Diuris longifolia

Purple pansy orchid
Diuris longifolia growing in Mount Barker.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Diuris
Species:
D. longifolia
Binomial name
Diuris longifolia

Diuris longifolia, commonly known as purple pansy orchid,[2] is a species of orchid that is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has up to three linear leaves and up to seven purple and mauve flowers with yellowish markings from September to November.

Description

Diuris longifolia is a tuberous, perennial herb with up to three narrowly linear leaves 100–200 mm (3.9–7.9 in) long and 8–10 mm (0.31–0.39 in) wide. Up to seven purple and mauve flowers with yellowish markings, 20–30 mm (0.79–1.18 in) wide are borne on a flowering stem 100–350 mm (3.9–13.8 in) tall. The dorsal sepal is erect, 10–12 mm (0.39–0.47 in) long and wide, the lateral sepals turned abruptly downwards, 16–22 mm (0.63–0.87 in) long and 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) wide. The petals are erect, the blades 11–16 mm (0.43–0.63 in) long and 7–9 mm (0.28–0.35 in) wide on a stalk 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long. The labellum is 6–9 mm (0.24–0.35 in) long with three lobes - the centre lobe narrowly wedge-shaped, 6–8 mm (0.24–0.31 in) long and 4–5.5 mm (0.16–0.22 in) wide with a down-turned tip, the side lobes spread 6–8 mm (0.24–0.31 in) long and 3–4.5 mm (0.12–0.18 in) wide. There is a single yellow callus 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) along the mid-line of the labellum. Flowering occurs from September to November.[2][3][4][5][6]

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in his Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.[7] The type specimen was collected by Archibald Menzies near Frenchmans Bay, the present site of the city of Albany around late September or early October 1791. Menzies was surgeon and naturalist on HMS Discovery on the Vancouver Expedition commanded by Captain George Vancouver.[8] It was one of the first three terrestrial orchids to be named from Western Australia, along with Caladenia menziesii (now Leptoceras menziesii) and Caladenia flava.[8]

The specific epithet (longifolia) means "long-leaved".[9]

Distribution and habitat

Purple pansy orchid is found between Perth and Albany, where it grows in sand, lateritic loam, clay and granite in moist situations in shrublands, woodland and forest, in the Jarrah Forest, Swan Coastal Plain and Warren bioregions of south-western Western Australia.[2][10]

Conservation status

Diuris longifolia is not threatened at present.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Diuris longifolia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Brown, Andrew; Dixon, Kingsley; French, Christopher; Hopper, Stephen (2008). Orchids of Western Australia. Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. p. 208. ISBN 9780980348149.
  3. ^ Erickson, Rica; George, Alex; Marchant, Neville; Morcombe, Michael (1982). Flowers and plants of Western Australia (Reprinted 1983 ed.). Sydney: Reed. p. 41. ISBN 058950116X.
  4. ^ a b "Diuris longifoliaR.Br". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  5. ^ Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 135. ISBN 1877069124.
  6. ^ Hoffman, Noel; Brown, Andrew (2011). Orchids of South-West Australia (3rd ed.). Gooseberry Hill: Noel Hoffman. p. 475. ISBN 9780646562322.
  7. ^ Brown, Robert (1810). Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. London. p. 316. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  8. ^ a b Heberle, Ron L. (May 2010). History of orchid collecting in south western Australia 1791 - 1971. The Species Orchid Society of Western Australia (Inc). Retrieved 21 February 2015.
  9. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 242. ISBN 9780958034180.
  10. ^ Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 84. ISBN 0646402439.