Dendrobium eungellensis facts for kids

The Dendrobium eungellensis is a special kind of orchid that grows on other plants, like trees, instead of in the ground. This type of plant is called an epiphyte. It belongs to the Orchidaceae family. You can only find this orchid in northern Queensland, Australia.

This orchid has dark greenish-brown stems called pseudobulbs. At the end of these stems, it has up to three leaves. When it blooms, it produces up to eight beautiful white flowers. These flowers have a lovely smell. Their thin parts, called sepals and petals, spread out. You can find this unique orchid growing in open forests within the Eungella National Park.

What Does It Look Like?

Dendrobium eungellensis is an herb that usually grows in small groups. Its pseudobulbs are dark greenish-brown. They are about 3 to 10 centimetres (1.2 to 3.9 inches) long and 4 to 8 millimetres (0.16 to 0.31 inches) wide.

At the end of each pseudobulb, there are up to three thick leaves. These leaves are shaped like an egg or an oval. They are about 3 to 5 centimetres (1.2 to 2.0 inches) long and 1.5 to 2.5 centimetres (0.59 to 0.98 inches) wide.

The orchid produces between three and eight white flowers. Each flower is about 3 to 4.5 centimetres (1.2 to 1.8 inches) long and 2 to 3 centimetres (0.79 to 1.18 inches) wide. They grow on a flowering stem that is about 3 to 5 centimetres (1.2 to 2.0 inches) long.

The sepals are narrow and oblong, about 1.5 to 2.2 centimetres (0.59 to 0.87 inches) long. They become narrower towards the tip. The petals are very thin, about 1.7 to 2.5 centimetres (0.67 to 0.98 inches) long. The labellum is a special part of the flower, shaped like a semi-circle. It has three parts, or lobes. The side lobes curve towards the column (another part of the flower) and are purplish. The middle lobe is egg-shaped and has three yellowish-green ridges down its middle.

How It Got Its Name

This orchid was first officially described in 2006. Two botanists, David Jones and Mark Clements, found a sample of it. This sample later bloomed at the Australian National Botanic Gardens. They first named it Tropilis eungellensis. They published their description in a scientific paper called Australian Orchid Research.

Later, in 2014, another botanist named Julian Shaw changed its name to Dendrobium eungellensis. The second part of its name, eungellensis, tells us where it mostly grows. The ending -ensis is a Latin suffix that means "of" or "from" a certain place. So, eungellensis means "from Eungella".

Where It Lives

The Dendrobium eungellensis orchid grows on trees. It often chooses Eucalyptus crebra trees. You can find it on slopes and in small valleys within open forests. It also grows near rainforests. This orchid seems to live only in the mountain ranges west of Mackay in Queensland.