Striped Coralroot

Striped Coralroot is such a tiny, wild Orchid - this is a macro shot and then cropped. Seen on our botanizing day trip to the Yamnuska Valley on 2nd July.

"Corallorhiza striata is a species of orchid known by the common names striped coralroot and hooded coralroot. This flowering plant is native to much of North America, especially Canada and the northern and western United States. It is a member of the coniferous understory flora, where it lives in the layer of decaying plant matter on the ground obtaining nutrients from fungi via mycoheterotrophy. Like other coralroots, it has reduced leaves and no chlorophyll and relies upon its parasitism of the fungi for sustenance. This coralroot has an erect stem which may be red, pink, purple, or yellow-green to almost white. It is mostly made up of an inflorescence of orchid flowers. Each flower is an open array of sepals and similar-looking petals which may be pink or yellowish and have darker pink or maroon stripes. Inside the flower is a column formed from the fusion of male and female parts, which may be spotted with purple or red. The fruit is a capsule one or two centimeters long."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corallorhiza_striata

Just got home from a long day out at the Medicine River Wildlife Centre, west of Innisfail, Alberta (north west of Calgary). Had to set my alarm clock for just after 4:30 a.m. (though I overslept by almost an hour!) and got home around 6:15 this evening. We were lucky that the rain kept away all morning. What a great place this centre is, rehabilitating wildlife (and releasing whenever possible) and also in its education programs. The Centre believes that "without the public being educated on what is injuring our wildlife, the hospital is merely a "band-aid" solution." The animals/birds that are unable to be released "stay onsite and act as foster parents for orphans or play an important role on the education programs."

We went there not just to see the centre itself but also to botanize the land around the Centre. Judy, our guide, spent much of the day with us, which we really appreciated. Hopefully, in return, we have shown her a few new plants, etc.. One of the highlights was seeing a pair of Sandhill Cranes in the grassland, along with a young one : ) I was also thrilled to see a Tiger Beetle - not sure if it's the same species as the few I've seen here in the city. Thanks so much, Judy, for such an enjoyable, exciting, interesting day!! Thank you, Stephen and Dorothy, for driving all the way there and back - greatly appreciated, as always! And now I feel totally exhausted!

www.medicineriverwildlifecentre.ca/