Sighting Details


Frangipani

Last Updated Date and Time: 6 Dec 2018 12:13:03 PM
  • Frangipani

    Plumeria sp.

Recorded By: Beng Tang
Category: Trees
Date Spotted: 6 Dec 2018

Description:

From Wikipedia: Plumeria flowers are most fragrant at night in order to lure sphinx moths to pollinate them. The flowers yield no nectar, however, and simply trick their pollinators. Also in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, the plumeria is often associated with ghosts and cemeteries. Plumerias often are planted on burial grounds in all three nations. The plumeria's fragrance is also associated with the pontianak, an evil vampiric spirit of a dead mother in Malaysian-Indonesian folklore. In modern Polynesian culture, the flower can be worn by women to indicate their relationship status—over the right ear if seeking a relationship, and over the left if taken.