Guzmania alborosea

Native to western Ecuador, this perennial bromeliad grows in wet forests and forms a spreading rosette of dark green, strap-shaped leaves. An upright pink to purplish-red stalk supports an open, branched flowering cluster. Broad pink floral bracts surround thick, white sepals and short white petals. The flowers open early in the morning for only a few hours; by midday, the petals have closed and withdrawn inside the sepals. Cylindrical capsules release seeds with brown, hair-like tufts. The species is listed as Vulnerable. Photographed in Peru.