Calypso bulbosa var. occidentalis

Fairy slipper

Family: Orchidaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Fairy slipper is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, central coast, and San Francisco Bay Area in mesic, shaded conifer forests at elevations below 1,800 meters. Flowering from March to June, this delicate orchid produces pink and white flowers with a distinctive purple-striate lip pouch, creating an intricate slipper-like bloom about 15 to 25 millimeters long. Growing with a slender stem 7 to 18 centimeters tall, the plant emerges from a spherical corm-like caudex with no spreading rhizome. Its single basal leaf is elegantly petioled, with an elliptical to ovate blade 3 to 6.5 centimeters long. The flower features a complex structure with pink sepals, a white-hairy pouch mouth, and a base adorned with distinctive red spots.

Habitat: Mesic generally shaded conifer forest

Bloom period: Mar-Jun

Elevation: < 1800 m

Bioregions: NW (exc NCoRI), CCo, SnFrB

California counties: Humboldt, Marin, Mendocino, Sonoma, Del Norte, Santa Cruz

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.