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Shrimp Flower

This is one of the many tropical plants that grow in the new Enmax Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Quite a delicate looking flower and easy to miss.

"Justicia brandegeeana (Mexican Shrimp Plant or Shrimp Plant; syn. Beloperone guttata Brandeg.) is an evergreen perennial shrub in the genus Justicia, native to Mexico.

It grows to 1 m tall (rarely more) with spindly limbs. The leaves are oval, green, 3-7.5 cm long. The flowers are white, extending from red bracts which look a bit like a shrimp, hence the shrub's common name, shrimp flower.

The species is named after the American botanist Townshend Stith Brandegee (1843-1925); the scientific name is commonly seen mis-spelled "brandegeana". From Wikipedia.
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