World smelliest flower stolen from Germany’s botanical garden

BERLIN: In shocking news, the rare plant known as the corpse flower, the ‘world’s smelliest flower,‘ has been stolen from a German botanical garden, international reports say.

The heist of the unusual plant became a social media sensation after police were called upon to search for the missing specimen. The missing plant, “David,” weighed approximately 60 pounds and was stored in the Römber Botanical Garden. Its theft was discovered through a routine check by staff.

The plant, scientifically known as Amorphophallus titanum, is also known as the Titan Arum or “corpse flower” due to the pungent smell it releases when it flowers—a smell so pungent that it can permeate an entire city.

Standing at several feet high, the enormous flower resembles a plant in size and shape. Nonetheless, experts affirm it is, in fact, a flower because it is grown from a seed, develops into a bud, and experiences complete blooming.

Titan Arum is among the world’s rarest flowers, which bloom once in a few years and are open for only 24 hours. Only around 1,000 of these plants are estimated to be found around the globe.

Local officials are still pursuing their investigation to retrieve the stolen specimen, which is scientifically and ecologically valuable.