"in the 1860s... scientists first stumbled across the Star of Bethlehem [Angraecum sesquipedale], a... Madagascan orchid which stores its nectar at the bottom of a tube up to 30 centimetres long. ... When Darwin saw the flower... he realised there must be an animal that can get the nectar out... in 1903, 21 years after his death, the mysterious pollinator was found. A hawk moth with a proboscis long enough to reach the bottom of the orchid's nectar tube or "spur" was named Xanthopan morganii praedicta - honouring Darwin's prediction.
Two of the orchids are now blooming in the tropical centre at Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens [Australia]. .. expected to be in flower for at least another couple of weeks" URL : http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/national/flower-that-proved-darwin-right-by-a-long-nose/2007/11/04/1194117880612.html ************** Regards, VB _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
