SPANISH MOSS
BANDED WILDPINE
BALL-MOSS
One tree, the strangler fig, starts as an epiphytic seedling on the branches of other trees. Eventually, however, it drops long aerial roots directly to the ground or entwines them about the trunk of the host tree—which in time dies, leaving a large fig tree in its place.
Of all [Everglades] plants, the epiphytic orchids are most fascinating to man—a fact which largely explains their decline. Of some 50,000 species around the world (the orchids being one of the largest of plant families), the park has only a few. Fire, loss of [habitat] due to agriculture and construction, and poaching by both commercial and amateur collectors have brought about the extermination of some and have made others exceedingly rare. Some are rare because of special life requirements. For example, a few must live in association with a certain fungus that coats their roots and provides specific nutrients.
The largest orchid in the park is the cowhorn, some specimens of which weigh as much as 75 pounds. Unfortunately, this orchid has been a popular item for orchid growers and collectors and is becoming rare in Florida. Poachers have practically eliminated it from the park. In the late 1960s Boy Scout friends of [Everglades] salvaged many orchids from [hammocks] about to be bulldozed for the jetport. By laboriously tying them to trees in the park, they assured the survival of the plants.
The night-blooming epidendrum is perhaps the most beautiful of the park’s orchids. It is widespread and fairly common in [Everglades], occurring in all [ecosystems]. Flowering throughout the year, it bears its white, spiderlike blossoms, 2 inches across, one at a time. It is especially fragrant at night—hence its name.
SHOWY ORCHIDS OF THE [HAMMOCKS] AND TREE ISLANDS