SF’s Brand New Rare Stinky “Corpse Flower” is Blooming!

Submitted by the Event Organizer

Thanks to KRON4 for sharing the news about this brand new corpse flower from SF’s California Academy of Sciences!

Hold your breath! California Academy of Sciences’ well-known stinky corpse flower is about to open up its first bloom. This huge flower will open up in the museum’s greenhouse, Osher Rainforest, sometime between Sunday, Feb. 25 and Thursday, Feb. 29. And that means it’s going to start smelling like rotting flesh. Nice!

Stinky Bloom Updates – February 2024

• 2/27/24, 4:13p – the bloom is opening! See the latest on youtube
• 2/27/24, 12:18p – No bloom yet! We’ll keep checking.
• 2/26/24, 4:11p – No bloom yet! But @calacademy of giving frequent updates “keep an eye out for updates on Mirage in the next couple of days… it’s about to bloom!”
• 2/26/24, 8:36a – No bloom yet! But it should be coming any day now. Typically it blooms in the afternoon.

Follow @calacademy for updates or calacademy.org

Introducing Mirage, our first corpse flower! Mirage has been quietly growing and storing energy in the Osher Rainforest for the last 5 years — and now it’s almost ready to bloom. Corpse flowers (Amorphophallus titanum) are an endangered species of large, slow-growing plants endemic to Indonesia. The blooms can reach up to 10 feet in height, and produce a foul odor that attracts the carrion beetles and flies they rely on for pollination. This bloom is anticipated to unfurl between Feb. 25 and 29.

Learn more about Mirage in our blog post here. Please note that in order to provide the appropriate hours of darkness for the health and well-being of our animals, the lighting in the Rainforest habitat turns off at 8 PM each evening.

When will it bloom and where can I see it?
We anticipate Mirage will bloom between Sunday, February 25, and Thursday, February 29. The bloom typically begins in the afternoon and lasts 1-3 days.

Mirage is currently on exhibit in Osher Rainforest, which opens at 10 am Monday-Saturday, and 11 am on Sundays. Last entry is at 4:30 pm daily. Lines can be quite long, so we recommend buying admission tickets in advance and arriving early.

Want to see it but not smell it? Stream our corpse flower cam!

Tickets for Sunday are $46.75 for adults. Please note prices are variable and can change based on demand.

Ticket Discounts

• Plan-ahead Pricing: Tickets purchased by at least midnight prior to the visit date will always be less expensive than tickets purchased on the day of your visit. On average, guests who purchase at least three days in advance save $3-5 per ticket or more—and the further in advance you buy, the more you are likely to save! Learn more
• Discounted $3 tickets for EBT/CalFresh, WIC, Lifeline Pass, and Medi-Cal cardholders available at the ticket window only.
• Sustainable transportation discount: Get $3 off Daytime Admission when you walk, bike, or take public transit to the Academy. View our Getting Here page to plan your trip. Only available at ticket window.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by California Academy of Sciences (@calacademy)

Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.