Platanthera psycodes (Small Purple-fringed Orchid) with pollinator, Epargyreus clarus (Silver-spotted Skipper)

These remaining 5 images represent the most interesting of the Small Purple-fringed orchid shots taken on Mt. Mitchell...

This was exciting for me to record, since it does fix the Silver-spotted Skipper as a pollinator of this orchid species.

If you inspect the image closely, you can see a large group of gray-green pollen sacs stuck to it's proboscis (tongue). It accumulates these pollen sacs as it visits each flower. When it sticks its head into the flower to sip the nectar, the pollen sacs attach themselves to the nearest body part by sticky pads at the end of each pollen sac...