Holothrix secunda flower mouth

Seen from the front, a Holothrix secunda flower shows its open mouth, the pair of lateral petals above and the five dancing lip lobes below. All seven are fleshy and white, not so much near their tips.

The sepals are insignificant in this Holothrix, adhering to the outside of the flower body behind the pointy petal and lip protrusions. Inside the mouth some red-brown is visible, probably the anther thecae or pollen sac membranes.

The back end of the flower (visible in picture at the bottom right), shows the stout, down-curving ovary, subtended by an up-curving green bract with pointed tip (Liltved and Johnson, 2012; Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; iNaturalist).