Rafflesia Flower Facts

Even though, Rafflesia, is a genus, that belongs to the family Rafflesiaceae, the term is most popular as the name of the largest flower in the world. The genus rafflesia consists of a group of parasitic flowering plants, which are natives to the Indonesian rainforest. These plants lack stems, leaves and roots and are endoparasites in a certain type of vines. The roots of these plants are embedded in the tissue of those vines. One of the widely known plant in this genus is Rafflesia arnoldii(rafflesia flower scientific name), produces the largest individual flower on the earth. Hence, the term rafflesia is popularly used for referring to that flower and not the genus. The following are some of the interesting rafflesia flower facts.

Interesting Facts About Rafflesia Flower

Most of us know that rafflesia is the largest flower in the world. But, given below are interesting facts about rafflesia plant and some other rafflesia flower facts.

• Rafflesia plants (Rafflesia arnoldii) live as endoparasites in certain types of vines in the genus Tetrastigma.
• These plants are invisible, as they have no stems and leaves, but, have roots, that are embedded deep inside the tissues of the host plant.
• The presence of these plants can be sensed, only when the bud appears on the vine and this bud develops to rafflesia flower. It takes around nine to twelve months for the buds to develop to rafflesia flowers.
• Another interesting rafflesia flower is that the bud develop to the size of a large cabbage and transforms to flower, at around midnight in rainy seasons.
• Rafflesia flower is the largest and heaviest single flower in the world and have a stink of rotten flesh. Hence, it is also known as corpse flower or meat flower.
• Rafflesia flowers are red in color with five leathery and speckled petals. These flowers can have a diameter of up to one meter and can have a weight of around 7 to 11 kilograms.
• The center of a rafflesia flower has a well-like structure and inside that well, you can find a central raised disc with many vertical spines.
• Rafflesia flowers are unisexual, i.e. male and female flowers are separate. The sexual organs are situated beneath the central disc with spines.
• The rotten smell is considered as rafflesia flower adaptations, which help them in attracting the pollinators, that include flies and other insects.
• The chances of successful pollination are very rare, as only 20 to 30% of the buds develop to flowers. Apart from that, there is no guarantee that male and female flowers bloom at the same period.
• Another interesting fact about rafflesia flower is that it lasts for around five to seven days, after which, it turns black and rots.
• Rafflesia flower habitat includes the primary and secondary rainforests of Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, southern Thailand, Borneo and southern Philippines.
• The genus Rafflesia derived its name from the adventurer and founder of the British colony of Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles, who conducted an expedition to the Indonesian rainforests.
• The species Rafflesia arnoldii is named after Dr. James Arnold, who was a member of the expedition, which took place during 1818.

Now, you have a fair idea about some of the amazing rafflesia flower facts and interesting facts about rafflesia plants. However, these flowers are very rare to find, and are almost on the verge of extinction, due to habitat loss. There are various other factors that affect the survival of this species. This includes the specific habitat requirement, high rates of mortality of the rafflesia buds and difficulty in pollination. You can amass more rafflesia flower information by conducting a research about this amazing plant.