Corybas hispidus
Bristly Helmet Orchid
Bristly Helmet Orchid
Wikipedia links: Angiosperms > Monocots > Orchidaceae > Corybas hispida
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Common name: Bristly Helmet Orchid
Conservation status: . . .
Etymology:
The specific epithet (hispidus) is a Latin word meaning "bristly", "rough", "hairy" or "prickly"
Flowers:
The single flower is reddish-purple and white with a greenish-grey dorsal sepal with red or dark purple spots
The dorsal sepal is egg-shaped or spoon-shaped, forms a hood over the labellum and is 22–35 mm long and 11–18 mm wide when flattened
The lateral sepals are linear in shape, 5–9 mm long and about 1 mm wide
The petals are about 5 mm long and 1 mm wide, linear in shape except for near their base, which is wing-shaped
The labellum is tube-shaped, 20–30 mm long and wide and the edges have many linear teeth
The central "boss" of the labellum is dome-shaped and white with a notch at the top and the surface is covered with short, stiff bristles
Flowering is from March to August
Fruit:
Leaves:
It has a single dark green leaf that is more or less circular in shape, 15–35 mm long and wide and silvery-green or reddish on the lower surface
Stem & branches:
Roots:
Habit:
It is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb with an underground tuber
Habitat:
Distribution:
Endemic to eastern Australia
South-east Queensland, on the ranges and tablelands of New South Wales and in sheltered sites in far north-eastern Victoria
Additional notes:
It is distinguished from other helmet orchids by its autumn to winter flowering period, and by its labellum, which has a bristly-hairy, creamy-white centre and is deeply notched along its top edge
Taxonomy
Corybas hispidus was first formally described in 1973 by David Jones from a specimen found near the village of Wulgulmerang
The description was published in The Victorian Naturalist
It was the first of many orchids described by Jones
Sources of information: