Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden, South Africa

Common name: Geeltrewwa

Family: Orchidaceae (Orchid)

Synonym: Satyrium papillosum, Satyrium pustulatum

Distribution: Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, Western Cape

Habitat: Dry sandstone and clay flats

IUCN Red list: Not evaluated

National red list: Least Concern

Life form: Geophyte (bulb, corm or tuber - seasonally dormant)

Comments: This Cape terrestrial orchid has short-spurred pink flowers with darker marks on the petals. The flowers have a spicy-sweet scent. Like many other geophytic species in the Cape Floristic Region, Satyrium carneum flowers especially spectacularly afer fire. This species is common in the region, where it is usually found on lower mountain slopes and in valleys across many vegetation types, including fynbos, renosterveld and karroid shrubland. The pollination of this species seem to be variable across its range. It is known that honeybees and solitary bees visit and pollinate the flowers in the Western Cape, but according to Liltved & Johnson (2012), long-proboscid flies have been observed acting as pollinators in certain populations in the Namaqualand. In some of the populations between Worcester and Wolseley where S. erectum occurs with other Satyrium species, various hybrids have been found. This hybridisation is possibly facilitated by monkey beetles, which have been observed carrying the pollinaria of multiple different species. This species is still widespread and common and is not currently considered to be threatened.