The world's largest flower can grow as wide as a hula hoop and smells like rotting meat.

The Rafflesia arnoldii was first found in the rainforests of Indonesia in 1818. It is a record-breaker that can grow over 3 feet (1 meter) wide and weigh as much as a 2-year-old child (about 24 pounds or 11 kilograms). Because it has no green leaves, it cannot make its own food from sunlight like other plants. Instead, it steals all its energy and water from a specific type of vine.The plant spends most of its life hidden inside the vine as tiny threads. When it is ready to bloom, a bud that looks like a giant cabbage pushes through the vine's bark. It takes about nine months for this bud to finally open up. Once it opens, the flower releases a powerful stink of decaying flesh to trick flies into visiting it. These flies carry pollen from one flower to another to help the plant make seeds.The bloom only lasts for 5 to 7 days before it turns into a black, slimy mess. Because these flowers are either male or female, two flowers of the opposite sex must bloom at the exact same time and place for seeds to grow. This makes them very rare. Today, they are protected because the rainforests where they live in Sumatra and Borneo are disappearing.