Corybas carsei

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Corybas carsei
Corybas carsei Beard (cropped).jpg
Status NZTCS NC.svg
Nationally Critical (NZ TCS) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Corybas
Species:
C. carsei
Binomial name
Corybas carsei
(Cheesman) Hatch
Synonyms [1]
  • Corysanthes carseiCheesman
  • Corysanthes matthewsiiCheesman
  • Corybas matthewsii(Cheeseman) Schltr.
  • Anzybas carsei(Cheesman) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.

Corybas carsei, commonly known as the swamp helmet orchid, [1] is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It is found only in Whangamarino Wetland in the Waikato District, where the population of fewer than 250 plants is critically endangered.

Contents

Description

Corybas carsei growing in Whangamarino Wetland, New Zealand Corybas carsei Beard 1.jpg
Corybas carsei growing in Whangamarino Wetland, New Zealand

This small orchid grows from a single leaf 10–25 mm long, and flowers in September to November. Its single flower stands only 1– 3 cm tall, and has a hooded appearance as the maroon uppermost sepal hides most of the petals. Its petals are white with a maroon base and 8–10 pink/maroon stripes. [1] Its seed capsule is 5–6 cm tall, and contains dust-like seeds dispersed by the wind. Like other orchids, the seeds have no food reserves and need a symbiotic fungus to provide the energy to germinate.

Taxonomy

Corybas carsei was described by Thomas Cheeseman in 1912, and named Corysanthes carsei after schoolteacher Harry Carse who, with Blen Matthews, collected the type specimen from swamps near Lake Tangonge, Kaitaia. [2] [3] It was moved to the genus Corybas (a senior synonym) in 1945. [4] A 2002 revision of Corybas split it into numerous genera and placed this species in the genus Anzybas, [5] but this is not widely accepted. [1] [6] [7]

Distribution and habitat

The swamp helmet orchid prefers open, disturbed wetlands and grows best amongst liverworts and mosses. It is only known from the Whangamarino Wetland. It is similar to the Australian species C. fordhamii and more research is needed to confirm that the two species are separate. [1]

Conservation

Corybas carsei is listed as "threatened - nationally critical" by the New Zealand Government Department of Conservation. The main threat to C. carsei is modification of wetlands, both from draining for agriculture and increased nutrients from pastoral farming. Nutrients allow the invasion of other plant species that can swamp the orchid in dense vegetation. [1] This species was once found as far north as Kaitaia and south to Moanatuatua Swamp in the Waikato, but by the mid-20th century was presumed extinct. It was rediscovered in the early 1980s in Whangamarino Wetland, near Te Kauwhata, during a survey to counter proposals to drain the wetland. [8] Whangamarino once underwent regular fires sparked by land clearance and steam trains, but after active fire suppression began in the 1960s its vegetation changed from the mosaic of open mossy sites favoured by the orchids to tall sedges and grasses, and by 1991 the wild population of C. carsei had dropped to only 30 individuals.

To rescue the species, the Department of Conservation (DOC) began in 1994 to mimic natural disturbance by setting fires in fenced plots, in winter when the ground was damp so the underlying peat did not ignite. The aim was to simulate fires caused by lightning strikes and more recently by human activity. After fire, C. carsei reappears at higher densities and flowers and sets seed more heavily. Without a fire regime, only a few of the orchids flower each year, so a winter burn every seven years is now part of its management plan. [8] [9] [10]

Corybas carsei is so vulnerable that New Zealand Geographic were only allowed to photograph plants on condition they did not reveal their exact location. [8] The DOC conservation status of the species is "Nationally Critical" because of its small fluctuating population size (less than 250 individuals), single tiny home range, and dependence on continued conservation management. [11] Its numbers have gradually increased, from 77 plants in 2008 to 195 in 2011. [12]

Related Research Articles

<i>Corybas</i> (plant) Genus of orchids

Corybas, commonly known as helmet orchids, is a genus of about 120 species of plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Helmet orchids are small, perennial, deciduous herbs and are nearly always terrestrial. They have a single leaf at their base and a single flower on a short stalk, the flower dominated by its large dorsal sepal and labellum. Species of Corybas are found in Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Southeast Asia, the Himalayas, southern China, many Pacific islands and a few sub-Antarctic islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wetlands of New Zealand</span>

New Zealand has several notable wetlands but 90% of wetland areas have been lost following European settlement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kopuatai Peat Dome</span> Wetland in New Zealand

The Kopuatai Peat Dome is a large peatland complex on the Hauraki Plains in the North Island of New Zealand. It consists of two raised domes, one in the north and the other in the south, that are up to three metres higher at the center than at the edge. The 10,201 hectares wetland contains the largest intact raised bog in New Zealand and was listed under the Ramsar Convention in 1989 as a Wetland of International Importance. Most of the wetland is ombrotrophic, meaning it receives water and nutrient inputs solely from rain and is hydrologically isolated from the surrounding canals and rivers. Locally, a popular misconception persists that water flows from the nearby Piako River into the bog and that the wetland acts as a significant store for floodwater.

The Whangamarino River is a lowland river of the Waikato Region of New Zealand's North Island, draining the Whangamarino Wetland and associated farmland catchment. The river converges with the Waikato River just north of Meremere. The main tributary is the Maramarua River, which starts in the Hunua Ranges and forms the northern catchment of the Whangamarino River.

Corybas dienemus, commonly known as the windswept helmet-orchid, is one of two helmet orchids endemic to Australia's subantarctic Macquarie Island, and the first orchid to be found there. It is a relatively small orchid with green flowers with purplish-red markings and was discovered in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whangamarino Wetland</span> Wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention

The Whangamarino Wetland in the Waikato District is the second largest wetland complex of the North Island of New Zealand. Encompassing a total area of more than 7200 hectares, the Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai manages 5,923 hectares of peat bog, swamp, mesotrophic lags, open water and river systems listed as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. Fish and Game New Zealand are the second largest landowner, managing 748 hectares of the wetland primarily as gamebird hunting habitat.

Prasophyllum hectori, commonly known as the swamp leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to New Zealand. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to eighty scented, yellow-green flowers with red or brown marking. It is similar to P. colensoi, the only other species of Prasophyllum found in New Zealand, but is distinguished from it by its larger size, larger number of flowers and swampy habitat.

Corybas abditus, commonly known as the swamp helmet orchid or small helmet orchid , is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to Western Australia. It is a rare orchid with a single bluish green, heart-shaped leaf and a small flower with an enlarged dorsal sepal and tube-shaped labellum.

<i>Corybas acuminatus</i> Species of orchid

Corybas acuminatus, commonly known as the dancing spider orchid or helmet flower, is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It has a triangular, sharply pointed leaf and a small translucent, greenish-white flower with purple markings and with very long sepals. It is found on both the main islands of New Zealand and also some of the off-shore islands.

<i>Corybas cheesemanii</i> Species of orchid


Corybas cheesemanii, commonly known as Cheesemans spider orchid or spurred helmet orchid, is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It is a small orchid with a single pale green, heart-shaped leaf and usually only a single flower variously coloured from maroon to completely white. It usually grows in deep shade, often in deep leaf litter and flowers in autumn and winter.

<i>Corybas confusus</i> Species of orchid

Corybas confusus, commonly known as the spider orchid is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It has a single heart-shaped leaf and a single dark green or light green flower with reddish maroon streaks and blotches and long, thread-like lateral sepals and petals. It grows in highland areas on both main islands.

<i>Corybas cryptanthus</i> Species of orchid

Corybas cryptanthus, commonly known as the hidden spider orchid or icky, is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It has no obvious leaves and the mostly white flower is usually buried in leaf litter. The plant is usually only detected by its fruiting capsule which is borne on a stem which elongates up to 280 mm (10 in) high.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moanatuatua Scientific Reserve</span>

Moanatuatua scientific reserve is a 140 ha remnant of restiad (Restionaceae) peatland in the North Island of New Zealand. The bog was formerly ~ 7500 ha in size and was one of several large peatlands surrounding the city of Hamilton. Widespread drainage and conversion to agriculture has left only this small remnant of what was formerly the dominant ecosystem in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaimaumau wetland</span> Wetland in Northland, New Zealand

The Kaimaumau wetland is a wetland by the Rangaunu Harbour, in Northland, New Zealand. At approximately 1,860 hectares, it is one of the largest remaining wetlands in Northland. It comprises the Otiaita and Waihauhau swamps, Motutangi Swamp Scientific Reserve, and Lake Waikaramu. The wetland is currently threatened by peat mining and by water loss from avocado growing.

<i>Dracophyllum arboreum</i> Species of tree in the heath family from the Chatham Islands

Dracophyllum arboreum, commonly known as Chatham Island grass tree and tarahinau (Moriori), is a species of tree in the heath family Ericaceae. Endemic to the Chatham Islands of New Zealand, it reaches a height of 18 m (60 ft) and has leaves that differ between the juvenile and adult forms.

<i>Corybas vitreus</i> Species of plant

Corybas vitreus is a species of orchid endemic to New Zealand, and first described in 2016 by Carlos Adolfo Lehnebach.

<i>Corybas hatchii</i> Species of orchid

Corybas hatchii is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to New Zealand. It has a solitary rounded leaf, often flecked with maroon, and a single pale green and maroon flower with long, threadlike lateral sepals and petals.

<i>Corybas hypogaeus</i> Species of orchid

Corybas hypogaeus is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to the New Zealand. It is part of the C. trilobus aggregate, whose members are characterized by a funnel or dish-shaped labellum and an often heart or kidney-shaped solitary leaf.

<i>Corybas papa</i> Species of orchid

Corybas papa is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. It has a solitary wedge-shaped leaf and single translucent green flower with a strongly deflexed labellum and slender, threadlike lateral sepals and petals.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 de Lange, Peter J. (2005). "Corybas carsei". New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. Retrieved 2 Feb 2018.
  2. ↑ Godley, Eric J. (1996). "Biographical Notes (21): Henry Blencowe Matthews (1861–1934)" (PDF). New Zealand Botanical Society Newsletter. 43: 12–13.
  3. ↑ Cheeseman, T. F. (1912). "A New Genus and some New Species of Plants". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 44: 162. ISSN   1176-6158. Wikidata   Q115566214.
  4. ↑ Hatch, Edwin D. (1945). "Notes on New Zealand orchids". Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 75: 367–370.
  5. ↑ Jones, D. L.; Clements, M. A. (2002). "Nomenclatural Notes Arising from Studies into the Tribe Diurideae". Orchadian. 13: 443.
  6. ↑ Hopper, S. D. (2009). "Taxonomic turmoil down-under: recent developments in Australian orchid systematics". Annals of Botany. 104 (3): 447–455. doi:10.1093/aob/mcp090. PMC   2720664 . PMID   19398445.
  7. ↑ "Genus Corybas". PlantNET - New South Wales Flora Online. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  8. 1 2 3 Hansford, Dave (Nov–Dec 2014). "Orchidelirium". New Zealand Geographic. 124.
  9. ↑ Norton, David A.; De Lange, Peter J. (2003). "Fire and Vegetation in a Temperate Peat Bog: Implications for the Management of Threatened Species". Conservation Biology. 17 (1): 138–148. Bibcode:2003ConBi..17..138N. doi:10.1046/j.1523-1739.2003.01131.x. S2CID   86721128.
  10. ↑ Henderson, Jocelyn (26 May 2021). "Record numbers of rare Whangamarino orchid allows new research". Department of Conservation. Archived from the original on 2021-05-25. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  11. ↑ de Lange, Peter J.; Rolfe, Jeremy R.; Champion, Paul D.; Courtney, Shannel; Heenan, Peter B.; Barkla, John W.; Cameron, E. K. (2013). Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012. Wellington, New Zealand: New Zealand Department of Conservation. ISBN   9780478149951. OCLC   882945164.
  12. ↑ Van Hal, Jack (7 April 2014). "Beauty and the bog". DOC Conservation Blog. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
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