The long-beaked cane's-bill, Erodium gruinum, is endemic to the eastern Mediterranean, it is a flower of springtime, and is surprisingly delicate for a flower growing in such a hot climate. The fine, translucent, bluish-purple petals quickly wither and fall off as the fruit body begins to develop; this becomes long narrow and resembling the long beak of a heron or crane; it grows vertically at an angle to the stem, making the plant easily recognisable.