Blakea involvens

Endemic to Ecuador, this shrub or small tree can climb and grow on other trees as an epiphyte. It inhabits humid forests on the western side of the country, from coastal lowlands into the lower Andes. Its flowers have six white to pink petals and twelve joined anthers that form a curved ring. Bees release the pollen by vibrating the anthers, a process called buzz pollination. Flowering is followed by fleshy berries. Photographed in the Chocó region of Ecuador and in Colombia.