Hybrid helmet orchid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hybrid helmet orchid |
|
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Corybas
|
| Species: |
× miscellus
|
| Synonyms | |
|
|
The hybrid helmet orchid (scientific name: Corybas × miscellus) is a special type of orchid. It's a hybrid plant, meaning it's a mix of two different orchid species. This unique orchid grows naturally only in South Australia and a tiny part of western Victoria.
It gets its name, "helmet orchid," from the shape of its flower. This orchid has a leaf that looks like a heart or is almost round. Its single flower is a pretty reddish-purple color with parts that you can see through, like frosted glass. The hybrid helmet orchid is a natural cross between two other orchids: C. diemenicus and C. incurvus. Because it's a hybrid, it has features from both of its parent plants.
What Does It Look Like?
The hybrid helmet orchid is a terrestrial plant, meaning it grows in the ground. It's also a perennial plant, which means it lives for more than two years. Each year, it loses its leaves (it's deciduous) and grows back. These orchids often grow in groups, forming colonies.
Its leaf can be egg-shaped, heart-shaped, or nearly round. It measures about 1.8 to 4 centimeters (0.7 to 1.6 inches) long and 2 to 4 centimeters (0.8 to 1.6 inches) wide. The top of the leaf is dark green, while the underside is a silvery green color.
The orchid has one flower that stands mostly upright. It's a bright reddish-purple with see-through greyish areas. The flower is about 1.3 to 1.5 centimeters (0.5 to 0.6 inches) long and 1.4 to 1.8 centimeters (0.6 to 0.7 inches) wide.
The top part of the flower, called the dorsal sepal, is mostly clear grey with reddish-purple lines. It's about 2 to 2.3 centimeters (0.8 to 0.9 inches) long and 1.1 to 1.3 centimeters (0.4 to 0.5 inches) wide. This sepal stands up straight at its base, then curves forward over the lower lip of the flower.
The side sepals and petals are thin and narrow, about 3 millimeters (0.1 inches) long and 0.5 millimeters (0.02 inches) wide. The lower lip of the flower, called the labellum, is longer than the dorsal sepal. It forms a tube about 5 to 6 millimeters (0.2 inches) long near its base. Then, it curves and flattens out into a bowl shape, about 1 to 1.4 centimeters (0.4 to 0.6 inches) long and 1.4 to 1.8 centimeters (0.6 to 0.7 inches) wide. The upper part of the labellum is reddish with darker veins. In the middle, there's a white bump, and around the edges, there are many short red teeth. These orchids usually bloom in August and September.
How It Got Its Name
The Corybas × miscellus orchid was officially described for the first time in 1991. This was done by a botanist named David Jones. He found a sample of the orchid near the Barossa Reservoir. The description was then published in a scientific paper called Australian Orchid Research.
The second part of its scientific name, miscellus, comes from a Latin word. It means "mixed," which perfectly describes this orchid because it's a hybrid of two different species.
Later, in 2002, David Jones and another botanist, Mark Clements, suggested changing the name of this orchid. They wanted to put it into a smaller group called Corysanthes. However, this change was not widely accepted by other scientists. So, it is still known as Corybas × miscellus.
Where It Lives
The hybrid helmet orchid grows in forests where pine trees (Pinus radiata) have been planted. These pine trees were brought to Australia from other places. You can find these orchids in the Mount Lofty Ranges in South Australia. There is also a group of them growing in a woodland area near Edenhope, which is in the far western part of Victoria.
