Bee Orchid aberrant (Ophrys apifera forma renata)

An unusual form lacking a characteristic 'bee'- shaped lip. It has recently been considered to be a named variety Ophrys apifera var renata. However authors working with the Phylogenetic systems developed by Kew (this author is one of them) considered that, since the beed orchid is self-fertilising (autogamous) the strict conditions for varieties (stable, widespread) are not met these are variants that are often short lived in any one site and the designation ’forma’ as in Ophrys apifera forma renata….is better used. nr Orvieto, Umbria, Italy May 2020