Apostasia (plant)

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Grass orchids
Apostasia wallichii.jpg
Apostasia wallichii
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Apostasioideae
Genus: Apostasia
Blume [1]
Species

See text

Synonyms [1]

Apostasia, commonly known as grass orchids, [2] [3] is a genus of eight species of primitive orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are terrestrial, evergreen, grass-like plants, barely recognisable as orchids and are distributed in humid areas of the Himalayan region, China, India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Queensland. They have many narrow leaves and small yellow or white, non-resupinate, star-like flowers usually arranged on a branched flowering stem.

Contents

Description

Plants in the genus Apostasia are evergreen, terrestrial, grass-like plants with a scaly rhizome with a few roots that sometimes develop tubers. They have thin stems with many long, narrow, grass-like leaves spirally arranged around them. Small yellow or white, non-resupinate flowers are arranged on a short, often branching flowering stem. The three sepals and three petals are all similar in size, shape and colour, unlike in more familiar orchids which usually have one petal modified as a labellum and often a dorsal sepal which differs from the lateral sepals. The parts of the column are also different from those in other orchids, with three instead of two stamens, which are separate from the style. Moreover, the pollen grains are not adhering to each other in pollinia. [2] [3] [4]

Taxonomy and naming

The genus Apostasia was first formally described in 1825 by Carl Ludwig Blume who published the description in Bijdragen tot de flora van Nederlandsch Indië. [1] [5] [6] The genus name Apostasia is derived from the Ancient Greek word apostasis meaning "defection" or "departure from", [7] referring to the distinct features of this genus. [3]

The two genera in the subfamily Apostasioideae , Apostasia and Neuwiedia , differ from most other orchids in having three stamens. Recent studies suggest that the fifteen or so species in these two genera, although exhibiting "primitive" features, are "sister" genera rather than ancestors of other orchid families. [8] [9] [10]

Distribution and habitat

Species in the genus Apostasia are found from north-eastern India, Nepal and Bhutan to southern Japan, and through Southeast Asia to New Guinea and northern Australia. Three species, one of which is endemic, are found in China and one is endemic to Queensland.

List of species

The following is a list of species of Apostasia recognised by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families as at August 2018: [1]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Cymbidium</i> Genus of flowering plants in the orchid family Orchidaceae

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<i>Spathoglottis</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Neuwiedia</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Pachystoma</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Tainia</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Acriopsis</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Crepidium</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Aphyllorchis</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Trichoglottis</i> Genus of orchid

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<i>Acriopsis javanica</i> Species of orchid

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<i>Cheirostylis</i> Genus of flowering plants

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<i>Thelasis</i> Genus of orchids

Thelasis, commonly known as fly orchids, is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are usually epiphytes, sometimes lithophytes or rarely terrestrials. Some species have pseudobulbs with up to three leaves, whilst others have several leaves in two ranks. A large number of small, white or greenish yellow flowers are borne on a thin, arching flowering stem. There are about thirty species, distributed from tropical and subtropical Asia to the southwest Pacific.

<i>Hetaeria</i> Species of orchid

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<i>Taeniophyllum</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Peristylus</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Schoenorchis</i> Genus of orchids

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<i>Goodyera rubicunda</i> Species of orchid

Goodyera rubicunda, commonly known as the giant jewel orchid, is a species of orchid that is native to parts of India, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Queensland and some Pacific Islands where it grows in damp forest and rainforest. It has between three and six large, egg-shaped leaves and up to ten dull pink and white resupinate flowers that are hairy on the outside.

Thelasis capitata, commonly known as the conical fly orchid, is a plant in the orchid family. It is a clump-forming epiphyte with flattened pseudobulbs, each with a single strap-shaped leaf. A large number of small yellowish green flowers are arranged in a cone shape on a thin but stiff flowering stem. This orchid is found from Thailand to Malesia, including on Christmas Island.

<i>Thelasis carinata</i> Species of orchid

Thelasis carinata, commonly known as the triangular fly orchid, is a plant in the orchid family. It is a clump-forming epiphyte or lithophyte that lacks pseudobulbs. There are groups of between two and six erect, flattened stems each with up to six leaves that have a ridged lower surface. Up to fifteen green and white flowers are arranged on a thin but stiff flowering stem. This orchid is found from Thailand to the southwest Pacific.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Apostasia". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. 1 2 Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 352. ISBN   978-1877069123.
  3. 1 2 3 "Apostasia". Trin keys. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  4. Chen, Xinqi; Gale, Stephen W.; Cribb, Phillip J. "Apostasia". Flora of China. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  5. "Apostasia". APNI. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  6. Blume, Carl Ludwig (1825). Bijdragen tot de flora van Nederlandsch Indië. Batavia. p. 423. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  7. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 62.
  8. Zhang, Guo-Qiang; Liu, Ke-Wei; Liu, Zhong-Jian; et al. (2017). "The Apostasia genome and the evolution of orchids". Nature. 549 (7672): 379–383. doi: 10.1038/nature23897 . PMC   7416622 . PMID   28902843.
  9. Judd, Walter S.; Stern, William Louis; Cheadle, Vernon I. (October 1993). "Phylogenetic position of Apostasia and Neuwiedia (Orchidaceae)". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 113 (2): 87–94. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.1993.tb00331.x . Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  10. Kocyan, Alexander; Qiu, Yin-Long; Endress, Peter K.; Conti, Elena (2004). "A phylogenetic analysis of Apostasioideae (Orchidaceae) based on ITS, trnL-F and matK sequences" (PDF). Plant Systematics and Evolution. 247 (3–4): 203–213. doi:10.1007/s00606-004-0133-3. S2CID   36144437.