After Deb heads of to her Saturday night shift I decide to go check out Dempster Head Reserve and see if I can finally locate the helmet orchids others have mentioned growing there. We had previously found leaves which we were unsure if they were Corybas or Cyrtostylis orchids. It will be great to answer the mystery.

Parking up at the Rotary Lookout, I walk off in the direction of the port as that is where we have found the mysterious leaves. First up though I am distracted by the many snail orchids popping up in the usual, plus very unusual, locations. Unsure of the exact species however finding some growing on the top of a boulder was a unique find.

In the known patch of mysterious leaves I am lucky enough to find a couple in flower to answer the question of what species they belong to. The Crystal helmet orchid (Corybas limpidus) is confirmed as that species. These are found flowering from July till early-September over south coastal locations between Walpole and Esperance. The Latin name limpidus alludes to the transparent dorsal sepal and lateral sepals which form the helmet. Further around the trail I locate flowering corybas orchids in another two locations, so I am a very happy man.

Final orchid found for the afternoon was the Mosquito orchid (Cyrtostylis robusta) which was located right alongside the walking track. A widespread orchid found between Perth and Israelite Bay during the winter months.

Moving to the West Beach side of the reserve the orchids become few and far between and as it is now after 4:30pm I take an photo overlooking a pool of water with views in the background of West Beach. A calming shot to end an enjoyable few hours on a winters’ Saturday afternoon.