Twenty-sixth Orchid of the Season and Others

The orchid featured in this post is the Alaskan Piperia, not a common orchid in our area, and in this case a rare dwarf form of the species, Platanthera or Piperia unalascensis fma. olympica.  The species can be as tall as 90 cm but in these are less than 30 cm and are found, as far as I know, only in one location, the top of Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park.

Platanthera unalascensis var. olympica

We caught them at the very end of their blooming season, though that was very early this year due our early spring and very hot, dry summer.  Most of them, especially those in exposed areas, were finished, but there were a few in more sheltered areas that were still in good form.  We did not find any sign of the normal form of the species, however, at lower elevations.

Along with this species we saw a number of others in the Olympics which we had seen earlier in the year and elsewhere.  These were seen further west of Hurricane Ridge and included two other Platantheras, the Elegant Piperia, Platanthera elegans, and the Long-spurred Piperia, Platanthera elongata, and the Stream Orchid, Epipactis gigantea, which was almost finished blooming, though very early.

Platantherra elegans

Platanthera elongata

It should be noted that all the Piperias have recently been reclassified as Platantheras, so these species are now Platanthera unalascensis, Platanthera elegans and Platanthera elongata.  These species were all originally classified as Platantheras or Habenarias, but were moved to a new genus in 1901.  There is still a great deal of disagreement about their classification.

Platanthera unalascensis

There are five Platanthera species in Washington that were formerly classified as Piperia, and this species, the Alaskan Piperia, is the least attractive of them all.  It has very small green flowers, 3-4 mm, though on a stem that is quite tall and which can hold as many as 80 flowers.  While very common in other areas of the Pacific Northwest we do not see it that often here in Washington.

June 23
(Eastern Washington)

July 10

(Canadian Rockies)

July 25

(Olympic Mountains)

Seventeenth Week of the Native Orchid Season - Platantheras, Neottias, Goodyeras and Epipactis

July 28 - August 3

This week the big excursion was to Olympic National Park where we found twelve different orchid species and varieties.  There, too, as around the rest of western Washington, it was very dry and most of the orchids were early.  We visited four different areas in the northern part of the park, two areas that we had not seen before, and in all of them found native orchid species.  The orchids we found were:

Epipactis gigantea, the Stream Orchid or Chatterbox

(note the picture of the double flower)

Goodyera oblongifolia, the Giant Rattlesnake Orchis

Neottia banksiana, the Northwestern Twayblade

Platanthera ephemerantha (Piperia candida), the Slender White Piperia

Platanthera (Piperia) elegans ssp. elegans, the Elegant Piperia

(there is a Crab Spider on one of the flower spikes)

Platanthera (Piperia) elongata, the Long-spurred Piperia

Platanthera (Piperia) unalascensis fma. olympica, the dwarf form of the Alaskan Piperia

(this form is found only on Hurricane Ridge in the Olympics)

Platanthera dilatata var. dilatata, the Tall White Northern Bog Orchis

(has a spur about the same length as the lip)

Platanthera dilatata var. leucostachys, the Sierra Rein Orchid

(has a spur that is longer than the lip)

Platanthera stricta, the Slender Bog Orchis

Platanthera x estesii, Estes Hybrid Rein Orchis

(this is a natural hybrid of the two previous species)

Later in the week we had a Washington Native Orchid Society field trip to Goose Rock and to Washington Park where we saw three Piperias and a lot of Goodyeras.  I had seen these previously by way of scouting for the field trip, but had helped make the arrangements for the field trip and so went to see them again, something I never mind doing.  The orchids we found were:

Goodyera oblongifolia, the Giant Rattlesnake Orchis

Platanthera (Piperia) elegans ssp. elegans, the Elegant Piperia

Platanthera (Piperia) elongata, the Long-spurred Piperia

Platanthera (Piperia) transversa, the Flat-spurred Piperia