FoI
Pink Flamingo Heliconia
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Pink Flamingo Heliconia
P Introduced Photo: Saba Firoze
Common name: Pink Flamingo Heliconia
Botanical name: Heliconia chartacea    Family: Heliconiaceae (Heliconia family)

Pink Flamingo Heliconia is a perennial herb, with paired large oblong leaves like those of the banana. It can grow up to 7-8 m in height, and plants can form large clumps with age. The flowering stems are drooping. The bright pink color of the flower bracts is rare among heliconias, making it very easy to identify. The prominent pink part of the large and showy hanging inflorescences is actually the waxy bracts, with the small green true flowers half-hidden inside. It has blue-black fruits that contain 3 very hard seeds, which are capable of extended dormancy in the soil. The fruits are eaten by a variety of birds, including tanagers and thrushes. Pink Flamingo Heliconia is native to Sout Tropical America, cultivated as a garden plant elsewhere.

Identification credit: Tabish Photographed in cultivation in Goa.

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