I don't know what the groundcover is. There is a forum on Garden Web which can help. It is called Name That Plant. There are some very knowledgeable folks there.

Lorna

thanks i got an answer on this one"

Red-stem Filaree *

Erodium cicutarium
Family: Geraniaceae (Geranium).

Apparently a noxious weed in the southwest.

one man's noxious weed may be another's treasure.... I need to look it up to see if it is really noxious. Most plants in geranium family are not. Anyway, it looks rather beautiful from the photo.

I used to live near the Mojave desert and this plant covers fields by the thousand. It looks beautiful when blooming but you hated to see it if you had a pet. The seedpod has a curly tail and those things would work their way into ears and other orifices. The local vets know it very well.