Carousel Spider Orchid

Spiders and snakes, oh my!  Deep alizarin crimson spikes drew my eyes to the tiny carousel spider orchid at my feet.  The bloom was less than an inch in width, but its stunning and wild beauty more than made up for its diminutive size.

 

 

Carousel Spider Orchid  “Caledonia Arenicola”  is a vibrant and elegant  native wildflower that only grows in specific soils of  Perth, Western Australia.

The wildflowers are ramping up at the Wireless Hill Park, here in Perth.  Its close and handy to where I work, lucky me!   So lately, I’ve been trying to scoot down to the reserve either before or after work and have a nice little nature stroll. Once again, lucky me!

The bright parrot green and scarlet red Kangaroo Paws are also out in full force,  so big and tall they nearly overpower everything else. They stand out like Gulliver the giant in the bushland.

I got so used to seeing just them, it took  a while to readjust my eyes to the smaller, more delicate lovelies in their shadows.

I found a plethora of Donkey Orchids as well. Pretty sunny yellow orchids with two big upturned petals that look, oddly like donkey ears.

I looked around for quite some time for one of my favourite flowers,  a gorgeous blue Fringed Lily, but failed to locate them.  I’ll have to go back for a longer excursion I guess.    I’ve been trying to go when the sun was out, just not Too warm.

If its too warm,  (things)  come out of hibernation that I would  rather not do a ‘meet and greet’ alone on a dirt path.

Living in Sydney, with daily bushwalking, I got used to the New South Wales typical snakes and their common habits.  But there are a few surly species over west here,  that I have absolutely clue about them or their typical habits.  Thus,  I’d rather avoid any potential fear based attacks.   Ok,  panic attacks for you who are chuckling at me!

My last stroll in the park  was  perfect:   lots of spider orchids  and no snakes.