''Dracula simia'', called also monkey orchid or the monkey-like ''Dracula'', is an
epiphytic
An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...
orchid originally described in the genus ''
Masdevallia
''Masdevallia'', abbreviated Masd in horticultural trade, is a large genus of flowering plants of the Pleurothallidinae, a subtribe of the orchid family (Orchidaceae). There are over 500 species, grouped into several subgenera. The genus is nam ...
'',
[ Description of ''Masdevallia simia'' on pages 229-230] but later moved to the genus ''
Dracula
''Dracula'' is a novel by Bram Stoker, published in 1897. As an epistolary novel, the narrative is related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist, but opens with solicitor Jonathan Harker taking ...
''.
[ The arrangement of ]column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...
, petals and lip
The lips are the visible body part at the mouth of many animals, including humans. Lips are soft, movable, and serve as the opening for food intake and in the articulation of sound and speech. Human lips are a tactile sensory organ, and can be ...
strongly resembles a monkey's face.[ The plant blooms at any season with several flowers on the inflorescence that open successively.][ Flowers are fragrant with the scent of a ripe orange.][ ]
See also
* Monkey orchid (disambiguation)
References
simia
In his '' Systema Naturae'' of 1758, Carl Linnaeus divided the Order Primates within ''Mammalia'' into four genera: ''Homo'', ''Simia'', ''Lemur'', and ''Vespertilio''. His ''Vespertilio'' included all bats, and has since been moved from Primates ...
{{Epidendreae-stub