172 



The Canadian Field-Naturalist 



[Vol. XXXIV. 



search, before Mr. Griscom who was slightly in 

 advance, quite casually called my attention, by 

 saying, look at this small orchid. Now this seeming 

 sang froid on the part of my friend, was nothing 

 more or less than a well-feigned piece of acting, 

 for there before me was a specimen of that little 

 gem the Small Round-leaved Orchid, Orchis ro- 

 tundifolia, which neither of us had seen before in 

 nature, and the sight of which had elated him quite 

 as much as it did me. Of course the usual congratu- 

 lations ensued, and as the Bartramian Sandpiper 

 had been the beginning, so this rare little orchid was 

 the ending of a perfect day. Of the other species 

 found the following is a list, viz. : Cypripedium par- 

 viftorum, C. hirsutum, C. acaule, Habenaria h^per- 

 borea, H. ohtusala, Calopogon pulchellus, Arethusa 

 bulbosa, Listera cordaia, Corallorrhiza trifida, and 

 later on in July Pogonia ophioglossoides. Although 

 many of them were nearly over or on the wane at 

 Hatley at this date, here in this delightful cool 

 swamp lying at an elevation of about 700 feet or 

 rather more above sea level, they were in the pink 

 of condition. The first named as well as Arethusa 

 were in the utmost profusion the perfume from 

 them being delicious, and it is unlikely we shall ever 

 see the sight equalled again, unless it is in this 

 same swamp. The Showy Lady's Slipper, C. hir- 

 sutum, was not out at this date, but I have been 

 told that it used to be very plentiful at one time, 

 but vandalism of the worst kind has much depleted 

 its ranks. However, it still seemed to be in fair 

 numbers on July 10, the date of my second visit. 

 Other flowers that could hardly escape attention, 

 as they were all over the place, were, Buckbean, 

 Men^anthes irifoliata, and False Solomon's Seal, 

 Smilacina stellaia, and that curious little insectivor- 

 ous plant the Round-leaved Sundew, Drosera ro- 

 tundifolia, was found in a few places whilst gather- 

 ing specimens of Carex tenuiflora, a somewhat un- 

 common sedge. What this swamp with the higher 

 woods immediately surrounding it will eventually 

 produce none can say. The latter we were entirely 

 unable to explore, and work has yet to be done 

 during May, early June, late July, August and Sep- 

 tember, before any adequate opinion can be formed. 

 Under the cedars where I found Listera cordata 

 seemed a likely enough place for Calypso bulbosa, 

 and who knows but what Cypripedium arietinum 

 might not be there also. The higher woods should 

 produce some more of the Habenarias, perhaps 

 Hookeri and orbiculata, but there, further speculat- 

 ing must not be indulged in, time alone will show. 

 The birds were not entirely forgotten, the Northern 

 Parula Warbler, Compsothlypis americana usnea, 

 and the Golden-crowned Kinglet, Regulus satrapa 

 satrapa, being noted, both of which were evidently 

 breeding, as well as the Brown Creeper, Certhia 



familiaris americana, and the Olive-sided Fly- 

 catcher, Nullallornis borealis. 



Amongst all this galaxy of beauty and profusion, 

 a vein of regret was struck, when I came to realize 

 that my conquests were fast drawing to a close, and 

 that ere long it would be well nigh impossible to 

 add another new species to my list. Certainly there 

 is still a possibility of finding any of the following, 

 viz.: Cypripedium arietinum, Habenaria dilatata 

 var. media, H. clavellata, H. blephariglottis, H. 

 lacera, Serapias helleborine, Epipaciis decipiens and 

 Listera auriculata, a total of eight only, but out of 

 these C. arietinum and Serapias Helleborine are very 

 rare indeed, and are hardly likely to fall to my lot. 

 Still there is plenty of ground to cover yet, and one 

 never knows what a turn in the road may mean, per- 

 haps some overlooked little wood, swamp, or bog, 

 where hidden away lies some rarity, and herein lies 

 the charm of orchid hunting. 



In conclusion the following is an annotated list of 

 the three new species found this season, viz: 



Small Round-leaved Orchis, Orchis rotundifolia. 

 Banks. This rare little orchid which was cnce 

 aptly described to me by a lady friend as a beauti- 

 ful little spike of tiny opalled flowers, was first dis- 

 covered on June 24 near Beebe, a village lying to 

 the south east of Hatley, and distant about fifteen 

 miles as the crow flies. The colony was a very 

 small one, consisting of some half dozen plants 

 only, but when visited again on July 10, three or 

 four more (one in perfect bloom even at this late 

 date) were found in the immediate neighbourhood 

 of the others. With more time at one's disposal to 

 enable a thorough systematic search to be made 

 (the area of the swamp being considerable) it is 

 hoped to find it in greater abundance another 

 year. The location was an old and somewhat 

 grown up logging road, in the centre of which, 

 and at the sides, the plants were growing. 



Hooker's Orchid, Habenaria Hool^eri Torr. The 

 home of this orchid lies on the eastern shore of Lake 

 Massawippi, between the railway station of that 

 name, and Perkin's Point. There I found several 

 small colonies of it in bloom from as early as May 

 30 to as late as June 25, when it was beginning to 

 get over. It is a fallacy to suppose (as many of the 

 books would have us believe) that the leaves of this 

 orchid in contra distinction to those of H. orbicu- 

 lata are always raised above the ground, and for 

 this reason the plants when not in flower can be dis- 

 tinguished from the latter. There is really no abso- 

 lute means of distinguishing Hoof^eri, orbiculata, or 

 macrophylla from one another when in leaf only, 

 as I have found all three of them at one time or 

 another, with leaves raised above, and also lying/^ 

 flat on the ground. Even when the scape is partly ^' 

 developed one may be deceived, but Hoof^eri is 



