You are looking at a member of the genus Trichosanthes, blooming in one of south India’s Sholas – high altitude forests which “punctuate” cooler, wetter parts of the Western Ghats.
Circa 2000 metres above sea level, this vine was discreetly thriving in a very small, very special national park.
Eventually, Kerala’s Pampadum Shola National Park will have its own multi-image post.
(“Pampadum Shola” translates as “the forest where the snake dances”)
Trichosanthes is a genus within Cucurbitaceae – the cucumber family.
Photo is copyright Doug Spencer, taken at 12.54 pm on 26 February 2023.