Aardvark Cucumber

Also known as Aardvark Pumpkin

Aardvark cucumbers produce trailing vines that hug arid soils across southern and tropical Africa, flowering above ground before pushing pollinated female stems deep into the earth. The resulting subterranean melons develop completely underground, where they are protected from extreme heat, desiccation, and most surface herbivores. Survival hinges entirely on a remarkable mutualism with the aardvark, which digs up the water-rich melons and buries the seeds within nutrient-rich dung piles inside its excavations.