Cypripedium acaule [pollination & insect interaction]

Crane Fly [Tipula paterifera] roosting on Pink Lady's Slipper [Cyptiprdium acaule]. Dauphin County, Pa. 5-1-26

Pink Lady's Slipper [Cypripedium acaule]. What we see is a beautiful flower but looks can be deceiving, in reality what we are looking at is the perfect trap. A Bumblebee smelling a sweet scent and seeing the bright colors, and guided by the lines around the entrance, enters through a slit in the pouch. Once inside he realizes that he has bee tricked as there is no sweet reward, the sticky hairs inside the flower help guide the bee toward two exits at the top of the flower. With the help of a clothespin we can see just what is happening to the bee inside the flower on his journey. On the reverse of the staminode lies the sticky stigma and any pollen on the bee will be deposited here. Beyond the stigma the bee is forced out one of two exits and is forced into contact with pollen located there, which he carries to the next flower. And you and I thought we were just looking at a beautiful flower, instead we are looking at an ingenious trap, that through the eons of time, this orchid has perfected to achieve pollination and the continuation of its species. Next time that we see this remarkable orchid, you like me can marvel at the perfect engineering before us. [ 3 rows of pictures above]

Thousands of tiny seeds from one seed pod of Pink Lady's Slipper [Cypripedium acaule]. Dauphin County, Pa. 10-16-25. 

Thousands of tiny seeds from one seed pod of Pink Lady's Slipper [Cypripedium acaule]. Dauphin County, Pa. 10-16-25. Note the dark area of the seeds are the embryos.

This Spider has made its web in the entrance of Pink Ladies Slipper [Cypripedium acaule] in hopes of catching a bee that tries to enter the flower. Dauphin County, Pa. 5-15-25

This Spider has made its web in the entrance of Pink Ladies Slipper [Cypripedium acaule] in hopes of catching a bee that tries to enter the flower. Dauphin County, Pa. 5-15-25

Pink Ladies Slipper with seed pod [Cypripedium acaule]. Dauphin County, Pa. 10-9-24

Seed pod from Pink Ladies Slipper [Cypripedium acaule]. Dauphin County, Pa. 10-9-24