Bulbophyllum maxillare

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Red horntail orchid
Bulbophyllum maxillare Orchi 045.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Tribe: Dendrobieae
Genus: Bulbophyllum
Species:
B. maxillare
Binomial name
Bulbophyllum maxillare
Synonyms [1]

Bulbophyllum maxillare, commonly known as the red horntail orchid, [2] is a species of epiphytic orchid with tapered grooved, dark green to yellowish pseudobulbs, each with a single large, thin leaf and a single reddish flower with yellow or white edges. The lateral sepals are much larger than the dorsal sepal which in turn is much larger than the petals. It grows on the lower branches of rainforest trees in India, New Guinea and tropical North Queensland.

Contents

Description

Bulbophyllum maxillare is an epiphytic herb that has a creeping rhizome with tapered dark green to yellowish pseudobulbs 15–40 mm (0.6–2 in) long and 8–12 mm (0.31–0.47 in) wide well spaced along it. Each pseudobulb has a thin but stiff dark green to yellowish, elliptic to lance-shaped leaf 80–150 mm (3–6 in) long and 15–25 mm (0.59–0.98 in) wide with a stalk 10–20 mm (0.4–0.8 in) long. A single flower 60–90 mm (2–4 in) long and 20–25 mm (0.79–0.98 in) is borne on a thin flowering stem 100–200 mm (3.9–7.9 in) long. The flower is reddish to purplish with yellow or white edges. The dorsal sepal is oblong to lance-shaped, 20–35 mm (0.79–1.4 in) long and 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) wide with short, dense hairs on its edges. The lateral sepals are egg-shaped to lance-shaped, 35–80 mm (1.4–3.1 in) long and 5–7 mm (0.20–0.28 in) wide with a thin "tail" a further 20–30 mm (0.79–1.2 in) long. The petals are curved, form a hood over the column, 4–7 mm (0.16–0.28 in) long and about 2 mm (0.079 in) wide. The labellum is purple and yellow, 5–7 mm (0.20–0.28 in) long and about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide with a thin extension on its tip. Flowering occurs between July and October in Australia. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Taxonomy and naming

The red horntail orchid was first formally described in 1843 by John Lindley who gave it the name Cirrhopetalum maxillare and published the description in Edwards's Botanical Register . [1] [6] In 1861 Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach changed the name to Bulbophyllum maxillare. [1]

Distribution and habitat

Bulbophyllum maxillare grows on the lower trunks and branches of rainforest trees on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Malay Peninsula Borneo, Java, the Philippines, Sulawesi, Sumatra, the Solomon Islands, New Guinea and in Australia on Moa Island, Shelburne Bay near Cape Grenville and near the Rocky River. [2] [3] [4] [5] [7] [8]

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<i>Dendrobium antennatum</i> Species of orchid

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<i>Dendrobium tetragonum</i> Species of orchid

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<i>Bulbophyllum baileyi</i> Species of orchid from Australia and New Guinea

Bulbophyllum baileyi, commonly known as the fruit fly orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that is native to Queensland and New Guinea. It has coarse, creeping rhizomes, curved, yellowish pseudobulbs with a single thick, fleshy leaf, and a single cream-coloured flower with yellow, red or purple spots. It grows on trees and rocks in open forest, often in exposed places.

Bulbophyllum boonjee commonly known as the maroon strand orchid, is a species of epiphytic orchid that is endemic to tropical North Queensland. It has crowded, flattened pseudobulbs, stiff, pale green leaves and up to four small, bell-shaped maroon flowers with darker stripes.

Bulbophyllum bracteatum, commonly known as the blotched pineapple orchid, is a species of epiphytic or sometimes lithophytic orchid that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has crowded pseudobulbs, tough, pale green or yellowish leaves and up to twenty five cream-coloured to yellowish flowers with purplish or reddish blotches. It usually grows in the tops of rainforest trees.

<i>Bulbophyllum elisae</i> Species of orchid

Bulbophyllum elisae, commonly known as the pineapple orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has crowded, wrinkled, pale green or yellowish clump-forming pseudobulbs, stiff, pale green to yellowish leaves and between three and twelve pale green to dark green flowers with a dark red to purple labellum. It usually grows in the tops of rainforest trees, on cliff faces or boulders.

Bulbophyllum evasum, commonly known as the creeping brittle orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid with creeping brittle rhizomes, small, stubby pseudobulbs and dark green, fleshy leaves. The flowers are small, pink to reddish with dark stripes and yellow tips, clustered on the end of a dark red flowering stem. This orchid grows in rainforest on tree trunks and branches as well as on rocks, in tropical North Queensland.

<i>Bulbophyllum gracillimum</i> Species of orchid

Bulbophyllum gracillimum, commonly known as the wispy umbrella orchid, is a species of epiphytic orchid. It has a creeping rhizome, widely spaced, olive green pseudobulbs, each with a single thick, leathery, fleshy leaf and between six and ten purplish red flowers spreading in a semicircular umbel. The flowers have distinctive long, thread-like tails on the lateral sepals. It has a wide distribution and is found in New Guinea, New Caledonia, Indonesia, Malaysia and part of tropical North Queensland.

Bulbophyllum johnsonii, commonly known as the yellow snake orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that has a thin, creeping rhizome with flattened pseudobulbs, each with a single tough, dark green leaf and a single bright yellow to orange flower on a thread-like stalk. It grows on trees, shrubs and rocks in and near rainforest in tropical North Queensland.

Bulbophyllum lageniforme, commonly known as the smooth strand orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that is endemic to tropical North Queensland. It has flattened, pale green, grooved, clump-forming pseudobulbs, stiff, dark green leaves and up to four cream-coloured or pale green flowers with a pink labellum. It usually grows on shrubs, trees and rocks in highland rainforest.

Bulbophyllum lamingtonense, commonly known as the cream rope orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid with well-spaced pseudobulbs and brown bracts arranged along the stems. Each pseudobulb has a single, fleshy, channelled leaf and a single cream-coloured or white flower with yellow tips. It grows on trees and rocks near cliffs and the edge of rainforest near the eastern border between New South Wales and Queensland.

Bulbophyllum lilianae, commonly known as the warty strand orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that is endemic to tropical North Queensland. It has widely spaced, deeply grooved, dark green to yellowish pseudobulbs, thin but tough, dark green to yellowish leaves and up to three cream-coloured, pale green or reddish flowers with dark red stripes and a pink labellum. It grows on shrubs, trees and rocks, often in exposed situations.

Bulbophyllum radicans, commonly known as the striped pyjama orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid with long, hanging stems with roots near the base and covered with brown, papery bracts which partially hide the pseudobulbs. Each pseudobulb has a single thin leaf. A single small pink, cream-coloured or yellow flower with red or purplish stripes is borne on a thin flowering stem that emerges from the base of the psudobulb. This orchid grows on trees or rocks in or near rainforest in tropical North Queensland.

<i>Bulbophyllum wadsworthii</i> Species of orchid

Bulbophyllum wadsworthii, commonly known as the yellow rope orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that forms clumps that hang off the surface on which the plant is growing. The pseudobulbs are small and partly hidden by brown, papery bracts. Each pseudobulb has a single fleshy, dark green leaf and a single star-shaped, cream-coloured or pale green flower with an orange labellum. It mainly grows on trees and rocks in rainforest and is endemic to Queensland.

Dendrobium macropus, commonly known as the Norfolk Island cane orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Norfolk Island. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, thin, dark green leaves and between five and ten yellowish green flowers that do not open widely.

Liparis nugentiae, commonly known as the large sphinx orchid, is a plant in the orchid family and is endemic to Queensland. It is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid which forms clumps with flattened pseudobulbs, two to four thin leaves and up to twenty greenish or pale yellow flowers. It grows in rainforest at altitudes above 600 m (2,000 ft) in tropical far North Queensland.

<i>Dendrobium bifalce</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium bifalce, commonly known as the native bee orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has spindle-shaped pseudobulbs with up to four leathery leaves and up to ten pale green or greenish yellow flowers with purplish markings. It grows on trees and boulders in rainforest in tropical North Queensland, Australia and in New Guinea.

<i>Dendrobium macrostachyum</i> Species of plant

Dendrobium macrostachyum, commonly known as the fringed tree orchid, is a species of epiphytic orchid with long, narrow pseudobulbs that lose their leaves as they mature, and up to three whitish to lime green flowers with a hairy labellum. It is native to Australia, tropical Asia and eastern Malesia.

Dendrobium clementsii, commonly known as the Cape York crimp orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that is endemic to tropical North Queensland, Australia. It has long stems, tapering pseudobulbs each with a thin, leathery dark green leaf and clusters of short-lived, cream-coloured flowers with a purple labellum.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Bulbophyllum maxillare". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. 1 2 3 Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. pp. 425–426. ISBN   1877069124.
  3. 1 2 D.L.Jones; T.Hopley; S.M.Duffy (2010). "Factsheet - Ephippium masdevalliaceum". Australian Tropical Rainforest Orchids . Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government . Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Bulbophyllum maxillare" . Retrieved 6 December 2018.
  5. 1 2 Alappatt, Joju P. (2013). "Bulbophyllum maxillare (Orchidaceae) - a new record for India from Andaman & Nicobar Islands" (PDF). Rheedea. 23 (1): 40–42. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  6. Lindley, John (1843). "Cirrhopetalum". Edwards's Botanical Register. 29: 49. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  7. Seidenfaden, Gunnar; Wood, Jeffrey J. (1992). The orchids of peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. Fredensborg: Published in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew & Botanic Gardens, Singapore [by] Olsen & Olsen. p. 517. ISBN   8785215244.
  8. "Bulbophyllum maxillare". National Parks Board, Singaport. Retrieved 7 December 2018.