Soldier's crest orchid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Soldier's crest orchid |
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| Illustration by Lewis Roberts | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Oberonia
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| Species: |
titania
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| Synonyms | |
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Oberonia titania, also known as the soldier's crest orchid or red-flowered king of the fairies, is a special plant. It belongs to the orchid family. This orchid grows in clumps and lives on other plants, like trees, without harming them. This type of plant is called an epiphyte.
Each plant has several leaves that look like a fan. It also grows many tiny pink or red flowers. These flowers grow in circles around its stem. You can find this orchid in places like Java, New Caledonia, and eastern Australia, including Norfolk Island.
What Does It Look Like?
The Oberonia titania orchid is an epiphyte, meaning it grows on trees. It forms clumps of plants. Each part of the plant has between four and ten leaves. These leaves are thick and shaped like a spear or an egg. They are green or grayish and about 40 to 60 millimeters (1.6 to 2.4 inches) long. Their bases overlap each other.
This orchid produces many small flowers, from 50 to 350 of them! They are pinkish to red. Each flower is tiny, about 1.2 millimeters (0.05 inches) long and 1.0 millimeter (0.04 inches) wide. They grow in groups of six to eight flowers in circles around a long, arching stem. This stem can be 30 to 80 millimeters (1.2 to 3.1 inches) long.
The flower parts that look like petals are called sepals and petals. They are egg-shaped and spread out wide. They are about 0.9 millimeters (0.04 inches) long. The special lower petal, called the labellum, is shaped like a cup. It is about 1.0 millimeter (0.04 inches) long and 0.6 millimeters (0.02 inches) wide. It has three small parts, or lobes. These orchids usually bloom between January and June.
Where Does It Grow?
The soldier's crest orchid likes to grow on trees in rainforests. It also grows in moist, wet areas called gullies. You can find it in Java, New Caledonia, and in parts of Australia. In Australia, it grows in New South Wales (including Norfolk Island) and Queensland.
Protecting This Orchid
This special orchid needs our help. In New South Wales, Australia, it is listed as "vulnerable." This means it could be in danger of disappearing if we don't protect it. The main reasons it is vulnerable are:
- Its natural home is being damaged or lost.
- Sometimes, people illegally collect these orchids from the wild.
It's important to protect its habitat so this beautiful orchid can continue to grow.
