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Rare Orchid Blossoms in the Eastern Rhodopes
The Provence orchid (Orchis provincialis) is one of the rarest Bulgarian and European orchids.Today in Bulgaria there is only one known locality of this orchid which is situated on the northern slopes of the Gyumyurdjinsky snezhnik ridge in the Eastern Rhodopes. Provence orchid is included in the Red Data Book of Bulgaria with the status "critically endangered".
The species occurs in deciduous and juniper bushes, in low-growing deciduous forests and their outskirts and in xerothermic grasslands in between the forest and bush areas.
The reasons for its extreme rareness are unknown. Any modification of its habitat can lead to extinction of the last locality of the species in Bulgaria.
The last location of the species in Bulgaria is within the Natura 2000 site "Rodopi Iztochni", but that is no guarantee for its preservation. An adjacent land was already plowed and planted with exotic trees, probably for farming subsidies. Preservation of this very rare species on Bulgarian territory needs a continuous monitoring of the Provence Orchid’s very restricted populations, a development of action plan and the allocation of protected areas.
See here more about the orchids in Bulgaria (in Bulgarian)
The Provence orchid (Orchis provincialis) is one of the rarest Bulgarian and European orchids.Today in Bulgaria there is only one known locality of this orchid which is situatedon the northern slopes of the Gyumyurdjinsky snezhnik ridge in the Eastern Rhodopes. Provence orchid is included in the Red Data Book of Bulgaria with the status "critically endangered".
The species occurs in deciduous and juniper bushes, in low-growing deciduous forests and their outskirts and in xerothermic grasslands in between the forest and bush areas.
The reasons for its extreme rareness are unknown. Any modification of its habitat can lead to extinction of the last locality of the species in Bulgaria.
The last location of the species in Bulgaria is
