I was out for several hours with members of our local orchid society visiting some of the sites we know on Whidbey and Fidalgo Islandz. We found three different species and number of rarities including white Fairy Slippers (Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis fma. nivea) and both the golden-stemmed and the unspotted form of the Western Spotted Coralroot (Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis fma. aurea and fma. immaculata). We also found the dark purple form of the Western Coralroot or Merten's Coralroot (Corallorhiza mertensiana), a form which we know from only one location (this species usually comes in shades of pink, tan, yellow and white). The Fairy Slippers were nearly finished but the Coralroots were just coming to the peak of their bloom season. Interestingly, the Fairy Slippers and Western Spotted Coralroots were fewer in number than previous years but the Western Coralroots were much more abundant.
Western Coralroot
Corallorhiza mertensiana
Western Spotted Coralroot
Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis
gold-stemmed Western Spotted Coralroot
Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis fma. aurea
unspotted Western Spotted Coralroot
Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis fma. immaculata
Western Fairy Slipper
Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis
white Western Fairy Slipper
Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis fma. nivea