Ophrys querciphila

The Ophrys querciphila (often taxonomically corrected as Ophrys quercophila) is a recently described orchid species, officially documented in 2017 by botanists Nicole, Hervy, and Soca. This plant belongs to the complex section of late-flowering orchids, including the Ophrys fuciflora, O. scolopax, and O. tetraloniae group. Its specific name, querciphila, explicitly declares its ecology, meaning literally "the friend of the oak" or "the friend of the holm oak," due to its intimate association with Quercus forests.

Morphological description: It is a slender and tall orchid, typically reaching heights between 26 and 59 cm. It features a lax (sparsely arranged) inflorescence with 3 to 12 medium-sized flowers (generally 5 to 10), where the internodes are notably longer than the bracts. The sepals measure between 12 and 18 mm in length, are rounded at the tip, and display a color ranging from pale pink to vivid pink. The petals are subtriangular or sublinear, short (3.4 - 7.5 mm), with little or no auricles, and exhibit short but clearly visible hairiness along their margins. The labellum is large (between 12 and 17 mm) and primarily sepi-like (not showing a marked notch at the insertion of the stigmatic cavity and widening in the middle part), much more rarely fucifloroide or scolopaxoide in appearance. It contains a simple macula (often "X"-shaped) and false eyes that can be light or dark green. The stigmatic cavity is large, dark, and subrectangular, and the basal field is usually trapezoidal with tones ranging from orange to brown or brick red. It possesses lateral gibbosities that are sometimes not very voluminous and has an incomplete submarginal hair band.

Flowering and Pollination: It has a life cycle focused on late flowering, blooming from mid-May to mid or late June. It often flowers simultaneously with other species like Ophrys apifera or Cephalanthera rubra. Like many orchids of this genus, it employs the pseudocopulation strategy, attracting male bees by mimicking females. Studies in the Iberian Peninsula have confirmed that the bee Tetraloniella strigata acts as an effective pollinator, as males copulate with the flower and carry away the pollinia. Other species like Eucera pulveracea and Eucera clypeata are also highly attracted to the flower.

Habitat and distribution: Ecologically, it is deeply linked to forest environments and scrublands bordering Quercus forests, such as holm oak forests (Quercus ilex), downy oak forests (Quercus pubescens), or Portuguese oak forests (Quercus faginea). Although initially described mainly on calcareous and marly soils, it has also been found in acidophilic or siliceous kermes oak forests. It has a very wide altitudinal range: from low-altitude areas (90 m) to mid-mountain (840 m in France and up to 1040 m in the Iberian Peninsula). It is a clear Franco-Iberian endemism. It was initially described in the Languedoc region (France), but recent explorations have drastically expanded its area eastward of the Rhône River, and its expansion into the northeastern quadrant of the Iberian Peninsula has been evidenced (Navarra, La Rioja, Burgos, and in Catalonia in Barcelona and Girona).

Conservation status: Due to its recent discovery (2017), its chorology or exact distribution is still poorly known and is under active study. Documental sources do not indicate any standardized official threat status, but its populations sometimes face significant pressures, such as intense droughts that limit flowering, or accidental destruction caused by livestock grazing. However, in places like certain holm oak forests in La Rioja, it has been observed that it can form stable colonies rich in specimens.