Monsonia crassicaulis sepals but no petals

Late in its life a Monsonia crassicaulis flower still retains the boat-shaped, spreading sepals around the erect, male and female floral parts. The decorative corolla was the first to be lost from the flower. The fleshy protrusions at the sepal tips that were present during the bud stage are still conspicuous in picture.

The anthers are now whitish like the filaments, cohering in groups of unequal length. The five stigmas on the style are no longer a dominant floral feature.

Still, the ants find something worth eating here (Van Rooyen and Van Rooyen, 2019; Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Le Roux, et al, 2005; iNaturalist).