Rare Plant Found in Malaryta District
The Lady's Slipper Orchid (Cypripedium calceolus) is a species from the Red Book. The plant is capricious: it needs carbonate soils, specific humidity and lighting, writes the Telegram channel "Wildlife Nearby".
Photo by Yury Yankevich
Orchid seeds are almost microscopic in size, so for four years, until the first green leaf appears, the plant feeds thanks to symbiotic fungi. This and other orchids only bloom 15–17 years after germination.
Yury Yankevich, an expert from the company "Wildlife", explored the forests of the Malaryta district a year ago and found not only areas with Lady's Slipper. This time he discovered 42 locations with 18 species of Red Book vascular plants, mosses, and fungi that also require protection, and prepared passports and protective documents.
Without such measures, the biodiversity of our nature risks being severely impoverished: if these places do not have protected status, they could be suddenly destroyed.
Currently, 233.4 hectares with rare species have been taken under protection by the forestry enterprise and the Ministry of Natural Resources inspectorate — there will be no logging or plowing here (Decision No. 685 of the Malaryta District Executive Committee dated April 24, 2026). The plants can now grow peacefully.