Bat flowers, also known as tiger whiskers, are ornamental plants that are mainly distributed in Central and South Asia and are suitable for growing in warm climates. Due to the uniqueness of the flower type, it is called a ghostly plant. Considered "unlucky" in Malaysia, their dangling fruit looks like an upside-down bat.
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On the mainland, tigers are produced in southern Guangdong Province and the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It grows in sandy seashores and plains in wilderness scrublands. The root of the tiger's whiskers can be used as a traditional Chinese medicine, and the south Chinese folk are used to treat bruises, poisonous snake bites and so on.
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Tiger whiskers belong to the vine-like shrub, with thick roots, yellowish white; The lower part of the stem is erect, the upper part is climbing or lying flat, slightly hairy. Leaves papery to leathery, ovoid, thin oblong, 2-4.5 cm long and 1-2.5 cm wide, round at the apex, with a short pointed tip, rounded at the base, glabrous; The lateral veins are about 4 on each side, flattened on both sides; The petiole is 2–5 mm long. The inflorescence is axillary, shrunken and dense, with 7-10 flowers, shorter than the leaves; Calyx lobes are ovate triangular, 1.4 mm long and 1 mm wide, glabrous, with 5 glands at the base of the inner face of the calyx.
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The corolla is nearly bell-shaped, yellow-green, lobed oblong, 3.5 mm long and 2 mm wide, glabrous; The paracoccina lobes are short, reaching the base of the anther, ovate, swollen, about 1.5 mm wide; 1 pollen block per chamber, nearly spherical, flattened; The anthers have a round diaphragm at the tip; The ovary is glabrous; The stigma is disc-shaped. Bulbophyllum twin, lanceolate, 4–6 cm long, 1 cm diameter, glabrous; The seeds are inverted ovate, about 4 mm long, tan, margined, and have white silky seed hairs at the apex: the seed hairs are 2 cm long. The flowering period is from May to June, and the fruit period is from October to December.
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Have you ever seen a bat flower in real life? Feel free to leave a message in the comments section.