Carrion flowers or Stinking flowers are flowers that emit an odor that smells like rotting flesh. While a typical flower may be stereotyped as a colorful, sweet-smelling structure that attracts insects and rewards them with pollen or nectar, this scenario is somewhat perverted for carrion flowers because of the repulsive nature of the scent to most humans. Carrion flowers attract mostly scavenging flies and beetles as pollinators. Some species may trap the insects temporarily to ensure the gathering and transfer of pollen.

Plants known as "carrion flower"

Amorphophallus

Many plants in the genus Amorphophallus (family Araceae) are known as carrion flowers. Titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum), which has the world's largest flower head, is also called "carrion flower". Rather than a single flower, the titan arum presents an inflorescence or compound flower composed of a spadix or stalk of small and anatomically reduced male and female flowers, surrounded by a spathe that resembles a single giant petal. This plant has a mechanism to heat up the spadix enhancing the emission of the strong odor of decaying meat to attract its pollinators, carrion-eating beetles and "flesh flies" (family Sarcophagidae).

Rafflesia

Flowers of plants in the genus Rafflesia (family Rafflesiaceae) emit a repulsive odor, similar to that of decaying meat. This odor attracts the flies that pollinate the plant. The world's largest single bloom is R. arnoldii. This rare flower is found in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. It can grow to be 3 feet across and weigh up to 15 pounds. R. arnoldii is a parasitic plant on Tetrastigma vine, which grows only in primary rainforests with no visible leaves, roots, or stem. It does not photosynthesize, but rather uses the host plant to obtain water and nutrients.

Stapelia

Plants in the genus Stapelia are also called "carrion flowers". They are small, spineless, cactus-like succulent plants. Most species are native to South Africa, and are grown as potted plants elsewhere. The flowers of all species are hairy to varying degrees and generate the odor of rotten flesh. The color of the flowers also mimics rotting meat. This attracts scavenging flies, for pollination. The flowers in some species can be very large, notably Stapelia gigantea can reach 30 cm (12 inches) in diameter.

Smilax or Nemexia

In North America, the herbaceous vines of the genus Smilax are known as Carrion flowers. These plants have a cluster of small greenish flowers. The most familiar member of this groups is Smilax herbacea. These plants are sometimes placed in the genus Nemexia.

Scent

The sources of the flowers' unique scent is not fully identified, partly due to the extremely low concentration of the compounds (5 to 10 parts per billion), but simple amines present in decaying flesh, the appropriately named putrescine and cadaverine, are known to be present. Dimethyl sulfides, including disulfide and trisulfide have been detected in Amorphophallus.

Other plants with carrion-scented flowers

• Crescentia alata
• Sterculia foetida
• Hydnora africana
• Helicodiceros muscivorus
• Dracunculus vulgaris
• Lysichiton americanum
• Symplocarpus foetidus
• Arum maculatum
• Aristolochia clematitis

See also

• Stinkhorn- fungi that use the same basic principle for spore dispersal.
• Aseroë rubra- fungi that use the same basic principle for spore dispersal.

References

External links

• All about stinking flowers

The genus Stapelia consists of around 40 species of low growing, spineless, stem succulent plants, predominantly from South Africa. The flowers of certain species, most notably Stapelia gigantea, can reach 41 cm (16 inches) in diameter when fully open. Most Stapelia flowers are visibly hairy and generate the odour of rotten flesh, a notable exception is the sweetly scented Stapelia flavopurpurea. Such odours serve to attract various specialist pollinators including, in the case of carrion scented blooms, blow flies of the dipteran family Calliphoridae. They frequently lay eggs around the coronae of Stapelia flowers, convinced by the plants' deception.

The hairy, oddly textured and coloured appearance of many Stapelia flowers has been claimed to resemble that of rotting meat, this, coupled with their odour, has earned the most commonly grown members of the Stapelia genus the common name of "carrion flowers".

A handful of species are commonly cultivated as pot plants and are even used as rockery plants in countries where the climate permits.

Selected species

Stapelia acuminata Stapelia albicans Stapelia albipilosa Stapelia arenosa Stapelia asterias Stapelia aurea Stapelia ausana Stapelia barklyi Stapelia bayfieldii Stapelia baylissii Stapelia bella Stapelia cactiformis Stapelia cantabrigensis Stapelia caudata Stapelia cedrimontana Stapelia clavicorona Stapelia cupularis Stapelia desmetiana Stapelia dinteri Stapelia divaricata Stapelia divergens Stapelia engleriana Stapelia erectiflora Stapelia flavirostris Stapelia flavopurpurea Stapelia gariepensis Stapelia gettliffei Stapelia gigantea Stapelia glabricaulis Stapelia glabriflora Stapelia glanduliflora Stapelia grandiflora Stapelia hanburyana

Stapelia hirsuta Stapelia immelmaniac Stapelia knobelii Stapelia kougabergensis Stapelia kwebensis Stapelia leendertziae Stapelia lepida Stapelia macloughlinii Stapelia macowanii Stapelia maculosa Stapelia maculosoides Stapelia melanantha Stapelia mutabilis Stapelia obducta Stapelia olivacea Stapelia pachyrrhiza Stapelia paniculata Stapelia parvula Stapelia pearsonii Stapelia peglerae Stapelia pillansii Stapelia portae-taurinae Stapelia praetermissa var. luteola Stapelia praetermissa var. praetermissa Stapelia preastans Stapelia remota Stapelia rubiginosa Stapelia rufa Stapelia schinzii Stapelia scitula Stapelia tsomoensis Stapelia unicornis Stapelia variegata Stapelia vetula Stapelia villetiae Stapelia youngii