We found these plants in the woods conveniently close to a Herbarium so were able to identify them directly from the the specimens kept there. O. bornmuelleri is an orchid of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Taxonomy: The photos in the middle and on the left were identified as Ophrys bornmuelleri ssp grandiflora, (H.Fleischm. & Soó) Renz & Taubenheim (Wide-lipped Orchid) and on the right as Ophrys bornmuelleri ssp bornmuelleri, Mitth. (Bornmueller's Orchid) from herbarium specimens in Northern Cyprus in 2004.

However the consensus of authorities in 2010 seems to indicate that both of these are in fact the same species. Delforge, whose mistrust of suspecies appears to have led to the promotion of many subspecies to species rank in his book "Orchids of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East", indicates that Ophrys bornmuelleri ssp grandiflora, (H.Fleischm. & Soó) Renz & Taubenheim (Wide-lipped Orchid) should be called Ophrys levatina Gölz & H.R.Reinhard. Other authorities regard both these plants with different looking flowers as subspecies of Ophrys fuciflora. So these old separate pages are now combined into this one.

Wooded hills near North Cyprus Herbarium, 7th April 2004

Added on Jan 22nd 2005, corrected 24th Dec 2005, updated Jan 10th 2010, updated 20th Jan 2011, updated 18th Nov 2014, updated april 2024