RHH's photos with the keyword: makasin

Some distinguish between two or more varieties of the Yellow Lady's Slipper. They are very difficult to tell apart, however, and I have never been sure I am seeing one or the other variety. If I am not mistaken, therefore, these are Cyprripedium parviflorum var. makasin, the Northern Small Yellow Lady's Slipper, with smaller and more intensely colored flowers than the other variety and with a more intense fragrance.

We were photographing this clump of Yellow Lady's Slippers in Jasper when we noticed the Crab Spider hanging on to the bottom of the one of the pouches. These spiders are able over a period of time to change their color to match their surroundings, something this spider has managed to do successfully. These are almost certainly Cypripedium parviflorum var. makasin, a small-flowered form of the Yellow Lady's Slippers. These were very tiny flowers and very fragrant, both characteristics of variety makasin. Also, that this flower had one petal tucked into the pouch was not my doing, but we found it like that.

I've posted other pictures of this species, but wanted to show how we found them growing - not only as individual plants, but in clumps, often large clumps with 20 or 30 flowers. These were photographed on the Berg Lake Trail near Kinney Lake in Mount Robson Provincial Park.