Orchidaceae, commonly called the orchid family, is a diverse and widespread family of flowering plants, with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant.
Horton Plains National Park is a national park in the central highlands of Sri Lanka that was designated in 1988. It is located at an elevation of 2,100–2,300 m (6,900–7,500 ft) and encompasses montane grassland and cloud forest. It is rich in biodiversity and many species found here are endemic to the region. It is also a popular tourist destination and is situated 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Ohiya, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from the world-famous Ohiya Gap/Dondra Watch and 32 kilometres (20 mi) from Nuwara Eliya.
Yala (යාල) National Park is the most visited and second largest national park in Sri Lanka, bordering the Indian Ocean. The park consists of five blocks, two of which are now open to the public, and also adjoining parks. The blocks have individual names such as, Ruhuna National Park, and Kumana National Park or 'Yala East' for the adjoining area. It is situated in the southeast region of the country, and lies in Southern Province and Uva Province. The park covers 979 square kilometres (378 sq mi) and is located about 300 kilometres (190 mi) from Colombo. Yala was designated as a wildlife sanctuary in 1900, and, along with Wilpattu was one of the first two national parks in Sri Lanka, having been designated in 1938. The park is best known for its variety of wild animals. It is important for the conservation of Sri Lankan elephants, Sri Lankan leopards and aquatic birds.
In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to adopt these symbols – some are conferred by government bodies, whereas others are the result of informal public polls. The term floral emblem, which refers to flowers specifically, is primarily used in Australia and Canada. In the United States, the term state flower is more often used.
The Sri Lankan elephant is one of three recognised subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to Sri Lanka. Since 1986, Elephas maximus has been listed as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 50% over the last three generations, estimated to be 60–75 years. The species is primarily threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation.
Papilionanthe hookeriana, also known as kinta weed, is a species of orchid. It is the pollen parent of the hybrid Papilionanthe Miss Joaquim, which was originally hybridised by Agnes Joaquim.
Luisia, commonly known as velvet orchids or 钗子股属 , is a genus of epiphytic or lithophytic orchids in family Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus have flattened roots, long leafy stems, narrow, thick, leathery leaves and short-lived flowers that open sporadically. There are about forty species found from tropical and subtropical Asia to the Western Pacific.
Wildlife of Sri Lanka includes its flora and fauna and their natural habitats. Sri Lanka has one of the highest rates of biological endemism in the world.
Papilionanthe Miss Joaquim, also known as the Singapore orchid, the Princess Aloha orchid and formerly as Vanda Miss Joaquim, is a hybrid orchid that is the national flower of Singapore. For its resilience and year-round blooming quality, it was chosen on 15 April 1981 to represent Singapore's uniqueness and hybrid culture.
Octarrhena, commonly known as grub orchids, is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are small, orchids with short stems, thin roots, short, thick, fleshy leaves arranged in two ranks and tiny flowers. The labellum is rigidly attached to the base of the column. There are about fifty species native to areas from Sri Lanka and Malesia to the Western Pacific.
Papilionanthe is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It is native to Southeast Asia, southern China, and the Indian Subcontinent.
Elaeocarpus serratus is a tropical flowering plant in the family Elaeocarpaceae. It is a medium to large tree, with white flowers. It has a disjunctive distribution, with the species occurring in Sri Lanka and southern India, and in Assam, Bangladesh and other parts in the north of the Indian subcontinent. The fruit is commonly eaten, and people also use the plant for ornamental, religious and folk-medicinal purposes. There are historical records of traditional-medicine use of the plant. Paradoxurus jerdoni consumes parts of the tree.
Eulophia obtusa, a showy and distinctive species of orchid, popularly known as the ground orchid, recorded from Bangladesh, North India and Nepal. This orchid growing in seasonally in grassland. It is a grass associated orchid species. A Bangladesh based renowned botanist and ornithologist Md Sharif Hossain Sourav first described this rare species from Bangladesh in 2017. There are only three collections in the Kew Herbarium dates from 1902, which suggests that it is quite a rare species. It is assessed as critically endangered (CR) in Bangladesh according to the IUCN Red Listing criteria. Very recently this species was rediscovered in India after 118 years.
Gastrodia zeylanica is a species of potato orchids which is endemic to Sri Lanka. It was added to the 2007 Red list of Threatened Fauna and Flora of Sri Lanka as 'critically endangered', on the basis of it having only been collected from a few localities.
Papilionanthe uniflora is a species of epiphytic orchid native to India, Myanmar, Bhutan and Nepal.
Papilionanthe greenii is a species of epiphytic orchid native to Bhutan.
Papilionanthe biswasiana is a species of epiphytic orchid native to Laos, China, Myanmar, and Thailand. Is is closely related to Papilionanthe vandarum.
Papilionanthe pedunculata is a species of epiphytic orchid native to Cambodia, and Vietnam. This species is a floristic component of the South Annamese endemism center, which is characterised by isolated, uplifted plateaux and high mountain systems. They are also found in dry lowland Dipterocarp forests in southern Vietnam. The plant has obvious xeromorphic features and is adapted to these dry conditions. The cool-growing plant occurs at 1200 to 1300 m. The plants are large and terete.
Papilionanthe sillemiana is a species of epiphytic orchid endemic to Myanmar.
Phalaenopsis javanica is a species of orchid native to Java and Sumatra. The specific epithet javanica refers to the Indonesian island Java.
