Look out for Bee Orchids! | Northamptonshire Biodiversity Records Centre

Image of Bee orchid flower by Michael Phillips with logos

We’d like to create a buzz about Bee orchids Ophrys apifera for our late spring/early summer Look out for survey.

This striking insect-like wildflower isn’t a common species but is one of the most widespread of the orchids.

A perennial herb whose flowers are presented in a way to imitate a female bee feeding on three pink petals, with a scent that copies her pheromones in order to attract male bees for pollination. Despite this clever mimicry this plant is primarily self-pollinating in the UK and each flower produces thousands of dust-like seeds that are dispersed by air.

Historically found in chalk downland, coastal dunes and damp meadows and pastures, they like bare ground to colonise and can also be found along urban road verges, waste/disturbed ground and gravel pits.

Image of bee orchid spike by Karen Tiffin

Bee Orchid flower spike by Karen Tiffin

Look out for their diminutive flower spikes from June to July.

A rosette of leaves at ground level with two long elliptical pointed leaves that grow up the stem as a sheath.

The plant can measure around 10 to 40cm tall with the stem displaying a varying number of relatively large flowers.

The flowers have pink or greenish-pink sepals that look like wings, and furry, brown lips that have yellow markings on.

Flowering can be rather sporadic. In some years they may appear in large numbers, and in others seem to disappear. Some plants may only flower once in their lifetime.

Bee Orchid by Vaughn Matthews

Bee Orchid sightings can be submitted via the Northamptonshire Biological Records Centre (NBRC) using the form below. As there are other species of orchids in the UK, photos are important to confirm the identification.

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Personal details

First name:

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Last name:

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Date Seen:

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You are submitting a record of Ophrys apifera

Recorder Name:

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Photos:

Quantity:

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Certainty:

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Sex:

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Stage:

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Identified By:

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