Orchid  (Dracula vampira)

Classified as Vulnerable on the 1997 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants (3), and listed on Appendix II of CITES (4).

This magnificent orchid has large distinctive flowers; the sepals are rounded with the top corner pulled into a thin tail, which may extend up to 11 cm long (2). Although green in colour, the sepals are covered by numerous blackish purple veins and the tails are almost completely black (2). The large sepals dwarf the petals and lip of the flower, which are white in colour and marked with purple and pinkish veins respectively (2). Dracula vampira is a large epiphyte with many stems; the erect leaves are between 15 and 28 cm long (2). The generic name of this species seems very appropriate; 'Dracula' means 'little dragon', alluding to the exotic flower shape; the misty cloud forest where these orchids are found may also evoke images of Count Dracula (5).

Endemic to Ecuador in South America, Dracula vampira is found only on the slopes of Mount Pichincha (2). It is found between 1,900 and 2,200 metres above sea level (6), where it is fairly locally abundant (2).

These plants grow on the lower sections of trees on the forested mountainside; many plants may accumulate on damp, leaf litter (2).

As an epiphyte, this orchid does not obtain its nutrients from the soil but from the air around it (7).

The precise threats facing this species are currently unclear.

This orchid is popular in cultivation for its extremely dramatic, large flowers (5).