Ophrys flavicans No English name Endemic???
This plant was found by tour leader on a Naturetrek holiday and was the only one of its kind we saw during the week. At the time I thought it looked rather like O. bertolonii but this we were told had a similar form and so could be confused. The side-on view has gives a peculiar shape something like a duck combined with a sofa cushion but such side on photos often give weird profiles with the insect mimicking orchids.
Taxonomy: The naming of this orchid has proved to be a major problem. We were told by our leader that it was named Ophrys bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch. Delforge and others accept this name and say it is found only in Italy on the Gargano.
However the main plant databases suggest that it should be correctly named as the hybrid Ophrys × bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch which is formed between Ophrys sphegodes Mill. and Ophrys bertolonii Moretti which itself is a synonym for Ophrys x flavicans Vis. In other words the hybrid has been named Ophrys x flavicans Vis. for some time and doesn't need re-naming to Ophrys x bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch according to the usual naming rules.
In other checklists the hybrid nomenclature has been dropped and the species is simply referred to as Ophrys bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch (synonym) or Ophrys flavicans Vis. (accepted correct name). This is because some experts think this is derived from the hybrid between Ophrys sphegodes Mill. and Ophrys bertolonii Moretti rather than being the actual hybrid itself. Other similar species such as the so-called Maltese endemic Ophrys melitensis (Salk.) Devillers-Tersch. & Devillers is also actually Ophrys x flavicans Vis. according to the major checklists.
Ophrys flavicans Vis. is named separately from Ophrys bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch by Pierre Delforge who suggests that O. flavicans Vis.is endemic to Dalmatia on the east of the Adriatic while Ophrys bertoloniiformis O.Danesch & E.Danesch is endemic to the Gargano on the west.
Ophrys promontorii O.Danesch & E.Danesch is another orchid raised to specific rank by some authors including Pierre Delforge but Kew and other main databases say this taxon too is a synonym for Ophrys flavicans Vis.
I'll stick with Kew for the time being but the names of many European Ophrys species are in a taxonomic flux at the moment (2010).
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| Ophrys flavicans whole | Ophrys flavicans close side view | Ophrys flavicans close front view |
Grassy bank near Bosco Quarto forest, 20th April 2009
Added on January 14th 2010, updated 16th Jnaury 2010, updated 20th January 2011