Orchids Mindo, Ecuador

Some fun facts about orchids

Ecuador is known to have the most species of orchids in the world with 4,200 which is about 17 % of all the species in the world, 1,700 of those are endemic. 

Ecuador also has the tiniest orchid in the world 0,082 inches or 2,1 millimeters in size.

Fossils of orchids have been found dating back to 195 million years in the jurassic period, so they are some of the oldest plants on the planet and shared it with dinosaurs.

The first written reference of orchids is found in "History of plants" by Teofrasto an Aristotle‘s disciple, in 300 a.c. 

Calaway Dodson from the us is the father of ecuadorian orchid science, he spent 50 years studying the orchids of Ecuador, published many books and over 400 scientific articles.

Orchids grow all over the world and from the rainforest to arid deserts.

Orchids are highly prized for their beauty and rarity, the rarest and most expensive orchid species sells for over 5,000 dollars, Paphiopedilum sanitarium.

 Ecuador, the country of orchids