By Dr. David Wartinbee, for the Redoubt Reporter
Photos courtesy of Dr. David Wartinbee. The light-colored pistil and stamens are set off by the rich brown petals of a chocolate lily.
A couple weeks back I was invited to join a number of fellow entomologists in an attempt to collect as many insect species as possible from selected areas within the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.
Each of us concentrated on those insects we know the best. For me that was the aquatic dipterans known aschironomids. The larvae develop in various aquatic habitats, become a pupa for a few days, and then emerge as an aerial adult. They look like miniature mosquitoes but the adults do not feed. As adults they simply mate, deposit eggs and die in about a week. While usually very small in size, they are extremely numerous. Due to their large numbers, they dominate most aquatic habitats and are a food source for many other animals in or around the stream, lake or pond.
At one point during our three days of insect collections, we were taking a break in a moist meadow beside a stream. I spotted a couple flowering chocolate lilies. They usually have two or more beautiful, brown-colored flowers with speckles of yellow or green on the petals. Their pistils (female flower parts) are usually light green and the stamens (male flower parts) are bright yellow. These light-colored reproductive parts are easily spotted since they contrast with the dark petals. The flowers are quite attractive and the name is easy to remember because of the milk-chocolate color.
These are quite interesting plants and worthy of a closer look. To begin with, unlike the typical compelling odor of garden flowers, or whatever odor the name chocolate lily might conjure up, these flowers produce a strong, unpleasant fragrance. It can be described as similar to rotting flesh or untreated sewage. Ugh!
While that may not be attractive to you and me, many flies find it irresistible. Flies are attracted to the flowers and are the all-important pollinators. Because of the putrid fragrance, chocolate lilies are also known as outhouse lilies or skunk lilies. They come by those names honestly.
Diverging for a moment, the idea of something other than a bee acting as a pollinator for a flower
The root bulbs of three chocolate lilies are seen here. The small divisions forming on the bottom are the reason for the common name, rice root.
may seem foreign to many of us. However, there are no native honeybees in Alaska, so flowering plants have to attract and take advantage of whatever insect pollinators are available. While there are a few solitary bees around, flies are the most abundant insects here, so they get called into service. If you spend a few minutes watching just about any wildflower, like a native lupine or prickly rose, you will find that there are a variety of flies visiting the flowers.
Chocolate lilies are also an important plant to know because of its root bulb. The bulb can be found a couple inches below the ground surface, and it is quite obvious. Somewhat like the shape of a small onion, the bulb has a couple sections. The deepest portion of this bulb is the newest growth and forms small, rice-grain-shaped nodules.
These bulbs are storage areas for starches and have been used by Native groups throughout the Northwest. These root bulbs can be gathered and used for a great source of carbohydrates. They can be eaten raw or dried for storage and later consumption. They can also be cooked and sometimes are mashed into a paste. The starchy nodules can have a slightly bitter taste, but when you are hungry, they will taste just fine.
These edible root bulbs and their shape are the reason for a couple additional common names, like Indian rice, Northern rice root and Eskimo potato. For the third time, the common names tell us something about the plant.
There are a number of species of Fritillary that are referred to as chocolate lilies in the Western United States and Canada. Those found in Alaska are probably Fritillaria camschatcensis, according to Verna Pratt’s book “Alaskan Wildflowers.”
Chocolate lilies seem to prefer moist meadows with rich soil. Personally, I seem to find them most often at slightly higher elevations, although they will grow at sea level, too. Even with lots of moisture and good soil, it can take as many as five years of growth before they actually produce flowers.
The next time you are walking through a local, natural meadow, look for these distinctive wildflowers. They add beauty to the area and can be a rich food source if needed. Right now they are easily found in the meadows of Turnagin Pass.
David Wartinbee, Ph.D, J.D., is a biology professor at Kenai Peninsula College’s Kenai River Campus. He is writing a series of columns on the ecology of the Kenai River and Cook Inlet watershed.
The Mouth of The Kenai 