''Genoplesium archeri'', commonly known as the elfin midge orchid and as ''Corunastylis archeri'' in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, is a small terrestrial

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. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to south-eastern Australia. It has a single thin leaf fused to the flowering stem and up to fifteen small, hairy, yellowish green flowers with purple stripes. It grows in a wide range of habitats in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, Victoria and

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

Description

''Genoplesium archeri'' is a terrestrial,

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

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 Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

with an underground

tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure that plants use as storage organs for nutrients, derived from stems or roots. Tubers help plants perennate (survive winter or dry months), provide energy and nutrients, and are a means of asexual reproduc ...

and a single thin leaf long and fused to the flowering stem with the free part long. Between two and fifteen yellowish green flowers are crowded along a flowering stem tall and about as tall as the leaf. The flowers are about long and wide and are inverted so that the labellum is above 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 ...

rather than below it. The

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage The fus ...

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 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

is egg-shaped, about long and wide with hairless edges, purple stripes and a pointed tip. The

lateral Lateral is a geometric term of location which may also refer to: Biology and healthcare * Lateral (anatomy), a term of location meaning "towards the side" * Lateral cricoarytenoid muscle, an intrinsic muscle of the larynx * Lateral release ( ...

sepals are linear to lance-shaped, about long, wide and spread widely apart from each other. The

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s are egg-shaped, about long and wide with purple stripes and hairless edges. The labellum is purple, broadly egg-shaped, about long, wide, with a curled, sharply pointed tip and coarse hairs up to long on the sides. There is a narrow egg-shaped

callus A callus (: calluses) is an area of thickened and sometimes hardened skin that forms as a response to repeated friction, pressure, or other irritation. Since repeated contact is required, calluses are most often found on the feet and hands, b ...

in the centre of the labellum and extending nearly to its tip. Flowering occurs from November to March.

Taxonomy and naming

The elfin midge orchid was first formally described in 1858 by

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For 20 years he served as director of the Ro ...

who gave it the name ''Prasophyllum archeri'' from a specimen collected by William Archer near

Cheshunt Cheshunt (/ˈtʃɛzənt/ CHEZ-ənt) is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England, situated within the London commuter belt approximately north of Central London. The town lies on the River Lea and Lee Navigation, bordering th ...

. The description was published in '' The botany of the Antarctic voyage of H.M. discovery ships Erebus and Terror. III. Flora Tasmaniae''. In 1989, David Jones and Mark Clements changed the name to ''Genoplesium archeri'' and in 2002 changed the name again to ''Corunastylis archeri''. The

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

(''archeri'') honours the collector of the

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * ...

specimen.

Distribution and habitat

''Genoplesium archeri'' grows in a wide range of habitats including swamp margins and open forest. It is found in New South Wales mainly between Guyra and the Blue Mountains, is widespread in Victoria and in Tasmania at altitudes up to above sea level.

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q15462748 archeri Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of New South Wales Orchids of Victoria (state) Orchids of Tasmania Plants described in 1927