About Triphysaria pusilla (Benth.) T.I.Chuang & Heckard
Triphysaria pusilla is an annual herb that grows a hairy, brownish or purple multi-branched stem, reaching a maximum height of around 20 centimeters. Like many species in its family, it is a facultative hemiparasite of other plants; it attaches to host roots using haustoria to draw in nutrients and water. Its leaves may appear greenish, red, or purple due to anthocyanin pigments produced by the plant. The leaves grow up to 3 centimeters long and are divided into a small number of narrow, pointed lobes. The plant produces an inflorescence in the form of a spike holding many tiny, tubular flowers. Each flower has a beak-like upper lip that is yellow or purple, and a wider lower lip split into three tiny yellow or purple pouches. To boost the likelihood of cross-pollination, only three flowers mature on an individual plant at any given time during the flowering season. Two of these three mature flowers develop their anthers first, while the third matures its stigma. It is hypothesized that ants are the preferred pollinators of this species.
