
The Florida
Ghost Orchid
Photo credit: Mike Fournier
The Endangered Plants of
Florida
The Ghost Orchid
Dendrophylax lindenii
Florida, La Florida, as it was named by Spanish explorer
Ponce De Leon, in the early 1500's, means Land of the
Flowers.
We certainly do attempt to live up to the name!
There are 118 Orchid Species in the State of Florida,
and 50 of them are in South Florida.
Orchids also grow in our Forests, but they have
been picked by poachers there into near extinction.
And of those 118 species of Orchids, only one rules,
the Ghost Orchid.
It is the most watched, searched for, treasured, admired,
and just about every other adjective that you can think
of, plant.
It is simply the most desirable flower in the world
and it lives in Florida.
The unique Ecosystem necessary
to maintain the Ghost Orchid,
exists only in one small part of South Florida,
and of course in Cuba, where it was first seen in 1844,
then many years later it was seen in the Everglades.
Fakahatchee Strand State
Preserve, the Orchid capital
of North America, is one of the places where it still lives,
the other is the Audubon Corkscrew Sanctuary.
If you are ever near Naples, Florida, it would be a never
to be forgotten experience, I am sure, to take a trip
to the Audubon Corkscrew Sanctuary there.
One of the few last places on Earth where the
breathtaking Ghost Orchid can still be seen.
Its appearance of not actually being attached to the
Cypress Tree has given it the nickname of frog,
as it looks like a frog leaping away.
It has no leaves and hardly any stem.
If you are an exquisitely beautiful, rare and most needy flower,
it also doesn't hurt to have really dedicated U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Biologist Larry Richardson at your beck and call.

Source of this photo is
unknown.
If this is your picture, please contact me.
These Orchids are his babies and he looks after
them like any other mother would.
In his spare time, he also keeps an eye on the critically
Endangered Florida Panther with whom the
Ghost Orchids share an Ecosystem.
Poachers have repeatedly stolen this precious flower,
only to learn that what it needs to survive they simply
can not provide, namely a 600-800 year old Bald Cypress,
or a Pop Ash or Pond Apple Tree in a Big Swamp.
The only known pollinator of this beautiful plant is the
Giant Sphinx Moth.
We have seen this magnificent Insect in our yard here in the Ocala
Forest
many early mornings and right at dusk dining on our white four o'clocks,
which they appear to absolutely love!

The Florida
Ghost Orchid
Dendrophylax lindenii
Photo credit: Mike Fournier
There are over 55 Endangered or Threatened plants in
Florida,
and they are all conveniently listed
here:
Florida's Federally Listed Plant Species
Places to learn more:
Florida Native Plant Society
Ecosystems of Florida
National Wildlife Federation
A Delicate Affair: Orchids and Panthers
Star Banner
The
Ocala National Forest Ecosystem
Florida State Parks
Fakahatchee Strand State
Preserve
University of Florida
Florida Forest
Plants
Florida
Forest Trees
Walking with the Alligators

Write to Gator Woman
amberziek6 at centurylink.net

Keep Florida Wildlife Wild and Alive~
Web Design by:
Gator-Woman
Educating Visitors About Florida's Wildlife Since August 4, 2008
Last edited February 7, 2021
Links, questions and feedback are always appreciated.
Walking With The Alligators.com does not share or sell any visitor information.
2008 - 2021 Walking With The Alligators.com
All Rights Reserved.