Hi B.A ,its a very nice Aechmea no matter what the name and i can't help you there ,what i don't understand is why your friend ( or anyone for that matter ) decides to be just a " Lurker " on the forum ,what joy is there in that pray ask your friend ? we wont bite anyone here ,and there is nothing like joining in with us all here ,get your friend to join up B.A , the more the merrier , Cheers ,Jack

I don't know that name, and sadly it has nothing to do with me, but it sure looks like a caudata hybrid to me. The other parent could be Ae. fulgens, or something along those lines.

I'd say it definately has Ae distachantha in it.

Okay, given the spiny leaf margins, I can see caudata x distichantha. I can't find any record of such a cross, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I checked the registry, though, and it says Melanocrater is a cv. of caudata. Nothing about a hybrid, but it still looks hybridy to me.

Hi Jack, my lurker friend had a chuckle at your comments! She enjoys reading the forum, but is tied up with a slow connection (due to availability in her area) and other duties via the internet. I am happy to post for her though. I know a couple of lurkers, and there are sure to be many more out there who don't feel the need to join or chat, probably because their needs are met by all the others that do comment and post. I quite often do searches and find my answers there, hence not too many questions.
I am sure she has read the answers here and found something useful to follow on with.
It is a lovely plant though.
BA

It looks like the disticantha X caudata Albo-marginata hybrid I have by Grant Grove. It is on Michael's Bromeliads list. I saw them at Grant's place a while back also. best Bob

Thanks Bob, our lurker friend is happy that you were able to confirm it looks like that particular hybrid. I don't suppose you'd have a picture?
BA

I don't have a picture with a bloom but as soon as it comes in I will post one. Best Bob