Rafflesia

by Dan Nickrent

The tallest tales a botanist tells

Are usually meant to tease ya

But hang on to your hats my friends

This one's about Rafflesia

 

 

To Sumatra the Dutch had sailed

In search of gold and treasure

The "greatest prodigy of the vegetable world"

Has value that's hard to measure

 

 

The Queen of Parasites Brown named

For Sir Raffles' and Arnold's prize

The grandest flower in the world

A full three feet in size!

 

 

She's a parasite inside a vine

Fifteen pounds does a flower weigh

No stems, no leaves, no dirty roots

She's thrown them all away

 

 

And then the topic of her smell

Most certainly not a rose!

But whether she really stinks at all

Depends upon the nose

 

 

And now my dear it isn't clear

What creature spreads these plants

It could be ants, it could be squirrels

Or even elephants!

 

 

From whirling saws and hungry mouths

Her habitat is shrinking

What took nature countless years to make

Could disappear in a blinking

 

 

Her haven's still and dark and moist

On Mount Kinabalu

This sanctuary's a great first step

For her preservation's overdue