Caladenia caudata

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Tailed spider orchid
Caladenia caudata.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Caladenia
Species:
C. caudata
Binomial name
Caladenia caudata
Synonyms [1]
  • Calonema caudatum (Nicholls) Szlach.
  • Arachnorchis caudata (Nicholls) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.
  • Calonemorchis caudata (Nicholls) Szlach.

Caladenia caudata, commonly known as tailed 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 up to four red, or yellow and red flowers with dark red to almost black tips.

Contents

Description

Caladenia caudata is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single densely hairy, broad linear to lance-shaped leaf. The leaf is 10–16 cm (4–6 in) long, 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide and is reddish or purplish near its base. It emerges in late autumn following rains. [2] [3]

There are up to four flowers 40–50 mm (1.6–2.0 in) in diameter borne on a hairy spike 8–15 cm (3–6 in) high. The flowers are red to pinkish, sometimes with yellowish green but always have dark red to almost black glandular tips on the sepals and petals. The dorsal sepal is 50–60 mm (2.0–2.4 in) long, about 2.5 mm (0.1 in) wide and erect near the base but then curves forward. The lateral sepals are 35–45 mm (1–2 in) long, about 3.5 mm (0.1 in) wide, egg-shaped to lance-shaped near their base but then tapering, and spread widely with their tips drooping slightly. The petals are slightly shorter and narrower. The labellum is heart-shaped, 15–18 mm (0.6–0.7 in) long, 8–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide and reddish to cream-coloured with a reddish-black tip. It is divided into three lobes with 7 to 9 pairs of narrow linear teeth about 2 mm (0.08 in) long on the lateral lobes. The middle lobe of the labellum is strongly curved downwards and has many short teeth on its edges. There are four to six irregular rows of dark red calli in the centre of the labellum. The column is 11–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long and 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) wide. In some areas, flowering occurs as early as mid-August but in other places starts as late as mid-November, but flowers are rarely open for more than about a week. [2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

Caladenia caudata was first formally described by William Henry Nicholls in 1948 and the description was published in The Victorian Naturalist . [1] The specific epithet (caudata) is derived from the Latin word cauda meaning "tail". [4]

Distribution and habitat

This caladenia is widespread in Tasmania, where it grows in dry heath and grassy open woodland in coastal and near-coastal areas. [2] [5] [6]

Ecology

Tailed spider orchid is thought to be pollinated by the thynnid wasp, Lophocheilus villosus . [6] [7]

Conservation

Caladenia caudata is listed as "Vulnerable" under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 and under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). More than forty subpopulations are known but individual plants have not been seen in most of them for many decades and only small numbers have been seen in others. Much of the habitat favoured by this orchid has been cleared for agriculture, individuals are often difficult to find and tend to flower infrequently, often in response to disturbance such as burning. [2]

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.

Caladenia anthracina, commonly known as the black-tipped 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 white or cream-coloured flower with red markings and black tips on the sepals and petals.

Caladenia argocalla, commonly known as white beauty spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid which grows singly or in loose groups and has a single, hairy leaf and one or two white to greenish-white flowers on a wiry, hairy stalk. The total population is thought to be between 2,000 and 4,500 and it is classed as an "Endangered" species.

Caladenia campbellii, commonly known as thickstem fairy fingers or thick-stem caladenia, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Tasmania. It is a ground orchid with a single, sparsely hairy leaf and one or two flowers that are pinkish on the outside and cream-coloured on the inside. The flowers are self-pollinating and short-lived.

<i>Caladenia cardiochila</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia cardiochila, commonly known as thick-lipped spider-orchid, fleshy-lipped caladenia and heartlip spider-orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Victoria and South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two yellowish-green, red-striped flowers on a thin, wiry stem.

Caladenia cleistantha is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to the south-east of Australia. It is a ground orchid which occurs as solitary plants and has a singly hairy leaf and one or two cleistogamous flowers..

Caladenia colorata, commonly known as coloured spider-orchid, small western spider-orchid and painted spider-orchid is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia and possibly Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf, and usually a single creamy-green flower with blood-red or purple-brown markings and with dark tips on the petals and sepals.

<i>Caladenia cruciformis</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia cruciformis, commonly known as the crucifix spider orchid, or red cross 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, sparsely hairy leaf and a single dark red to crimson flower with blackish tips.

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.

<i>Caladenia echidnachila</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia echidnachila, commonly known as the fawn 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 one or two fawn-coloured flowers with thin red lines on the sepals and petals.

<i>Caladenia gladiolata</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia gladiolata, commonly known as small bayonet spider orchid, smelly socks or simply bayonet orchid 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 yellowish or brownish flowers with red stripes and unusual 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 necrophylla, commonly known as late green-comb spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to South Australia. It has a single leaf and a single yellowish-green flower with red lines along the sepals and petals. It is unusual in that the leaf has completely withered before the flower opens, and sometimes even before the flower spike appears.

Caladenia patersonii is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is native to Victoria and Tasmania. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two creamy-white, yellowish or pink flowers.

<i>Caladenia phaeoclavia</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia phaeoclavia, commonly known as the brown-clubbed spider orchid is a species of orchid endemic to New South Wales. It has a single, hairy leaf and a single light to dark green flower with red stripes and thick, brownish club-like tips on the sepals.

Caladenia rigida, commonly known as the stiff spider orchid, or white spider-orchid 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 white flowers with dark glandular tips on the sepals and fine reddish-brown lines along the sepals and petals.

Caladenia saggicola, commonly known as the sagg spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single erect, hairy leaf and one or two white flowers with very pale reddish lines and black tips.

Caladenia stellata, commonly known as the starry spider orchid is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single, hairy leaf and usually only one greenish-cream flower with red markings.

<i>Caladenia transitoria</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia transitoria, commonly known as green caps, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single, long, erect, hairy leaf and one or two greenish-yellow flowers with purplish backs.

<i>Caladenia valida</i> Species of orchid

Caladenia valida, commonly known as the robust spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to south-eastern continental Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single sparsely hairy leaf and up to three white to cream-coloured flowers which sometimes have red streaks. It is similar to Caladenia reticulata but is large and taller with more stiffly spreading lateral sepals and petals.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Caladenia caudata". APNI. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Threatened species listing statement "Caladenia caudata" (PDF). Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  3. 1 2 Nicholls, William Henry (1948). "Two New Species of Orchids from Tasmania". The Victorian Naturalist. 64 (12): 231–232. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  4. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 779.
  5. "Species Management Profile Caladenia caudata (tailed spider-orchid)". Government of Tasmania Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  6. 1 2 "Communities - Caladenia caudata". The Understorey Network. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  7. van der Cingel, Nelis A. (2001). An Atlas of Orchid Pollination. Rotterdam: A.A. Balkema. p. 197. ISBN   9054104864.