Stats

Lifespan: Perennial
Size: Small
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Freshwater wetland
Range: North America
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Seeds
Defense: Toxins
Status: Common

About

Eastern Skunk Cabbage is one of the few plants capable of thermogenesis, generating enough heat to melt through snow and bloom in late winter while temperatures outside hover near freezing. Its mottled purple-and-green hooded spathe emits a skunk-like odour to lure carrion flies as early pollinators.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Alismatales
Family: Araceae
Genus: Symplocarpus
Species: Symplocarpus foetidus