Gloxinia perennis (Canterbury bells)

Native to Trinidad and from Costa Rica through tropical South America to northern Bolivia and Brazil, this plant is a perennial herb that grows from scaly underground rhizomes. Its bell-shaped lavender to purple flowers grow along upright spikes and have a strong, caraway-like fragrance. A scent-producing patch inside each flower supplies perfume collected by male orchid bees for courtship displays. The bees transfer pollen while gathering these scent compounds. The species can also self-pollinate when visiting pollinators are scarce. Cultivated as an ornamental, it has naturalized in Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Photographed in Minca, Colombia.