~ by Susana García 

Orchids are plants with flowers that attract insects, bats, and birds to be pollinated. Many people enjoy watching them grow in their backyards or plant pots in their houses. The name of the orchid comes from the Greek word “orchis”, meaning testicle, due to the shape of the twin back bulbs that some species have. 

This is why it was associated with aphrodisiac qualities. 

Currently, more than 1,600 native species have been described in Costa Rica; most grow in the wild between 500 and 2400 meters above the sea level (about 1,600 ft to 7,800 ft). A lot of orchids are epiphytes; this means they grow out of other plants. In Costa Rica, they are called parasitic plants; but they are really not, since they do not take any nutrients away from the host plant, which only works as support. Orchids can also grow on dead trees and rocks. Many species were discovered in our country by British expert Charles Lankester, who was the main orchidologist in Central America in the 20th century. 

Orchid lovers know the beautiful Lankester Gardens in Cartago very well, but some still do not know the orchid collection of Los Cusingos Bird Refuge in Pérez Zeledón.

This was the home of one of Charles’ four daughters, Pamela Lankester, who married famous ornithologist Alexander Skutch; she passed away in 2001. Here we find the tiny Platystele tica, whose flower is only 1.8 mm (0.070 inches); this is a Central American record, and in the wild, it only grows in the foothills of the Talamanca range. 

It is no surprise, then, that Costa Rica’s national flower is an orchid, the Guaria Morada (Guarianthe skinneri), one of the most beautiful flowers in the country. It is a national symbol since 1939 when a national survey was carried out, in which not only botanists and other scientists participated, but also university and school students did, too.

INFO: Acompáñenos en un tour de orquídeas: info@costaricabirdingbeds.com