Are the red parts of a pointsettia plant leaves or petals? and Bencomia sphaerocarpa #1

Are the red parts of a pointsettia plant leaves or petals?

The red petals/leaves look exactly like the green leaves, except red. And also, the green leaves always fall and the red petals/leaves linger for a lot longer, even if the bottom half of the pointsettia is bare. So what exactly is the red part--leaves or petals?
Sorry if this seems demanding (and if I sound like a teacher) but can answerers explain their reasoning? Tehe thanks!
Also, what makes them red? (Chlorophyll=green, ????=red?) :]
ohh...poinsettie, not "pointsettia..." heheheaa and I thought i DESERVED winning the spelling bee! obviously not! XD
darn..spelled it wrong again. but this time it was a typo.


inflorescence best answer:

Answer by Betty S
leaves

inflorescence

Bencomia sphaerocarpa #1


Best viewed @ large size

Rosaceae - Endemic to El Hierro Island, Canary Islands (Spain); critically endangered

Bencomia

Shown: Inflorescences (in bud) emerging from pinnately compound foliage

"Bencomia is a genus of four rare plant species native to the Canary Islands, which grow as woody, branching shrubs with glossy, evergreen leaves and central, pendulous inflorescences with small flowers followed by densely packed, globular fruits. Mature heights range from 1 to 4 meters." (Wikipedia)

Named for Bencomi, the last King of Tenerife

"Bencomia sphaerocarpa is endemic to the island of El Hierro, Canary Islands, Spain (Martín Osorio et al. 2004), where it can be found on the northern side of the island, from 400 to 1,200 m asl, in three locations: Tinco, Hoya de Fileba and Tábano. Only one of them shows an acceptable degree of conservation. The presence of the species in the island of La Palma has been reported in the past, but it has not been recently confirmed.
The area of occupancy of the species has been calculated to be between 0.75 and 3 km2. Decreasing trends have been reported for the distribution of the species (Gobierno de Canarias 2004)." (eol.org/pages/636121/overview)

ICUN Red List of Threatened Species complete article:
www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/162117/0

My set of images of Bencomia sphaerocarpa:
www.flickr.com/photos/jim-sf/sets/72157630348339302/


Photographed in U.C. Botanical Garden at Berkeley - Berkeley, California

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