Scientists Discover a New 'Devil Flower' Species Hidden in a Thai Forest

Botanists from Chulalongkorn University and Prince of Songkla University have identified a new species of leafless flowering plant growing on the forest floor of Thong Pha Phum National Park in western Thailand. Its unusual appearance inspired its name: Thismia daemona, the "devil flower." The plant belongs to Thismia, a genus of tiny species sometimes called "fairy lanterns," which lack chlorophyll, cannot photosynthesize, and instead get nutrients from underground fungi while staying hidden beneath leaf litter for nearly their entire lives.

The new species was found at an elevation of nearly 1,000 meters, an unusually high and seasonally dry environment for the genus. "Typically, Thismia species are known to occur in perennially humid lowland rainforests," said Dr. Sahut Chantanaorrapint of Prince of Songkla University. "However, this population was discovered in a seasonal, montane evergreen forest." The discovery also extends the known range of Thismia section Geomitra, a group previously documented only in Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and Sumatra, farther north for the first time.

The flower's appearance explains its name: it is mostly black and topped with horn-like appendages rising from a dome-shaped "miter," with bright reddish-orange patches near the base that resemble glowing eyes. "Combined with its hidden, subterranean, and mysterious lifestyle on the forest floor, our team unanimously agreed that naming it Thismia daemona perfectly captured its enigmatic and devil-like essence," Dr. Chantanaorrapint said.

Scientists know of only one population, consisting of fewer than 50 individual plants in an area smaller than a football pitch, and the species has been provisionally assessed as Critically Endangered. Its habitat lies inside a national park that receives substantial tourist traffic, which Dr. Chantanaorrapint said makes involving nearby communities important for protecting the plant. The research was published in the open-access journal PhytoKeys. With the addition of Thismia daemona, Thailand is now known to be home to 16 species of Thismia.