John pauses with his cursor over a photo of a dark yellow flower. He seems to be debating whether to say something. "I call this one the penis orchid," he admits.
I see it. The Coryanthes bears a bulbous, upright projection, behind which is a bucket-shaped area filled with fluid. Male euglossine bees tumble into the bucket while trying to collect the orchid's fragrance, which they use like a cologne to make themselves more attractive to females. As a male bee repeatedly falls into and crawls back out of these buckets, he unwittingly pollinates the flowers.
It's a great story, but the flower's endowment might be distracting to the middle- and high-schoolers who read the magazine I edit. "Yeah," I tell him, "my photo editor will never let that fly."
I'm visiting my friend John Osterhagen to research an article for kids about orchids. John works for an insurance company ...
