them parasitising many plants, big and small in riparian and chaparral canyons of South California...the former has invaded and destroyed many willows...the latter has grown on oaks and sycamores...
Mistletoe has cultural importance...its lectins are emerging to be anticancer compounds...
Not sure, if dodder serves any purpose...needs to be investigated...
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