Just a plant? No!

I could say "here is a plant", but this is not just a plant!  It's a reminiscence of my boyhood as well as a "living fossil" belonging to an ancient group of plants called Horsetails (Equisetum).  More than 50 years ago I found these growing along the 18 Mile Creek in Hamburg, NY, and played with them. They are hollow and easily separate at the joints (it was not the electronic age, and I was easily amused).  The blip photo was taken this morning at a stand of 3-5 foot tall horsetails along a creek near my home in Illinois.  50 years ago or millions of years ago, horsetails are the same.

There are quite a few subgroups of horsetails, but I believe this is a water horsetail.  Larger horsetail relatives formed our coal deposits.  Horsetails are used medicinally, and you can find horsetail medicinals for sale on Amazon.