national tree of Trinidad

This is the national tree of Trinidad, Warszewiczia coccinea, and it is found throughout the Neotropics. In the Butterfly Center, the showy flowering branches are often loaded with butterflies. 

The flowers themselves are dull orange and rather small, but each cluster is subtended by a brilliant red, paddle-shaped bract that catches the butterflies’ attention.  This tree is in the same family as coffee and gardenias.