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Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis   Nächste Art/next species (Right arrowball from Animation City 1991)

Very early flowering Ophrys, which for many years have been called arachnitiformis, are found between northeastern Spain and western Liguria, however mainly along the French Mediterranean coast. According to the investigations of PAULUS and GACK (1999) in Jour.Eur.Orch.31(2) the orchids are pollinated by the bee Colletes cunicularius.

In the last years there were again and again attempts, to separate the western arachnitiformis, which has usually a green perigon, from the eastern arachnitiformis with white to pink perianth. The western partial population is distributed from northeastern Spain to over the Rhone in France, as well as along the Rhone valley almost up to Lyon, few populations have also been found near the French Atlantic coast. These plants with green perigon have been described in 2002 by Remy SOUCHE (Romeig SOCA) and others as Ophrys exaltata subsp. marzuola, and by Gil SCAPPATICCI as Ophrys arachnitiformis subsp. occidentalis, and thus separated from the eastern arachnitiformis s.str. Another name is Ophrys gallica by LOOKEN 2000. The question is whether one of these solutions can satisfy, which only would be the case, if the transitions were not flowing. But this is the case, and Scappaticci has described these frequently occurring intermediates between western and eastern arachnitiformis already as hybrids.

In 2006 in Natural. belges 87 (Orchid. 19): 228-251 Devillers and Devillers-Terschuren stated according to old herbarium specimens that Ophrys passionis SENNEN is the correct name for the archnitiformis s.l. populations in lowlands of Languedoc and Catalogne. They separate the corresponding orchids from Rhone valley as Ophrys occidentalis, and call those from the coast of the Provence Ophrys arachnitiformis. The species similar to Ophrys garganica, which up to then had been called Ophrys passionis, was re-described with the new name Ophrys caloptera.

Two clans from the region of Les Sables-d'Olonne at the French Atlantic Coast have been separated as Ophrys suboccidentalis and Ophrys suboccidentalis subsp. olonae in L'Orchidophile 2017. P. DELFORGE (2019 in JEO) regards Ophrys suboccidentalis as identical to Ophrys massiliensis, and its subsp. olonae as a hybrid population between this and other Ophrys sphegodes-like species of the region, which he recombines as hybridogenous species Ophrys x olonae.


Western Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis
E Catalunya Solsona 31.3.2001

Western Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis
E Catalunya L'Escala 9.4.2004

Western Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis
F Toreilles 10.3.2001

 

Western Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis
F Frontignan 19.3.1999

Western Ophrys exaltata subsp. arachnitiformis
left:   F Chanas 9.3.2000
right: F Charbieux 9.3.2000

  
 
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