Prasophyllum occultans

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Hidden leek orchid
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Subtribe: Prasophyllinae
Genus: Prasophyllum
Species:
P. occultans
Binomial name
Prasophyllum occultans

Prasophyllum occultans, commonly known as the hidden leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to southern Australia. It has a single, smooth, tube-shaped leaf with a reddish-purple base and up to ten greenish flowers. It is a rare species found only in a few locations in South Australia and in far western Victoria.

Contents

Description

Prasophyllum occultans is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single smooth, tube-shaped leaf which is 100–300 mm (4–10 in) long and 3–5 mm (0.1–0.2 in) in diameter near its reddish-purple base. The flowering stem emerges about half-way along the leaf. Between four and ten greenish and dull brown flowers are arranged on the flowering stem which is 30–80 mm (1–3 in) long. The ovary is 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long and 1.5–2.5 mm (0.06–0.1 in) wide. As with others in the genus, the flowers are inverted so that the labellum is above the column rather than below it. The dorsal sepal is green with a brownish tip, lance-shaped to egg-shaped, 6–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long and 2–3 mm (0.08–0.1 in) wide. The lateral sepals are greenish with brown marks, lance-shaped, 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) long, 2–3 mm (0.08–0.1 in) wide and free from each other. The petals are green with a dull brown stripe, linear to oblong, 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) long and 1 mm (0.04 in) wide. The labellum is greenish-white, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) long, about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide and turns upward at 90° about half-way along. The upturned part is triangular with a wavy edge and there is a greenish-brown callus in its centre. Flowering occurs in September and early October and the flowers are "apparently apomictic". [1] [2]

Taxonomy and naming

Prasophyllum occultans was first formally described in 1989 by Robert Bates and the description was published in Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Garden from a specimen collected in the Lincoln Conservation Park. [1] [3] The specific epithet (occultans) is a Latin word meaning "hidden" or "concealed", [4] referring to the difficulty of finding this orchid, due to its size and coloration. [1]

Distribution and habitat

The hidden leek orchid mostly in mallee-broombush and is found on the Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, upper South-Eastern botanical region of South Australia and possibly Kangaroo Island. There is a single record from far western Victoria. [1] [2]

Related Research Articles

Prasophyllum australe, commonly known as the southern leek orchid or austral leek orchid, is a species of orchid and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to fifty scented, greenish-brown flowers with red stripes.

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

Prasophyllum brevilabre, commonly known as the short-lip leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to thirty small, greenish-brown flowers with a white labellum. The labellum is sharply turned back on itself so that its tip almost reaches its base.

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

Prasophyllum sphacelatum, commonly known as the subalpine leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, dull green leaf and up to eighteen scented, green to brownish flowers with a green to pinkish labellum. It grows in subalpine areas of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.

Prasophyllum campestre, commonly known as the sandplain leek orchid, or inland leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, yellowish-green leaf and up to twenty greenish, strongly scented flowers with red, purplish, brown or white marks. It grows in the drier parts of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.

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

Prasophyllum odoratum, commonly known as the fragrant leek orchid, Rogers scented leek orchid or sweet leek orchid is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single tubular leaf and up to fifty fragrant green and white flowers with reddish marks.

Prasophyllum candidum, commonly known as the Kiandra leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, yellowish-green leaf and up to forty scented, bright white to greenish flowers. It grows in subalpine areas at altitudes above 1,000 m (3,000 ft) in New South Wales and Victoria although in the latter state it is considered to be a form of P. odoratum.

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

Prasophyllum caudiculum, commonly known as the Guyra leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small area of northern New South Wales. It has a single tubular, bright green leaf and up to thirty five greenish to reddish-brown flowers crowded along an erect flowering stem. It grows in grassy places near Guyra.

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

Prasophyllum dossenum is a species of orchid endemic to a small area of northern New South Wales. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and up to thirty scented pinkish-white and greenish-brown flowers crowded along an erect flowering stem. It is a rare orchid which grows in grassy places on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales.

Prasophyllum erythrocommum, commonly known as the tan leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to thirty small, greenish-brown to dark brown flowers. It is a very rare orchid, only known from a single small area north of Melbourne.

Prasophyllum fosteri, commonly known as the Shelford leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small region of Victoria. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to twenty five green to reddish-brown flowers. It is a very rare orchid, only known from a single population on a roadside.

Prasophyllum gilgai, commonly known as the gilgai leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to twenty greenish brown, light brown, pink or white flowers. It is a very rare orchid with a population of fewer than fifty plants in a small area in the north of the state.

Prasophyllum hygrophilum, commonly known as the swamp leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to thirty greenish brown, pink or mauve flowers. It is a rare orchid only known from two populations and is classified as "endangered" in Victoria.

Prasophyllum litorale, commonly known as the coastal leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to southern continental Australia. It has a single tubular leaf and up to forty flowers with red and green colouring and grows in sandhills near the sea.

Prasophyllum niphopedium, commonly known as the marsh leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small area in Victoria. It has a single tubular leaf and up to twenty greenish flowers with reddish markings. It is only known from five population on grassy alpine plains with the total number of individual plants less than five hundred.

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

Prasophyllum patens, commonly known as the broad-lipped leek orchid or sandstone leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the Sydney region of New South Wales. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to thirty green to greenish-brown, lemon-scented flowers with a white labellum.

Prasophyllum readii, commonly known as the Streathem leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single, tubular leaf and up to twenty five scented, greenish-brown to reddish-brown flowers with a white or pinkish labellum and is only known from a swamp in the south-west of the state.

Prasophyllum rogersii, commonly known as the Barrington Tops leek orchid is a species of orchid endemic to New South Wales. It has a single tubular leaf and up to twenty five reddish-brown flowers and only occurs in a few locations at higher altitudes.

Prasophyllum fitzgeraldii, commonly known as FitzGerald's leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to South Australia. It has a single tube-shaped leaf and up to thirty five green or reddish-brown flowers with a pink to purple labellum. It was previously thought to also occur in Victoria.

Prasophyllum roseum, commonly known as the pink lip leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to southern continental Australia. It has a single tube-shaped leaf and up to thirty greenish flowers with a pink labellum. It is a recently described plant, previously included with P. fitzgeraldii, but distinguished from that species by its smaller, less crowded flowers, with more spreading lateral sepals and different labellum callus. It grows in the south-east of South Australia and in western Victoria.

Prasophyllum stygium, commonly known as the elfin leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tube-shaped leaf and up to twenty greenish-brown flowers with a white labellum. It is a recently described plant, previously included with P. fitzgeraldii, but distinguished from that species by its greenish-brown flowers with their white labellum and narrower brown callus. It is only known from a single population of about thirty plants.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Bates, Robert John (1989). "Prasophyllum fecundum and P. occultans (Orchidaceae): two new species endemic to South Australia" (PDF). Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Garden. 11 (2): 192–194. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  2. 1 2 Jeanes, Jeff. "Prasophyllum occulans". Ropyal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  3. "Prasophyllum occultans". APNI. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  4. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 567.