Edithcolea grandis

Flower and corona

Flowers in the material described reach about 10–14 cm in diameter. At the centre of the corolla is a depression approached through a raised ring and an elaborate corona. The narrow approach concentrates insect activity near the gynostegium. Pollinia are transferred in packages connected to an attachment apparatus. [Meve et al. 2026]

Observations in Tanzania

Studies were conducted in a population of about 65 plants over about 1500 m² east of Moshi. The two observation days were 9 and 12 March 2018. Results were published eight years later. At this site, flowers were visited and pollinated exclusively by the recorded female Musca xanthomelas. Pollinator identification relied on behaviour and the presence of carried pollinia. [Meve et al. 2026]

In a sample of ten flowers, 70% had a deposited pollinium. Estimated transport efficiency was 61,5%. This proportion of removed pollinia was subsequently found in floral guides. It is an index of pollen movement in a small sample, expressed relative to removed pollinia and separate from the percentage of pollinated flowers. [Meve et al. 2026]

Nietypowy profil lotny

Scent composition was determined from separate material, one flower of a plant cultivated in Germany. Major components included p-cresyl isobutyrate, p-cresyl butyrate, δ-cadinene, α-copaene and pentadecane. The authors recorded p-cresyl isobutyrate as a floral scent component for the first time. [Meve et al. 2026]

The wound-mimicry hypothesis

Adult females of the pollinating fly use food sources including blood and secretions available in animal wounds. The authors compared this biology with the appearance and scent of the central floral depression, proposing mimicry of a food source. A single fly egg was also observed near the gynostegium, allowing a possible contribution from signals associated with an egg-laying site. The function of individual scent compounds remains a hypothesis requiring experimental testing. [Meve et al. 2026]