Caladenia sylvicola

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Forest fingers
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. sylvicola
Binomial name
Caladenia sylvicola
Synonyms

Petalochilus sylvicola(D.L.Jones) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.

Contents

Caladenia sylvicola, commonly known as forest fingers, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single erect, sparsely hairy leaf and a single white flower with a greenish back.

Description

Caladenia sylvicola is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and which grows as single plants or in small, loose groups. It has a single erect, sparsely hairy, dark green leaf, 100–150 mm long and 1.5-2.0 mm wide. A single flower 14–18 mm long and 17–22 mm wide is borne on a stalk 100–160 mm tall. The flowers are white with greenish backs. The dorsal sepal is 9–11 mm long, about 2 mm wide and erect or curved forward. The lateral sepals and petals have about the same dimensions as the dorsal sepal but spread forward fan-like, in front of the flower. The labellum is 5–7 mm long, 6–7 mm wide and white with an orange to yellow tip. The sides of the labellum have lobes which are erect and partly enclose the column and the front part of the labellum has three to five teeth up to 1 mm long on each side and decreasing in length towards the tip. The tip of the labellum is curved downward and there are two rows of calli up to 1mm long, some with orange tips, along the mid-line of the labellum. Flowering occurs from October to November. [2] [3] [4]

Taxonomy and naming

Caladenia sylvicola was first described in 1998 by David Jones from a specimen collected in Hobart and the description was published in Australian Orchid Research. [1] The specific epithet (sylvicola) is derived from Latin word meaning "forest" and the "dweller" referring to the preferred habitat of this species. [3]

Distribution and habitat

Forest fingers is only known from two sites near Hobart, growing in open forest in leaf litter or near dense shrubs. The total population was estimated in 1997 to be twenty mature plants, but following a fire no further plants were seen for several years. [2] [3] [4] A single specimen was seen in 2009. [5]

Conservation

Caladenia sylvicola is classified as "critically endangered" under the Commonwealth Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC) Act and "endangered' under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 . The main threats to the species are land clearing and habitat fragmentation, inappropriate fire regimes and accidental trampling. [4]

Related Research Articles

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

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

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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.

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Caladenia lindleyana, commonly known as the Lindley's spider orchid is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single, hairy leaf and one or two greenish-yellow flowers tinged with red and with thin dark tips on the sepals. Very few plants of this species survive with only one plant, which has not been seen since 1997, protected in a reserve.

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

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.

Caladenia pallida, commonly known as the rosy spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single dark green, hairy leaf and one or two yellowish to bright, rosy pink flowers. Individual plants of this species have not been seen since 1987.

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

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

Caladenia septuosa, commonly known as the Koppio spider 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 usually only one greenish-cream flower with red stripes along the sepals and petals.

<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 vulgaris</i> Species of orchid

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 woolcockiorum, commonly known as Woolcock's spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to South Australia. It has a single, long, erect, hairy leaf and one or two cream-coloured to greenish-yellow flowers recognised by their long, drooping lateral sepals and petals with their ends having dark glandular tips and by the red-tipped labellum.

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.

References

  1. 1 2 "Caladenia sylvicola". APNI. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  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. 41. ISBN   1877069124.
  3. 1 2 3 Jones, David L. (1998). "A taxonomic review of Caladenia R.Br. in Tasmania". Australian Orchid Research. 3 (2): 40–41.
  4. 1 2 3 "Caladenia sylvicola forest" (PDF). Government of Tasmania Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Envrironment. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  5. "Threatened Species Link Species Profile Caladenia sylvicola". Government of Tasmania Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Envrironment. Retrieved 15 August 2018.