Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Pygmy King Flower - Plants of Hot Springs Island


The Pygmy King Flower, or Green Ribs, produces a conical, flower-like structure from a base of 8-10 fat, fluid filled leaves that resemble a broken rib cage. The flower is usually 1' in diameter, 2' tall, and always brightly colored. While the color can vary greatly, solid orange and blue with yellow spots are the most common colors here on the Swordfish Islands. Nectar fills at least half of each basin shaped flower and when exposed to sunlight this liquid releases a sweet, sugary fragrance. Small creatures and large insects are attracted to this smell but upon entering the flower they are trapped by its slippery walls and slowly digested. When a Pygmy King Flower finishes digesting a meal, or becomes over filled (such as after a heavy rain) the flower will tilt and dump its contents onto the jungle floor before slowly righting itself once more. The tiny mold men from the Isle of Blooms prize the Pygmy King Flower and seem to use these brightly colored leaves as hats to denote some sort of crude, tribal, status. The succulent, rib shaped leaves at the base of this plant can be mashed into a salve that is an excellent treatment for major burns and minor lacerations.

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