Anacamptis collina

Anacamptis collina
Photos: Holger Disse, 21/02/2014, near Hala Sultan Tekke/Cyprus

Fan-Lipped Orchid

Anacamptis collina is an early-flowering orchid, 15 to 40 cm tall. It has unspotted leaves and a strong stem. The inflorescence has 3 to 20 flowers with a short and thick spur, bent downwards. The labellum is undivided an reflexed at its edges.

Anacamptis collina
Photo: Holger Disse, 21/02/2014, near Hala Sultan Tekke/Cyprus

Taxonomic discussion

In 1794, Joseph Banks and Daniel Carl Solander described the plant as Orchis collina (in: Natural History of Aleppo). In 1997, due to genetic studies and a new view, Richard M. Bateman and others put the plant to the genus Anacamptis.

White colour of flowers

The flowers of Anacamptis collina are mostly purplish to brown. There are colour variants, but white-flowered plants are quite rare.

Habitat, bloom and distribution

Anacamptis collina is growing on meadows and pastures, preferably in coastal regions, up to 1300 m. Bloom is quite early from April to June. The distribution covers the coastal regions from Southern Portugal to the Middle East.