Flying Duck Orchid

The flying duck orchid is a bit of an impersonator.

Flying duck orchids are perennial plants of small size, native to areas in the south and east of Australia.
The scientific name of flying duck orchids is Caleana major and it is from the family Orchidaceae, the family of orchids.
Flying duck orchids typically bloom between September and January and the flowers range in length from 1.5 to 2.5 centimetres (0.6 to 1 inch).
The flowers of flying duck orchids are usually coloured a deep red to purple, with some parts green, and have the appearance of a duck in flight, and compared to most other orchid flowers, sit on the plant upside down.
One of the first specimens of a flying duck orchid obtained by Europeans was from where the Sydney Opera House of Australia sits, located at Bennelong Point in Sydney, retrieved in 1803.

Flying duck orchids are pollinated by insects such as sawflies, that are attracted to the flower and are temporarily trapped to collect and transfer pollen.
Flying duck orchids are extremely difficult to grow or propagate, thus they are virtually exclusive to woody forests or shrubby habitats.
The height of flying duck orchid plants can reach 50 centimetres (20 inches), and they grow from a tuber and have long narrow leaves.
The flying duck orchid was pictured on a 90 cent Australian postage stamp, released in 1986, as one of a set of four stamps featuring Australian orchids.
Due to what seems to be a lack of pollinating insects, as well as habitat destruction, the flying duck orchid plant is listed as vulnerable in the state of South Australia.

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