The Strangest Plant In The World?!

The plant Hydnora africana is a parasite that smells foul...and that’s not even the weirdest thing about it.
↓Want more gross info?↓

Bolin, J., Maass, E., & Musselman, L. (2009). Pollination Biology of Hydnora africana Thunb. (Hydnoraceae) in Namibia: Brood‐Site Mimicry with Insect Imprisonment. International Journal of Plant Sciences, 170(2), 157-163. doi:10.1086/593047

More info and pictures of Hydnora from Lytton J. Musselman at Old Dominion University

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Host, Writer, Animator, Editor
Anna Rothschild

Camera, Sound
Natasha Ishak

Many thanks to Dr. Lytton John Musselman for his help with this piece.

Gross Footage and Images

Original Footage
©WGBH Educational Foundation 2017

Images of Hydnora plants
Courtesy Dr. Lytton John Musselman

Host, Writer, Animator, Editor
Anna Rothschild

Camera, Sound
Natasha Ishak

Boom Town
Music Provided by APM

Road In Summer Beautiful Forest.
Pond5/Kinomasterskaya

Sun Shining Through Green Walnut
Tree Leaves, Natural Energy Hd
Pond5/viggo

Green Little Plants Growing
Pond5/Kolosigor

Euphorbia caput-medusa]
Shutterstock/Nadezhda Kharitonova

Dionaea muscipula trap
Wikimedia Commons/che

Corpse Plant
Wikimedia Commons/liz west

Rafflesia 80 cm
Wikimedia Commons/Steve Cornish (cornstaruk) from Marlow, UK

Hydnora africana Sachs
Wikimedia Commons/Julius Sachs (1832-1897)

Flickr - Rainbirder - Golden Jackal
Wikimedia Commons/Steve Garvie
HydnoraAfricanaKarasburgDistrictNamibia2002Musselman
Wikimedia Commons/Lytton John Musselman

HydnoraJohannisUmBaronaWadMedaniSudanMusselman
Wikimedia Commons/Lytton John Musselman

Gross SFX

Cockroaches
Freesound/StateAardvark­
(used with permission from author)

Squeak Pack/squeak_10
Freesound/Corsica_S

Wink
Freesound/bennychico11

Male drinking slurping aaaaaaaaaaah small belch
Freesound/Anton

Slide whistle down 01
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Slide whistle up 01
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Flying Mosquito
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Produced by WGBH for PBS Digital Studios

[ACSReactions]

The real question is when will we see these in future valentines day bouquets??

[MUtley-rfvg]

Wow. It's a dead-ringer for a stinkhorn fungi species. But is a plant?? Totally bizarre. Definitely the strangest I've seen!

[ChilledfishStick]

Nice "fly calling for help" impression.

[peppersalty]

The flower on the thumbnail looks like





Honestly I don’t need to finish my sentence because you already know what I’m about to say.

[luxordin]

Even tho this is a parisite planet, This has to be one of the most complex and facinating being's i've seen until now.The way it acts, and doesn't depend on the sun, is always amazing to me.Great job, i've really liked your video.I'm subscribing for lot's a more weird planet/animal etc, stuff!As i always say, Knowladge is power.

[SpecialEDy]

Is this flower the inspiration for the movie Tremors?

[fakename]

1:42 This looks like a head on picture of two smiling snails taking a stroll and having a nice conversation.

[greenbeevideo]

If it didn't have flowers and seeds, I would think it was a fungus with the way it grows! Crazy cool. Have you ever gotten to smell one before?

[SimSpartan]

Jay F bolin who wrote that paper is my teacher at my college, showing him this video.

[clintonyeung]

This was video by far is the most interesting one to date! I also learned that Plants can be parasites as well which surprised me

[figuraine]

Oh yeah, strawberry yoghurt is my fav...




*I NEED THAT PLANT*

[Nen_niN]

"They live underground most of their lives" just like me

[SunnySalasar]

even if it's not very gross, could you do one about the fairy wasp? it's smaller than amoeba and lays it's eggs in wasp eggs

[JC-nhsk]

0:12 In 3rd grade I did a research project about this plant and was obsessed with how cool it was.

[shrimpsareprettyrich]

The giant flower at the beginning of the video is called a Rafflesia and it's found only in the Malaysian rainforests and it's endangered and smells like spoiled meat. I'm from Malaysia btw

[jobla]

whats the plant at 0:09? Ive seen those before and had no idea what they were :/

[atomicskull]

Stapelia Gigantea is another huge stinky flower from africa (though the smell is faint and not really that bad) you can find cuttings on Ebay regularly, and it blooms readily in cultivation. It looks like a cactus but it's actually a succulent milkweed. The flowers look like a hairy starfish up to a foot across.

[Fancystripes]

What editing app do you use I could definitely use it on my videos

[beaflowers]

parasitic plants are so cool <3 my fav are the western underground orchids, though they are definitely not gross, just mega creepy and beautiful. super episode!

[anndai]

Anna, you are amazing! Thank you so much for making all these super aesthetic and cool videos with intelligent and super interesting topics! I love this one! And the one with carnivorous plants aaannd all the others! <3