Western Fairy Slipper

This is the Western Fairy Slipper, Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis, photographed last spring in Sharpe Park on Fidalgo Island. It is the first of our native orchids to bloom and can be found in many different locations and at many different elevations. This variety with its brown-spotted lip and white beard is found only to the west of the Rocky Mountains. The other North American variety, the Eastern Fairy Slipper is found from the east side of the Cascades to the Atlantic seaboard.