Werauhia sanguinolenta: A Conspicuous Epiphytic Tank Bromeliad

Werauhia sanguinolenta is among the largest tank bromeliads in Central Panama. Although generally not very common in the Barro Colorado Island (BCI) forest, it is a highly conspicuous element of the epiphyte assemblages on the small-statured Annona glabra trees along the shoreline and has been the subject of more than a dozen studies on BCI. Werauhia sanguinolenta has a slow life history: it is very slow-growing, takes at least 10 years to reach reproductive size, and reproduces in alternate years when mature. The presence of a tank reduces exposure to drought stress but does not eliminate it; the tanks of small plants frequently fall dry even in the wet season, and all tanks fall dry at times during the dry season. This species also serves as an important resource for canopy-dwelling animals, both invertebrates and vertebrates.