Spiranthes parksii

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Navasota lady's tresses
Status TNC G3.svg
Vulnerable  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Cranichideae
Subtribe: Spiranthinae
Genus: Spiranthes
Species:
S. parksii
Binomial name
Spiranthes parksii

Spiranthes parksii, the Navasota lady's tresses, [3] is a species of orchid that is endemic to Texas, United States. The flower was first discovered in 1945 and was first described by Donovan Stewart Correll in his 1950 book, Native Orchids of North America North of Mexico.

Orchidaceae family of plants

The Orchidaceae are a diverse and widespread family of flowering plants, with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant, commonly known as the orchid family.

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.

Texas State of the United States of America

Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Geographically located in the South Central region of the country, Texas shares borders with the U.S. states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the southwest, while the Gulf of Mexico is to the southeast.

Contents

Description

Spiranthes parksii is a slender-stemmed perennial, 8–15 inches (200–380 mm) tall. Leaves are long and thin and found mostly near the ground level, but usually disappear when the flower buds. Flowers petals are round or oval and off-white in color. The flowers typically spiral up the stem. Conspicuously white-tipped bracts occur underneath each 14-inch-long (6.4 mm) flower. The side petals have a green central stripe, and the lip (bottom petal) is distinctly ragged.

Habitat and range

Navasota lady's tresses is primarily found in the East Central Texas forests, usually along creeks in the Brazos and Navasota River watersheds. In 1982, when the species was listed as endangered, only two populations were believed to exist, both in Brazos County. Since then, biologists have identified the species in Bastrop, Burleson, Fayette, Freestone, Grimes, Jasper, Leon, Madison, Milam, Robertson, and Washington Counties. [4] The population in Jasper County is disjunct and the only one that occurs in the Piney Woods. [5]

East Central Texas forests

The East Central Texas forests (33) is a small temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion almost entirely within the state of Texas, United States. The northern forests perimeter is partially within the southeast Oklahoma border.

Stream A body of surface water flowing down a channel

A stream is a body of water with surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. The stream encompasses surface and groundwater fluxes that respond to geological, geomorphological, hydrological and biotic controls.

Brazos River river in Texas

The Brazos River, called the Rio de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at 1,280 miles (2,060 km) from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a 45,000-square-mile (116,000 km2) drainage basin. Being one of Texas' largest rivers, it is sometimes used to mark the boundary between East Texas and West Texas.

Conservation

Navasota lady's tresses was listed as an endangered species by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in May 1982. The decline of the plant is mostly due to loss of habitat from human encroachment and activity. [4]

United States Fish and Wildlife Service US Federal Government agency

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is an agency of the US Federal Government within the US Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people."

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<i>Spiranthes odorata</i> species of plant

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<i>Spiranthes ovalis</i> species of plant

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<i>Spiranthes australis</i>

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References

  1. "Spiranthes parksii - Correll Navasota Ladies'-tresses". NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  2. "Spiranthes parksii". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  3. "Spiranthes parksii". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA . Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Navasota Ladies'-tresses (Spiranthes parksii)". Texas Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  5. Pelchat, Cliff (March 2005). "Spiranthes parksii Correll - Navasota Ladies' Tresses". The McAllen International Orchid Society Journal. 6 (2): 9–15.