Native orchid confirmed growing wild in North Carolina woods
iNaturalist: danafitz
Native Plants
This orchid hides in plain sight by growing its single leaf only in winter, so if you want to find one you have to look during the coldest months, not when everything else is blooming.
Someone out exploring near Mebane, North Carolina found a crane-fly orchid and got the sighting verified by other naturalists, making it a confirmed record. This orchid is odd because it flips the usual plant calendar: it grows a single dark purple leaf in fall and winter to soak up sunlight on the bare forest floor, then that leaf withers away before a leafless flower stalk shoots up in mid to late summer.
Key Findings
Confirmed research-grade observation of Tipularia discolor (crane-fly orchid) in Mebane, NC 27302
Species is native to eastern North American deciduous forests and relies on noctuid moths for pollination
The plant's single leaf appears only in fall/winter and dies back before summer flowering, making it easy to miss most of the year
chevron_right Technical Summary
A birder or hiker in Mebane, North Carolina spotted and confirmed a crane-fly orchid, a native wildflower with an unusual two-season life cycle that most people walk right past without noticing.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
crane-fly orchid (Tipularia discolor) observed in Mebane, NC 27302, USA
Research-grade observation of crane-fly orchid in Mebane, NC 27302, USA.
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Species Mentioned
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Tipularia discolor, the crippled cranefly or crane-fly orchid, is a perennial terrestrial woodland orchid, a member of the family Orchidaceae. It is the only species of the genus Tipularia found in North America. It occurs in the southeastern United States from Texas to Florida, the range extendi...