trying to decode what darwin called the "abominable mystery" of the world's 28,000 species of orchids.
take, for instance, their mimicry:
"Ophrys apifera orchids look and smell like female bees. The Hammer orchid eerily resembles a female wasp. The Satyrium pumilum orchid, in South Africa, imitates the scent of dead animals to attract fruit flies..."
Black Mountain (ACT) orchids - Dusky Fingers, Waxlips and Brown Caps out in one spot, but not much out at all in others (although I only had a quick look!) Canberra has had pretty much exactly the average rainfall for this calendar year so far - but local bush land and forests still felt a little drier than most really good orchid seasons. Might have to wait until the montane species start to flower later in spring / early summer now to put a lot of time into looking for Canberra orchids.