Hi, Jon Suzuki's message to our list was held since it included an attachment, a paper with the title: The Corpse Flower: A Thermographer's Perspective Steve Mirowski Steven Kramer Advantage Infrared It looks like an interesting paper. I found this summary by searching: The Amorphophallus Titanum, Titan Arum (the Corpse Flower) is a rare specimen with limited physical access that experiences metabolic heat generation. These elements make this an enticing investigation to a thermographer. The Corpse Flower is a unique life form with an air of mystification, and questions remain regarding its thermal functions and their purpose. The approach this paper takes is strictly from a thermographer's perspective, utilizing limited interdisciplinary knowledge of botany and entomology. The results of our investigation confirm that the plant generates heat both at the tip of the spadix and inside at the base where the spathe and spadix intersect. The latter indicates further confirmation of the common hypothesis that the plant intentionally smells like a rotting flesh in order to attract bugs for pollination. However, the former is not consistent with this hypothesis. The tip of the spadix is not the source of the pollen and is not likely to aid in propagating the stench any further. However, it may indicate the possibility that some of the symbiotic insects, in which the plant relies, actually see in infrared. As can be seen in the thermal images, the tip of the spadix would act like a visual beacon for locating the source of what the insect smells. This kind of investigation could lead to a better understanding of ecological interconnectivity and the potential for increased opportunities within the realm of scientific investigation. If someone has a link to the whole paper, please let us know. Otherwise you could email Jon (PRIVATELY please) and ask for a copy. I don't think we could add this to the wiki to download from there unless we had permission from the author. Message from Jon below. Mary Sue From: Jon Suzuki <jysuzuki@gmail.com> Dear Carolyn and Arnold, I also am interested in thermogenesis. I had a person from an infrared camera try to detect heat differences on tropical aroids. The particular ones I had tested did not show heat differences, but even plants that do produce heat usually produce it during a particular developmental time period. I was really interested in the heat produced by lotus blossoms. Keep on it and I think you might find something interesting. Someone sent me this on the "corpse flower" an example of the decaying meat flower per Arnold. Aloha Jon