Allotropa virgata is in the family Ericaceae and is the only species of the genus Allotropa. It is a perennial plant that gets its common names from the distinct white and red or maroon stripes along its erect peduncle. It is a non-green plant, as it lacks chlorophyll, instead obtaining nutrition from neighboring green plants through a fungal intermediate.

Its common names include sugarstick, candystriped allotropa and barber's pole.

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