Second wave of Three-birds orchids — the big one! — 2020-07-28

Tsunami: an arrival or occurrence of something in overwhelming quantities or amounts.

This second wave of Triphora trianthophoros or Three-birds orchids could be considered a tsunami of orchids. It is said that the second wave of a tsunami is the largest, and that is the case for what I saw today.

Let’s start at the beginning of the day. I have been monitoring the daily low temperatures for the location where I usually see the Three-birds orchids in the Pisgah National Forest. So, when I awoke this morning, I checked the website for low temperatures, and it showed that there was definitely a possibility for a good orchid bloom. I had no sooner plotted the value on my current temperature chart, when I received a message from a FaceBook friend (whom I’ve yet to meet in person) that read, “…They are everywhere and fully blooming.” He was up at the site, and he even sent some iPhone images. Well, you don’t have to twist my arm to get my camera gear ready and pile into the truck and head up the road on a 1.5-hour drive to photograph beauty in the woods.

Just in case you’ve been living under a rock and don’t know what these beauties look like, here is a sample:

Three-birds orchid

I arrived in record time, parked my truck at the usual spot, gathered my gear, and hurried off up the trail to the closest spot in the woods where I knew there were some plants — hopefully in bloom. No surprise! There they were, the same small group that was in bud when I had photographed it last week. But now, they were in full bloom. I photographed them, just in case there were not better specimens farther into the woods.

I began a systematic search of the couple of wooded acres, for any groups of plants that would be photographable. What I was seeing was single plants with a couple of open flowers or a group of two or three plants scattered here and there. I continued to search, occasionally tripping over the trunks and branches of fallen Tsuga canadensis or Eastern hemlock trees which had died a few years ago from an attack of the nasty Adelges tsugae or the hemlock woolly adelgid. The forest floor is littered with these dead trees.

As I skirted around a large tree, I spotted a wonderful group of a dozen or more Three-birds orchids which were tightly grouped and in glorious full bloom. Here are some shots of this group:

The sun was out brightly for these first few images, but soon it went behind threatening thunderheads. The rumble of thunder was evident in the distance, and it hastened my search for additional groups of orchid plants. I didn’t have to wait very long. As I tripped over another stack of dead limbs, there was another super group just ahead. It was another rather colorful group with a dozen or more plants topped with flowers in full bloom:

Nearby, was a very nice single stem with two open flowers and a spent one from last week’s flowering:

The large majority of the plants at this location produce flowers with white or light purple petals. So, I was wondering if I would find a group with these white flowers. No sooner I thought about this that I spotted a small group against a dead log. The plants were stretched out along the edge of the log in a straight row. Here are two images of the group — one from the front, and one from the side:

This different perspective surely does give a different appearance to the group. It’s sort of difficult to believe that these two images are of the same group of orchid plants.

I was just about to pack it in for this part of the trip when I spotted some white a short distance away. It was another large group of Three-birds orchids! This was really a jackpot day! LOL, I’m so easily excited:

It was now time to head on up the road to check out the bloom status of a few other orchid species which are commonly found in the Pisgah National Forest. The first of these is Spiranthes lacera var. gracilis or Southern Slender Ladies’-tresses orchid. These are rather difficult to photograph without supporting them along the thin stem with a twig or two. Here are images of some of the plants I found:

Nearby, were a number of another orchid species — Platanthera ciliaris or Yellow Fringed orchids. There were many dozens of these orchid plants scattered up and down the roadside, but only a few of them had begun to bloom. Next week should bring forth a stunning show of the beauties:

Finally, the other orchid species I found was Goodyera pubescens or Downy Rattlesnake Plantain orchid. It was an exceptional specimen although it was not in full bloom:

This turned out to be a pretty good day for photographing native orchids. I’m quite fortunate to live relatively close to some great orchid sites, and I try not to miss an opportunity to study and photograph the plants they host. When I’m in the field, time flies, and it’s easy to get lost in the beauty of the woods and fields.

There are a few trips planned in the next couple of weeks, including a visit to the Carolina coastal plain for fringed orchids and other wildflowers.

Stay tuned…

–Jim