a) A secret area of a near extinct terrestial orchid of the Diuris genus has been found in NSW as part of the Wild Orchids Project, a project funded by the NSW Environmental Trust. No other details have been given at this stage so as to keep the current population and increase it in the future.

Two other terrestrial orchids are under investigation by the group. They are the endangered sandhill spider orchid and the crimson spider orchid.

All are under the endangered species list.

b) Western Australia has long been considered a hotspot for terrestrial orchids.  The Queen of Sheba is one of the rarest in the terrestrial world. As a result, a flowering of the plant and its subspecies is the reason botanists and photographers come to WA from all corners of the world to see and photograph them when these orchids are in flower - particularly the Queen of Sheba.

Graeme Davies