TWO NEW ORCHID HYBRIDS 59 



more acuminate, the side-lobes of the lip not so broad, and the mid- 

 lobe considerably narrower, in all which respects it approaches 

 Anacamptis. The colour of the lip is a peculiarly bright crimson, 

 almost impossible to reproduce, reminding - one of the brilliancy of the 

 most vividly-coloured specimens of A. pyramldalis on the Biviera. 

 The ovary is long and slender, as in pyramldalis, which owes the 

 shape of its spike to the long ovaries of the lowermost flowers 

 standing out at right angles to the stem. The bracts closely resemble 

 those of Anacamptis ; they are slightly shorter than the ovary, 

 acuminate, membranous, and violet-red. In S. lingua x O. laxifiora 

 they much exceed the ovary, are broader, sub-obtuse, herbaceous, and 

 green. None of these characters amount to positive proof, but taken 

 together they form a chain of evidence, in conjunction with the 

 presence of Anacamptis in the vicinity of the hybrid, as conclusive as 

 can be expected in cases of this kind. 



A difficulty — at first sight a serious one — may be raised on the 

 ground that Seraplas, with no spur, is adapted for visitation by 

 short-tongued insects, such as Hymenoptera, and Anacamptis, with 

 its long spur, for Lepidoptera, which have a long proboscis, and that 

 it is very improbable that both plants should be visited by the same 

 insect. The spur of Niyritella, however, is only 2 mm. long, that of 

 Gymnadenia conopsea 15 mm. Yet hybrids between the two are, 

 in some localities, by no means rare. Difference in the length of the 

 spar is not therefore such a bar to cross-fertilization as might be 

 supposed. In spite of its short spur, Miiller observed that Niyritella 

 was visited by no less than 48 different species of Lepidoptera. 

 The difficulty, therefore, is more imaginary than real. 



2. x Opiirys Cranbrookeana. 

 (Ophrys ar admit if or mis Gren. x O. scolopax, Cav. ) 



Stem 22 cm. high. Lower leaves resembling arachnitiformis, 

 upper lanceolate, enfolding stem, acute. Bracts longer than ovary, 

 erect, lanceolate, inrolled. Sepals greenish white, tinged with rose, 

 with one green nerve, the lateral ovate rounded, with revolute edges, 

 appearing triangular, the upper arched forward, oblong, truncate. 

 Petals ligulate, narrow, pale yellowish green, ciliate, hispid in front 

 witli short erect hairs. Lip 3-lobed, side-lobes densely hairy, forming 

 two projecting cones, mid-lobe semi-cylindrical, but not so much 

 so as- in scolopax, dark purple-brown, marked with two parallel 

 irregular lines joined at the base by a collar. Appendix small, 

 turned up in front, intermediate between the parents. 



I gathered this plant on April 19, 1920, in a wood near Hyeres, 

 France, under the impression that it was O. arachnitiformis, which 

 in general appearance it much resembled, but the deeply-cut lip, with 

 its forward-projecting conical side-lobes, so marked a character of 

 0. scolopax, left no doubt as to the parentage of that species. It is 

 not often that one finds a hybrid in which the evidence as to both 

 parents is so clear. The two upper flowers had not yet been visited 

 by insects, but the ovary of the lower flower was considerably 

 developed. Both parents grew in the wood in some numbers. 



I have named this plant after the Countess of Cranbrook, to whom 



F 2 



