Platanthera yosemitensis

Yosemite bog-orchid

Family: Orchidaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Yosemite bog-orchid is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native perennial found in central and southern Sierra Nevada Mountains, specifically in Yosemite National Park, inhabiting wet meadows at elevations of 2,100 to 2,285 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces yellow-green flowers with a distinctive hood-like shape formed by its upper sepal and petals, creating a strongly pungent scent. Growing 20 to 80 centimeters tall with erect stems, it develops 5 to 7 lanceolate leaves clustered near the base, each leaf 9 to 25 centimeters long and 1.5 to 3 centimeters wide. Its most distinctive feature is the lance-rhombic lip, typically 4 to 6 millimeters long and often upturned, accompanied by a sac-like floral spur 2 to 28 millimeters in length. The plant produces small capsules measuring 0.3 to 1 centimeter, completing its reproductive cycle in these high-elevation Sierra Nevada meadows.

Habitat: Wet meadows

Bloom period: Jul-Aug

Elevation: 2100-2285 m

Bioregions: c SNH (Yosemite National Park), s SNH.

California counties: Mariposa, Plumas, Fresno

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