Prasophyllum castaneum

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Chestnut leek orchid
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Subtribe: Prasophyllinae
Genus: Prasophyllum
Species:P. castaneum
Binomial name
Prasophyllum castaneum
D.L.Jones [1]

Prasophyllum castaneum, commonly known as the chestnut leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf with a dark purplish base and between ten and twenty chestnut coloured to dark brown flowers. In 2000, the entire population was estimated to be about fifty plants.

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.

Tasmania island state of Australia

Tasmania is an island state of Australia. It is located 240 km (150 mi) to the south of the Australian mainland, separated by Bass Strait. The state encompasses the main island of Tasmania, the 26th-largest island in the world, and the surrounding 334 islands. The state has a population of around 526,700 as of March 2018. Just over forty percent of the population resides in the Greater Hobart precinct, which forms the metropolitan area of the state capital and largest city, Hobart.

Chestnut (color) color

Chestnut is a colour, a medium reddish shade of brown, and is named after the nut of the chestnut tree. An alternate name for the colour is badious.

Contents

Description

Prasophyllum castaneum is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single tube-shaped, dark green to brownish-green leaf which is 80–400 mm (3–20 in) long and 3–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide with a dark purplish-red base. The free part of the leaf is 100–160 mm (4–6 in) long. Between ten and twenty flowers are arranged along a thin flowering spike 80–120 mm (3–5 in) long. The flowers are chestnut-coloured to dark brown, 14–17 mm (0.6–0.7 in) long and 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) wide. The dorsal sepal is broadly lance-shaped to egg-shaped, 8–9 mm (0.3–0.4 in) long and about 4 mm (0.2 in) wide and curves downwards. The lateral sepals are 8–9 mm (0.3–0.4 in) long, about 3 mm (0.1 in) wide, erect and curve away from each other. The petals are narrow egg-shaped to lance-shaped, 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) long and about 1.5 mm (0.06 in) wide. The labellum is about 7 mm (0.3 in) long and 5 mm (0.2 in) wide, turns upwards at about 90° near its middle, and its edges are slightly wavy. Flowering occurs from late November to January. [2] [3] [4]

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 stem 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

Prasophyllum castaneum was first formally described in 1998 by David Jones from a specimen collected on Bruny Island and the description was published in Australian Orchid Research. [1] [2] The specific epithet (castaneum) is a Latin word meaning "of the colour of chestnuts", [5] referring to the colour of the flowers. [2]

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

Bruny Island island off coast of Tasmania

Bruny Island is a 362-square-kilometre (89,000-acre) island located off the south-eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island is separated from the Tasmanian mainland by the D'Entrecasteaux Channel, and its east coast lies within the Tasman Sea. Storm Bay is located to the island's northeast. Both the island and the channel are named after French explorer Bruni d'Entrecasteaux. Its traditional Aboriginal name is lunawanna-allonah, which survives as the name of two island settlements, Alonnah and Lunawanna.

Botanical name scientific name for a plant (or alga or fungus) (ICNafp)

A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN) and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP). The code of nomenclature covers "all organisms traditionally treated as algae, fungi, or plants, whether fossil or non-fossil, including blue-green algae (Cyanobacteria), chytrids, oomycetes, slime moulds and photosynthetic protists with their taxonomically related non-photosynthetic groups ."

Distribution and habitat

The chestnut leek orchid grows in moist heath under low shrubs in the South Bruny National Park and Tasman National Park. [2] [4]

South Bruny National Park Protected area in Tasmania, Australia

The South Bruny National Park is a national park located on Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) south of Hobart. The park contains the Cape Bruny Lighthouse. The highest point of the park is Mount Bruny at 504 metres (1,654 ft).

Tasman National Park Protected area in Tasmania, Australia

The Tasman National Park is a national park in eastern Tasmania, Australia, approximately 56 kilometres (35 mi) east of Hobart. The 107.5-square-kilometre (41.5 sq mi) park is situated on part of both the Forestier and Tasman peninsulas and encompasses all of Tasman Island.

Conservation

Prasophyllum castaneum is only known from two populations containing a total of fifty plants. The species is classified as Endangered under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 and as Critically Endangered under the Commonwealth Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC) Act. Although both population are in national parks, one would be devastated by bushfire and the other is threatened by invasion of scrubby species in the absence of fire. [3] [4]

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 Act of the Parliament of Australia, currently registered as C2016C00777

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and culturally significant places. Enacted on 17 July 2000, it established a range of processes to help protect and promote the recovery of threatened species and ecological communities, and preserve significant places from decline. The EPBC Act replaced the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1975.

Related Research Articles

<i>Prasophyllum alpestre</i> species of plant

Prasophyllum alpestre, commonly known as the mauve leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to twenty five scented, white, purplish and green flowers. It grows in subalpine parts of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.

Prasophyllum amoenum, commonly known as the dainty leek orchid or Snug leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf with a purplish base and between five and twelve light green, dark brown and white flowers. In 2007, the entire population was estimated to be about 600 plants.

Prasophyllum apoxychilum, commonly known as the tapered leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf with a purplish base and up to twenty light green and whitish flowers. It is very similar to P. truncatum, and there is some doubt as to whether the two species are distinct. The species is known from twenty widely separated populations and is usually only seen in disturbed sites, such as after fire.

Prasophyllum crebriflorum, commonly known as the crowded leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf with a purplish base and up to twenty five reddish-brown flowers. It is only known from four relatively small populations growing at high altitudes.

Prasophyllum favonium, commonly known as the western leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular leaf with a reddish base and between five and fifteen brownish flowers with a dark purple labellum. In 2000, the entire population was estimated to be less than forty mature plants in a very small area.

Prasophyllum incorrectum, commonly known as the golfer's leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to twenty scented, yellowish-green and reddish-brown flowers. The largest population occurs on a golf course.

Prasophyllum incurvum is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, bright green leaf and up to forty brownish-green, white and purplish flowers. It is similar to P. alpestre but has larger flowers and petals which curve forwards.

Prasophyllum keltonii, commonly known as Kelton's leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small region of New South Wales. It has a single tubular, bright green leaf and up to twenty two scented, green, brownish-red or purplish flowers. It is a very rare orchid with only a few hundred plants known.

Prasophyllum limnetes, commonly known as the marsh leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to thirty five greenish-white flowers with a pinkish labellum. It is only known from a population of fewer than twenty plants growing in a sanctuary near Port Sorell.

Prasophyllum milfordense is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to thirty greenish-brown, white and purplish flowers. It is a very rare orchid, only found in a single location with a population of around 240 plants.

Prasophyllum olidum, commonly known as the pungent leek orchid is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green to yellowish-green leaf and up to thirty bright green to brownish-green flowers. It is a very rare orchid, only found in a single location with a population which fluctuates from three to two hundred flowering plants.

Prasophyllum perangustum, commonly known as the Knocklofty leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to fifteen greenish or light brown flowers with a white labellum. It is a very rare orchid with only six plants recorded in 1993.

Prasophyllum pulchellum, commonly known as the pretty leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to twelve light reddish-brown flowers with a cream-coloured to whitish labellum. It is widely distributed in Tasmania and only about 130 plants are known but it is difficult to locate in the low heath where it grows and more individuals may survive.

Prasophyllum robustum, commonly known as the robust leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to thirty greenish-brown flowers with a white labellum. It is only known from a single population of about fifty plants, its numbers having been reduced by land clearing.

Prasophyllum stellatum, commonly known as the Ben Lomond leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to twenty greenish-brown to brownish flowers with a white labellum. It is only known from two disjunct populations, at Ben Lomond and near Deloraine.

Prasophyllum taphanyx, commonly known as the graveside leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small area of Tasmania. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to twenty five small, light green, pinkish-cream and purplish flowers. It rarely flowers and the largest number of flowers seen in any one year was three in 2001.

Prasophyllum truncatum, commonly known as the truncate leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to twenty whitish flowers with purplish and greenish-brown markings. It is a late-flowering leek orchid and its flowering is stimulated by earlier fire.

<i>Prasophyllum tunbridgense</i> species of plant

Prasophyllum tunbridgense, commonly known as the Tunbridge leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, bright green leaf and up to twenty five relatively large, green to light greenish-brown flowers with white petals and a large white labellum.

Prasophyllum atratum, commonly known as the Three Humock leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to twenty five brownish- to purplish-green flowers with a dark purplish labellum. It is only known from a single population of fewer than one thousand plants growing on Three Hummock Island.

Prasophyllum tortilis is a species of orchid endemic to South Australia. It has a single tube-shaped leaf and up to ten purplish-brown and green flowers with a purple labellum. It is a recently described plant, previously included with P. fitzgeraldii, but distinguished from that species by its smaller number of smaller, more darkly coloured, short-lived flowers. It also resembles P. goldsackii but has fleshier flowers than that species.

References

  1. 1 2 "Prasophyllum castaneum". APNI. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Jones, David L. (1998). "Contributions to Tasmanian Orchidology". Australian Orchid Research. 3 (6): 102–103.
  3. 1 2 "Conservation advice Prasophyllum castaneum" (PDF). Australian Government Department of the Environment. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 "Threatened species listing statement - Chestnut leek orchid (Prasophyllum castaneum)" (PDF). Tasmanian Government Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  5. ↑ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 168.
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