An Orchid Alphabet

I am writing this post in the depths of Canberra winter, thinking longingly of the coming spring. And when I think of spring I also inevitably think of orchids. In anticipation of that I've put together an alphabet of orchids from four continents, just as a celebration of these wonderful plants, with which I am besotted. (If you enjoy it, you might also enjoy some previous alphabets that I've put together; on yellow flowers, red flowers, white flowers, acacias, and eucalypts.)

My general guidelines are to try to offer an Australian and an overseas orchid for each letter, using a genus name if possible, but using a species name if I can't manage a relevant genus. I'm not going to get hung-up on taxonomy here (it is a celebration after all), and inevitably some of the names I'm using are not now universally accepted, but all are published and at least have been and usually still are widely used. In a couple of cases I simply can't narrow it down to just one Australian or overseas offering per letter, but if you're interested in orchids I can't imagine that will be too hard to take. Finally I've failed on a few predictable letters - K, Q and W-Z.

So thanks for joining me, and let's go tiptoeing through an orchidaceous alphabet!

A

Large Mosquito Orchid Acianthus fornicatus, Callala, New South Wales south coast.
The mosquito orchids (named for their pointy flowers, which is also the meaning of Acianthus) are a group
of mostly autumn-winter flowering colonial orchids of damp places

Bamboo Orchid Arundina graminifolia, Crocker Range, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo.
A big and dramatic orchid found from India to New Guinea

 B

 

Tiny Strand Orchid Bulbophyllum (this species sometimes separated as Adelopetalum) exiguum, near Nowra,
south coast New South Wales. This is the largest orchid genus, with over 2000 species across the tropics.
This species has tiny delicate flowers less than 10mm across growing on rocks and tree trunks in rainforest.

 C

Two of my favourite Australian orchid genera start with C, and I can't omit either.

Purple Beard Orchid Calochilus platychilus, Gungahlin Hill Nature Reserve, Canberra.
An orchid genus dear to my heart (though my own beard has faded with the years). One of the many
ground orchids which attract pollinators by deceptively mimicking (in looks and scent)
a female insect.

Flying Duck Orchid Caleana major, Bundanoon, southern New South Wales.
What else could you call it?! The flower is 'upside down' and the labellum at the top snaps down
when an insect alights, trapping it inside for a while until it has been forced into contact with the
reproductive organs. The genus name is for George Caley, an early 19th century collector
around Sydney, socially difficult but very good in the field, employed by Sir Joseph Banks.

 And I have the same problem with the overseas Cs - two beauties and I can't ignore either of them.

Porcelain Orchid Chloraea magellanica, Torres del Paine NP, Chilean Patagonia.
Aside from its inherent beauty, this robust orchid fascinates me for its ability to survive
far to the freezing windy south of South America.

Coelogyne sp. near Serian, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo.
One of some 200 species of this magnificent genus, across southern Asia; Borneo is a hotspot.

 D

Diuris, the donkey orchids or doubletails (both reflecting the flower's form, supposedly like a donkey's face - well I can see it! - though 'doubletail' also translates Diuris) are common and familiar orchids across southern Australia. In a good season open forest floors are carpeted with yellow flowers. They are the first orchids I remember being made aware of, on family excursions to the Adelaide hills.

Common Donkey Orchid Diuris corymbosa, Wireless Hill, Perth.
Probably, as its name claims, the commonest donkey orchid in Western Australia.

However not quite all these donkeys are yellow, and I really had to introduce you to one of the truly lovely purple ones (about 12 of the 65 donkey species).

Purple Donkey Orchid Diuris punctata, Tallong, New South Wales Southern Highlands.

Disa spp., Bamenda Highlands, western Cameroon.
This is a large genus - more than 160 species - essentially restricted to Africa.
As usual, any further identification help gladly received.

 E

The Purple Enamel Orchid Elythranthera brunonis, Two People's Bay NP, is a startlingly glossy orchid from the south-west
of Western Australia, one of only two members of the genus. The species name means 'brown', which
is pretty perplexing until you know that it's in honour of the great Scottish botanist Robert Brown.
(Attempts to subsume this genus into the huge genus Caladenia haven't received much traction in Australia.)

Epidendrum syringothyrsus, Inca Track near Machu Picchu, Peru.
This beauty is restricted to rock outcrops in cloud forest in the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia.
There are more than 1500 Epidendrums through the tropics and subtropics of the Americas.

 F

And  here's another Epidendrum whose species name starts with F, because I have no photos of any orchid genera starting with F! (In fact there seem to be only two tiny Australian 'F' genera, from the Queensland tropics.)

Fringed Epidendrum Epidendrum funkii, also on the Inca Track.
(Also known as E. blepharistes, but that wouldn't do for my purposes here!)

 G

Waxlip Orchid Glossodia major (and bonus jumping spider, Salticidae), Black Mountain NR, Canberra.
This is yet another that some would subsume into Caladenia, but Glossodia (which contains just two species)
is still widely used. This one, common and in a good season abundant in colonies, is sometimes known
as the Parson in the Pulpit for the erect column over the white base to the labellum.

Orchidea amarilla ('yellow orchid') or Varita do oro ('golden wand') Gavilea lutea,
Torres del Paine NP, Chilean Patagonia. A common robust orchid of cold grasslands
as far south as Tierra del Fuego.

 H

Midget Greenhood Hymenochilus (Pterostylis) muticus, Nangar NP near Canowindra, New South Wales.
This group of very small-flowered greenhoods (the flowers of this species are less than 10mm long) was
split off as a separate genus for some time, though most recent sources would reinstate the huge and varied
genus Pterostylis.

In acknowledgement of that, I'll also offer another Australian 'h-orchid', this one based on the species name.

Purple-heart Fingers Caladenia (sometimes Petalochilus) hillmanii, Myora, south coast New South Wales.
The name commemorates George Hillman of Port Stephens, who brought it to the attention of orchid
guru (and somewhat maverick) David Jones in the 1990s.

Habenaria sp., Wayquecha Research Station, high southern Peruvian Andes.
(At least that is what I was told at the time, though now I have some doubts.)
Habenaria is a genus of over 600 species found throughout the tropics.

 I

This letter caused me some angst too; I have a photo of the lovely Ida locusta from Peru but the poor thing is so nibbled and shrivelled that it would be embarrassed to be shown. Instead I offer another Australian species chosen for its species name.

Spotted Sun Orchid Thelymitra ixioides, Bundanoon, New South Wales southern highlands.
A very widespread and common orchid in south-eastern New South Wales.

J

A slightly contentious one, in that the establishment has largely returned all the genera which were split from Caladenia in an attempt to provide some nuance, back to the huge amorphous grab-bag of Caladenia. However some authorities, including the respected Atlas of Living Australia, still recognise this genus for instance, named for the eminent Australian orchidologist David Jones; good enough for me today!

Zebra Orchid Jonesiopsis (or Caladenia) cairnsiana, Stirling Ranges NP, southern Western Australia.
I really love this jaunty little orchid, which can be quite common in sandy heaths throughout the south-west.

L

Rattle Beaks Lyperanthus serratus, Wireless Hill, Perth. Apparently the flower rattles if you shake it,
but I've never felt the need to do so! A very distinctive orchid, which has a relative (but only one)
in the south-east of Australia too.

M

Alpine Onion Orchid Microtis sp. aff. unifolia, Brindabella Ranges, Namadgi NP, above Canberra.
As far as I can tell, this one is still undescribed. I've mentioned a couple of small-flowered orchids above,
but onion orchid flowers are tiny, just 2-3mm long, sitting on an expanded ovary.

N

Mayfly Orchid Nemacianthus caudatus Spring Mount CP, south of Adelaide.
A very distinctive colony-forming orchid, widespread and common, formerly included in Acianthus;for a change this split seems to have been widely accepted.
(Scan of an old slide - sorry.)

 

Neodryas rhodoneura, Acjanaco Pass, high Andes, Manu NP, southern Peru.
There appears to be some confusion surrounding this genus, which is also sometimes dumped in Onicidium,
seemingly (as far as I can make out) because no-one quite knows what to do with it.
Not our problem here - we just get to enjoy a lovely orchid starting with N!

 O

Horned Orchid Orthoceras strictum, Black Mountain NR Canberra.
This is a most distinctive orchid, quite widespread and said to be sometimes common, but that hasn't been
my experience. In the ACT it grows in just one small site.
(David Jones, in his monumental Complete Guide to the Orchids of Australia, suggests that there are
two or three other undescribed species in Australia and that the New Zealand and New Caledonian populations
also represent separate species. You'll read otherwise elsewhere, but my strong inclination is to believe
Jones until more evidence is available.)

Odontoglossum auroincarum, Wayquecha Research Station, high southern Peruvian Andes.
(This has also been called O. lasserum, but auroincarum seems to be correct here - it was only described,
from this area, in 2014.) There are about 100 Odontoglossum species, nearly all from the northern Andes.

 P

P begins with a double-P in fact, and it's a rare species as well.

Tarango Leek Orchid Prasophyllum petilum, northern Canberra.
A grassland species now regarded as Endangered, as are many native grassland-relying
species in south-eastern Australia.

Pleurothallus sp., above Machu Picchu, southern Peru.
I love the way these flowers seemingly grow from the leaf stalk.

R

R was surprisingly challenging. There aren't many Australian orchid R-genera; the best known is probably Rhizanthella, the truly remarkable underground orchids - three species which live entirely beneath the ground, the flowers covered by soil or litter. Needless to say I don't have photos of them. Let's settle for an R-species instead.

Large Gnat Orchid Cyrtostylis robusta, Alligator Gorge, southern Flinders Ranges, South Australia.
A fairly common species of sandy alkaline soils of the extensive limestone belt of southern Australia;
it is usually found in big colonies.

 S

S provided the opposite problem - too many delicious choices. In the end I could only get it down to two Australian S-orchids, plus one from overseas.

 

Myrtle Bells Sarcochilus hillii, Nowra, south coast New South Wales. This is a pretty little drooping
epiphyte, with flowers less than 10mm across, usually along streamlines in drier rainforest.
I love the glistening crystalline effect of the flowers.

Pink Spiral Orchid Spiranthes australis, Canberra. Another small-flowered orchid, this one of moist grassy areas,
with flowers tightly spiralling around the stem, a most unusual effect.

 

Sobralia dichotoma, Inca Track above Machu Picchu, southern Peruvian Andes.
A stunning big flower on a plant that can be three metres high! Hard to ignore.

  T

Swollen Sun Orchid Thelymitra megacalyptera, Weddin Mountains NP, south-western slopes New South Wales.
The 100+ species of sun orchids tend to open only on warm sunny days. This one is most prominent
in the drier forests of the western slopes.

Telipogon salinasiae Acjanaco Pass, high Andes of southern Peru.
Another big Neotropical orchid genus, many with unusually patterned flowers.
This one was described in 2003.

 U

Green-banded Greenhood Urochilus (Pterostylis) vittatus, Shannon NP, south-western Western Australia.
As mentioned previously, many do not accept the breakup of Pterostylis into more manageable chunks,
but Urochilus is still used, including by the Atlas of Living Australia.

 V

And finally - because after this we hit the tricky end of the alphabet, which I found intractable today - we end with a V, another based on a species name.

 

Common Hyacinth Orchid Dipodium variegatum, Nowra, southern New South Wales.
The hyacinth orchids are big leafless orchids which are semi-parasites, relying on a complex relationship
of its roots with both a host plant and a fungus.
This one, with a 60cm high stem, is by no means the tallest; it is found from Queensland to Victoria.

I do love orchids, and I'm really hoping that this spring is more productive than the last couple of dry years have been. Meantime, I hope this has encouraged you too to start looking forward to this year's orchid season.

NEXT POSTING THURSDAY 22 AUGUST
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Brazil's Amazing Pantanal; an introduction. Part 1.

The Pantanal is one of those places I'd always wanted to see (courtesy primarily, as with so many other things, of David Attenborough), but never expected to do so. That changed when, late last year, we were sent to do a reconnaissance with my Peruvian friend Juan, preparatory to accompanying a tour there later this year. And it is every bit as extraordinary as I'd been led to believe, truly one of the world's great wildlife spectacles! I can't wait to get back there for further exploration.

Yacaré Caiman Caiman yacare and Capybara Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris, Pousada Piuval, Pantanal.
The Pantanal is said to have the largest concentration of crocodilians in the world, and Capybaras,
the planet's largest rodent, are also abundant and ubiquitous.

Today I want to give you a flavour of the place, or at least to start to - even that is too big a task for one day - but first some background. Firstly, it's huge - it has no clearly defined boundaries, but estimates vary from 140,000 to 210,000 square kilometres - but just where is it?

The end of the arrow indicates approximately the heart of the Pantanal, which is located just inside the
tropical zone, pretty much in the centre of South America, mostly in south-western Brazil.

 The Pantanal lies mostly in the Brazilian states of Mattto Grosso and Matto Grosso do Sul,
though it spills over to minor a degree into both Bolivia and Paraguay. The Rio Piquirí forms the boundaries between the two Brazilian states. As is obvious, road access is very limited - more on that anon. Today's post will deal only with the northern section, in Mato Grosso. (Map courtesy hot-map.com).

The Panatanal is essentially a vast ephemeral wetland - some 80% of the flood plains disappear under about a metre and a half of water each year, though it can be up to five metres deep in places. Its area is 15 times that of the (justly) famed wildlife haven of the Okavango Delta in Botswana. However an area that large is not homogenous, and various habitats are recognised, including several major rivers with associated gallery forests, permanent lakes, swamps which expand and contract with the rains, open grasslands and the woodlands of the cerrado, which both flood annually, and drier deciduous and semi-deciduous forests on higher ground.

Grassland and forest patches on higher ground, from observation tower, Pousada Piuval.
(Pousada simply means a guesthouse, or lodge; like the others, this one is a working cattle station,
but supports remarkable wildlife.)

One astonishing aspect of the area (to me at least) is that almost none of it is formally protected; there is one small park in Brazil, covering less than 3% of the Brazilian Pantanal (see on the map just south-west of Porto Joffre) and some protected areas in Paraguay and Bolivia. Beyond that it is all private grazing land, where fortunately landowners are increasingly seeing the value of ecotourism and providing some excellent lodges and wildlife viewing opportunities, which of course means they are managing for wildlife too. Some of these are also apparently committed to protecting the habitat for its own sake.

In 1976 an ambitious plan was launched to build a highway right through the Pantanal, from Cuiabá in the north to Corumbá in the south-west. Unfortunately the planners seem to have overlooked the existence of the impressive Cuiabá River, or perhaps they simply ran out of money at that stage; either way the Transpantaneira Highway ends, after 148km and 120 bridges, at tiny Porto Joffre (also known as Porto Jofre). The southern section - 60% of the Brazilian Pantanal - has no access road to join lodges, so travel is much more difficult; as mentioned, I'll be able to report further on that later in the year!

It's probably more than time now to deliver the promised brief overview of the habitats and some of their particularly striking inhabitants. There is, as I've mentioned, too much for one posting, so I'll start with the drier habitats. That may well be leaving the best to last, but there was plenty to enthrall us in the grasslands, woodlands and drier forests!

Cerrado, Pousada Alegre. As elsewhere the grasslands and open woodlands tend to merge into one another.
They have some very exciting inhabitants.

Greater Rhea Rhea americana, Pousada Piuval.
Common and tolerant of people, this is a much bigger bird than the little Darwin's Rhea R. pennataof the far south that I'm more familiar with.

Red-legged Seriema Cariama cristata, Pousada Piuval.
One of the first birds we saw, and was I excited?! (Yes.)
Big mostly ground-living hunters of small animals, this one and the closely-related
Black-legged Seriema are the only members not only of their Family, but an entire Order.

Campo Flicker Colaptes campestris.The flickers are group of seven species of mostly ground-dwelling American woodpeckers in this genus, and I think this one is especially handsome!

While we're on woodpeckers - a group I'm especially fond of and which don't live in Australia - here are a few more.

Pale-crested Woodpecker Celeus lugubris.This beauty is not found much outside the Pantanal.

Cream-coloured Woodpecker Celeus flavus, Pixaim River.
She (he has a red moustache, or malar stripe if you'd prefer) was in gallery forest along the river bank.

White Woodpecker Melanerpes candidus, Pousada Piuval.
This one, a specialty of grassy woodlands, instantly became one of my favourite woodpeckers!

Green-barred Woodpecker Colaptes melanochloros, Pousada Arara, a flicker relative from the dry forests.

And maybe that's enough woodpeckers? Oh all right, just one more then...

White-wedged Piculet Picumnus albosquamatus, along the Transpantaneira Highway.
Tiny, like all piculets, this one is only 10cm long and weighs around 10 grams.

Parrots are also a glorious feature of the Pantanal, with one above all others starring; the huge Hyacinth Macaw Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus at a metre long is the longest living parrot, and only the flightless New Zealand Kakapo is heavier. Habitat loss and the insidious pet trade have shattered its numbers, but the Pantanal is its stronghold and it is in many ways the poster bird of the region.

Hyacinth Macaws, Pousada Arara; arara is Portuguese for macaw, and most lodges
have at least one pair breeding in the vicinity.

Golden-collared Macaw Primolius auricollis. This much smaller macaw's range extends from the Pantanal west into Bolivia.

White-eyed Parakeet Psittacara leucophthalmus, Pousada Piuval.
Unlike the previous two parrots, this one is found across much of the northern part of the continent,
and flocks of them hang around the lodges.

Monk Parakeets Myiopsitta monachus, at the entrance (or one of them) to their big colonial stick nest
along the Transpantaneira. They are unique among parrots in this.
Escapes from cages in Europe and North America have formed big urban populations.

Cracids are a Family of large South and Central American birds - guans, curassows and chachalacas - which are in the same Order as fowls. Many have suffered heavily from hunting, but they are present and conspicuous in the Pantanal.

Bare-faced Curassows Crax fasciolata, Pousada Arara;
female above, and male below.
These birds have become habituated to people.

 

Chestnut-bellied Guan Penelope ochrogaster.A Brazilian endemic, it is a listed Threatened Species, and even in the Pantanal it is scarce.

Red-throated Piping Guan Pipile cujubi, a big handsome guan.
Some sources suggest that only the Blue-throated Piping Guan P. cumanensis is present; others that
White-throated Piping Guan P. grayi is also present, plus hybrids!
I understand why some taxonomists just hide their heads in their hands and lump them all as one species, Common Piping Guan P. pipile! However both Avibase and Handbook of the Birds of the World
make it clear that this is within the range of Red-throated, so I have no reason to call this anything else;
despite a blue trim to the throat in this bird, neither of the other species has red there,
so I'm going with the evidence.
(My thanks to my friend Martin for helping me through this taxonmic tangle.)

Chaco Chachalaca Ortalis canicollis. There are gangs of these everywhere, and like all chachalacas they comment loudly,
rudely and incessantly on everything.

Pousada Arara runs a little roadside cafe-bar - the only one on the highway - and a bird bath there attracts a most impressive array of birds, especially in the dry season. Here are some.

Chestnut-eared Aracaris Pteroglossus castanotis; aracaris, all in this genus, form
a group of smaller colourful toucans. Toucans will get their own post here one day.

Crested Oropendola Psarocolius decumanus. Oropendolas are a group of large, colonial-nesting
icterids (or North American blackbirds, whose ancestors arrived in South America a few million years
ago when the Isthmus of Panama arose).
This is an impressive bird, but the crest? Well not quite so much....

Purplish Jay Cyanocorax cyanomelas; not at all shy!

Yellow-billed Cardinal Paroaria capitata. One of the most prominent birds in the Pantanal, and a delightful one.

The Streaked Flycatcher Myiodynastes maculatus, is widespread in the Pantanal and beyond.

Grey-necked Wood Rail Aramides cajaneus.While this big rail is far from the hardest rail to see, it's not usually this easy!

And with that we'd better look at some other animals while someone is (I hope) still reading...

Crab-eating Fox Cerdocyon thous, hunting frogs in the grounds of the lodge at Pousada Piuval.
These South American foxes are not very closely related to northern hemisphere foxes.

 South American Coatis Nasua nasua. Highly sociable members of the raccoon family,
they hunt a range of prey. I couldn't get very near to this group.

Black-striped Tufted Capuchin Sapajus libidinosus (formerly lumped with the more widespread
Brown Capuchin). This chap was eating green mangoes, which might explain his grumpy demeanour.

Black-tailed Marmoset Mico melanurus, a diurnal tree sap specialist whose range is centred
on the Pantanal.

Brown (or Grey) Brocket Deer Mazama gouazoubira Pousada Alegre; a small deer
and one of four species found in the Pantanal.

Black (or Black and White) Tegu Salvator merianae, Family Teiidae, along the Transpantaneira Highway.
These are big lizards, up to a metre long and massive, filling the niche of goannas (or monitors) in
some other parts of the world. They are often seen around the lodges.

Another member of the same Family, which I've not yet been able to identify.

Red-footed Tortoise Chelonoidis carbonarius, sprinting across the Highway.
This lovely tortoise - and we only saw one - is another Threatened Species, and again the illegal pet trade
is complicit in its decliine.

Wasp nests: Pousada Piuval above,
armadillo wasps, along the Transpantaneira, below.
I was advised that both are well worth not disturbing!

Butterflies enjoying the benefits of cow pats, above and below.

 

OK, I'm sorry that wasn't perhaps the most tasteful way to conclude, so perhaps something a little more romantic to end on.

Amorous millipedes, Posada Piuval.

I hope you're still there - or if you've left, you've done so to rush off to the fabulous Pantanal. And before you say something like "hey, what about the ....?!", remember I'll be back next week with some delights associated with the Pantanal's wonderful swamps and rivers. Hope you can be here for that.

NEXT POSTING THURSDAY.

(And remember that you can get a reminder when the next post appears by putting your email address in the Follow by Email box in the top right of this screen.
And I'd love to receive your comments - it's easy and you don't need to sign in!)