Habitat
Poor grassland, edges of scrubland, open woodland and sand dunes. On calcareous,
fairly dry soils.
Geographical spread
In Britain confined to Kent, Sussex and Cambridgeshire. Also found on
the Continent, is very common i
n northwest France and is found elsewhere.
Size
20-90cm tall.
Status
Listed in the IUCN Red Data Book.
Coloration and looks
Greenish- to brownish-white with brownish-red veins on the upper
surface. Smells very
strongly of goat.
Normal lifehistory
Occurs singly or in small numbers. Lower foliage leaves are formed in the
autumn and the remainder of the aerial stem develops in early summer of the succeeding year.
There are usually 8-10 leaves. By
the time the plant flowers, the leaves are pale green or
yellowish and withering. The flower spike may contain as many as 80 closely placed flowers,
although in this country there are not usually that many. The Lizard orchid flowers in late June
and July
. The flowers smell strongly of goat and attract flies.
Previous geographical spread
First recorded in 1641 between Dartford and Crayford in Kent,
it continued to flower there until 1805 when it died out. It is not known whether this occur
red
from natural causes or through excessive gathering by collectors.
File last modified Thursday, October 3, 1996