Heliconia tortuosa

Description

Heliconia tortuosa is an herbaceous tropical perennial commonly found in secondary succession in montane forests in Central America and southern Mexico (Chiapas and Tabasco). It is moderately shade tolerant. It has also been widely cultivated as a garden plant for its showy, usually twisted (hence the name tortuosa) inflorescences. Heliconia tortuosa is selective with its pollination, allowing only green hermit and violet sabrewing hummingbirds to pollinate its flowers. Heliconia, derived from the Greek word (helikṓnios), is a genus of flowering plants in the monotypic family Heliconiaceae. Most of the ca 194 known species are native to the tropical Americas, but a few are indigenous to certain islands of the western Pacific and Maluku.Many species of Heliconia are found in the tropical forests of these regions. Most species are listed as either vulnerable or data deficient by the IUCN Red List of threatened species.Several species are widely cultivated as ornamentals, and a few are naturalized in Florida, Gambia, and Thailand. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, toucan beak, wild plantain, or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as "heliconias".