For most of the year, the forest floor keeps its secret. Beneath fallen leaves, a tiny plant waits without sunlight, relying on underground fungi for food. Then, briefly, a dark flower pushes into view — black, horned, and marked with fiery orange.
Botanists surveying a national park in western Thailand have introduced that strange flower to science. Named Thismia daemona, or the “devil flower,” the new species looks plucked from a fantasy story. The findings, published in PhytoKeys, raise Thailand’s known number of Thismia species to 16.
“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,” said Sahut Chantanaorrapint in a press release.
Devil Flower Discovered High in a Thai National Park
Researchers encountered the plant while surveying Thong Pha Phum National Park. It was growing in a seasonal montane evergreen forest nearly 3,300 feet (1,000 meters) above sea level, which was an unexpected location for its genus.
Thismia daemona in its natural habitat.
(Image Credit: Sahut Chantanaorrapint/ CC BY)
“Finding Thismia daemona in Thong Pha Phum National Park was indeed a major surprise. Typically, Thismia species are known to occur in perennially humid lowland rainforests; however, this population was discovered in a seasonal, montane evergreen forest at an elevation of nearly 1,000 meters above sea level,” explained Chantanaorrapint.
Explore All OptionsThe location expands more than one species’ known territory. T. daemona belongs to Thismia section Geomitra, previously recorded only in Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, and Sumatra. The discovery pushes the group’s recognized range northward for the first time.
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What Thailand’s New Devil Flower Looks Like
Members of Thismia, nicknamed “fairy lanterns,” lack chlorophyll and cannot photosynthesize. Instead, these mycoheterotrophic plants obtain nutrients through underground fungi and remain concealed beneath leaf litter for nearly all their lives.
When T. daemona emerges, it makes an entrance. Its mostly black flower has horn-like projections above a dome-shaped “mitre.” Reddish-orange patches around the base resemble glowing demonic eyes.
Along with its appearance, molecular evidence confirmed it as a species new to science.
A Critically Endangered Flower With an Uncertain Future
This is the only known population of T. daemona, with fewer than 50 plants occupying a patch smaller than a soccer field. It has been assessed as Critically Endangered.
Thismia daemona.
(Image Credit: Tosak Seelanan/CC BY)
Although it lives inside a protected national park, tourism could disturb its tiny microhabitat. Researchers say local communities should have a meaningful role in protecting it.
“A key next step is adopting a sustainable conservation approach aligned with the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere concept, harmonizing biodiversity conservation with human engagement. Inspiring local people to take pride in their natural heritage not only safeguards the microhabitat, but also supports sustainable, community-led ecotourism,” concluded Chantanaorrapint.
For a plant that spends most of its existence hidden, being found is both a scientific breakthrough and the beginning of a delicate new chapter. Its survival may depend on ensuring that curiosity helps protect the forest rather than putting its habitat at risk.
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Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
- This article references information from a study published in PhytoKeys: Thismia daemona (Thismiaceae), a new species from Thailand supported by morphological and molecular evidence
