Ophrys apifera × insectifera

The hybrid between the Fly Orchid and the Bee Orchid, Ophrys apifera × insectifera, has been recorded on a few occasions in the UK. There are records from the Avon Gorge in Somerset and Sussex but in both cases the plants are no longer extant. This photograph was taken within another small colony on a roadside verge in Somerset.

The hybrid is sometimes referred to as Ophrys ×pietzschii but this name has not been formally recorded using botanical protocols and hence is regarded as invalid.

It is interesting to compare this hybrid with Ophrys ×royanensis (MN0011) which shares the Fly Orchid Ophrys insectifera as one of its parents. Differences reflect morphologies present in the other parent, such as the hairy side lobes in Ophrys apifera × insectifera and the more prominent, darker pink petals in Ophrys ×royanensis.

Ref: MN0010

Location: Somerset

<em>Ophrys apifera</em> × <em>insectifera</em>

The hybrid between the Fly Orchid and the Bee Orchid, Ophrys apifera × insectifera, has been recorded on a few occasions in the UK. There are records from the Avon Gorge in Somerset and Sussex but in both cases the plants are no longer extant. This photograph was taken within another small colony on a roadside verge in Somerset.

The hybrid is sometimes referred to as Ophrys ×pietzschii but this name has not been formally recorded using botanical protocols and hence is regarded as invalid.

It is interesting to compare this hybrid with Ophrys ×royanensis (MN0011) which shares the Fly Orchid Ophrys insectifera as one of its parents. Differences reflect morphologies present in the other parent, such as the hairy side lobes in Ophrys apifera × insectifera and the more prominent, darker pink petals in Ophrys ×royanensis.

Ref: MN0010

Location: Somerset