Flower and Fruit Development and Life History of Rafflesia consueloae (Rafflesiaceae)

Abstract

Flower and fruit development of Rafflesia consueloae were studied between February 2014 and April 2016 in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija, Philippines. Flower development was divided into five distinct phases: (1) emergence, (2) post-emergence, (3) bract, (4) perigone, and (5) anthesis. Fruit development was monitored from flower senescence until fruiting and maturation. A total of 512 individual buds were monitored – discovered at different stages of bud development. Only nine buds were monitored from post-emergence until the perigone phase. A bloom rate of 19.73% and an overall mortality rate of 77.34% were recorded. Mortality was highest during the early phases (post-emergence and bract) and lowest at the perigone phase. R. consueloae exhibited nocturnal flowering; wherein anthesis usually begins at dusk, signaled by the detachment of the first lobe, and from there on, full bloom took 15 ± 5.85 h to complete. Flowering was at its highest during the coldest and driest months of the year – between December and April. The growth rate is exponential, with an overall diameter growth of 1.80% every 4 d. The highest growth rate was recorded during the perigone phase. Six fruits, considered as dehiscent berries, ripened mostly in July – within 145 ± 11.03 d from anthesis.

What explains the high island endemicity of Philippine Rafflesia? A species distribution modeling analysis of three threatened parasitic plant species and their hosts

“…Rafflesia species are flagships of plant conservation. Recent studies have improved our understanding of their species diversity, reproductive biology, propagation, environmental preferences, patterns of genetic diversity and connectivity, evolutionary relatedness, biogeographic history, and host preference and specificity in the Philippines (e.g., Barcelona et al, 2014; Galindon et al, 2016; Pelser et al, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019; Molina et al, 2017; Lit, 2019; Tolod et al, 2020; Ancheta, 2021; Manuel and Hermocilla, 2021; Tobias et al, 2023). Our SDM study of R. lagascae, R. lobata , and R. speciosa builds on these insights.…”

What explains the high island endemicity of PhilippineRafflesia? A species distribution modeling analysis of three threatened parasitic plant species and their hosts

“…Rafflesia species have been referred to as the 'giant pandas of the plant world', given their rarity, bizarre endo-holoparasitic lifestyle, and large and foul-smelling flowers (Josephson, 2000). Recent studies of these flagships of plant conservation improved our understanding of their species diversity, reproductive biology, propagation, environmental preferences, patterns of genetic diversity and connectivity, evolutionary relatedness, biogeographic history, and host preference and specificity in the Philippines (e.g., Barcelona et al, 2014;Galindon et al, 2016;Pelser et al, 2016Pelser et al, , 2017Pelser et al, , 2018Pelser et al, , 2019Molina et al, 2017;Lit, 2019;Tolod et al, 2020;Ancheta, 2021;Manuel and Hermocilla, 2021). This SDM 29 study of R. lagascae, R. lobata and R. speciosa built on these insights.…”