Alstromeria, flor del aguila, found in the Andes near Santiago Chile
Various different types of Alstromeria are found in the Andes near Santiago Chile. This is one of the most beautiful from the Cajon del Maipo and can be seen on certain day riding expeditions. It is an example of the luxuriant types of flower found in semi-desert and desert surroundings, seeming like a contradiction. The ananucas and calendrinias and many other exotic flowers appear overnight in the arid seeming soil.
Sometimes, riding out from a campsite in the high Andes there appear to be no flowers. When we return in the early or mid afternoon the ground is covered with myriad blooms which have waited until the sun is high before opening their petals.
See here for more about flowers in the high Andes, or ‘alta cordillera’