Spicy caps facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Spicy caps |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Caladenia
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| Species: |
dimorpha
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| Synonyms | |
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Stegostyla dimorpha (Fitzg.) D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem. |
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The Caladenia dimorpha, also known as spicy caps, is a special kind of plant. It belongs to the amazing orchid family. This plant is found only in New South Wales, Australia. When a plant or animal is found only in one place, we say it is endemic there.
Spicy caps is an uncommon plant that grows in the ground. It has one leaf that is a bit hairy. Its flowers are usually white and can have pretty pink or purple marks.
Contents
Discovering the Spicy Caps Orchid
What Does the Spicy Caps Orchid Look Like?
The spicy caps orchid is a plant that grows from a special underground part called a tuber. Think of a tuber like a small, round storage unit for the plant. This plant is a perennial, which means it lives for more than two years. It's also a deciduous herb, meaning its leaves fall off during certain seasons.
Each plant has one leaf that can grow up to 18 centimeters (about 7 inches) long. This leaf is also about 5 millimeters (about 0.2 inches) wide and has a few hairs.
Flowers of the Spicy Caps Orchid
The spicy caps orchid usually has up to three white flowers. These flowers grow on a stem that can be up to 30 centimeters (about 12 inches) tall. The stem also has a few hairs. The flowers often have lovely pink or purple markings.
- Sepals and Petals: The top part of the flower, called the dorsal sepal, is about 15 millimeters (about 0.6 inches) long. It curves forward, making a little hood over the center of the flower. The side sepals and petals can be up to 20 millimeters (about 0.8 inches) long. Their backs are greenish and have tiny, sticky hairs. The front parts are smooth.
- Labellum: This is a special lip-like part of the orchid flower. For the spicy caps, it's shaped like a wide egg and is about 8 millimeters (about 0.3 inches) long. It's mostly white, but sometimes its tip is dark red or purple. The sides of the labellum have thin, finger-like teeth.
- Calli: Along the middle of the labellum, there are four rows of small, club-shaped bumps called calli. These are white to yellow, but they become clumped and purple near the tip.
- Column: The central part of the flower, called the column, has wide parts that look like wings and has red stripes.
The spicy caps orchid usually blooms from September to October.
Where Do Spicy Caps Orchids Grow?
This special orchid is not very common. It grows in forests in the western part of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. You can find it almost all the way to the border with Victoria.
