Disa hircicornis Rchb. fil.

hircicornis: with goat-like horns, presumably referring to the shape of the spur.

Terrestrial herb, 30-60 cm tall. Leaves usually 2 on a separate sterile shoot,semi-erect, narrowly elliptic to linear, up to 30 cm long, folded along the length. Leaves along the fertile shoot, lanceolate, 5-20 cm long, mostly sheathing, mottled or barred red at the base. Inflorescence 6-20 cm long, densely 20-70-flowered; bracts as tall or taller than the flowers, lanceolate with apices often reflexed. Flowers facing down at an angle of c. 45°, deep, dusty purple to purple-red. Dorsal sepal forming a conical hood, 4-6 mm with slender ascending spur, 8-13 mm long, sharply curving back in the middle. Lateral sepals spreading, 7.5 mm long, oblong. Petals erect, 4-5.5 mm long. Lip pendent, linear to narrowly elliptic, 4-5.5 mm long.

Local and occasional

Angola, Nigeria, Cameroon, DRC, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Limpopo, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.