Caladenia gracillima

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Pretty fingers
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Caladenia
Species:
C. gracillima
Binomial name
Caladenia gracillima
Synonyms

Petalochilus gracillimus(Rupp) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.

Contents

Caladenia gracillima, commonly known as pretty fingers, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single leaf and up to three bright pink flowers. The type specimen was collected at Yandina in southern Queensland but there are also records from southern New South Wales.

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.

Australia Country in Oceania

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country by total area. The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east. The population of 25 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Australia's capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney. The country's other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide.

Type (biology) Specimen(s) to which a scientific name is formally attached

In biology, a type is a particular specimen of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralize the defining features of that particular taxon. In older usage, a type was a taxon rather than a specimen.

Description

Caladenia gracillima is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single leaf, 90–150 mm long and 2–3 mm wide. Up to three bright pink flowers with dusky pink backs and 25–40 mm long, 20–40 mm wide are borne on a stalk 100–200 mm tall. The dorsal sepal is erect, 10–18 mm long and 2–4 mm wide. The lateral sepals are 13–25 mm long, 4–6 mm wide and the petals are 12–22 mm long, 2–5 mm wide and spread fan-like with the lateral sepals in front of the flower. The labellum is 6–8 mm long, 5–7 mm wide and white with pink to mauve edges. The sides of the labellum turn upwards and the tip has 8 to 14 yellow to orange teeth on each side and curls downward. There are two rows of red to orange calli along the centre of the labellum. Flowering occurs from August to September. [1] [2]

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 (/dɪˈsɪdʒuəs/) 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.

Taxonomy and naming

This orchid was first formally described in 1939 by Herman Rupp who gave it the name Caladenia carnea var. gracillima and published the description in The Queensland Naturalist from a specimen collected at Yandina. [3] In 2000, David Jones raised the variety to species status. [4] The specific epithet (gracillima) is the superlative form of the Latin word gracilis meaning "slender" or "thin", hence "most slender". [5] Referring to C. carnea var. gracillima, Rupp noted "the segments are narrow and acuminate" and "the labellum is ...narrower than in other forms". [2]

Herman Montague Rucker Rupp was an Australian clergyman and botanist who specialised in orchids. He was known throughout his life as Montague Rupp and in later life as the "Orchid Man".

David Lloyd Jones is an Australian horticultural botanist and the author of many books and papers, especially on Australian orchids.

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

Pretty fingers grows in forest between Dayboro and Cooroy in south-east Queensland [1] but there are also records from the southern tablelands of New South Wales. [6]

Dayboro, Queensland Town in Queensland, Australia

Dayboro is a town and locality in the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. It is approximately 46 kilometres (29 mi) north-northwest of Brisbane, the state capital.

Cooroy, Queensland Town in Queensland, Australia

Cooroy is a town and a locality in the Shire of Noosa, Queensland, Australia, but between 2008 and 2013 it was in Sunshine Coast Region.

Southern Tablelands Region in New South Wales, Australia

The Southern Tablelands is a geographic area of New South Wales, Australia, located south-west of Sydney and west of the Great Dividing Range.

Conservation

Caladenia gracillima is listed as of "least concern" in Queensland. [7]

Related Research Articles

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

Caladenia carnea, commonly known as pink fingers, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to eastern and south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It has a single thin, green leaf and one to five white or pink flowers with red stripes and two rows of yellow-tipped "calli" on their labellum.

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

Caladenia latifolia, commonly known as pink fairies is a species of orchid endemic to Australia and is common and widespread in the southern half of the continent and in Tasmania. It has a single, hairy leaf and up to four pink flowers. It is easily distinguished by its relatively large, green leaf, and pink flowers on an unusually tall spike.

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

Caladenia picta, commonly known as painted fingers, is a species of orchid endemic to New South Wales. It has a single, sparsely hairy leaf and a single white or pink flower with a greenish-white back. Unlike many other caladenias, it flowers in autumn.

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

Caladenia fuscata, commonly known as dusky fingers, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to eastern and south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It is a small ground orchid found in eucalyptus woodland and which flowers in September and October.

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

Caladenia aurantiaca, commonly known as orangetip fingers, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Victoria, although it is also found on one Bass Strait island. It is a slender ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two short-lived, orange-tipped, white flowers on a thin, wiry spike.

Caladenia bartlettii is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to New Zealand. It is a ground orchid with a single narrow, hairy leaf and a thin wiry stem usually bearing one short-lived mauve to pink flower.

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

Caladenia catenata, commonly known as white caladenia, white fingers and lady's fingers, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two white, sometimes pink flowers on a thin, sparsely-hairy stem. It is similar to Caladenia carnea but lacks the red and white bars on the labellum of that species.

Caladenia concinna, commonly known as the neat spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf, and usually a single greenish flower with red stripes on the petals and sepals.

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

Caladenia falcata, commonly known as the fringed mantis orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a relatively common orchid within its natural range and has a single, hairy leaf and one or two green, yellow and red flowers with spreading petals and upswept lateral sepals.

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

Caladenia fragrantissima, commonly known as the scented 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 up to three creamy-white to yellowish-green flowers. It is possible that it is conspecific with Caladenia orientalis.

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

Caladenia gardneri, commonly known as the cherry spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has a single, hairy leaf and up to three pale pink, sweetly scented flowers with a dark pinkish-red labellum.

Caladenia hastata, commonly known as Mellblom's 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 up to three white to cream-coloured flowers with red markings on the labellum.

<i>Caladenia attingens <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> gracillima</i> subspecies of plant

Caladenia attingens subsp. gracillima, commonly known as the small mantis orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a relatively common orchid with a single erect, hairy leaf and one or two green, yellow and red flowers. It differs from subspecies attingens in having smaller flowers and a more easterly distribution.

Caladenia magnifica, commonly known as the magnificent spider orchid is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single leaf and one or two reddish crimson or yellow flowers streaked with crimson and with dark reddish tips. It has not been sighted since 1979 and is presumed to be extinct.

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

Caladenia mentiens, commonly known as lesser fingers, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia which grows singly, or in small, loose groups. It has a single, sparsely hairy, erect, linear leaf and a single whitish or pinkish coloured flower with a darker back and a cream-coloured labellum.

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

Caladenia ornata, commonly known as ornate pink fingers is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single leaf and one or two bright pink flowers with greenish-pink backs, and a dark pink labellum with dark red bars.

Caladenia quadrifaria, commonly known as the large pink fingers orchid is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a ground orchid with a single, sparsely hairy leaf and up to three pale to bright pink flowers.

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

Caladenia vulgaris, commonly known as summer fingers, or slender pink-fingers is a species of orchid endemic to southern Australia. It has a single, long, erect, hairy leaf and one or two pink or whitish flowers.

Caladenia chamaephylla, commonly known as redleaf fingers, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Queensland. It is a ground orchid with a single leaf and a single pink flower which is brownish-pink on the back. Unlike the leaves of most caladenias, this one has a leaf which lies flat on the ground and flowers appear in late autumn or winter.

Caladenia pygmaea, commonly known as the pygmy finger orchid is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single erect, sparsely hairy leaf and a single pink flower with red stripes on the labellum. It was formerly known as a variety of Caladenia carnea.

References

  1. 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. 38. ISBN   1877069124.
  2. 1 2 Rupp, Herman (1939). "A distinctive form of Caladenia carnea R.Br". The Queensland Naturalist. 11 (1): 86–87. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  3. "Caladenia carnea var. gracillima". APNI. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  4. "Caladenia gracillima". APNI. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  5. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 376.
  6. "Caladenia gracillima". Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney: plantnet. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  7. "Caladenia gracillima". The State of Queensland (Department of Environment and Heritage Protection). Retrieved 4 April 2017.