Field Guide
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Common Spotted Orchid
Dactylorhiza fuchsii
Not yet photographed by the community
UK's commonest orchid; pink-purple spikes in grassland.
Species Profile
Green List; locally common and stable, though populations decline where wetland habitats are drained or disturbed.
- Lifespan
- Perennial; individual plants typically persist for 5–10 years in suitable conditions
- Size & Weight
- 25–60 cm tall; flowers approximately 8–10 mm across arranged in a dense spike
- Habitat
- Damp meadows, woodland clearings, fens, and marshy grasslands with neutral to slightly acidic soils.
- UK Distribution
- Found throughout the UK, particularly abundant in northern England, Scotland, and Wales; less common in southern England; resident perennial.
- Diet
- Photosynthesises to produce its own food; relies on pollinators for reproduction.
- Predators
- Slugs and snails browse foliage; herbivorous insects feed on leaves; fungal infections and rot affect tubers.
- Mating Season
- Flowers June to August; pollination occurs during this period.
- Breeding
- Produces thousands of microscopic seeds dispersed by wind; no distinct breeding cycle as a perennial, but establishes from seed germination in spring/early summer.
- Behaviour
- The orchid is largely immobile as a plant but attracts a variety of pollinators including bees, flies, and butterflies through its spotted petals. It exhibits considerable colour variation across the UK, from pale pink to deep purple with darker spots.
- •The distinctive dark spots on petals act as 'nectar guides' to attract and direct pollinators to the flower's centre
- •Each plant can produce up to 1 million seeds, though germination rates are very low without the correct fungal symbiont
- •The common name 'spotted orchid' distinguishes it from the Early Marsh Orchid, which flowers earlier in the season
- •It forms a mycorrhizal relationship with soil fungi essential for seed germination and nutrient uptake
- •The plant's tubers were historically dug up to make 'salep', a nutritious drink, leading to local population declines
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