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Deanne Flouton

Massachusetts

Pancratium Maritimum, aka Sea Daffodil, Beach Spider Lily

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Art: Pancratium Maritimum, aka Sea Daffodil, Beach Spider Lily by Artist Deanne Flouton

Pancratium maritimum, or sea daffodil, is a species of Amaryllidaceae native to the Mediterranean region and south-western Europe. I found these in the sandy dunes of a Mediterranean beach where they were quite prolific. I took three stems with blooms and individually scanned them on a scanner bed, then arranged in layers in Photoshop to create the final composition. The photo was digitally retouched to eliminate unwanted "noise", spots and extraneous flower material for a cleaner look. Finally a textured background was created and added for contrast.

Known locally as "Beach Lilies" the fragrance of this "sea pancratium lily" is pervasive and can quickly fill a room when placed in a vase with water. Unfortunately, they are short lived in any environment as the blooms last only one day, but they are amazingly beautiful and delicate.

The images that follow show the lilies grouped along a path to the beach, a close up of the blooms, and an image taken from Wikipedia where more information on the species can be found.

The plant is pollinated by a hawk-moth named Agrius convolvuli. These insects visits the flower when the speed of the wind is under 2 m/s. When it's higher than that the moths does not visit the Pancratium. Even if the species is pollinated in an artificial way during windy weather the pollination is not effective. Another specific of the sand lily is that it is not receptive to its own pollen and the plant can recognize it. This flower can be only cross-pollinated.