KNP and HBV Calypso Count 2024

For a period of 9 years, between 2007 and 2023, citizen science volunteers have been taking to the trails in the Kimberley Nature Park (KNP) and Horse Barn Valley Interpretive Forest (HBV), to count the blossoms of the delicate, fuchsia-pink Calypso orchids. This year, 2024, added to the recorded data collected over the previous years.

Calypso bulbosa, also known as the Fairy Slipper orchid, is a perennial member of the orchid family. It takes its name from the Greek word for "concealment," as they tend to favor sheltered areas of forest floors. They are found in swamps, marshes and undisturbed coniferous forests in the world’s circumpolar areas, including most of Canada, Scandinavia and other northern European countries, the northern US and northern Asia.

Calypso orchids attract pollinators, but offer them no nectar for their efforts; however, Indigenous peoples of North America used the corms as a food source and for the treatment of mild epilepsy.

A single Calypso, like all other orchids, can produce tens of thousands of seeds. Despite that vast production, and its wide distribution in the Northern Hemisphere, it is very susceptible to disturbance and is classified as threatened or endangered in some jurisdictions. Habitat destruction, poaching, deer, and invasive species are taking their toll. Nor does it transplant well, due to its mycorrhizal dependence on specific soil fungi, so remedial interventions are not successful.

In the most recent 2024 count, for the period of 2 weeks from May 19 to June 2, a team of 11 leads/reporters and 10 helpers covered 39 trails and 56 different sections of those trails, sighting and reporting 289 orchids in the Kimberley Nature Park and 60 in Horse Barn Valley, for a total of 349.

The chart and graph below demonstrate that the number of recorded Calypsos has ranged broadly, from a high in 2011 of 1,961, to the low of 271 in 2022. Though there are many variables, including spring weather conditions that affect start, duration and end dates of the orchid’s appearance and, as well, the number of volunteers counting, the chart and graph do show a declining trend in orchid numbers in the KNP and HBV over the 10 years of the count.

Counting, recording, taking photos, describing, documenting…all these citizen scientist efforts contribute to the bank of knowledge that we have about our natural environment, and are invaluable in decision-making about these special places in our community.

According to volunteer Josh Clark, “Doing the Calypso count around the KNP was great! It got us to slow down and take note of what was around us. The hunt for orchids made us appreciate the little hidden gems in the park, trying to spot beautiful flowers amongst towering trees was a great way to see the KNP in a different light.”

The KNP Society would like to sincerely thank the many volunteers who contributed to this survey of Calypso orchids. We look forward to engaging with you again next year…and the next…and the next…