5 Fun Facts About Orchids

1. There are more than 25,000 documented species of orchids in the world and they’ve been around since before the continental drift 200 million years ago.
2. The smallest orchid in the world is in Ecuador. It is only 2.1mm long and it requires a microscope to examine. It’s petals are so thin and transparent, scientists believe they resemble the size and texture of human cells.
3. There is an orchid called the Bee Orchid, whose petals and fragrance resemble a bee. The orchid uses its unique appearance and fragrance to attract male bees, to stimulate pollination.
4. Orchid seeds are really tiny – smaller than a dust particle. That’s why some orchids take up to 15 years just to germinate. Many of the full-grown potted orchids found in stores are often decades old!
5. Rare orchids can get really expensive. Some of the most expensive orchid plants are – Rotchschild’s orchid ($5,000 per plant), Fire lilies ($10-$20 per stem), Yellow And Purple Lady Slipper (Critically endangered – Priceless) and Ghost Orchid (Critically endangered – Priceless).

Bonus

That vanilla-flavoured ice cream you love so much? It’s derived from an orchid. The Vanilla planifolia is a type of orchid, whose leaves are used to derive the vanilla flavouring used in food and beverages. Additionally, when someone talks about “vanilla beans”, they’re actually referring to orchid seeds.

Vanilla bean orchid pods

Vanilla bean orchid flower

Rothshild’s slipper orchid

Ghost orchid

Purple lady slipper orchid 

Rare blue orchids

Praying Angel orchid

Bee orchid

Red fire lily

Blue fire lily

Platystele Jungermannioides – the smallest orchid in the world

Moth orchid 

Monkey orchid

Ballerina orchid

Ballerina orchid

Swaddled baby orchid

Flying duck orchid

-NISHA PRAKASH

P.S: Featured image: Dendrobium orchid 

5 Fun Facts About Chevrotain aka Mouse Deer

1. Chevrotain are found only in Asia and Africa.
2. Chevrotain are super small in size. The various sub-species of the mouse deer range in size between that of a Chihuahua and a Jack Russell Terrier.
3. Although they resemble deer and have mousey faces, the chevrotain are not related to either of the animals. In fact, they belong to a separate, mostly-extinct species called Tragulidae, of which they are the only surviving members.
4. They have very long and sharp fangs which they use during battle for territory and mates. Their bites can put even Dracula to shame.
5. Female chevrotain are pregnant for most of their adult lives. They mate and get pregnant within a few hours of giving birth.

 

Bonus

Chevrotains walk down into the river bottom and remain submerged for up to 4 minutes at a time when they sense the presence of predators.  They may also create secondary burrows for themselves underwater where they stay until the danger passes. To see what this is like, watch the video below.

 

A chevrotain’s fangs are very sharp and long. Males have longer and sharper fangs than females.

Chevrotain mating

A mother chevrotain feeding a fawn. Mothers stand on three legs, lift a leg in the air and feed their fawns. 

Fawns are one of the smallest creatures in the wild

A mouse deer in the Thai forest

 

-NISHA PRAKASH

 

5 Fun Facts About Okapi

1. Okapi have tongues that are 30 cms long, which is approximately double the length of a standard television remote and three times the length of the average human tongue.
2. Okapi diet is as diverse as it is colourful. Okapi eat over 100 types of plants & fungi, red clay and charcoal. This type of diet ensures they get all the nutrients they need to be healthy.
3. New born okapi don’t poop until they are four to ten weeks old. Researchers believe this may be a tactic to avoid drawing predators through smell.
4. Mother okapi speak to their babies in infrasound, sounds that are too low for humans to hear.
5. Okapi release a black tar-like substance from their feet, which leaves marks when they walk. This could be a way of marking territory.

 

Bonus

Okapi are extremely shy and live in secluded areas of the forest. Apart from calf-mother pairs, they seldom interact with any species, including their own. Till the time they were discovered in 1901 by British explorer Sir Harry Johnston, Okapi were called ‘African Unicorns’ because people thought they were a myth and didn’t really exist. It was only the indigenous tribes living in the Congo-Ugandan region who had occasionally seen the animals till then. Now they are found only in the Congo and are the country’s national animal.

 

Video: An okapi in the wild

 

An okapi 

 

The Okapi Wildlife Reserve established in Congo helps safeguard this Rare & Endangered species. There are currently only 25,000 documented okapi in the wild. 

The Congolese franc uses okapi as the image for their 50 franc notes.

A mother-calf pair feeding

 

-NISHA PRAKASH