Your orchid spotter has been MIA - busy cycling around the Netherlands on a charity ride for Kids Cancer. What's the best cure for jet lag? Go **Orchid Spotting**

My travels back from Europe were long and slow with flights from Zurich to Amsterdam (to fetch my bicycle), Frankfurt, Bangkok and finally Sydney.  I got home around 11 am after nearly 48 hours on the road - always a disaster taking a nap but at 5 pm that is what the body wanted. That and cold beer. 

So I decided to go **orchid spotting** and no better idea than to head out the front door.  Well it is directly out the front door, take a right and head into the National Park within 5 minutes. By now you will know the orchid spotting drill - look for a single (sometimes two) leaf on or near the ground, a longish stem with no leaves and a flash of colour. October is peak orchid flowering time as Spring makes its presence felt - omens are good. 

First time back into the bush after a month away, I notice first the smell of the eucalyptus forest. It is quite distinctive and very noticeable after an absence. The body is tired and the eyes are struggling to focus. Keep on walking., I hear the sound of a bird in the distance. It is a koel, which is a migrant that comes to Australia from Papua New Guinea - that is a sign of Spring. Some days one just  gets lucky with the camera - a bird cruises across the path in front of me and settles in the bush ahead. He is totally happy with me there and I can snap a few pictures (2 out of 4 in focus is a pleasing result). Not sure this is the koel as the beak is the wrong shape - looks like some sort of thrush (Bassian Thrush it is).

<center>https://s19.postimg.org/h29qi5srn/Orchids8_1.jpg</center>

Enough talk about birds and songs. This is about orchids. Did you find any?  Last time down this track I did spot a prospect

> Keep walking and find this opportunity next to the fire-trail roadway. Fits the criteria - 1. one or two leaves close to the ground, 2 - long stem, 3 flower is forming - cannot tell until it emerges to know it is an orchid. If it is, it is new to my sightings.

 (read about it here - [https://steemit.com/photography/@carrinm/seeking-out-australian-native-orchids-5](https://steemit.com/photography/@carrinm/seeking-out-australian-native-orchids-5)).  

Well here is a big surprise for me given I had seen the plant 5 weeks before. The flowers look like they have started to wither which is not surprising. Closer examination reveals that the witherings are in fact the fine tendrils of the flower of a Bearded Orchid. 

<h1>https://s19.postimg.org/enhuxqcir/Orchids8_3.jpg</h1>

<a href="https://s19.postimg.org/gzpuvbp43/IMG_1662.jpg" rel="noopener">Click here to see image in full size</a>

I will need to refer to the reference materials at home to identify specifically which one it is. This is the part of orchid spotting that is really hard - getting precise enough descriptions and photos and measurements to pin down the specific plant. My work at home narrows it down to one of two - Red Bearded Orchid (Calochilus paludosus) or Purplish Bearded Orchid (Calochilus robertsonii) - I really need a photo of the leaves to see if that helps. What you will notice is there are two purple glands near the column - the reference materials are confused on this score. I need an expert.  Side on photos may help as they highlight the other markings

https://s19.postimg.org/3p6lfjnxf/Orchids8_4.jpg

https://s19.postimg.org/4sqpri8kj/Orchids8_5.jpg

It is quite interesting to see how often the photograph also includes a spider. We all know that the shape and colour and scent of the flowers (and for this orchid the style of the beards) is all designed to attract insects for pollination. The question is: 

> How does the spider find the flower in the first place and even if it is flying by on its web in the breeze, how does it choose to stop?  Maybe spiders have an advanced sense of smell!!

In the same section of the track, I spot a number of different plants all showing off their buds. The leaves are quite different - looking forward to seeing these when they flower. I do have some suspicions about what they are but will only know when the flowers emerge. I will keep coming back - it is like dating - you just have to keep coming back until the lady will allow you to take a photo of her in her finery. 

What is truly amazing is seeing where the plants are growing.   They are all clinging to the roadside at the foot of a cliff - the roadside has flattened out here a little - the seeds have been washed down the steep section of the roadway in the rain and settled on this flatter area. More amazing is the cluster of plants growing in the crack formed by the rocks - clearly the soil is good enough here to support the tubers for next season's growth. 

https://s19.postimg.org/rjzsdwtlv/Orchids8_7.jpg

Look out for #9 in the series as I come back to check these out through the season and as I keep searching - and I need to take a photo of the leaves for the bearded orchid to pin down that ID.