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Malvaviscus arboreus - Sleepy Mallow

Family: Malvaceae

Sleepy Mallows get their common name from the petals which never open fully, hence, they appear lazy or sleepy. This unusual conformation of the petals is certainly an adaptation for hummingbird pollination. To reach the nectar at the base of the flowers, a visiting hummer must probe parallel to the staminal column, picking up pollen from the anthers of one and depositing it on stigmas of another. Sleepy Mallows occur from Mexico to Peru and Brazil and wherever they occur, they are usually good spots to stake out for sighting the hummingbirds of the area.

Although the flowers of Malvaviscus seem to remain partially closed, even at anthesis, they still illustrate several featurestypical of the Malvaceae: the true calyx (sepals) is associated with an epicalyx (bracts), and the filaments are united (monadelphous) into a tube that surrounds the style, and the 5-carpellate gynoecium is revealed by the 5 fuzzy, globose stigmas. The foliage is convenient source for viewing stellate hairs.