Rafflesia is like a woman who may
not be the type of woman that the society wants, but is a queen of its own.
Good afternoon everyone and please bear with me for several minutes as I read
my speech.
It is normal for us, human beings, that if we smell bad people
tend to get away from us. Worst, we will
be an outcast.
But what is
Rafflesias? Rafflesia is a plant that grows in Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo
and Philippines. It is unique because it doesnt have leaves, nor roots, nor
stems but only have just like in the picture. This means they cannot make their
own food. But how do they survive…. They are parasites. They suck water and
nutrients from a vine called Tetrastigma, which they could not live. However, although
they may be queen of free-riders, they are colorful and lovely. One species has
flowers reaching 1.5 meters which is the world’s largest so far.Now, let’s get to know them more. Since the flower is its only distinguishable feature, let us examine the parts. They have warts, the perigone tube, the ramenta, the anther, coronal ring of disk, bracts, disk, column, processes, window, diaphragm and perigone lobe. These parts differ in numbers, sizes and shapes among species.
All
flowering plants are pollinated. And who does the job for Rafflesia’s? It’s the
carrion flies; those common flies you see on any dead and decomposing remains.
And that’s where being stinky becomes an asset. The smellier they get, the more
chances they can propagate their kind. Whenever the flower emits their
signature-putrid smell-the flies arrive and spread their pollen.
But the flowers bloom only seasonally. Like human pregnancy, it might take nine more months since its last flowering- before a new set of flowers will re-emerge. And each blossom only a week with up to 20% of the flowers dying immediately.
Interestingly,
Rafflesia has become a popular media character. In the video game, Final
Fantasy XII, Rafflesia is a boss in Feywood. The Rafflesia sucks away the
party's main player at a monstrous rate, and can also inflict Sap. One way to defeat it, is having a character
nearby who can cure any infected.
In
One Piece, an anime, a monster Rafflesia
sneaks into the boat where it emits a very foul-smell. However, it is killed by
men inside the boat. 
In the more popular, Pokemon movie, the Character “Vileplume”
is actually a poison discharging Rafflesia plant. It can emit fire, ice, can
fly and do psychic moves but its strongest weapon is Acid and Solar Beam. In the movie, the Vileplume's pollen triggers
atrocious allergy attacks in humans and is toxic to other Pokemon.
Globally, scientist know of at least 27 species of
Rafflesia. In the Philippines, we have eleven species or 41 percent of the
world’s Rafflesia diversity. Said in a different way, 4 out of every 10
Rafflesia species you would see is a Filipino Rafflesia. Thus, our country can
be branded as a Rafflesia Republic.
Mindanao
Island also has a good share of Rafflesia diversity. Did you know that the
largest Rafflesia in the Philippines is found in Mindanao?
It is called Rafflesia schadenbergania, after the
naturalist Alexander Shadenberg who first discovered the species at the
foothills of Mt Apo in 1882. With a flower of nearly a meter, it is close to
the size 7 year old kid when sitted. On Mindanao, the species has been seen in
Davao del Sur, South Cotabato and Mt Kitanglad in Bukidnon.
 |
| Rafflesia mira |
Second, Rafflesia mira and Rafflesia magnifica are two names for a single species. Both were discovered at Mt Candalaga in Maragusan, Compostela Valley.
 |
| Rafflesia magnifica |
The two forms differ in size measurements in which the scientific
description of Magnifica came from measurements of flowers in full bloom while that
of Mira was from photographs of nearly dead samples. The medium-sized Mira and Magnifica flowers measure about half a meter and they have round or
elliptic perigone wart
The
third species on Mindanao is the Rafflesia
mixta which is found so far only in the town of Mainit, Surigao del Norte.
It shows a combination of three features of Philippine Rafflesia namely (i) the
shape and size of the conical process in Rafflesia schadenbergania;(ii) the
floral size and sparsely distributed perigone warts of R. speciosa; and the (iii)
overall resemblance, floral size, faint scent, diaphragm and ramenta morphology
of R. mira
Fourth, is Rafflesia
verrucosa which is found only in Mt. Kampalili in Davao Oriental Province. It is derived from the Latin verruca or wart
which exhibits a unique appearance. It is the first small-flowered Rafflesia
because it measures only ¼ of the size of other species
However,
with each discovery of a new Rafflesia species comes the influx of tourist and
tourism facilities. Without a clear conservation plan, the species is
threatened.
This
should not be the case, and I recommend the following; First, there should be
management zoning strategies for protected areas where Rafflesia species are
found. Consultations with the local communities and organizations such as the DENR,
local governments, Department of Tourism (DOT), the academic communities, and
scientists should be done before opening these Rafflesia sites to the public.
Areas
that are close to people should be managed for education and ecotourism
purposes while those that are far from human habitation should be preserved and
scientifically studied. Second, further research should be done to know the
conservation status of the lowland where most species are most likely to found
I
do hope that someday Rafflesia will become the happiest flower when people value
her as God’s amazing creation worthy of preservation.
