Surprise! A Mirror Orchid (Ophrys speculum) in Perigordian rain. Kingfisher blue, sunflower yellow, chocolate brown...
A bit like a drown dog, however.
This vividly coloured tiny orchid normally grows in Portugal, Morocco, Lybia or other countries well South of France. It is only very rarely found here. In all of the Dordogne département may be three plants a year.
Like many Ophryses or (bee orchids) it needs a pollinating insect to reproduce, in this case a kind of wasp Dasycolia ciliata. The Mirror orchid gives of a substance that smells like the pheromones of this wasp. And the border of its lip is covered in brown hairs like a wasp and its form and colour makes it look really like a female Dasycolia. The orchid does what it can to attract a male Dasycolia, that should try to copulate with the flower and thus collect pollen to take it to the next flower and fecundate it.
Alas, it does not work here. Dasycolia ciliata does not live in France.
But this flower grows in France. How comes? Good question. More answers possible.
(1)
Mirror orchid seeds arrived here when adhering to shoes or car tires of someone who passed his holiday in the Mediterrenean region during fruit season of those orchids. Well, this is possible, be not very probable in this case.
(2)
Mirror Orchid seeds are taken by winds high up in the atmosphere over a great distance. This is possible, orchid seeds are very small and light.
(3)
The Dasycolia wasp came to France without being seen, due to global warming. Or the Mirror Orchid found another pollinisator. Theoretically this should be possible, but then, there should be fecundated plants with seeds. And there are not.
In fact, the Mirror orchids we find here are always on their own, this is an indication the plant does not disperse seeds around it and there are no new plants coming from seed around their parents.
So it is probable that every exemplar is born from a seed that has traveled far and that Mirror Orchids do nor reproduce at all in France. Many seeds need to travel to make at least some fall in the right soil in the right spot.
Well, Mirror Orchids like warm and sunny calcareous meadows, and climate change warms up French calcareous meadows. So, maybe we are going to find more of this orchid. And, we don't know, maybe its pollinator goes up North also...
