Protea longifolia waiting to be copied

The fluffy awns on the Protea longifolia perianth buds, the still closed individual florets, vary dramatically in length. The innermost ones are the longest, up to 5,5 cm. Awn fluffiness is caused by the presence of soft hairs (trichomes) growing upon them, like hairs upon bristles. White at the base, black at the tips of only the longer awns nearer the centre of the flowerhead, the longest ones tend to cohere, forming a central cone-shape in any one of several trendy ways.

The way things are, the Springbok rugby team may someday take the field against the All Blacks with a flyhalf sporting a hairdo like this. It may prove a potent antidote against the haka when enhanced by a Naas Botha-style posture dance resembling a tackle (Manning, 2007; Bean and Johns, 2005; Rebelo, 1995; Rourke, 1980; iNaturalist).