Orchidaceae tubers after detecting the plants underground by scent. Orchids have been used in traditional medicine in an effort to treat many diseases and ailments. They have been used as a source of herbal remedies in China since 2800 BC. "Gastrodia elata" is one of the three orchids listed in the earliest known Chinese Materia Medica ("Shennon bencaojing") (c. 100 AD). Theophrastus mentions orchids in his "Enquiry into Plants" (372–286 BC). Orchids have many associations with symbolic values. For example, the orchid is the City Flower of Shaoxing, China. "Cattleya mossiae" is the national Venezuelan flower, while "Cattleya trianae" is the
Flower constancy could require substantial investment and switching to other flower types or species could be inefficient and consequently non-adaptive. Concentrating and feeding on one particular flower type increases the insect’s efficiency to obtain nectar from that flower type with respect to other flower types that are available. The costly information hypothesis explains flower constancy based on the fact that insects stay constant and feed on a one flower type because they know they are obtaining a reliable reward: nectar. The insect therefore does not venture to feed on other flower types because it cannot predict the amount of nectar in other