Prasophyllum suttonii

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Mauve leek orchid
Prasophyllum suttonii.jpg
Prasophyllum suttonii growing on Mount Buffalo
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. suttonii
Binomial name
Prasophyllum suttonii

Prasophyllum suttonii, commonly known as the mauve leek orchid, Mount Buffalo leek orchid or Buffalo leek-orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the Australian Alps. Some authorities list the species as being a Victorian endemic now extinct whilst others list is as occurring in New South Wales and extant. Descriptions of the species also differ. It has a single tube-shaped leaf and up to thirty five white flowers with purple or mauve marks.

Contents

Description

According to the National Herbarium of New South Wales, Prasophyllum suttonii is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single tube-shaped leaf up to 200 mm (8 in) long. Up to thirty five fragrant, crystalline white flowers with purple or mauve marks are crowded along a flowering stem which reaches to a height of 400 mm (20 in). 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 egg-shaped to lance-shaped and up to 9 mm (0.4 in) long. The lateral sepals are up to 7 mm (0.3 in) long and usually free from each other, sometimes joined by a thin membrane. The petals are shaped like a spatula up to 8 mm (0.3 in) long. The labellum is broad lance-shaped to egg-shaped, about 8 mm (0.3 in) long and 4 mm (0.2 in) wide and turns sharply upwards near its middle, extending above the lateral sepals. The upturned edges of the labelled are crinkled or folded and there is a green, channelled callus along the centre of the labellum. Flowering occurs from January to March. [2]

The Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria and David Jones describe the species as having fewer flowers on the flowering stem, each with most of the flower organs smaller and appearing in December. [3] [4]

Taxonomy and naming

Prasophyllum suttonii was first formally described in 1912 by Richard Sanders Rogers and Bertha Rees and the description was published in Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria from a specimen collected on Mount Buffalo. [1] [5] The specific epithet (suttonii) honours Charles Stanford Sutton, a medical practitioner, amateur botanist and long-time member of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria. [6]

Distribution and habitat

The mauve leek orchid grows in wet bogs in alpine and subalpine heath and grassland, mainly in the Kosciuszko National Park in New South Wales. [2] Victorian authorities list the species as endemic to that state and "Presumed Extinct", not having been collected since 1902. [3] [7] However, Rudie Kuiter argues that it is not extinct on Mt Buffalo, or in Victoria, and has instead been re-identified as Prasophyllum alpestre. [8]

Conservation

The buffalo leek-orchid is not listed under the Commonwealth Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC) Act but is listed as "Threatened" under the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 . [7]

Related Research Articles

Prasophyllum pyriforme, commonly known as the graceful leek orchid is a species of orchid species endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single tubular leaf and up to fifty greenish flowers with a pink or white labellum. As with others in the genus, the labellum is above the column rather than below it.

<i>Prasophyllum alpestre</i> Species of orchid

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.

<i>Prasophyllum petilum</i> Species of orchid

Prasophyllum petilum, commonly known as the Tarengo leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Australia. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to eighteen pinkish mauve to greenish flowers, well-spaced along a slender flowering stem. It is a small orchid, difficult to locate, generally growing in taller grasses.

<i>Prasophyllum odoratum</i> Species of orchid

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.

<i>Prasophyllum lindleyanum</i> Species of orchid

Prasophyllum lindleyanum, commonly known as the green leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has a single smooth, tube-shaped leaf and up to twenty scented, greenish flowers with a greenish or white labellum with a pink tinge.

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.

Prasophyllum brevilabre, commonly known as the Gorae leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to south-western Victoria. It has a single tubular, green leaf and up to forty greenish-brown flowers with reddish markings. It is a very rare orchid, now only known from two small, scattered populations. It was first recorded from Gorae West near Portland but is no longer found there.

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.

<i>Prasophyllum frenchii</i> Species of plant

Prasophyllum frenchii, commonly known as the maroon leek orchid or swamp leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern continental Australia. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to sixty five green, reddish-brown or red flowers. Formerly more widespread, it is now confined to seven populations containing a total of fewer than 1,000 plants.

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.

<i>Prasophyllum maccannii</i> Species of orchid

Prasophyllum maccannii, commonly known as the inland leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tubular green leaf and up to forty green, greenish-pink or brownish flowers. It is found in the central-west of the state, growing in open forest.

<i>Prasophyllum morganii</i> Species of orchid

Prasophyllum morganii, commonly known as the Cobungra leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small area in Victoria. It has a single tubular leaf and up to eighty greenish flowers with purplish markings. Before being rediscovered in 2020, the plant had last been seen in 1933 and was presumed extinct.

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.

Prasophyllum pallidum, commonly known as the pale leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a south-eastern South Australia. It has a single tubular leaf and up to thirty green or yellowish-green flowers. It was previously thought to occur in Victoria but records from that state are now recognised as P. roseum.

Prasophyllum parviflorum, commonly known as the slender leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to eastern Victoria. It has a single tubular leaf and up to thirty greenish-brown to purplish flowers. Further studies of the species may indicate that some collections currently included may be of a different species.

<i>Prasophyllum patens</i> Species of orchid

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 retroflexum, commonly known as the congested leek orchid or Kiandra leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to a small area near the border between New South Wales and Victoria, growing in subalpine herbfields. It has a single tubular leaf and up to forty densely-crowded, pale green flowers with pinkish markings.

Prasophyllum uvidulum, commonly known as the summer leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single, tubular leaf and up to twenty five scented, pale green flowers with reddish markings and is only known from a swamp in the north-east of the state.

References

  1. 1 2 "Prasophyllum suttonii". APNI. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  2. 1 2 Bernhardt, Peter; Rowe, Ross R. "Prasophyllum suttonii". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  3. 1 2 Jeanes, Jeff. "Prasophyllum suttonii". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  4. Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 202. ISBN   1877069124.
  5. Rogers, Richard S.; Rees, Bertha; Ewart, Alfred J. (ed.) (1912). "Contributions to the flora of Australia". Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria. 25 (1): 112. Retrieved 30 December 2017.{{cite journal}}: |first3= has generic name (help)
  6. "Sutton, Charles Stanford (1864 - 1950)". Australian National Botanic Garden. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  7. 1 2 "Buffalo leek orchid Prasophyllum suttonii" (PDF). Victorian Government Department of Sustainability and Environment. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  8. "Taxonomic status of the Mauve Leek-orchid Prasophyllum suttonii" (PDF). Retrieved 6 May 2022.