Species: Tipularia discolor, Cranefly Orchid

Family: Orchidaceae (Orchid)

Plant description: Flower stalk 8 - 16" tall; single ovate leaf is brownish-green on top often with raised dark spots and purple underneath. Leaf veins parallel. Leaf emerges in the late fall and photosynthesizes during the winter when there is more available sunlight in the woods. Leaf dies back in the late spring and is not present when the plant flowers.

Habitat: Open deciduous woods

Range: eastern New York, Massachusetts to Florida, west to Texas and Michigan

Bloom Period: July to September

Human Uses:

Ecology:

Status: Endangered: Massachusetts, New York; Threatened: Florida, Michigan; Rare: Pennsylvania

Flower spike, Durham NC July 2004

Close up of flowers

Leaf in the winter

Underside of leaf