Orchids on the Inca Trail (2024)

Orchids are one of the most numerous and diverse flower species on the planet. There are about 25 thousand species in the world. On the Inca trail to Machu Picchu, some 425 species have been recorded until 2023. The privileged geography where this ancestral trail is located helps the proliferation of a large number of orchids on the Inca trail.

In the 4 days of trekking to Machu Picchu, 12 different microclimates are crossed, which allow you to observe a large number of orchids and other beautiful flowers. In this illustrative blog, learn more about orchids on the Inca Trail.

Fun facts about orchids

1. There are some 25,000 species of orchids, a figure that doubles the number of bird species and four times the number of mammal species. In addition, each year, botanical research brings to light new species.
2. Orchids are among the most prehistoric plants on the planet, with species such as Liparis sp. (Orchid of Borneo) that is estimated to have inhabited our planet for about 80 million years.
3. Although it is one of the most romantic, beautiful and symmetrical flowers in the world, the meaning of the word «orchid» is «testicl*» (orchid derives from the Greek ὄρχις -órjis: «testicl*» / ἰδέα: idéa «shape», that is, «testicl*-shaped»), an etymology perhaps more bizarre than romantic that refers to the testicular shape of the tubercles of some of them, such as those of the genus Orchis.
4. The country with the most variety is Ecuador, with a total of 3549 registered taxa. Colombia, New Guinea and Brazil follow with a total of 2723, 2717 and 2590 species respectively.
5. The tallest orchid in the world grows in Peru, and is known as sobralia altissima.
6. The smallest in the world, with a maximum size of 4 millimeters, is the Bulbophyllum minutissimum, native to Australia.
7. The first orchid brought to Europe after the conquest of America was Vanilla planifolia, an orchid that the Aztec peoples used to flavor chocolate and which is still the main component for making vanilla today.
8. Orchids are considered a national emblem in many countries: Cattleya mossiae (Venezuela), Cattleya trianae (Colombia), Guarianthe skinneri (Costa Rica), Lycaste virginalis (Guatemala), Peristeria elata (Panama), Rhyncholaelia digbyana (Honduras).

Orchids on the Inca Trail

The Inca trail is part of the Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary and is considered a privileged place in terms of native flora. Among them are orchids, bromeliads, ferns, bromeliads, mosses and lichens.

Every year biologists from all over the world carry out research work on the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu to record new species of orchids. Three species were recently found: Epidendrum ochoae, Epidendrum incahuamanii and Epidendrum mormontoyi.

The rainy season (November to March) is the best time to see these flowers. The cloud forests that surround the Inca Trail route (between 1,800 meters and 3,000 meters of altitude) are the altitudes where the most diverse orchids on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu flourish.

The most famous orchids

The diversity of orchids is impressive. There are plants over five meters high whose flower can reach 20 centimeters long.

Some of the most striking orchids are the Sobralia dichotoma, with large fleshy flowers. Also one of the smallest orchids in the world, a Stelis whose flower is barely two millimeters wide.

Likewise, more than 30 species of Epidendrum have been classified on the Inca Trail, which is a genus of orchids that can withstand a large temperature difference and are found in abundance throughout the Inca Trail..

These are some of the rarest and most striking orchids on the Inca Trail:

• The Masdevallia veitchiana: Also called “Waqanqi”. It measures from 39 to 44 centimeters whose flowers are orange.
• The Pleurothallis: This orchid is used, by insects, for pollination.
• The Oncidium: Also called “dancing lady”. Any breeze moves its flowers, like a dance. Its labellum that resembles a ballerina.
• The Brassia: It has up to 30 species. It stands out for its flowers, large and showy.
• The Encyclia: At night it fills the air with the fragrances of its citrus-like perfume.
• The Stanhopea: Characteristic for its complex flowers, usually fragrant.
• The Anguloa Maxillaria: These orchids can grow on rocks as long as the air humidity is sufficient.
• The Phragmipedium: The most striking thing about this orchid is that it has whisker-like petals.
• The Odontoglossum: This orchid draws attention for its labellum, which presents tooth-shaped calluses in its center.

Care of the flora on the Inca Trail

The biggest threat to the orchids on the Inca trail are forest fires caused by bad practices by some locals. These fires destroy valuable orchid species. Sometimes entire ecosystems and all the flora and fauna that can be found there are destroyed.

The Machu Picchu Archaeological Park has awareness campaigns so that local residents are much more careful when burning for agricultural purposes. Accidents in this practice are those that cause forest fires in the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu.

A proposed solution to this problem and as a proposal to recover affected areas and save orchid species would be the implementation of nurseries for the conservation and propagation of threatened species.

More information

There are 2 orchids on the Inca trail, which are the most emblematic of the historic sanctuary of Machu Picchu in an area of 37,302 hectares protected by the Peruvian state.

One of them is the orchid called ‘Wiñaywayna’ (Epidendrum secundum). Translated from Quechua, its name means ‘Forever young’. It is characterized by its shades of various colors and its ability to tolerate cold. On the Inca trail you can see the 45 km Inca trail. There is even an archaeological complex named after the Wiñaywayna orchid.

The second orchid is called Waqanki (Masdevallia veitchiana) which translates from Quechua as: ‘you will cry’. There is a legend behind this name that says that an Inca princess was in love with a young warrior. Due to the impossibility of this courtship, the princess fled to the forest. However, the gods called it ‘Waqanki’ and turned it into a flower. A peculiar feature of this beautiful flower is its teardrop-like petals.

The orchids on the Inca trail are another reason to live this experience in Inca lands.