Tuesday, March 9, 2021
Virtual Friends Gathering via Zoom
Gather 6:30, Program 7:00 PM
Orchids are considered indicator species of habitat quality, and generally are rare throughout their range, yet the orchid family is one of the two largest plant families in the world! Orchids can be found as far north as inside the Arctic Circle all the way to the southern tip of Tasmania, south of the Australian mainland. Their unique relationship with mycorrhizal fungi speaks to the deep interconnectedness of all nature. In this presentation Kathleen will show us all the orchids documented from our region, as well as a few more from central and southern Illinois.
Register HERE to be emailed the Zoom link for the gathering.
About our presenter: Kathleen Marie Garness
has been fascinated with orchids for many years. Her artwork was featured by the Smithsonian Institution at their 2010 exhibit ‘Losing Paradise?
Endangered Plants Here and Around the World’ and on their North American Native Orchid Conservation website:
She also recently illustrated the new Glossary for Flora of the Chicago Region
and two guides for the Field Museum:
Illinois — Common Plant Families of the Chicago Region
Illinois – Dunesland Habitat Guide (Native Wildflowers)
We will also receive an update on the Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid Recovery project. USFWS biologist Cathy Pollack and Laurie Ryan, plant ecologist with McHenry County Conservation District, are both involved in this effort on behalf of our region’s most endangered orchid.