The Amazing Orchid That Looks Like a Monkey’s Face
It’s
not very hard to guess how the Monkey Orchid got its name, but ever
since photos of it started circulating on the internet about a year ago,
people have had a hard time believing such a flower actually exists.
As
photoshopped as it may look, the Monkey Orchid actually exists, and yes,
it really does match the grinning face of a very small monkey. The
scientific name of this very rare flower is Dracula simia, with
the first part hinting at the resemblance between its two long spurs to
the fangs of Bram Stoker’s famous vampire count, and the second meaning
“monkey” in Latin. It only grows in the mountainous regions of Ecuador,
Colombia and Peru, at an elevation of between 1,000 and 2,000 meters
above sea level, but there are a few lucky collectors who have managed
to grow it in “captivity”. The Monkey orchid is not season specific, and
in its natural habitat it can flower at any time. As if its striking
resemblance to a monkey’s face wasn’t astounding enough, this flower
actually smells a lot like a ripe orange, as well. Which is kind of
ironic, because with a face like that you’d expect it to smell like
bananas, right?
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