Elfin midge orchid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Elfin midge orchid |
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| In the Brisbane Water National Park | |
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Genoplesium
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| Species: |
archeri
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The Elfin Midge Orchid is a tiny and special flower. It's also known as Genoplesium archeri or Corunastylis archeri in Australia. This small orchid grows only in south-eastern Australia. It has a single thin leaf that joins its flower stem. You can spot its small, fuzzy, yellowish-green flowers. They often have pretty purple stripes. This orchid lives in many different places across New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania.
Contents
What Does the Elfin Midge Orchid Look Like?
The Elfin Midge Orchid is a plant that grows from an underground tuber. It's a herb, meaning it doesn't have a woody stem. It also loses its leaves each year, which is called being deciduous.
It has one thin leaf, about 100 to 150 millimeters (4 to 6 inches) long. This leaf is joined to the flower stem. The part of the leaf that isn't joined is about 20 to 25 millimeters (0.8 to 1 inch) long.
The plant grows between two and fifteen yellowish-green flowers. These flowers are packed closely together on a stem. The stem is about 15 to 30 millimeters (0.6 to 1.2 inches) tall, which is roughly the same height as the leaf.
Flower Details
Each flower is about 7 millimeters (0.3 inches) long and 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) wide. They are unusual because they are upside down! This means the labellum (a special lip-like petal) is above the column (the part that holds the pollen).
- The dorsal sepal (the top part of the flower) is egg-shaped. It's about 4.5 millimeters (0.2 inches) long and 2.5 millimeters (0.1 inches) wide. It has purple stripes and a pointy tip.
- The lateral sepals (the side parts) are long and narrow. They are about 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) long and 1.5 millimeters (0.06 inches) wide. These sepals spread out wide from each other.
- The petals are egg-shaped, about 4 millimeters (0.16 inches) long and 1.5 millimeters (0.06 inches) wide. They also have purple stripes.
- The labellum is purple and broadly egg-shaped. It's about 3 millimeters (0.12 inches) long and 2 millimeters (0.08 inches) wide. It has a curled, sharp tip and rough hairs on its sides. These hairs can be up to 1 millimeter (0.04 inches) long.
- In the middle of the labellum, there's a narrow, egg-shaped callus. This is a raised, fleshy part that almost reaches the tip of the labellum.
These orchids usually bloom from November to March.
How the Elfin Midge Orchid Got Its Name
The Elfin Midge Orchid was first officially described in 1858. A scientist named Joseph Dalton Hooker gave it the name Prasophyllum archeri. He studied a plant sample collected by William Archer near Cheshunt. This description was published in a book called The botany of the Antarctic voyage of H.M. discovery ships Erebus and Terror. III. Flora Tasmaniae.
Later, in 1989, two other botanists, David Jones and Mark Clements, changed its name to Genoplesium archeri. Then, in 2002, they changed it again to Corunastylis archeri. The second part of its name, archeri, honors William Archer, who found the first plant sample. This first sample is called the type specimen.
Where Does the Elfin Midge Orchid Live?
The Elfin Midge Orchid can be found in many different places. It grows in wet areas like the edges of swamps and in open forests.
In New South Wales, you'll mostly find it between Guyra and the Blue Mountains. It's also very common throughout Victoria. In Tasmania, it grows at lower altitudes, up to about 200 meters (656 feet) above sea level.
