Fly Orchid

Focus stacked image of a Fly orchid, Ophrys insectifera, Western Tyrol, Austria. 

About the Fly Orchid:

The fly orchid (Ophrys insectifera) flowers from May – July. Like many other orchids they bear several flowers on a single spike. These orchids favour chalk and limestone soils in open woodland and scrub where they can grow up to 60 cm tall in ideal conditions. 

This orchid and other members of the Ophrys Orchid genus are famed for their ability mimic the appearance of the insects they attract. Their flowers have evolved specifically to attract insects with the false promise of love. Male insects fly in enticed by the strong smell and/or appearance of the flowers and attempt to mate, an act known as pseudocopulation. During this process the pollen sacs of the orchid become attached to the insect’s body and are transferred to the next flowers visited, thus pollinating the plant.

The fly orchid has an amber conservation status, classified as vulnerable and near-threatened.

You can find out more about Fly Orchids here.