RHH's photos with the keyword: immaculata

Formerly named Amerorchis rotundifolia, this is now Galearis rotundifolia, the Small Round-leaved Orchid. We found this in abundance at one of the sites we visited in Kootenay National Park and found three different varieties. This is variety immaculata with an unspotted lip.

This is a rare color form of a very common native orchid, another Coralroot, the Western Spotted Coralroot. Like all the other Coralroots, it has no leaves or chlorophyll and lives off decaying material in the soil via a relationship with a fungus. The ordinary form of the plant is shown in the inset. This is the "albino" form, lacking the spotting and darker color. It is Corallorhiza (Coralroot) maculata (spotted) var. occidentalis (western) fma. immaculata (unspotted). We have only ever found this once.

I'll be posting a miscellany of photos this week from different hikes and excursions, mostly native orchids and other wildflowers. I'll not be publishing locations, however, especially of the native orchids, since I have all too often revisited a site only to find that the orchids have been dug up, and I do not want in any way to be responsible for the loss of these treasures. This is a rare unspotted and uncolored form of the Western Spotted Coralroot, the normal form of which is shown below. Botanically it is known as Corallorhiza maculata var. occidentalis fma. immaculata. I was shown these by a friend who found them, two spikes of this form in a location where hundreds of the normal form were to found. The botanical name translates something like this, "Coralroot spotted variety western form unspotted." There is also a rare yellow stemmed form but the flowers are spotted. We found that form last summer in southern Washington and I'll post a picture of it this week. Which is more unusual or more beautiful I am unable to judge. nativeorchidsofthepacificnorthwest.blogspot.com/2013/05/f...