''Wittrockia gigantea'' is a plant

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

in the genus ''

Wittrockia ''Wittrockia'' is a genus of plants in the family Bromeliaceae, subfamily Bromelioideae. The genus name is for Veit Brecher Wittrock, a Swedish botanist (1839-1914).Bromeliad Society International read on line/ref> These plants are native to C ...

''. The bromeliad is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the Atlantic Forest biome (''Mata Atlantica Brasileira''), located in southeastern

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

.DPI.inpe.br: "BROMELIACEAE da MATA ATLÂNTICA BRASILEIRA: Lista de ESPÉCIES, DISTRIBUIÇÃO e CONSERVAÇÃO"
''Rodriguésia 59'', February 2008; ppg 209−258; article−, abstract− species lists−. accessed 30 May 2016. It is native within

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

, Rio de Janeiro (state), and

São Paulo (state) São Paulo () is one of the 26 states of the Federative Republic of Brazil and is named after Saint Paul of Tarsus. A major industrial complex, the state has 21.9% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 33.9% of Brazil's GDP. São Pa ...

Cultivars and hybrids

Cultivars and hybrids include:BSI Cultivar Registry
Retrieved 11 October 2009. * ''Wittrockia'' 'Leopardinum' * ''Neorockia'' 'Midhurst'

References

gigantea Endemic flora of Brazil Flora of the Atlantic Forest Flora of Minas Gerais Flora of Rio de Janeiro (state) Flora of São Paulo (state) {{Bromelioideae-stub