Loose-flowered orchid: Orchids of Europe # 6

We've moved from Vienna to the Burgenland district, in the extreme south east of Austria. It is a flat, fertile and warm district surrounding a large inland sea, Lake Neusiedl. Near where we are staying there are many smaller lakes which abound with waterbirds - mainly greylag geese, swans, red-crested pochards and coots.

At the edge of the Zichsee we found good numbers of loose-flowered orchids orchis laxiflora. They are a bit like early purple orchids but the flowers on each spike are less dense (looser) and the leaves are unspotted. For any orchid geeks out there, I think this is the subspecies palustris.

Orchids of Europe # 5 and links to previous