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  Re: Araceae
From: "Dr. Tom Croat" tcroat at LEHMANN.MOBOT.ORG> on 2000.05.22 at 22:20:27(4612)
Chris:

It heats up through a process called "thermogenesis" which is
triggered by acetosalycitic acid. It may generate so much heat as to be
30? above air temperature and its purpose, so far as is known, is to
generate volatile compounds which in turn attract insects. In most
genera, including the Monstera you saw, this happens at dusk at which
time the large scarab beetle pollinators are actively flying. These
beetles visit the inflorescences of aroids to aggregate, have sex and eat
edible but unessential parts of the inflorescence (in the case of
Philodendron this is the sterile male flowers which contain nutrient-rich
lipids. The heat peak is timed precisely for this activity and may occur
on the following evening as well when the stamens are opening and they
are leaving, getting themselves covered with pollen in the process of
their departure. For the beetles it is just one long orgy!

Tom Croat

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