Tillandsia fendleri

Native to the Caribbean and northern South America, Tillandsia fendleri is a perennial bromeliad that grows on trees, rocks and sometimes the ground. A rosette produces a tall, upright, multiply branched inflorescence. The stalk carries closely arranged bracts and unstalked flowers with lilac petals. In the Colombian Andes, it occurs in montane forests and high-elevation shrublands, including subpáramo vegetation. Photographed in Colombia.