Corunastylis leptochila facts for kids

Corunastylis leptochila is a tiny orchid that grows only in Victoria, Australia. It's a special kind of plant because it's found nowhere else! This orchid has one thin leaf that's joined to its flower stem. It can grow up to twenty small flowers that are reddish-brown or dark purple. Right now, we only know of one place where it lives, and there are only six of these plants left in a forest near a swamp.

What Does Corunastylis leptochila Look Like?

Corunastylis leptochila is a plant that grows from an underground tuber, which is like a small storage root. It's a perennial plant, meaning it lives for more than two years. It's also a deciduous plant, so its leaves fall off at certain times of the year.

This orchid has a single thin leaf that is about 100–150 mm (4–6 in) long. Its flowers grow on a stem that is 8–15 mm (0.3–0.6 in) tall. You can find between five and twenty flowers packed closely together on this stem.

The flowers are reddish-brown to dark purple and are quite small, about 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) wide. They usually point downwards. What's interesting is that these flowers are upside down! The "lip" part of the flower, called the labellum, is above the central part, called the column, instead of below it.

Each flower has different parts:

• The top sepal (a leaf-like part) is egg-shaped, about 2–2.5 mm (0.08–0.1 in) long.
• The two side sepals are longer, about 3.5–4.5 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long. They have a tiny white gland (a small bump) at their tips.
• The petals are egg-shaped, about 2.5 mm (0.1 in) long, and also have a small gland.
• The labellum (the "lip") is narrow, about 2 mm (0.08 in) long. It has a raised area called a callus in its middle.

This orchid usually blooms in November and December.

How Was It Named?

The Corunastylis leptochila was officially described in 2017 by a botanist named David Jones. He found a sample of the plant near a place called Lavers Hill. The description was then published in a science book called Australian Orchid Research.

The second part of its name, leptochila (which is called the specific epithet), comes from two Ancient Greek words:

• leptos means "fine" or "small."
• cheilos means "lip" or "rim."

So, its name basically means "small-lipped" orchid, probably referring to its labellum!

Where Does Corunastylis leptochila Live?

This special orchid grows in a forest close to a swamp near Lavers Hill in Victoria, Australia. It's very rare because only six of these plants are known to exist in the wild. This makes it a very important plant to protect!