[JTh]

I was among those having problems with finding the purple bracts typical of I. purpureobractea, but your photos were convincing, Alisdair. I had a closer look at my own photos, and I did find some with purple bracts, I believe it should be possible to see some of this in the second photo. Anyhow, they were spectacular plants, the first photo with our guide Chris gives you an idea how large they were, Chris is very tall.

The name Glaucium grandiflorum sounds reasonable to me, it is not described in any of the book I have, but they all say that G. corniculatum has smaller flowers than G. flavum, these were certainly not smaller.

Orchis sezikana was a nice little orchid which is a natural hybrid between O. anatolica and O. qudripunctata (having more than the four spots of O. quadripunctata, but fewer than those of O. anatolica)

I could not resist adding a small closeup of O. simia.

[MikeHardman]

some nice piccies cropping up on this topic!

[Alisdair]

Lovely pictures, Jorun - as was the one John took of you!
(Am I right in a vague recollection of Vic Aspland declaiming half of a Greek tragedy in that magnificent Termessos amphitheatre? Or was it The Boy Who Stood on the Burning Deck?)

[JTh]

The amphitheatre in Termessos was spectacular, the setting is as dramatic  as it can possible be, about 1000 m above sea level. I remember the little concert given by Becky and Gareth, singing 'Oh, What a Beautiful Morning' or something like that, they are at at the bottom of the theatre in the photo, Vic is on his way down for his part of the show.

We have not seen much from Oron lately, but here he is catching an image of a nice clump of Orchis simia, competing with John and Jo.

We saw the orchid Limodorum abortivum several times, I thought the name ment that it had been used as a remedy to provoke abortion, but I was wrong; it refers to the leaves, which are not sufficiently able to produce chlorophyll and end up being reduced to scales (aborted development). The plant is dependant on a symbiotic relationship with fungi (Russula spp.). They have very large seeds, but the development is very slow, it takes up to 40 years before the plant is seen above ground.

[Alisdair]

What a wonderfully characteristic picture of the three photographers, Jorun!
And thanks for putting me right about why Limodorum abortivum is called abortivum - I'd always assumed that it was because its flowers so rarely open. When I've seen it in Greece and France the flowers have almost always stayed closed, in fact I suspect the plant's a good deal more common than people realise, as usually the stems look like totally uninteresting dark leafless and flowerless bits of undergrowth poking up - easily not noticed unless you're actually looking out for them.
It sets seed quite happily without ever opening (the spurs carry nectar, and you do see ants crawling up the blind stems). Apparently it can even set seed on stems that stay completely underground.

[John]

On the path up to the main ruins were quantities of what I have written down as Colutea melanocalyx.

[John]

Also at Termessos was this lovely form of Hedera helix. Equal to many a cyclamen leaf.

[John]

Lunch was a picnic taken near the entrance to the site.

[Alisdair]

Is the tree in the picnic background Pistacia atlantica?

[John]

Yes it is.

[JTh]

Thanks for showing these photos, Alisdair and John. I enjoyed the very relaxed informal lunches on this trip.

Another photo of Colutea melanocalyx,this bush was a real beauty, something for the garden?