Passion flower at the Chocón Machacas river

Reino:	Plantae
División:	Magnoliophyta
Clase:	Magnoliopsida
Orden:	Malpighiales
Familia:	Passifloraceae
Género:	Passiflora
Subgénero:	Passiflora
Especie:	Passiflora biflora LAM.

At the beginning of the Río Chocón Machacas we find a very curious vine with small flowers it was a Passion flower.

Botanical characteristics of the flower: Its colors seem colored with watercolor. Its strains are green, petals white with purple, filaments are yellow, the androgynophor is green and the anthers come out of it, followed by the ovary and to finish their stigmas. This flower was observed by our boatman Cornelio Macz, who accompanied us on the September expedition.

Plant etymology: Passiflora was the generic name adopted by Linnaeus in 1753 and means "passion flower". Derived from the Latin passio which means "passion" and flos which means "flower". This was granted by the Jesuit missionaries in 1610, due to the similarity of some parts of the plant with religious symbols of the Passion of Christ, the whip with which he was beaten being the tendrils, the three nails represented by the styles; stamens and radial corolla being the crown of thorns. It receives the epithet ‘’ biflora’’ derived from the Latin meaning "with two flowers."

In Guatemala you can find 62 species of the Passiflora genus, the 10% are endemic from the country. The areas with the greatest diversity are those that oscillate between 1000-2000 masl in the following departments: Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, San Marcos, Quetzaltenango, Chiquimula, Guatemala and Sololá. Some of these species are vulnerable, so it’s important to continue with conservation efforts and support the natural reserves we have (De Macvean & Macdougal, 2012). They are important for the economy since some species are edible, other have medicinal properties and they are also valuable as ornamental flowers because of their beauty.