The Bee Orchid by Jim Northover

As the angler tempts the Trout

with crafted feathers

to dapple and dangle on the water 

As the Dunnock sings full strength

his liquid song

to seek unmated mates 

So the Bee Orchid…

makes an artful deception:

the round seductive form 

a clear signal in the grass,

deep browns and soft yellows

pale mauve wings directing the way. 

What does the male bee sense -

colour, pattern, rhythm, scent -

an open invitation to sex? 

He responds, as males do,

instinctively driven by desire

to land and make his mark 

Now confused by unrequited passion

he drones off, taking only

collected grains of soft pollen 

His role unwitting

as yet another flower

waits to receive him. 

But the Bee Orchid…

no longer depends on intervention

but evolves a new perfection: 

a lone and secret transfer

of pollen from anther to stigma

to make, and mate again.