Rafflesia arnoldii

 

Rafflesia arnoldii is a plant without leaves, stems or roots, and does not photosynthesise. Instead, it uses long filaments that look like fungal cells to extract food and water from tropical jungle vines across Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.

 

The parasite spends most of its life hidden within the vine. As you can see here, before it turns into a giant rubbery flower it produces a cabbage-like bud. The flower pollinates via a thick, sticky liquid that dries on to flies.

 

Since attempts to propagate Rafflesia in botanic gardens have had limited success so far, this makes habitat conservation an urgent priority.

 

Our Rafflesia arnoldii has got its own glasshouse because of its overwhelming odour of decaying flesh to attract carrion flies.

 

The genus – which includes the largest flowers in the world, at more than a meter across – is at risk due to the destruction of forest habitats in south-east Asia. There are 42 species of Rafflesia, and researchers warn that all of them are under threat, with 25 classified as critically endangered and 15 as endangered.

 

The plants are used in traditional medicine to help with pregnancy, and as an aphrodisiac, although there has been limited scientific investigation into their effectiveness. If you want to find out yourself: dried rafflesia arnoldii is available on the internet.