Phalaenopsis amabilis (moon orchid)
Some orchids don't produce nectar but rather they use 'sexual deception' as their route to pollination. These orchids secrete imitations of female sex pheromones in their scent to trick male bees. Not only does the orchid smell like a female bee but visual signals look like six legs and the flowers have tactile hairs in all the right places, convincing the male that this is the real thing.
When the drone lands on the orchid he quickly realizes that this isn't really a receptive queen bee but by then he's picked up the orchid's pollen. At this point the male is pretty excited by all this wonderful perfume in the air and he flies from flower to flower, trying to mate. In this way he pollinates every orchid he can find. This is why this pollination strategy is referred to as a form of 'sexual deception'.
Incidentally, the species name amabilis means 'lovely' in Latin.
157 notes
·
View notes
Ilona Langbroek, Moon orchid (2022)
"I create my images based upon stories and memories, in which I try to visualize the bond between man, spirit and nature. I love to use the contrast between light and dark and the twilight zone between them."
image and artist's statement from here
81 notes
·
View notes
Can I take a moment to talk about how I enjoy the fact that Dongfang Qingcang was NOT ever actually evil?
He was without feelings. He was ruthless. Thirty thousand years ago he tried to attack Shuiyuntian and there would undoubtedly have been innocent victims but he did not do so because he was being a conqueror. He did so because his people were clearly quite desperate (and yes, as revenge against the Fairy Realm for their treatment of the Moon Tribe).
The story describes him as this great evil but it feels more like the victors of the war rewriting history the way they liked, rather than actual description of Dongfang Qingcang as we get to know him. Even in the beginning when his feelings are only barely beginning to wake he's not so much cruel or malicious as angry after all.
Infuriated by being tied to Xiao Lanhua. But he doesn't really do anything truly horrific to her does he? He's kinda mean when she's irritating him - especially when she keeps unknowingly describing him as a green skinned monster with bad breath (which: ICONIC); incredibly grumpy; throws around a few empty threats; gets kinda hilariously excited about the opportunity to kill people and beings FOR her.
But he doesn't kidnap her until it's to save her life. He tries talking/tricking Xiao Lanhua into fixing the previous God of War's destiny book but doesn't hold swords to the throats of the people she cares about to make her do it.
And then he multiple times tries to make Xiao Lanhua feel better whenever she's upset (very resentfully in the beginning to be fair and with the frequent addition of murder eyes as he does it but not in a... calculated way. There's no real manipulation or seduction going on, he's even right when he tells her he never lied to her when she learns exactly who he is).
I just... I like that the story ISN'T 'evil man falls in love and this fixes him'. He wasn't evil. And falling in love didn't fix him. Falling in love was more a consequence of his Heart Tree being given a spark of life, which gave him the ABILITY to fall in love, and not at all the kind of toxic power play that shows often try to make romantic and which just end up making me vaguely ill.
He's not an evil overlord out for his own selfish goals who then starts caring about one person and one person alone. He cares about his entire realm, he cares about the souls of those 100'000 trapped soldiers. He always did, even if up to that point he was loyalty without affection. He's dangerous. Both the leader of and the weapon for his people. But he grows into more than that through the story as he learns selflessness and forgiveness and compassion.
Ultimately I guess I like that though he might have changed because of Xiao Lanhua, he didn't do it for her. At least not the way this trope is usually used in many of my NOTPs.
960 notes
·
View notes
I feel like Siming wrote this into my Destiny Book.
It's been a year (and I mean really a year as in 30th September 2022) since I saw the fateful episodes 29, 30 and 31 of Love Between Fairy and Devil AKA Cang Lan Jue and eventually pulled an all-nighter to finish the rest, finishing the show on October 1st 2022 in the early morning hours, crying myself to sleep.
Coincidentally, my desire to read the novel was squashed multiple times as I know zero Chinese and from Asian language, I know very little Korean and even less Japanese only. But the desire kept nagging me and I eventually - and accidentally - found a link to the English translation done Banana Chocolate Cosmos (by the way, absolutely wonderful nickname) through Tumblr post that cited sources of various c-novels.
I didn't get to start reading it until the second half of August and for some strange reason, I manage to finish it today - 30th September 2023.
The novel and the show are practically different but I love both equally and I adore the way the creators of the show intervowen little details from the novel in the show to honour it.
LBFAD (CLJ) forever marked me and I don't wish to have it any other way. After all, everything in this world is fate.
May Orchid (Xiao Lan Hua) and Dongfang Qingcang live happily ever after for millenias.
44 notes
·
View notes