Corallorhiza mertensiana was described by Bongard (1833) from Sitka, a pacific island off the coast of Alaska, and it is until today the accepted name for this species (WCSP 2021), although several transfers have been proposed. Kuntze (1891) for example proposed Neottia mertensiana. Calder & Taylor (1965) suggested this species to be a subspecies of Corallorhiza maculata, as these species are very closely related and could not be distinguished from each other, at least in British Colombia. Freudenstein (1997) argued that intergrades that have been found, could have as well be due to secondary contact (hybridisation). C. vancouveriana was proposed by Finet (1909) and C. purpurea by Williams (1932). C. mertensiana occurs in the north-western states of the U.S.A. including Alaska (POWO 2021). It is the most narrowly distributed species of coral-root orchids, north of Mexico. The flowers are very open and colourful with a unique (for the genus) perianth orientation and the mentum is well developed, suggesting insect pollination (Freudenstein 1997). It can be distinguished from other Corallorhiza species by the strongly ascending flowers, purple-deep violet colour and floral structure.
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