Marsh Orchids were @SpeciesofUK from 9th
to 15th June, 2014.
Marsh
orchids or spotted orchids are the orchids that make up the genus Dactylorhiza.[1]
A number
of marsh orchid species are common in different parts of the UK. They are
notoriously different to identify due to their propensity to hybridise.[2]
Orchids are a large and diverse family of flowering
plants.
There are
estimated to be around 25,000 accepted species of orchid, plus more than
100,000 hybrids and cultivars.[3]
Species
of the orchid genus of Dactylorhiza are
either called 'marsh orchids' (due to their habitat) or 'spotted orchids' (due
to the dark blotches on many species).[4]
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| Southern Marsh Orchid [Flickr Creative Commons © nutmeg66] |
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| Common Spotted Orchid [Flickr Creative Commons © Walwyn] |
The name Dactylorhiza is derived from the Greek 'daktylos'
(finger) and 'rhiza' (root), because of the two- to five-lobed tubers of the
species.[5]
Dactylorhiza is one of the most
taxonomically complex orchid genera. It has around fifty individual species but
many are poorly defined and blur together.[6]
The trickiness is compounded by the fact that they hybridise freely.[7]
Species
of marsh orchid are found in Europe, northern Africa, Asia and North America.[8]
They tend to grow in basic soils in damp areas like wet meadows, bogs and
heathland.[9]
Marsh orchids have distinctive tubers and flowers.
Marsh
orchids are 'tuberous geophytes' which means they have an underground storage
system called a ‘tuber’.[10]
The tuber
is a thickened underground stem. It stores water, making the plant more hardy
when it gets dry.[11]
The marsh
orchid tuber is flattened and ‘finger-like’.[12]
Dactylorhiza
orchid leaves are long and 'lanceolate' (much longer than wide, with a pointed
tip). In many species the leaves are speckled.[13]
The inflorescence
of Dactylorhiza orchids consists of a compact raceme (flowering stem) at the
top of the plant with many flowers from axillary buds.[14]
There are
currently thought to be nine Dactylorhiza
orchids native to the UK, plus a spectrum of subspecies and hybrids.[15]
Here are descriptions of some of them.
Common Spotted Orchid.
Dactylorhiza fuchsii, the common spotted orchid, is
our most commonly-seen wild orchid.[16]
It is found throughout the UK apart from the Scottish Highlands.[17]
The
common spotted orchid has a fondness for open woods and damp grassland,
particularly chalk and limestone downs.[18]
Common
spotted orchid leaves are always dark-spotted.[19]
The
common spotted orchid can be quite variable in height.[20]
The inflorescence is dense. The flowers are dark to light pink.[21]
The lip
of the common spotted orchid flower is prominently three-lobed. Its pattern is
variable but usually with one to three purple 'loops' either side of the lip
centre line.[22]
 |
| Flower Lips of Common Spotted Orchid [Flickr Creative Commons © --Tico--] |
The common spotted orchid can be confused with the heath spotted orchid, but the latter is more pale purple in colour and the spots on its leaves more round.[23]
Another
of the UK's Dactylorhiza orchids is
the Heath Spotted Orchid, D. maculata,
which replaces the common spotted in more acid, heathy regions.[24]
Heath
spotted orchid leaves are heavily spotted.[25]
The heath
spotted orchid looks like the common spotted orchid but has paler flowers with
lips that are broader, with more broken and discontinuous markings and a less
prominent tooth.[26]
The heath
spotted orchid can colonise quite damp areas so it is likely to hybridise with
other Dactylorhiza orchids there.[27]
Northern Marsh Orchid
Another
UK native marsh orchid is the northern marsh orchid, D. purpurella. It's a beautiful orchid with bright purple flowers.[28]
Northern
marsh orchids favour damp habitats like marshy fields, road verges, lake margins,
fens, marshes, coastal cliffs or dune slacks.[29]
As its name suggests, it mostly inhabits the northern half of Britain.[30]
The northern marsh orchid grows fairly short, at 10-35cm. It has between four and six stem leaves.[31]
 |
| Northern Marsh Orchid [Flickr Creative Commons © Carron Brown] |
The flower spike of northern marsh orchid is dense and squarish-topped with ten to forty bright purple-to-magenta flowers.[32]
The
northern marsh orchid is hard to distinguish from the southern marsh orchid. In
fact it was only described as a separate species in 1920.[33]
The
northern marsh orchid has a petal lip that is diamond shaped, un-lobed, with
dark spots and lines that don't usually form loops.[34]
The
southern marsh orchid, D. praetermissa,
is another UK native. It is common throughout Europe. In the UK, it’s mainly
found in the south.[35]
The
southern marsh orchid often occurs alongside the northern marsh orchid where
their ranges meet, making identification tricky.[36]
The
southern marsh orchid typically reaches 30-50 cm tall, and can even reach 70cm.
The leaves are 10-20cm long and usually unspotted.[37]
The
southern marsh orchid has a conical flower spike 5-10 cm long, bearing a
hundred or more flowers, whose colours range from pale pink to dark magenta.[38]
Southern
marsh orchid flowers appear in late spring/summer, typically June or July,
dependent upon the weather.[39]
Each
southern marsh orchid flower has a broad lip, 9-14 mm across. The lip is gently
rounded, in contrast to the more angular lip of the northern marsh orchid.[40]
Early Marsh Orchid
The early
marsh orchid, D. incarnata, is
widespread in the UK but suffers from wetland drainage making it increasingly
marginalised.[42]
 |
| Early Marsh Orchid [Wikimedia Commons © Franz Xaver] |
There are four subspecies of early marsh orchid growing in the UK. Each has a particular coloration.[43]
_(4448642886).jpg)
D. incarnata subsp.
ochroleuca is a subspecies of early marsh orchid
with creamy white flowers.[44]
Early
marsh orchids get their name from the simple fact that they start flowering
early. As early as May, compared to June for other marsh orchids.[45]
Like with
other marsh orchids, the shape of the flower lip is distinctive in the early
marsh orchid. In this case it is sharply folded back appearing very narrow in
face view.[46]
[1] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[2] http://www.cumbria-wildlife.org.uk/marshorchid.html
[3] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchidaceae
[5] http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/dactylorhiza-purpurella-northern-marsh-orchid
[6] http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/dactylorhiza-purpurella-northern-marsh-orchid;
http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/species/Southern+marsh+orchid/
[7] http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/species/Southern+marsh+orchid/
[8] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[9] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[10] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[12] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[13] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[14] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dactylorhiza
[15] http://www.academia.edu/1175268/How_many_orchid_species_are_currently_native_to_the_British_Isles
[16] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[17] http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/common_spotted-orchid
[18] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm;
http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/common_spotted-orchid
[19] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[20] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[21] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm;
http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/common_spotted-orchid
[22] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[23] http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/common_spotted-orchid
[24] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[26] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm; http://wildflowerfinder.org.uk/Flowers/O/Orchid(HeathSpotted)/Orchid(HeathSpotted).htm
[27] http://www.pnielsen.f2s.com/orchids2.htm
[28] http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/dactylorhiza-purpurella-northern-marsh-orchid; http://www.virtualheb.co.uk/northern-marsh-orchid-western-isles-wildflowers.html
[29] http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/dactylorhiza-purpurella-northern-marsh-orchid
[31] http://www.virtualheb.co.uk/northern-marsh-orchid-western-isles-wildflowers.html
[33] http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/dactylorhiza-purpurella-northern-marsh-orchid
[35] http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/species/Southern+marsh+orchid/
[36] http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/species/Southern+marsh+orchid/
[37] http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/species/Southern+marsh+orchid/
[42] http://www.first-nature.com/flowers/dactylorhiza_incarnata.php
[43] http://www.first-nature.com/flowers/dactylorhiza_incarnata.php
[44] http://www.first-nature.com/flowers/dactylorhiza_incarnata.php
[45] http://www.newforestexplorersguide.co.uk/wildlife/wild-flowers/marsh-orchids.html
[46] http://www.habitas.org.uk/flora/species.asp?item=2336
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