What if this smelly Philippine flower was a pokemon

March 16, 2025

Last year I started drawing a unique species of flower (one of the largest in the world) into Pokémon. The flower genus I chose was Rafflesia, a group of flowers that have evolved to smell so bad they attract a crucial pollinator to help them reproduce: flies.

Julie Barcelona with open flower of Rafflesia leonardi from Rafflesia leonardi Barcelona & Pelser at parasiticplants-siu-edu — Rafflesia expert and botanist Julie Barcelona with an open flower of *Rafflesia leonardi.* From Rafflesia leonardi Barcelona & Pelser at parasiticplants.siu.edu.

If you’re a Pokémon fan (or know someone who is), you’re probably most familiar with Pikachu – the most popular and well-known character of the 1,000+ Pokemon “species”. I might have been able to make my own rendition of Pikachu into another Philippine animal, but in this case it would have been difficult to make a “Pikachu rafflesia.” Some Pokemon characters are indeed inspired by actual wildlife, and there is one directly inspired by rafflesia flowers.

Vileplume is a plant-inspired Pokemon with a Rafflesia-like flower on its head.

In the Pokemon universe, Vileplume releases clouds of toxic pollen when fighting and has red pedals with white spots or warts on it just like actual rafflesia flowers. Unfortunately I didn’t think it was as cute as other plant-inspired Pokémon, and therefore probably not as fun to draw for me. Luckily there was another Pokémon that looked fun to draw and was inspired by plants.

Bulbasaurs are another cute species of “pocket monsters”, known for garlic-shaped bulbs on their backs. Almost just as popular as Pikachu, the Bulbasaur seemed to be the best candidate for a fusion of children’s pop culture and Philippine botany for me. I replaced the garlic-shaped bulbs with actual species of plants from the Philippines: Rafflesia flowers.

An adorable Bulbasaur from the Pokemon franchise. From Pokemon.fandom.com.

Bulbasaur Rafflesiaa leonardi — “Rafflesaur” leonardi, found only in Luzon. The original rafflesia is named after the late Leonard Co, whom I wrote about in a previous post here.

There are 14 species of Rafflesia flowers in the Philippines. All of them are unique, or endemic, to the country. Not only that, most of them are unique to specific islands in the Philippines, meaning certain species can’t be found anywhere else in the world but on a particular island.

Rafflesiaceae of the Philippines by Raxenne Maniquiz UPDATED 2024 - 14 species — Map of Philippine rafflesia by artist Raxenne Maniquiz.

They also have a fascinating way of reproducing. Other flowering plants and trees typically attract bees and butterflies to help them get pollinated. Rafflesia, however, evolved an ability to smell and look a specific way to attract flies. Once at bloom, rafflesia release a smell similar to rotten flesh. They are also quite large with various shades of red with white spots, mimicking the size and appearance of dead animals in the forest.

Fly species on Rafflesia lagascae in Camarines Sur, by Julie F. Barcelona, 2007 via a study by IL Lit Jr. 2018 — Fly species on *Rafflesia lagascae* in Camarines Sur. Blue arrow points to a green bottle fly (*Lucilia fumicosta*), the black arrow to a flesh fly *Sarcophaga* sp. Photographs by Julie F. Barcelona, 2007 via a study by IL Lit Jr. 2018.

Once the flies find them, they crawl inside the flowers through a large hole botanists call “windows” or “apertures”. Inside the flower, the smell is at its peak, encouraging the flies to go where the pollen resides. The pollen sticks to them as they crawl around looking for a place to lay their eggs. This is what flies do when they’re attracted to decaying meat – they look for decomposing flesh to lay their eggs so that their babies (maggots) have food to grow. The flies continue on, moving from one rafflesia to the next, pollinating more flowers as they move through the forest. And the cycle continues.

Because of their restricted ranges, most, if not all Philippine rafflesia are in danger of being lost forever. When you have a flower species that can’t run or hide, looks and smells as wild as they do, in a country whose environmental standards look great on paper but not in practice, you have a formula for failure.

Rafflesia lobata bulbasaur — This “Rafflesaur” is inspired by one of my favorite rafflesia species: *Rafflesia lobata*. Mainly because it looks the funkiest.

A five-lobed flower of *Rafflesia lobata*. In Antique province, Panay Island. Photo by Renee Galang from Parasiticplants.siu.edu.

But after reading through a few studies, there are pockets of progress on the islands where rafflesia can be found. In some places, local communities in the form of Bantay Gubat or forest guards are taking part in protecting certain areas of forest, such as that on Panay Island. Communities put together festivals and activities to continue to raise awareness about these flowers. In doing so, they share their pride in local natural resources unique to their neighborhoods.

Buruyluganay Festival in Antique with rafflesia flowers portrayed - photo from Juesca Klesh on Facebook — Rafflesia flowers are depicted every year for Antique’s Buruyluganay Festival. Community-led conservation programs in Antique continue, as Panay is home to the “Big 5” species: Visayan Warty Pig, Visayan Spotted Deer, Panay Monitor Lizard, the Dulungan or Visayan Writhed-billed Hornbill, and last but not least – *Rafflesia speciosa*. Photo from Juesca Klesh on Facebook.

I have yet to see a Rafflesia flower in full bloom. I’ve seen a flower bud only once in my life. As we were exploring Mt. Napulak on the southern end of the Central Panay Mountain Range in Iloilo, our guide pointed us to a rafflesia bud on the ground.

Rafflesia speciosa bulb, Mt Napulak, Iloilo for web — A *Rafflesia speciosa* bud on Mt Napulak in Iloilo.

It had yet to bloom, and perhaps I should be thankful as I was able to avoid the smell. But that’s the beauty behind rafflesia. They’re not here for us; their existence relies on some of the most peculiar traits we find “ugly” or putrid. All they need is the forest and the flies that love them.

What we need are the forests they depend on too. Forests are ecosystems, or places where life and the physical environment together form connected relationships and sustain each other. The forest ecosystem is important because it delivers water to people, and absorbs carbon dioxide and helps control our climate. The Philippines is more than just white beaches – mountains found in the Cordillera, Sierra Madre, Central Panay, and other regions are ancient backdrops of Filipino history, culture, food, and more.

I hope one day to see an actual rafflesia, especially in an area where local ecotourism, awareness, and forest sustainability is strong and sound. Until then, I have 7 more “Rafflesaurs” to draw and enjoy for now.