Gen info
- The species was first described in 1788 by Sir Joseph Banks.
- The specific epithet reginae means "of the queen", and commemorates the British queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, wife of George III.
- Strelitzia reginae is shown to be paraphyletic as S. juncea is genetically nested within it. It is possibly a mutation in the process of speciating. (3)
- Designated the official flower of the City of Los Angeles. (3) In 1952, it was declared LA's floral emblem by Mayor Fletcher Bowron to celebrate the city's 171st birthday. (3)

Botany
Bird-of-paradise is a perennial plant growing to a height of 2 meters. Leaves are large, up to 70 centimeters long and 30 centimeters wide on petioles up to 1 meter long. Leaves are evergreen, arranged in two ranks in a fan-shaped crown. Flowers stand above the foliage at the tips of long stalks. The spathe from which the flower emerges is perpendicular to the stem giving the appearance of a bird's head and beak. Flowers are showy with three brilliant orange sepals and three purple or blue petals. S. Seeds with black with vivid orange arils. (3) (8)

Distribution
- Native to South Africa.
- Widely naturalized globally as an ornamental plant.

Constituents
- Phytochemical analysis of rhizomes of S. reginae isolated an unusual new (1) and four known phenalenone-type compounds. (5)
- Delphinidin-3-rutinoside (used for color) has been isolated from the petals and proanthoncyanidin polymers (flavonoids, antioxidants) from the leaves. 
- Floral pigments include carotenoids and the anthocyanin-3-rutinoside. Study have shown bilirubin is the primary aril pigment and is also present in low concentrations in the sepals. (8)

Parts used
Roots, infloresence.

Uses
Folkloric
- No known folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines.
- In South African traditional medicine used for treatment of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The Zulus use decoction of crushed roots used to relieve symptoms of STDs.. Strained decoctions from inflorescnece used to treat inflamed glands and venereal diseases. Seeds used to sour milk. (3) (5)

Studies
• Flower Nectar: Study of nectar of Strelitzia reginae using enzymatic methods yielded glucose,, fructose, and sucrose. The sugar composition changed considerably over the nectar producing period, with increase in glucose (51%) and fructose (32%) between early and middle stage of secretion, and a 13 and 24$ decrease, respectively, towards the end. (4)
• Pigments / Bilirubin: Floral pigments include carotenoids and anthocyanin delphinidin-3-rutinoside. Study discovered bilirubin in the arils of S. nicolai. HPLC and HPLC/electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry show that bilirubin is the primary aril pigment and is also present in low concentrations in its sepals (less than 44.0 ng/g.(8)

Availability
- Wild-crafted.
- Ornamental cultivation.
- Seeds in the cybermarket.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Strellitzia reginae / Synonyms / The Plant List
(2)
Strelitzia / Wkipedia
(3)
Strlitzia reginae / Wikipedia
(4)
The nectar of the Strelitzia reginae flower  / Eva C Kronestedt-Robards, Maria Greger, Anthony W Robards / Physiologia Plantarum, 77(3) / https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1399-3054.1989.tb05651.x
(5)
Phenalenones from Strelitzia reginae / Holscher D, Schneider B / Journal of Nat Prod., July 2000; 63(7): pp 1027-1028 / PMID:10924194 / DOI: 10.1021/np000035c
(6)
Strelitzia reginae / Liesl van der Walt, Phakamani Xaba / PlantZAfrica
(7)
Official Flower of LA / Chris Nichols
(8)
The Animal Pigment Bilirubin Identified in Strelitzia reginae, the Bird of Paradise Flower / Cary Pirone, Jodie V Johnson, J Martin E Quirk et al / Hort Science, 45(9): pp 1411-1415 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI.45.9.1411

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