Introduction
The Amazon is a lush, green world filled with animals and plants that are unlike anything you’ve ever seen. It’s so vast and untamed that it can feel like another planet altogether. But the Amazon isn’t just home to jungle animals; it’s also full of flowers that look like other things entirely, thanks to evolution and Mother Nature herself. We’re going to take a deep dive into these amazing species in this post!
1. The Monkey Face Orchid
The Monkey Face Orchid is a species of orchid native to the rainforests of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. It gets its name from the appearance of its flowers, which resemble monkey faces.
The flower’s petals are fused at the base to form a tube with three lobes sticking out like ears and two longer lobes resembling a mouth that has been pulled back into a smile. This creates an effect similar to what you might see when your friend pretends their mouth is an open eye socket while making funny faces at you in hopes that he or she can make you laugh (because it’s funny).
2. The Moth Orchid
The Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis amabilis) is a species of orchid native to tropical forests in the Amazon. This orchid has large, petal-like lips that resemble a moth’s wings, which are pollinated by male moths who mistake them for females. The flowers are mainly white with reddish purple veining and can grow up to five inches tall!
3. The Dancing Girl Orchid
The Dancing Girl Orchid is a great example of an orchid hybrid. The plant was bred from two different species of orchids—the butterfly orchid and slipper orchid. It takes after its parent plants in that it has thousands of small flowers on long stems, but adds its own unique twist with its unusual shape. Its petals look like little arms waving about in the wind, which gives it its name.
The dancing girl has been around since this century (1900s), but it wasn’t until 2000 that it became widely available through commercial nurseries. This makes them fairly recent additions to the world of horticulturalists; however, they’re quickly becoming popular due to their cute appearance and ease of care requirements!
4. The Flying Duck Orchid
The flying duck orchid is a rare and beautiful flower that looks like a flying duck. It is only found in the rainforest of New Caledonia, an island country located in the southwest Pacific Ocean. Why does this orchid look like a duck? Well, first of all, the leaves of this plant are shaped like wings. If you look at the bottom side of its leaves, you will see that they have two small lobes on each one; these lobes resemble feet!
The flying duck orchid grows up to around 1 inch tall (2.5 cm), so it’s not very big by any means. This plant blooms during springtime between February and April every year—but once it flowers and seeds have been produced, there’s no point in keeping it around anymore because its life cycle has ended!
5. The Flying Duck Orchid (Again)
The Flying Duck Orchid (Again) is a species of the genus Oncidium and is native to the Amazon rainforest. It was discovered in 1867 by Karl Heinrich Emil Nees von Esenbeck, a German botanist and taxonomist. The Flying Duck Orchid is part of the Oncidium alliance, which consists of sixty-two other orchid species and subspecies.
The Flying Duck Orchid can be found growing on trees in clusters that are made up of many tiny blooms. They are small and fragrant and have bright green leaves that are often times spotted with purple blotches on them too!
6. The Naked Man Orchid
The Naked Man Orchid is an epiphytic orchid species native to Brazil. It is a rare species, and they are difficult to find as well. They have flowers that look like a man in a suit.
The Naked Man Orchid has been described as “odd” by some people, but most see them as being very different looking orchids. This unusual flower looks like it came straight out of Alice in Wonderland!
7. The Hooker’s Lips Orchid
The Hooker’s Lips Orchid is a genus of orchids native to Brazil. It is named after botanist William Hooker, who first cultivated it in England. The plant belongs to the Oncidium family and is characterized by its large petals that look like lips and a lip-like appendage at its base.
The flower has creamy white petals with purple stripes, while the lip has violet spots on the upper side and orange hairs on the lower side. It grows up to 2 inches tall with small leaves that grow from a pseudobulb below ground level.
8. The Angel Wings Orchid
The Angel Wings Orchid, also known as the Butterfly Orchid, is a terrestrial orchid that grows in Asia. This flower has fleshy stems and leaves that resemble an angel’s wings. The flowers have a white petal on each side of their center pistil and stamens that resembles butterfly wings. These plants are endangered and were sold for high prices at auctions in the past.
9. Dracula Simia, the Monkey Orchid
Dracula Simia, the Monkey Orchid
The Dracula simia is a species of orchid native to Colombia. This monkey-like flower has smooth, oval leaves that are almost heart-shaped and grow on long petioles (up to 15 centimeters). The flowers are dark purple with white streaks and grow along the stem in clusters of up to 20. The Dracula simia needs lots of sun and moderate watering during its growing season but can adapt well to lower light conditions too if it doesn’t get too dry. It is pollinated by flies then produces seeds which fall onto the ground where they will hopefully germinate and create new Dracula simias!
10. The Panda Orchid
You may not know this, but the panda orchid is actually a cross between two other species of orchids: The phalaenopsis and sanderiana. It looks like…well, you can see for yourself.
The panda orchid is considered an endangered plant because it’s so rare and hard to find. Its habitat (where it grows) is also being threatened by human activity, which makes it all the more important that we protect them!
11. The Human-Faced Orchid
This beautiful orchid is a species of epiphytic orchid. It has a face on the lip of its flower, which was thought to resemble that of a person by indigenous people in Brazil. It’s called the human-faced orchid and it’s native to Brazil, where it’s endangered due to habitat destruction and overcollection for horticulture purposes.
I want to go to the Amazon and find these flowers!
If you’re interested in seeing these rare species of orchids, the best place to go would be the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon is the largest tropical rainforest in the world and is located in South America. It covers 2 million square kilometers of land, which is about 20% of South America’s entire area! There are also many endangered species that can only be found there because they live exclusively within its borders.
The Amazon basin has been called a “biodiversity hotspot” because it contains one fifth of Earth’s plant and animal species! If you want to see all kinds of exotic flowers, head on down to Brazil!
Conclusion
I want to go to the Amazon and find these flowers!