I’m fortunate to live just a few blocks from water in any direction. To the south of our house is clear, shallow Bogue Sound. To the east and west, creeks and channels, and up north, Calico Bay, fringed by a salt marsh border. When I first moved to the area, I’d go for long, exploratory walks along the edges of these watery borders to get to know the lay of the land. I used the Seek app by iNaturalist to acquaint me with the local flora and fauna, and sea ox-eye immediately caught my attention with her hearty, golden flowers and her feet sunk in the sulfurous muck of the marsh.

Guardians of the coast: sea ox-eye’s role in erosion prevention

Sea ox-eye is short, salty, and a little stunted, but she’s well-adapted to coastal environments. (Sound like anyone else you know?) She can tolerate salt spray, high winds, and periodic flooding that many of her most stalwart sisters in the aster family couldn’t endure. (You won’t see dandelion down there.) Sea ox-eye’s deep root system anchors her into sandy soils, and it also makes her vital in stabilizing coastal dunes. Her dense growth helps prevent erosion by binding the soil and reducing the impact of wind and water, and she offers a home and nourishment to various insects, butterflies, and birds.

Uncovering sea ox-eye’s mythic connection to Juno the “ox-eyed” goddess

She reminds me of Hera, known as Juno to the Romans, who was also called “ox-eyed” in myths and legends. It’s hard to imagine any woman wanting to be compared with a cow today, but in ancient times, describing someone as “ox-eyed” or “cow-eyed” was considered a compliment. Cows were highly prized as symbols of wealth, fertility, and abundance in many ancient societies, and those were associations shared with Juno, who also happened to have large, luminous eyes.

As the goddess of marriage, Juno provided stability and security within the realm of marriage and family. Sea ox-eye, with her deep roots and protective role in the ecosystem, can be seen as a natural embodiment of Juno’s stabilizing powers, albeit in the realm of coastal ecology. You’ll most often find sea ox-eye growing along the upper limits of salt marshes, delineating the border of land and water with a bright swath of yellow in June. She holds the line, keeping us apprised of rising tides, something that sea salts are wise to watch, and so we’re right back to the eyes.

Despite her queenly status and marital authority, Juno didn’t have much luck when it came to her own husband Jove, a compulsive womanizer and cad (as well as Juno’s brother by Saturn). In one example, Io, the daughter of the river god Inachus, is caught in the midst of Juno and Jove’s marital strife. After raping the beautiful nymph, Jove transforms her into a snow-white heifer to hide her from his wife, but Juno knows her husband better. Suspecting foul play, she demands he give her the beautiful calf as a gift. He relents grudgingly.

Io’s transformation and tragedy under the watchful eyes of Argus

In Metamorphoses, the Roman poet Ovid offers a chilling account of Io’s suffering under the unblinking gaze of Juno’s many-eyed watchman Argus:

“Yet Juno still suspected treachery;
to ward off any wiles, she now entrusted
the heifer to Arestor’s son; for Argus
was gifted with a hundred eyes, and he
would sleep with only two of those eyes shut
at any time, in turn – the rest he left
awake and watchful. He was Io’s guardian;
no matter where he turned, he always kept
some eyes on her; though he might turn his back,
he still had her in view. By day he let
the heifer graze; but when the sun had set,
he locked her in and tied, around her neck,
a shameful halter. She was always fed
on leaves from trees and bitter herbs, and slept
upon the ground – and it was often bare
of grass; poor Io drank from muddy streams
and, when she tried to lift her arms to plead
with Argus, found she had no arms to stretch;
and when she tried to utter some lament,
nothing but lowings issued from her lips,
a sound that she was frighted to emit –
her own voice frightened her.”

I’m not sure I fully appreciated the nightmare quality of Ovid’s Metamorphoses when I first read it in college. Having gone through many metamorphoses myself now, I recognize how painful they can be, how scarring and traumatizing. Now, I read the story of Io, and I imagine the horror she must have felt to have found herself, first, the victim of a powerful authority’s abuse and, then, physically transformed into an unintelligible beast of burden. Without even the means to express her terror, Io flees her homeland, collapsing when she reaches the banks of the Nile. There, Juno at last shows her mercy.

It’s complicated.

Like Argus, sea ox-eye that grows along the fringes of reedy marshes acts as a sentinel of sea changes, drawing our attention to the transformations happening in our own ecosystems. The juxtaposition of the flower’s enduring beauty with the tragic metamorphosis of Io invites us to contemplate the indomitable strength required to transcend those transformations, while those unblinking eyes serve as a reminder that the world is always watching you.

Botanical Information

Scientific Name: Borrichia frutescens

Folk Names: Sea Ox-Eye Daisy, Sea Ox-Eye, Salt Ox-Eye, Sea Marigold, Beach Borrichia

Family: Asteraceae

Habitat and Distribution: Borrichia frutescens, commonly known as Sea Ox-Eye, is predominantly found in coastal regions of the southeastern United States, including along the Atlantic coast, Gulf of Mexico, and parts of the Caribbean. It thrives in a variety of coastal habitats such as salt marshes, sandy dunes, and brackish areas. Sea Ox-Eye’s range extends from North Carolina to Texas, encompassing states such as South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.

References

Writing Challenge

Imagine a coastal town where sea ox-eye blooms annually, painting the landscape with its golden hues. As the flowers come into full bloom, a mysterious phenomenon occurs. Anyone who gazes into the unblinking eyes of sea ox-eye undergoes a transformation. Write a story exploring the transformative power of sea ox-eye’s gaze. What changes occur? How do these transformations impact individuals and the community at large? Are these transformations a blessing or a curse? Sink into the sulfurous depths of this strange plant lore and reveal the secrets hidden within sea ox-eye’s mesmerizing gaze.