« Previous Day: Corylus avellana 'Contorta' |
Main
| Next Day: Pohlia nutans »
May 9, 2008: Musa textilis
May 9, 2007:
Gilia capitata
May 9, 2006:
Galium odoratum
May 9, 2005:
Picea sitchensis 'Bentham's Sunlight'
March 4, 2006 : Dracula chestertonii
Keywords: Orchidaceae | Dracula chestertonii (Rchb. f.) Luer
An orchid photograph contribution from the personal collection of Andreas of Bogotá, Colombia (aka Quimbaya@Flickr | BPotD Flickr Group Pool | original image). Many thanks, Andreas!
Not only does it emit the smell of a fungus (its odor contains many of the same volatile compounds as mushrooms), but the floral lip of the orchid Dracula chestertonii closely resembles the gilled structure of some mushrooms. When female fungus flies are deceived into depositing their eggs on the flower, they also pollinate the orchid. For more on this mimickry (and particularly if you have library or university access to the full article), see the source for the above information: Kaiser, R. 2006. Flowers and Fungi Use Scents to Mimic Each Other. Science. 311(5762): 806-807 (the captions with the figures are somewhat informative if you don't have access to the entire article).
Dracula chestertonii is native to Colombia.
I should also note that the majority of online images for this plant show the flower flipped one hundred and eighty degrees (example), but there are a few with the perspective of today's photograph.
Photography resource link: The work of Hiroki Suzuki offers a glimpse into the landscapes of Japan. While the photographs are certainly worth viewing, be forewarned that each link opens in a new browser window.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at March 4, 2006 3:48 AM
Read recent comments on all BPotD Entries
Comments
Posted by: Juanita at March 4, 2006 9:55 AM
The genus name for Dracula was coined in 1978 by Luer. The literal Latin translation is “little dragon”, but there is likely someone who knows if the author did have the character in mind; it certainly helps to grab attention (more on the genus Dracula).
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin 
at March 4, 2006 11:28 AM
One day I hope to see the plant named as
Dracula vampira (no kidding).
Posted by: Brent at March 6, 2006 7:26 AM
A google search on the web for Dracula vampira will give you plenty of pictures to choose from.
The genus Dracula was separated out from the genus Masdevallia by Luer, but most of the species have been known to science and orchid hobbyists for a long time. These plants used to belong to the section Chimaera of the genus Masdevallia, majority have inflated or saccate lips that are hinged and the flowers (many times the inflorescences) are pendulous, thus making it a little more difficult to tell which way is up, as in the case of the flower presented here.
Posted by: Ken Girard at March 6, 2006 8:40 AM
Vampires are sometimes seen hanging upside down as well.
Posted by: Ron B at March 6, 2006 11:29 AM
Please share your comments about the photograph(s) and accompanying write-up. Telling a story about the subject of the photograph(s) is also much appreciated! If you have a gardening question, the best place to ask is on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums. Thank you!
Post a comment
XML Feeds: Atom | RSS 2.0 | RSS 1.0 | What is RSS? | RSS Tools
Botany Photo of the Day and all associated images are licensed under a Creative Commons License except when otherwise specified in the accompanying written entry.
About Botany Photo of the Day | Submit Your Photos via Flickr | Submit Your Photos via UBCBG's Discussion Forums
Botany Photo of the Day is a project of the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research, located in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada. UBC BGCPR is a department of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems within The University of British Columbia.
The name of this orchid beginning with Dracula seems quite apparent to me with it's floral tip.It appears to me as if it resembles blood vessels.I might be in error,but the botanist who named this orchid might have a penchant towards the infamous character of horror films.Which I find quite amusing in naming this orchid.