Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius

Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius, commonly known as the blunt-leaved bunny orchid,[3] is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It has a single small, smooth leaf with wavy edges and a pale red lower surface, and up to three greenish and white flowers with red or mauve markings. It is distinguished from the other subspecies by the colour of the lower surface of its leaf and by its later flowering period.

Blunt-leaved bunny orchid
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Eriochilus
Species:
E. dilatatus
Subspecies:
E. d. subsp. brevifolius
Trinomial name
Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius
Synonyms[1][2]

Eriochilus dilatatus var. brevifolius Benth.

Description

Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single smooth leaf, 10–20 mm (0.4–0.8 in) long, 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) wide. The leaf has a pale red lower surface and wavy edges. Up to three flowers 10–15 mm (0.4–0.6 in) long and 9–14 mm (0.4–0.6 in) wide are borne on a flowering stem 50–250 mm (2–10 in) tall. The flowers are greenish with reddish markings, except for the lateral sepals which are white. The labellum is prominently down-curved and has three lobes with scattered clusters of red and white hairs. Flowering occurs from March to June.[1][3][4]

Taxonomy and naming

The blunt-leaved bunny orchid was first formally described in 2006 by Stephen Hopper and Andrew Brown from a specimen collected near the Murchison River.[2] The subspecies epithet (brevifolius) is derived from the Latin words brevis meaning "short"[5]:708 and folium meaning "leaf".[5]:466

Distribution and habitat

The blunt-leaved bunny orchid grows in scrub and mallee-heath between Cataby and the Murchison River in the Geraldton Sandplains and Yalgoo biogeographic regions.[3][4][6]

Conservation

Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[6]

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References
  1. Hopper, Stephen; Brown, Andrew Phillip (2006). "New and reinstated taxa in Eriochilus" (PDF). Nuytsia. 16 (1): 37–38. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  2. "Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius". APNI. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
  3. Brown, Andrew; Dundas, Pat; Dixon, Kingsley; Hopper, Stephen (2008). Orchids of Western Australia. Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. p. 257. ISBN 9780980296457.
  4. Hoffman, Noel; Brown, Andrew (2011). Orchids of South-West Australia (3rd ed.). Gooseberry Hill: Noel Hoffman. p. 222. ISBN 9780646562322.
  5. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
  6. "Eriochilus dilatatus subsp. brevifolius". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
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