Nine-Years Ago (04-August-2007) — Colorado

Summertime Nature at the Caribou Ranch Open Space Preserve in Boulder County, Colorado.

While on a hike at the Caribou Ranch I noticed this strange plant growing in the forest.  A tall reddish stalk with hanging bell like flowers. It doesn’t appear to have any chlorophyll and lives mostly in the shade. I wondered if it was related to the Snow Plant I saw in Yosemite. Later on I found that it is a Coralroot Orchid. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 105 mm macro lens. Raw image processed with Capture One Pro, Focus Magic, and Photoshop CC.

Strange Wildflower at the Caribou Ranch Open Space Preserve in Boulder County, Colorado. Later identified as a Coralroot Orchid. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 105 mm macro lens. Raw image processed with Capture One Pro, Focus Magic, and Photoshop CC. (David J Mathre)
Coralroot Orchid. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 105 mm macro lens. (David J Mathre)