Editing Dactylorhiza maculata subsp. fuchsii (section)

== Taxonomy ==
''Dactylorhiza'' is [[Ancient Greek]] for finger root, referring to the shape of the plant's roots. The subspecies name ''fuchsii'' honours the 16th-century German botanist [[Leonhart Fuchs]]. The English name 'common spotted' refers to the species' abundance and the spots on its leaves. The French and German common names also honour [[Leonhart Fuchs]].

This plant belongs to a [[Species problem|problematic group]] of orchids. ''D.&nbsp;maculata'' subsp. ''fuchsii'' is very variable in flower colour and flower morphology, plant height and the scent of flowers. This is due to the ease of [[introgression]] (the transfer of genetic material from one [[sympatric]] species to another, only partially isolated from the first, through interspecific hybridization and repeated backcrossing to a parental species), the ability of these plants to adapt quickly and easily to habitat and different substrates and possibly other causes. As a result, a multitude of forms have been defined for this plant. The World Checklist of [[Kew Gardens]] lists over 25 varieties, of which 7 are recognized as valid.<ref name="WCSP">{{cite web |url= http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/home.do |title=Quick Search: [Dactylorhiza fuchsia] |website=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=4 July 2013}}</ref>

=== Hybrids ===
Hybrids with other species of the same genus are frequent. Species include:
*''[[Dactylorhiza majalis]]'' <small>(Rchb.) PFHunt & Summerh.</small>
*''[[Dactylorhiza traunsteineri]]'' <small>(Saut. ''ex'' Rchb.)</small>
*''[[Dactylorhiza incarnata]]'' <small>(L.) Soó</small> subsp. ''ochroleuca''
This plant hybridizes easily with species of different genera (intergeneric hybridization). The list below shows some of these intergeneric hybrids (these hybrids are not always recognized by all botanists):
*×''Dactylodenia lawalreei'' <small>P.Delforge & D.Tyteca</small> – hybrid with ''[[Gymnadenia odoratissima]]''
*×''Dactylodenia st-quintinii'' <small>(Godfery) J. Duvigneaud ''in'' De Langhe ''et al.''</small> – hybrid with ''[[Gymnadenia conopsea]]''
*×''Dactyloglossum mixtum'' <small>(Ascherson & Graebner) Rauschert</small> – hybrid with ''[[Coeloglossum viride]]''
*×''Rhizanthera martysiensis'' <small>Balayer</small> – hybrid with ''[[Platanthera chlorantha]]''