''Calochilus paludosus'', commonly known as the red beard orchid or red beardie, is a species of

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It has a single fleshy, light green leaf and up to nine greenish flowers with reddish stripes. The labellum has a dull red or coppery coloured beard and lacks the "eye" spots of other beard orchids.

Description

''Calochilus paludosus'' is a terrestrial,

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

with an underground

tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...

and a single fleshy, light green to yellowish-green, linear to lance-shaped leaf which is long and wide. Unlike some others in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

, the leaf is fully developed at flowering time. Up to nine greenish flowers with reddish stripes are borne on a flowering stem tall. The dorsal

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

is long, wide and the lateral sepals are a similar length but broader. The

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s are long and wide. The labellum is flat, long, wide, with short, reddish calli near its base and a flap-like ridge on each outside edge. The middle section of the labellum has coarse, dull red or coppery coloured hairs up to and the tip has a hairless "tail" long and about wide. The

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...

lacks the sham "eyes" of most other beard orchids. Flowering occurs from September to January.Les Robinson – Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney, page 242

Taxonomy and naming

''Calochilus paludosus'' was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown and the description was published in '' Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''paludosus'') is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word meaning "boggy" or "marshy".

Distribution and habitat

The red beard orchid is widespread in eastern Australia where it grows in heath and open forest, often in wet places but also in drier open forest. It is found in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

south from

Burleigh Heads Burleigh Heads is a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Burleigh Heads had a population of 10,077 people. Geography Burleigh Head is a cape () jutting into the Coral Sea at the northern mouth of Tallebudgera Cre ...

, in mostly coastal districts of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, mostly in the higher rainfall areas of Victoria and in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

but is only known from a single population in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. In New Zealand, ''C. paludosus'' occurs in the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

, often near geothermally active ground, and the northern part of the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4247784 paludosus Orchids of Australia Orchids of New Zealand Plants described in 1810 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)