Thank you once again to Earl B. of the USA for sharing another one of his photographs, this time from a vacation to Costa Rica. Much appreciated!
If my identification is correct, and it may not be considering there are over a hundred species of Heliconia as well as a number of cultivars, this is Heliconia stricta. Sometimes commonly known as dwarf Jamaican heliconia, it is not native to Jamaica but rather northern and western South America as well as Brazil. Like many Heliconia species, however, it is cultivated as an ornamental throughout the Caribbean.
The family Heliconiaceae belongs to the order Zingiberales, meaning it is related to bananas (Musaceae), true gingers (Zingiberaceae), birds-of-paradise (Strelitziaceae) and cannas (Cannaceae).
To view some of the diversity within the family, visit the Heliconia gallery at Project Amazonas or the Heliconiaceae page at the commercial Montoso Gardens in Puerto Rico (note: this isn’t an endorsement of their commercial services).
tis a handsome picture daniel
sits so grand in the leaves most interesting
leaves the links are just fine birds of
paradise are well known here in my part of forida
the bird comes in a lot of colours and the
comment about it being a part of the canna family
thank you earl b handsome site
The clarity of the red is beautiful. One does not see the intensity in New England of red flowers. It is as if the flower was polished.
A wonderful photograph.
Thank you,
Margaret-Rae
Stunning flowers and a very interesting plant family. I’ve seen various heliconia species in the Caribbean and other tropical parts of the world, and I remember how surprised I was when I first saw one. It was so unusual — large, stiff and waxy, and vividly coloured.