Caladenia flaccida

Caladenia flaccida, commonly known as the flaccid spider orchid,[2] is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and up to three cream-coloured, pinkish or red flowers with long, thread-like, glandular tips on the sepals and petals.

Flaccid spider orchid
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Caladenia
Species:
C. flaccida
Binomial name
Caladenia flaccida
Synonyms
  • Calonema flaccidum (D.L.Jones) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.
  • Calonema flaccidum (D.L.Jones) Szlach.
  • Calonemorchis flaccida (D.L.Jones) Szlach.
  • Jonesiopsis flaccida (D.L.Jones) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.

Description

Caladenia flaccida is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single, dull green, densely hairy, linear leaf 120–180 mm (5–7 in) long and 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) wide. Up to three cream-coloured, pinkish or red flowers are borne on a thin, wiry spike 120–230 mm (5–9 in) high. The sepals and petals are linear in shape near their base but suddenly taper after about one-fifth of their length to a hairy, thread-like glandular tail. The dorsal sepal is 60–90 mm (2–4 in) long, about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide near the base. The lateral sepals are a similar size and shape to the dorsal sepal and the petals are slightly shorter. The labellum is narrow heart-shaped, about 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) long and 5.5–6.5 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide and cream-coloured with red markings or completely red. The labellum curves forward and has broad, white-tipped teeth on the sides and two rows of crowded, cream-coloured, stalked calli along its mid-line, decreasing in size towards the tip. Flowering occurs from August to October.[3][4]

Taxonomy and naming

Caladenia flaccida was first formally described by David Jones in 1991 and the description was published in Australian Orchid Research.[1] The specific epithet (flaccida) is a Latin word meaning "weak" or "drooping",[5] referring to the drooping sepals and petals.[2]

Distribution and habitat

Flaccid spider orchid grows on ridges and slopes in Callitris forest in Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and possibly Victoria.[4][6][7]

References
  1. "Caladenia flaccida". APNI. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  2. Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 104. ISBN 1877069124.
  3. Jones, David L. (1991). "New taxa of Australian Orchidaceae". Australian Orchid Research. 2: 24–25.
  4. Berndardt, Peter. "Caladenia flaccida". Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney: plantnet. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  5. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 725.
  6. "Species profile—Caladenia flaccida (Orchidaceae)". Queensland Government. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  7. "Orchidaceae". State Herbarium of South Australia: eflora SA. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
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