NameThatPlant.net: Triphora trianthophoros var. trianthophoros

Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Asparagales

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Triphora trianthophoros var. trianthophoros FAMILY Orchidaceae Go to FSUS key

Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.

You may enjoy reading Orchids of the Francis Marion National Forest by Jim Fowler.

Funny thing about this particular orchid species: It blooms only after a few, rather specific meteorological conditions have been met, and then for only a few hours that day. Read more at Jim Fowler's blog.

The leaves are unusual for orchids, being about 1/2-inch long, heart-shaped but clasping, and a handful scattered along the stem. Learn more at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Triphora trianthophora FAMILY Orchidaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)

Triphora trianthophoros

SYNONYMOUS WITH (ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT) Flora of North America

Triphora trianthophora ssp. trianthophora

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-05-001:

Triphora trianthophora FAMILY Orchidaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)

Triphora trianthophora

COMMON NAME:
Three Birds Orchid, Nodding Pogonia, Nodding Ettercap

To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.

image of Triphora trianthophoros var. trianthophoros, Three Birds Orchid, Nodding Pogonia, Nodding Ettercap

USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_trtr3_001_lvd

Jim Fowler jaftriphora_pinkgroup2

August NC

Pisgah National Forest

Tiny half-inch flowers at apex of a succulent green to reddish-green stem, per Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History (Fowler, 2005).

Jim Fowler jaftriphora_pinkgroup6

August NC

Pisgah National Forest

Jim Fowler jaftriphora_white1

August NC

Pisgah National Forest

Petals and sepals may be pure white or white tipped with pink or purple, per Wild Orchids of South Carolina: A Popular Natural History (Fowler, 2005).

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Triphora trianthophoros var. trianthophoros FAMILY Orchidaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Triphora trianthophora FAMILY Orchidaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Triphora trianthophoros

SYNONYMOUS WITH (ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT) Flora of North America
Triphora trianthophora ssp. trianthophora

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 049-05-001:
Triphora trianthophora FAMILY Orchidaceae

INCLUDED WITHIN & ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Triphora trianthophora

1911

Forb
Perennial

Habitat: Humid forests and swamps, rhododendron thickets, especially on rotten logs or on humus, in the mountains often under hemlock, per Weakley's Flora

Native to the Carolinas & Georgia

Rare

map
Click here to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.

Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)

LEAVES:
Simple

FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
White/ Pink (veined with purple & green)
Bisexual
Bilaterally symmetrical
3 sepals, two lateral and one dorsal
3 petals, the two lateral similar and a third (the lip) enlarged
stamens and pistil fused together into a column
Inferior ovary

FRUIT:
Summer/Fall

TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!