Well, to be fair they're actually classified as "Partially-Parasitic," but Wyoming's state flower known colloquially as the Indian Paintbrush of Prairie Fire is technically a parasite. Castilleja linariifolia (Say that three times fast) has been the State Flower of the Cowboy state since its adoption on January 31st, 2017.

I hope I'm not the only one that only sees the face-hugger from Alien when I look at the flower now.

The flower got its name from its appearance before blooming, it looks like a paintbrush dipped in red paint. The flower is stunning, but what you may not have known is that the flower can only survive by sucking nutrients from the roots of nearby plants. Wherever you see an Indian Paintbrush flower, you might also see the victims of its parasitic nature wilting nearby.

The Indian Paintbrush beat out rival flowers to become the Wyoming State Flower. Because, yes, there are rival flowers, apparently. And we're not surprised the Columbine and the fringed gentian didn't want to go toe-to-toe with a parasite.

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