A new analysis from researchers at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History reveals that nearly half of the genus Heliconia, a group of tropical plants popular for their bright, ...

Heliconia plants are famed for their flowers, which come in a variety of vivid hues, including intense yellows, fiery oranges and rosy reds. Their reproductive structures are composed of waxy, ...

A recent study highlights a troubling reality for Heliconia, a genus of tropical plants celebrated for their stunning, bird-shaped flowers. Published today, March 7, in the journal Plants, People ...

The study, published in Plants, People, Planet, looked at the genus Heliconia, which contains nearly 200 species, including plants valued both for their stunning looks and their interactions with ...

Gardeners have cultivated Heliconia species for centuries as striking ornamental plants. This popularity has put some species at risk of overexploitation and poaching. In addition, Heliconia ...

Heliconia plants, especially the leaves, are essential to the bat’s survival. The bats cleverly cut along the veins of the leaves, causing them to fold downward like an upside-down “V”.

Commercial harvesting of the heliconia leaves impacts the bats further. Social groups of 4-14 bats can roost together inside these rolled-up leaves. Image Courtesy of Vanessa Martin.

Heliconia plants are famed for their flowers, which come in a variety of vivid hues, including intense yellows, fiery oranges and rosy reds. Their reproductive structures are composed of waxy, ...

Heliconia plants are famed for their flowers, which come in a variety of vivid hues, including intense yellows, fiery oranges and rosy reds. John Kress. Most of the ...

Imperiled Plants. The team discovered that 87 Heliconia species (47% of the genus) are threatened with extinction, nearly half of the entire group.Alarmingly, all but one of these threatened ...