Family: Orchid [Orchidaceae] |
Anacamptis |
Calypso |
Cephalanthera |
Coeloglossum |
Corallorhiza |
Cypripedium |
Dactylorhiza |
Epipogium |
Epipactis |
Goodyera |
Gymnadenia |
Hammarbya |
Herminium |
Himantoglossum |
Liparis |
Neotinea |
Neottia |
Ophrys |
Orchis |
Platanthera |
Pseudorchis |
Serapias |
Spiranthes |
Non-natives |
Some species of orchid are highly specific, able to use just one particular fungus (such as orchids belonging to the Spirantes, Goodyera and Liparis genera), but most are not really that bothered and can utilise many species of fungi, sometimes many more than one at once. Those orchids that are dependent upon just one fungus are usually rare, because they simply will not grow without that one fungus, Burnt-tip Orchid being a good example. Most orchids can also photosynthesize once above ground; for many have green leaves containing chlorophyll (the normally essential compound which makes leaves green and which is required for photosynthesis), but still continue to supplement their needs with the aid of fungal hyphae. But there are a few orchids which are totally dependent upon the fungus even when the aerial parts are extant, such as Coralroot Orchid, Ghost Orchid, Bird's-nest Orchid and Yellow Bird's-nest Orchid, since they lack chlorophyll altogether. The latter orchids are thus fully saprophytic, or, to be more accurate, myco-heterotrophic.
The orchids have a cunning plan to attract wasps to pollinate them. Whilst bees are attracted to flowers for their sweet nectar, wasps are attracted to Orchids by the same volatile chemicals that normal flowers emit when under attack from caterpillars. But there are no caterpillars attacking the Orchids; they are producing these chemicals on their own bat to attract wasps. The wasps proceed to sip the nectar from Orchids which contain sleep inducing agents, possibly alcohol and other secondary metabolites. In the process the wasps might inevitably pick up pollen and transfer it to other similar orchids for fertilisation. [Another source has it that the orchids emit a pheromone mimicing that from fertile female insects, to which the newby male insects are attracted and try to make love with the orchid flower, in the process getting orchid pollen on their backs to transfer to the next orchid. The older males can sometimes figure out that the 'mating' was fake and avoid visiting the flowers next encounter, but newby males fall for the trick]. So take your pick. Both mechanisms might be in use. Without inebriated wasp pollinators the orchids may become extinct. But the wasps are disadvantaged also; either by ejaculating all their sperm into orchids or by being unable to find a real mate amongst all the orchids. However (in Australia - your Author knows not for other lands) the wasps who visit these flowers are haplodiploid species, where the wasp offspring produced by sexual unions are all female, but where females can also produce male wasps asexually without intercourse.
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[CYPRIPEDIUM] Lady's-slipper
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Lady's-Slipper Orchid (Cypripedium calceolus). | Photo: © Roger Hewitt |
[ANACAMPTIS] Pyramidal Orchids
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[Anacamptis] PYRAMIDAL ORCHID HYBRID CHART |
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In addition to the above hybrid, Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis)
also hybridizes with Fragrant Orchid sens. lat.(Gymnanadenia conopsea)
which is from a differing Genus. In the above chart it is shown in a green square (which is on the forbidden diagonal because it doesn't hybridize with another Anacamptis species).
The resulting hybrid, X Gymnanacamptis anacamptis (Anacamptis pyramidalis x Gymnadenia conopsea) is therefore an inter-Genus hybrid, and cannot be shown on the above chart. That being said, it hasn't been seen in the England since AD2000, but is found in one hectad square on the coastline of Northern Ireland.
Another cross-genus hybrid is that between Green-winged Orchid (Anacamptis morio) and Early-purple Orchid (Orchis mascula) which is from a differing genera (although both are in the same family). The resulting cross is called X Anacamptorchis morioides. It too is shown in a green square on the forbidden diagonal. There are thus no species belonging to the Anacaptis Genus which do not (at the moment) hybridize (with something). |
All UK species hybridize, there are no UK species lacking hybrids. |
Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis). | Photo: © RWD |
Green-Winged Orchid (Anacamptis morio) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Loose-Flowered Orchid (Anacamptis laxiflora) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[GYMNADENIA] Fragrant-Orchids
All three species of Fragrant Orchid have a great propensity for their so-called 'identifying features' to overlap so much that quite often it is impossible to separate the three species. The identifying books don't help much either for there are at least 6 ID guides to separating the three species, but often they also disagree on which features are better for identifying them. The only fool-proof reliable way of identifying them for certain is by DNA analysis, whereupon the delineation between the three is clear-cut (it is by this means that the 3 species were split from just one species with 3 sub-species in the first place). But hardly anyone has a DNA analyser, let alone an affordable lightweight portable one for use in the field and even if they had, most plants have not yet been scanned or added to the DNA database (as far as your Author understands - as of March 2019). Fragrant Orchids are possibly the hardest flowers to reliably and accurately identify in the field, and there are some that cannot. If any reader thinks I have mis-identified any, please let me know which one(s) and what their real identities are - or if it is one of those unidentifiables and just needs deleting (then I'll go and dig it up :-). Some experts say that the 3 species don't flower at the same time, but others say that you cannot rely on this! Most of the 3 Fragrant Orchids don't grow together anyway, some areas have only one species, some two (as in Nob End) and a few (Waitby Greenriggs) all three species, but not usually all flowering at the same time. But a Fragrant Orchids itself, counting the 3 as just one, is easily identified as a Fragrant Orchid, the trouble only comes when trying to determine which one... To pour confusion on top of confusion, all three Fragrant Orchids can occasionally form inter-genera hybrids with orchids from differing genera, usually from the Dactylorhiza family but Conopsea species singly with either the Anacamptis genera or the Coeloglossum genera. Intergenera hybrids should not really occur if the taxonomy is correct, intergenera hybrids usually indicate that the taxonomy is wrong, but in the case of Orchids, this taxonomy will never be sorted out, there are other unseen players on the field: their fungal partners. |
[Gymnadenia] FRAGRANT ORCHIDS HYBRID CHART |
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The Gymnadenia genus exhibits no same-genus hybrids, but has three inter-genus hybrids.
The first is between Chalk Fragrant-orchid (aka Common Fragrant-orchid) (Gymnadenia conopsia) and Small-white Orchid (Pseudorchis albida), the hybrid has no other name other than Pseudoorchis albida x Gymnadenia borealis.
Two others occupy the same green square, for both are hybrids with Heath Fragrant-Orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea): |
Gymnadenia SPECIES LACKING HYBRIDS | ||||
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Chalk Fragrant-Orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea) | Photo: © RWD |
Marsh Fragrant-Orchid (Gymnadenia densiflora) | Photo: © RWD |
[DACTYLORHIZA] Marsh-Orchids
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OTHER EARLY MARSH-ORCHIDS (which may be involved in hybridization above) |
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Common Spotted-Orchid. (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) | Photo: © RWD |
Heath Spotted-Orchid (Dactylorhiza maculata ssp. ericetorum) | Photo: © Celia Lewis |
Early Marsh-Orchid sub-species pulchella. (Dactylorhiza incarnata)) |
Photo: © RWD |
Northern Marsh-Orchid. (Dactylorhiza purpurella ssp. majaliformis) |
Photo: © RWD |
Southern Marsh-Orchid. (Dactylorhiza praetermissa) | Photo: © RWD |
[NEOTTIA] (formerly LISTERA) Twayblades
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Bird's-Nest Orchid (Neottia nidus-avis) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Common Twayblade (Neottia ovata). | Photo: © RWD |
[CORALLORHIZA] Coralroot Orchid
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Coralroot Orchid (Corallorhiza trifida) | Photo: © Simon Melville |
[HAMMARBYA] Bog Orchid
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Bog Orchid (Hammarbya paludosa) | Photo: © Simon Melville |
[HERMINIUM] Orchids
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Musk Orchid (Herminium monorchis) | Photo: © Dawn Nelson |
[ORCHIS] Orchids
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[Orchis] LADY ORCHID HYBRID CHART |
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Orchis anthropophera was formerly in another genus, Aceras and was then called Aceras anthropopherus (note the subtle change in the name ending too), but has since been moved into the Orchis Genus, where its hybrid with Monkey Orchid (Orchis simia) no longer makes it an inter-genera hybrid.
There is, however, another Orchis species that does indeed cross hybridize with another Genus, that of Orchis mascula (Early-Purple Orchid) which crosses with Anacamptis morio (Green-winged Orchid) to produce the cross-genus hybrid X Anacamptorchis moroides. This hybrid is shown in a green square, occupying a position on the forbidden diagonal of the chart which is just a convenient place to put it. |
Orchis SPECIES LACKING HYBRIDS | ||
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Early-Purple Orchid. (Orchis mascula) | Photo: © RWD |
Man Orchid (Orchis anthropophora) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
Military Orchid (Orchis militaris) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
Monkey Orchid (Orchis simia) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
[OPHRYS] Bee Orchids
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[Ophrys] BEE ORCHID HYBRID CHART |
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All UK species hybridize, there are no UK species lacking hybrids. |
Bee Orchid. (Ophrys apifera) | Photo: © Roger Foden |
Wasp Orchid (Ophrys apifera var. trollii) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
Fly Orchid (Ophrys insectifera) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Early Spider-Orchid (Ophrys sphegodes) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
[EPIPACTIS] Helleborines
The Helleborines are in two genera, the Cephalanthera, and the Epipactis, the main difference between the two being that Cephalanthera species have flowers that do not fully open so the un-spurred lip is often hidden whereas the un-spurred lips of Epipactis species are easily visible. Helleborines grow only in dark bare places usually at the edges of woodland, for only here can they survive. But with little photosynthesis to be had in a deciduous woodland, they also rely on underground fungi to help them with essential nutrients. |
[Epipactis] HELLEBORINE HYBRID CHART |
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Epipactis SPECIES LACKING HYBRIDS | ||||||||||
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Marsh Helleborine (Epipactis palustris) | Photo: © RWD |
Broad-Leaved Helleborine (Epipactis helleborine) | Photo: © Roger Foden |
Dark-Red Helleborine (Epipactis atrorubens) | Photo: © Jim Barton |
Tyne Helleborine (Epipactis dunensis ssp. tynensis) | Photo: © Jim Barton |
Dune Helleborine (Epipactis dunensis ssp. dunensis) | Photo: © Ian Howarth |
Violet Helleborine (Epipactis purpurata) | Photo: © Simon Melville |
Narrow-lipped Helleborine (Epipactis leptochila) | Photo: © Ian Howarth |
[CEPHALANTHERA] Helleborines
The Helleborines are in two genera, this the Cephalanthera, and the Epipactis, the main difference between the two being that Cephalanthera species have flowers that do not fully open so the un-spurred lip is often hidden.
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White Helleborine (Cephalanthera damasonium) | Photo: © Barney Case |
Narrow-Leaved Helleborine (Cephalanthera longifolia) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
Red Helleborine (Cephalanthera rubra) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
[SPIRANTHES] Lady's-Tresses
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Autumn Lady's-Tresses (Spiranthes spiralis) | Photo: © Rupert Browning |
Irish Lady's-Tresses (Spiranthes romanzoffiana) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[PSEUDORCHIS] Small-White Orchid
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Small-White Orchid (Pseudorchis albida) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[PLATANTHERA] Butterfly-Orchids
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Greater Butterfly-Orchid (Platanthera chlorantha) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Lesser Butterfly-Orchid (Platanthera bifolia) | Photo: © RWD |
[NEOTINEA] Twayblades
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Dense-Flowered Orchid (Neotinea maculata) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Burnt-Tip Orchid (Neotinea ustulata) | Photo: © Paul Bishop |
[COELOGLOSSUM] Frog Orchid
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Frog Orchid (Coeloglossum viride) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[GOODYERA] Creeping Lady's-Tresses
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Creeping Lady's-Tresses (Goodyera repens) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[CALYPSO] Calypso Orchids
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Calypso Orchid (Calypso bulbosa) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
Lady Orchid (Orchis purpurea) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
[HIMANTOGLOSSUM] Lizard Orchid
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Lizard Orchid (Himantoglossum hircinum) | Photo: © Phil And Ann Farrer |
NON-NATIVE ORCHIDS
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[LIMODORUM] Limodores
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Violet Limodore (Limodorum abortivum) | Photo: © Kelly Finney |
[SERAPIAS] Tongue-Orchids
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Tongue-Orchid (Serapias lingua) | Photo: © Hester Coley |
Family: Orchid [Orchidaceae] |