Caladenia ancylosa

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Genoa spider orchid
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Caladenia
Species:
C. ancylosa
Binomial name
Caladenia ancylosa
(D.L.Jones) G.N.Backh. [1]
Synonyms
  • Arachnorchis ancylosaD.L.Jones [2]

Caladenia ancylosa, commonly known as the Genoa spider orchid, [3] is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single cream-coloured flower with red markings.

Orchidaceae family of plants

The Orchidaceae are a diverse and widespread family of flowering plants, with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant, commonly known as the orchid family.

Endemism Ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location or habitat

Endemism is the ecological state of a species being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation, country or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. The extreme opposite of endemism is cosmopolitan distribution. An alternative term for a species that is endemic is precinctive, which applies to species that are restricted to a defined geographical area.

Victoria (Australia) State in Australia

Victoria is a state in south-eastern Australia. Victoria is Australia's smallest mainland state and its second-most populous state overall, making it the most densely populated state overall. Most of its population lives concentrated in the area surrounding Port Phillip Bay, which includes the metropolitan area of its state capital and largest city, Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city. Victoria is bordered by Bass Strait and Tasmania to the south, New South Wales to the north, the Tasman Sea, to the east, and South Australia to the west.

Contents

Description

Caladenia ancylosa is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single hairy leaf, 6–12 cm (2–5 in) long and 5–10 mm (0.2–0.4 in) wide. [4] [5]

Perennial plant Plant that lives for more than two years

A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. Some sources cite perennial plants being plants that live more than three years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widely used to distinguish plants with little or no woody growth from trees and shrubs, which are also technically perennials.

Deciduous Trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally

In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, after flowering; and to the shedding of ripe fruit.

Herbaceous plant Plant which has no persistent woody stem above ground

Herbaceous plants in botany, frequently shortened to herbs, are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. Herb has other meanings in cooking, medicine, and other fields. Herbaceous plants are those plants that do not have woody stems, they include many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials, they include both forbs and graminoids.

A single flower is borne on a spike 12–25 cm (5–10 in) high. The dorsal sepal is erect, oblong to lance-shaped, 25–40 mm (1–2 in) long and about 3 mm (0.1 in) wide. It tapers near the end which terminates in a glandular structure 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) long. The lateral sepals are oblong to lance-shaped, 25–40 mm (0.98–1.6 in) long, 3.5–4.5 mm (0.14–0.18 in) wide and end in a gland similar to the one on the dorsal sepal. The petals are 20–25 mm (0.8–1 in) long, about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide and taper to a point. The labellum is a broad egg-shape, curves forward, 10–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long and 7–9 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide when flattened. The labellum is cream-coloured at its base but red nearer the tip. There are 7 to 10 pairs of calli along the edge of the labellum, decreasing in length towards its front. There are six rows of foot-shaped calli in the centre of the labellum, also smaller towards the tip. Flowering occurs in September and October. [5]

Sepal part of a calyx

A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms. Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom. The term sepalum was coined by Noël Martin Joseph de Necker in 1790, and derived from the Greek σκέπη, a covering.

Gland (botany) structure in plants

In plants, a gland is defined functionally as a plant structure which secretes one or more products. This may be located on or near the plant surface and secrete externally, or be internal to the plant and secrete into a canal or reservoir. Examples include glandular hairs, nectaries, hydathodes, and the resin canals in Pinus.

Petal Part of most types of flower

Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a corolla. Petals are usually accompanied by another set of special leaves called sepals, that collectively form the calyx and lie just beneath the corolla. The calyx and the corolla together make up the perianth. When the petals and sepals of a flower are difficult to distinguish, they are collectively called tepals. Examples of plants in which the term tepal is appropriate include genera such as Aloe and Tulipa. Conversely, genera such as Rosa and Phaseolus have well-distinguished sepals and petals. When the undifferentiated tepals resemble petals, they are referred to as "petaloid", as in petaloid monocots, orders of monocots with brightly coloured tepals. Since they include Liliales, an alternative name is lilioid monocots.

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first formally described by David L. Jones in 2006 and given the name Arachnorchis ancylosa. The description was published in Australian Orchid Research. [2] In 2007, Gary Backhouse changed the name to Caladenia ancylosa and the change was published in The Victorian Naturalist. [1] Jones derived the specific epithet (ancylosa) "from the Greek ancylosis, stiffening of the joints; in reference to the stiffly spreading lateral sepals and petals". [4]

Botanical nomenclature is the formal, scientific naming of plants. It is related to, but distinct from taxonomy. Plant taxonomy is concerned with grouping and classifying plants; botanical nomenclature then provides names for the results of this process. The starting point for modern botanical nomenclature is Linnaeus' Species Plantarum of 1753. Botanical nomenclature is governed by the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN), which replaces the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN). Fossil plants are also covered by the code of nomenclature.

Distribution and habitat

Caladenia ancylosa is only known from far east Gippsland where it grows in the shrub layer of tall open forest near Genoa. [5]

East Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia

East Gippsland is the eastern region of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia covering 31,740 square kilometres (14%) of Victoria. It has a population of 80,114.

Shrub type of plant

A shrub or bush is a small- to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple stems and shorter height, less than 6 m-10 m (20 ft–33 ft) tall. Small shrubs, less than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall are sometimes termed subshrubs.

Genoa, Victoria Town in Victoria, Australia

Genoa is a town in Eastern Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. It is close to the New South Wales border where the Princes Highway crosses the Genoa River. The town is an important access point to the Croajingolong National Park. At the 2006 census, Genoa and the surrounding area had a population of 304.

Conservation

This species is classified as "Vulnerable" by the Victorian government. [5] [3]

Related Research Articles

Caladenia amoena, commonly known as the charming spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family, Orchidaceae, and is endemic to Victoria. It is a ground orchid which grows singly or in small groups, has a single dark green, hairy leaf and a single yellowish-green flower with red stripes. It is only known from a few sites and has been classified as Endangered.

<i>Caladenia ampla</i> species of plant

Caladenia ampla, commonly known as the dainty spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single flower which is sometimes yellowish-green flower with red stripes and sometimes entirely red.

<i>Caladenia clavescens</i> species of plant

Caladenia clavescens is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to central Victoria in Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and usually a single dark red to maroon flower.

Caladenia cremna, commonly known as Don's spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to a small area in Victoria. It is a rare ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single yellow flower with red striations.

Caladenia cretacea, commonly known as Stuart Mill spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to a small area in Victoria. It is a rare ground orchid with a single leaf and one or two white flowers on a hairy stalk.

Caladenia dienema, commonly known as the windswept spider-orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Tasmania. It is a ground orchid with a single, hairy leaf and a single, variably-coloured, usually dark red flower on a thin, wiry stem 5–12 cm (2–5 in) high.

Caladenia flaccida, commonly known as the flaccid spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and up to three cream-coloured, pinkish or red flowers with long, thread-like, glandular tips on the sepals and petals.

Caladenia helvina, commonly known as the summer spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Tasmania. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and usually a single greenish-yellow to pale yellow flower with reddish teeth on the sides of the labellum and reddish calli along its mid-line.

Caladenia leptochila subsp. dentata, commonly known as the toothed spider orchid, narrow-lipped spider-orchid or narrow-lipped caladenia, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It has a single leaf and one or two mostly reddish-brown flowers. It differs from subspecies leptochila in the colour of its flowers, toothed edges to its labellum, and its distribution.

Caladenia armata is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to the Australian Capital Territory. It has a single dull green leaf with purple blotches near the base, and a single cream-coloured to pink flower with red to maroon markings. It is only known from a single population containing fewer than ten plants.

Caladenia branwhitei, commonly known as the Bethungra spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to southern New South Wales. It has a single dull green leaf and one or two, usually dark red to maroon-coloured flowers. It is only known from three areas near Bethungra where it grows in ironbark forest.

Caladenia cadyi is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to the south coast of New South Wales. It has a single dull green leaf with purple blotches near the base, and a single greenish cream to cream flower with pink to reddish markings. It was only known from a single population which has been bulldozed and replaced with a pine plantation so that it is now probably extinct.

Caladenia douglasiorum is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to central Victoria in Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single greenish-cream to yellowish flower with red marks.

Caladenia ensigera is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single leaf and one or two greenish cream to whitish green flowers and is only known from Alligator Gorge in the Mount Remarkable National Park.

Caladenia saxatilis is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two pale creamy-green flowers, sometimes with thin reddish lines. It occurs in the southern Flinders Ranges.

Caladenia whiteheadii is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single pale yellow flower with thick reddish tips on the sepals and petals. It is only known from a single hill near Eugowra.

Caladenia flindersica is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single leaf and one or two cream-coloured flowers with thin dark red to blackish tips on the petals and sepals. It is only known from Alligator Gorge in the Mount Remarkable National Park.

Caladenia strigosa is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single leaf and a single greenish-cream flower with fine reddish streaks. It grows in sandy soil in shrubland.

Caladenia zephyra is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single, densely hairy leaf and a single cream-coloured to very pale yellow flower with blackish glandular hairs on the sepals and petals. It occurs on the Eyre Peninsula but may have a wider distribution.

Caladenia fuliginosa is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single relatively large, creamy-yellow flower, sometimes with reddish lines. The flowers have a smell resembling hot metal.

References

  1. 1 2 "Caladenia ancylosa". APNI. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Arachnorchis ancylosa". APNI. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Advisory list of rare and threatened plants in Victoria 2014" (PDF). The State of Victoria Department of Environment and Primary Industries. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  4. 1 2 Jones, David L. (2006). "New taxa of Australian Orchidaceae". Australian Orchid Research. 5: 51–52.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Jeanes, Jeffrey. "Caladenia ancylosa". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria: Vicflora. Retrieved 28 September 2016.