These bee orchids flower each June on a road verge just a couple of hundred yards from my house.
I always understood bee orchids were pollinated by bees who were tricked into trying to mate with the flowers. Possibly that is how the mimicry evolved, but according to Wikipedia in northern Europe the plant is self-pollinating, although in Mediterranean regions there is a solitary bee that acts as a pollinator.
In Gerard's Herball Or Generall Historie of Plantes, 1597, it seems to be called the Humble Bee Satirion, and the flowers are said to resemble in shape "the great Bee called in English an Hornet or drone Bee". I didn't know before, but orchids were once called satyrions and thought to be consumed by satyrs, who were apparently inflamed by this diet.
Sadly in many parts of the world orchid roots are ground up to make a drink, salep, consumed by people rather than satyrs, and the demand for this beverage places some orchid species under threat.
Beware of Satyrs
These bee orchids flower each June on a road verge just a couple of hundred yards from my house.
I always understood bee orchids were pollinated by bees who were tricked into trying to mate with the flowers. Possibly that is how the mimicry evolved, but according to Wikipedia in northern Europe the plant is self-pollinating, although in Mediterranean regions there is a solitary bee that acts as a pollinator.
In Gerard's Herball Or Generall Historie of Plantes, 1597, it seems to be called the Humble Bee Satirion, and the flowers are said to resemble in shape "the great Bee called in English an Hornet or drone Bee". I didn't know before, but orchids were once called satyrions and thought to be consumed by satyrs, who were apparently inflamed by this diet.
Sadly in many parts of the world orchid roots are ground up to make a drink, salep, consumed by people rather than satyrs, and the demand for this beverage places some orchid species under threat.