Heliconiaceae
Heliconia Family
The Heliconiaceae family (Heliconia Family) is a botanical family placed in the order Zingiberales. In the SASYA catalogue it spans 3 species. Its members are predominantly herbs. Several members are valued in traditional medicine. Familiar examples include Expanded Lobsterclaw, Parakeet flower and Hanging Lobster Claw.
Browse all 3 species ↓
Large, banana-like paddle leaves on giant rhizomatous herbs; the true flowers are small and hidden inside stiff, brightly coloured, boat-shaped bracts stacked in a zigzag along an upright or pendulous spike — it is the bracts, not the petals, that give the plant its colour.
The waxy, brightly coloured bracts pool small amounts of rainwater and nectar inside their curled tips, specifically attracting hummingbirds as pollinators.
Which Heliconiaceae species is this?
Answer what you can see and narrow it down to a single Heliconiaceae species.
To check whether a plant belongs to Heliconiaceae, compare the leaf arrangement, leaf type, flower symmetry, fruit type, and one distinctive marker together. A single feature can mislead; the family pattern is the combination.
Learn the full family-identification methodTypical leaf characters
- ArrangementVariable
TypeSimple- MarginVariable
- VenationVariable
Characters typical of the family — individual species can vary.
Typical flower & fruit
- Flower symmetryVariable
- InflorescencePanicle
- FruitVariable
Typical of the family — flowering plants only; species can vary.
Notable members
Families that can look similar
Zingiberaceae
Compare against Zingiberaceae when the plant shares similar leaves, flowers, or fruit. Confirm by checking the full family pattern.
Compare ZingiberaceaeCostaceae
Compare against Costaceae when the plant shares similar leaves, flowers, or fruit. Confirm by checking the full family pattern.
Compare CostaceaeMarantaceae
Compare against Marantaceae when the plant shares similar leaves, flowers, or fruit. Confirm by checking the full family pattern.
Compare MarantaceaeMusaceae
Compare against Musaceae when the plant shares similar leaves, flowers, or fruit. Confirm by checking the full family pattern.
Compare MusaceaeAll 3 species in HELICONIACEAE
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