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Epidendreae 30 images Created 2 Apr 2012

A collection of wild native North American orchids photographed in their natural environment belonging to the tribe: Epidendreae.
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  • This jaw-dropping super-rare color form of the butterfly orchid was found in a dead oak tree knocked over by Hurricane Wilma in the CREW Marsh Hiking Trails of northern Collier County, Florida. Had it not been for the hurricane, I never would have stumbled into it!
    White Butterfly Orchid (Encyclia tam..bia)
  • Bronze green-fly orchid in bloom on a fallen oak tree next to the Hillsborough River near Tampa, Florida. These can often be found in dense hardwood forests near natural springs or rivers.
    Bronze Green-Fly Orchid (Epidendrum ..num)
  • Butterfly orchid growing in a tree in Lee County, Fl. This is by far the most commonly encountered epiphytic orchid found in South Florida.
    Butterfly Orchid (Encyclia tampensis)
  • Butterfly orchids in flower deep in the heart of the Florida Everglades. These were found growing in a cypress dome - which dot the vast sea of sawgrass.
    Butterfly Orchid (Encyclia tampensis)
  • Close-up of the butterfly orchid deep in the Florida Everglades in Miami-Dade County.
    Butterfly Orchid (Encyclia tampensis)
  • This super-rare color form of the clamshell orchid blew me away as I waded around a pond apple tree and saw it in a remote pond in Collier County, Florida. It's exact location is a secret!
    Pale Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea c..ava)
  • The clamshell orchid is one of the most beautiful of all of Florida's native orchids, and can flower for a very long time. This is one of those orchids that if you see one in flower, you are likely to see a lot more in the surrounding trees, as they tend to grow in huge colonies.
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • A nice big and healthy clamshell orchid deep in a slough in Southwest Florida. There are three flower spikes on this one and they are blooming!
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • The clamshell orchid gets its name from the upper lip, which is shaped a bit like a clam's shell, but I think it looks more like an octopus! This one was in a swamp near Immokalee, Florida.
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • Clamshell orchid that has been pollenated, these "fruits" will eventually ripen, and split, releasing their seeds to catch the wind and hopefully land in a suitable place to become another of these flowering beauties.
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • Perhaps the most delightful orchid to encounter in the swamps, this wildly shaped flower can often be found in huge colonies, if one doesn't mind wading to reach them. Luckily, these are usually found over permanently standing water, often with alligators and cottonmouths in the area. This is a great deterent to keep poachers away!
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • Perhaps the most delightful orchid to encounter in the swamps, this wildly shaped flower can often be found in huge colonies, if one doesn't mind wading to reach them.
    Clamshell Orchid (Prosthechea cochle..dra)
  • This big leafy orchid is easily recognized by its foliage, and is often found above standing water in pond apple trees. I had to climb high in a tree for this one in the Fakahatchee Strand. Nothing like that "golden hour" late afternoon sunlight!
    Dingy-Flowered Star Orchid (Epidendr..mum)
  • A perfect specimen of a dingy-flowered star orchid in full flower growing in the Sweetwater Strand, deep in the Big Cypress National Preserve.
    Dingy-Flowered Star Orchid (Epidendr..mum)
  • This unusual orchid has a very large flower that is almost impossible to find fully open. It has a scent emitted only at night and is always found in the thickest parts of the swamps. Some tree climbing and a big zoom lens were used for this shot.
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • The night-fragrant orchid is easy to find, just due to its huge size. It is not uncommon to find these plants reaching two or three feet from the tree it is attached to.
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • Largest of the native epidendrums, this orchid is very frustrating to photograph, because it seems that the only ones that are found low enough to shoot easily wilt before opening.
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • Close-up showing the amazing detail in this fantastic orchid. This photo was taken in a tree in the Fakahatchee Strand. Sometimes climbing is necessary to get close to these beauties!
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • This unusual orchid has a very large flower that is almost impossible to find fully open. This one was photographed while standing on a big floating log in waist deep water while shooting handheld with a 300mm zoom lens. Risky for the camera and somehow in focus!
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • This unusual orchid has a very large flower that is almost impossible to find fully open. It has a scent emitted only at night and is always found in the thickest parts of the swamps.
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • Ideal habitat for the night-fragrant orchid ... thick dark swamp, heavy vegetation, lots of mosquitoes, snakes, and alligators... not to mention the menacing deer flies!
    Night-Fragrant Epidendrum (Epidendru..num)
  • Florida star orchid with fruit deep in the Big Cypress National Preserve. I have yet to see this one in flower in the wild - only in a cultivated one, but as soon as I do, I'll put it in this spot.
    Florida Star Orchid (Epidendrum flor..nse)
  • The green-fly orchid in Juniper Springs, in the Ocala National Forest. This is the most common epiphytic orchid in the northern half of Florida, and can be found most often near springs, sinkholes, or old forests.
    Green-fly Orchid (Epidendrum magnoli..iae)
  • The green-fly orchid in Juniper Springs, in the Ocala National Forest. Where the butterfly orchid is most common in the trees of South Florida, this more cold-tolerant epiphyte occupies the same niche in the north part of the state, with an overlapping area in Central Florida.
    Green-fly Orchid (Epidendrum magnoli..iae)
  • Wide angle shot of a section of a huge cluster of green-fly orchids, some of them in bloom. These were found in Juniper Springs in the Ocala National Forest. These are very common above natural springs and sinkholes.
    Green-fly Orchid (Epidendrum magnoli..iae)
  • Close-up of a freshly opened flower in the Fakahatchee Strand. This is probably the most common of all the orchids here, often found high in the trees in enormous clumps.
    Zig-Zag Orchid (Epidendrum rigidum)
  • Close up of the fertilized flowers of the zig-zag orchid, or rigid epidendrum, photographed from the boardwalk in the Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Naples, Fl.  These flowers have been self-fertilized and still retain the flower after the fruit is set.
    Zig-Zag Orchid (Epidendrum rigidum)
  • Fully open flower deep in the Fakahatchee Strand. As common as these are, getting a clear and close-up shot of an open flower can be a challenge.
    Zig-Zag Orchid (Epidendrum rigidum)
  • Clear view of the rigid epidendrum putting out a new flower spike. The alternate bud pattern gives rise to its other common name, the "zigzag" orchid.
    Zig-Zag Orchid (Epidendrum rigidum)
  • A pollinated night-fragrant epidendrum orchid bears fruit deep in the Big Cypress National Preserve in the northern Florida Everglades. Still visible are the dried remains of the flower hanging at the tip of the fruit.
    Night-fragrant Epidendrum