Dragon's mouth

For the name of the series of straits separating the Gulf of Paria from the Caribbean Sea, see Bocas del Dragón. For the 1952 J.B. Priestley play, see Dragon's Mouth (play).

Arethusa bulbosa, commonly called dragon's mouth orchid,^[4] is the only species in the orchid genus Arethusa.^[3] The genus is named after a naiad of Greek mythology.^[5] This monotypic genus is abbreviated Aret in trade journals.

Dragon's mouth orchid
Taken Pancake Bay, Ontario
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Orchidaceae
Subfamily:	Epidendroideae
Tribe:	Arethuseae
Subtribe:	Arethusinae
Genus:	Arethusa L.
Species:	A. bulbosa
Binomial name
Arethusa bulbosa L.[2]
Synonyms[3]
Arethusa bulbosa f. albiflora E.L.Rand & Redfield Arethusa bulbosa f. subcaerulea E.L.Rand & Redfield

This terrestrial and rare orchid occurs in Eastern North America from Manitoba east to Newfoundland and St. Pierre & Miquelon south to Virginia, with isolated populations in northern Saskatchewan and in the Carolinas.^[3][6][7] It occurs in bogs, swamps and other wet lowlands. It grows to a height of 15 cm. It forms a large, single, pink terminal flower, with a showy lip and white and yellow fringed crests.^[2]

Gallery

• 
  Western Brook Pond Trail, Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland and Labrador
• 
  Drawing from Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. (1913). Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada.
• 
  Waterloo State Recreation Area, Michigan