We just finished an exciting and adventurous collection trip in Colombia. We collected mycoheterotrophic plants in three different areas in Colombia (see map below). Reaching these places was often a challenge, but always rewarding! We found and collected a lot of mycoheterotrophs, including many species we have never been able to sample before. The list of observed species is presented at the end of this post.

Areas in Colombia where we sampled.

It was a privilege to explore the remote rain forest of the Choco and Amazonas area – and see the mighty Amazon river in person! The purpose of this trip was not only to collect mycoheterotrophic plants, but also to obtain data for a study on the ecological drivers of mycoheterotrophy.

Rain forest in the Amazon region of Colombia

Apart from taking pictures, we recorded a lot of video during our trip. These videos will be used to produce a short documentary of the collection trip and the science behind it.

Chucheros

Soridium sp. (Triuridaceae)
Sciaphila purpurea (Triuridaceae)
Sciaphila aff. polygyna (Triuridaceae)
Voyria tenella (Gentianaceae)
Voyria aphylla (Gentianaceae)
Apteria aphylla (Burmanniaceae)
Gymnosiphon divaricatus (Burmanniaceae)
Gymnosiphon panamensis (Burmanniaceae)
Gymnosiphon brachycephalus (Burmanniaceae)

Amazonas

Voyria tenella (Gentianaceae)
Voyria chionea (Gentianaceae)
Voyria pittieri (Gentianaceae)
Gymnosiphon divaricatus (Burmanniaceae)

Capurgana

Sciaphila albescens (Triuridaceae)
Voyria aurantiaca (Gentianaceae)
Voyria flavescens (Gentianaceae)
Voyria corymbosa (Gentianaceae)
Voyria aff. truncata (Gentianaceae)
Voyria pittieri (Gentianaceae)
Apteria aphylla (Burmanniaceae)
Gymnosiphon sp. (Burmanniaceae)