Colossal Blossom: Charles Davis Studies Rafflesia's Peculiar Genetics

February 22, 2017
Charles Davis by Stu Rosner

Charles Davis first encountered the Rafflesia arnoldii flower in a small village in northern Borneo while studying the region's plant diversity. Many years later, Davis, Director of the Harvard University Herbaria and Curator of Vascular Plants, continues his research on the mysterious, beautiful bloom that attracts flies with its surprising scent of rotting meat. Davis's research is featured in the current issue of Harvard Magazine.