Mountain sprite orchid facts for kids

The mountain sprite orchid, also known as Liparis petricola, is a beautiful plant that belongs to the orchid family. You can only find this special orchid in Queensland, Australia. It's a type of orchid that grows on the ground, not on trees. It usually has two or three egg-shaped leaves. Its flowers are a deep reddish-purple color, and there can be anywhere from three to fifteen of them. The center part of the flower, called the column, is green. This orchid loves to grow in the warm, wet rainforests of tropical far North Queensland.

What the Mountain Sprite Orchid Looks Like

The mountain sprite orchid is a ground-dwelling plant. It has three or four special underground stems called pseudobulbs that store water and nutrients.

Its leaves are thin and dark green, usually two or three of them. They are shaped like an egg and have cool pleats (like folds in fabric). These leaves are about 80–120 mm (3–5 in) long and 40–60 mm (2–2 in) wide. You can easily see five veins on them, and their edges are a bit wavy.

The orchid produces a purplish flowering stem that stands about 150–250 mm (6–10 in) tall. On this stem, you'll find between three and fifteen deep reddish-purple flowers. Each flower is about 8–12 mm (0.3–0.5 in) long and 10–15 mm (0.39–0.59 in) wide.

Each flower has different parts:

• The top sepal (a leaf-like part) is about 9–11 mm (0.4–0.4 in) long and 3 mm (0.1 in) wide.
• The side sepals are similar in length, about 4 mm (0.2 in) wide, and their tips are twisted.
• The petals are also similar in length but much thinner, only about 1 mm (0.04 in) wide.
• The labellum (a special petal that often looks like a lip) is egg-shaped, narrower at its base, and has a small channel. It's about 8–9 mm (0.31–0.35 in) long and 6–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide. The column, which is the central part of the flower, is green.

You can usually see these orchids flowering between October and December.

How the Mountain Sprite Orchid Got its Name

The mountain sprite orchid was first officially described in 2006 by two botanists, David Jones and Bruce Gray. They first named it Diteilis petricola. Later, in 2008, another botanist named Peter Dundas Bostock changed its name to Liparis petricola.

The second part of its scientific name, petricola, tells us something about where it lives. It comes from two Ancient Greek words:

• petra, which means "rock" or "stone"
• The suffix -cola, which means "dweller" or "inhabitant"

So, petricola basically means "rock dweller"!

Where the Mountain Sprite Orchid Lives

The Liparis petricola orchid grows in rainforests. You can often find it living among the fallen leaves on top of large granite rocks. It is found in an area of Queensland between Kuranda and the Kirrama National Park.