''Corybas hypogaeus'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

of 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. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found els ...

to the

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 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

. It is part of the '' C. trilobus''

aggregate Aggregate or aggregates may refer to: Computing and mathematics * collection of objects that are bound together by a root entity, otherwise known as an aggregate root. The aggregate root guarantees the consistency of changes being made within the ...

, whose members are characterized by a funnel or dish-shaped labellum and an often heart or kidney-shaped solitary leaf.

Description

''Corybas hypogaeus'' is a

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

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 ...

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 medicina ...

with a solitary reniform (kidney-shaped) to cordiform (heart-shaped) leaf born on a petiole 10–15 mm long. The petiole is white or pale pink with a sheathing bract at the base. The leaf is sometimes flecked with maroon; it is light green on the upper surface and silvery or silvery purple on the lower surface. It is trilobed at its tip, with its middle lobe ending in a sharp tip; the auricles at the base of the leaf are pronounced. The single flower is held on a short

peduncle Peduncle may refer to: *Peduncle (botany), a stalk supporting an inflorescence, which is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed *Peduncle (anatomy), a stem, through which a mass of tissue is attached to a body **Peduncle (art ...

that is white to pale pink; it is accompanied by two floral bracts of unequal length, with the smaller bract pointing towards the leaf and the longer bract pointing away. 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 ...

is narrow at the base and broad towards the rounded tip; it is light green often with purple flecks running down the middle. It arches over the flower and is equal to the labellum in length or slightly longer. The lateral sepals are long and filiform (thread-like) and are white to pink. The

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

s are similar but shorter. The labellum is short and auriculate at the base. Its main portion is strongly cupped, and its tip is markedly laciniate (deeply jagged). It is green to nearly white, and its borders are maroon. Flowering occurs from August to September. The peduncle elongates greatly as the capsule ripens. ''Corybas hypogaeus'' can be distinguished from other members of the ''C. trilobus'' aggregate by its the diminutive flower, which is commonly buried in leaf litter, and its characteristically jagged, cupped labellum. It is highly similar to the recently described species '' C. sanctigeorgianus'', from which it can be distinguished by its labellum with a green-tinted center, rather than creamy white, and its dorsal sepal equal to the length to the labellum or slightly longer (rather than noticeably longer). Moreover, ''C. sanctigeorgianus'' is only known from select sites on 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-larges ...

Taxonomy

''Corybas hypogaeus'' was first described by William Colenso in 1884 under the name ''Corysanthes hypogaea''. 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 ...

(''hypogaea'') is formed from the Greek prefix ''hypo-'', meaning "below", and the word ''gaea'', meaning "Earth", referring to the flowers that are often found buried in leaf litter. In 2002, Brian Molloy, David Jones, and Mark Clements transferred the species into the genus ''Nematoceras'' under the name ''Nematoceras'' ''hypogaeum''. However, in a 2014 dissertation that analyzed DNA markers from ''Corybas'' species occurring from the Himalayas to New Zealand,

Stephanie Lyon Stephanie is a female name that comes from the Greek name Στέφανος (Stephanos) meaning "crown". The male form is Stephen. Forms of Stephanie in other languages include the German "Stefanie", the Italian, Czech, Polish, and Russian "Stef ...

indicated that ''Nematoceras'' and other genera that Molloy, Jones, and Clements had segregated ought to be returned to '' Corybas''. The

World Checklist of Selected Plant Families The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (usually abbreviated to WCSP) is an "international collaborative programme that provides the latest peer reviewed and published opinions on the accepted scientific names and synonyms of selected pl ...

and the

New Zealand Department of Conservation The Department of Conservation (DOC; Māori: ''Te Papa Atawhai'') is the public service department of New Zealand charged with the conservation of New Zealand's natural and historical heritage. An advisory body, the New Zealand Conservation A ...

recognized these changes, but ''Nematoceras hypogaeum'' and two other ''Nematoceras'' species remained unplaced because they had no

combination In mathematics, a combination is a selection of items from a set that has distinct members, such that the order of selection does not matter (unlike permutations). For example, given three fruits, say an apple, an orange and a pear, there are th ...

under ''Corybas'' and thus had not been transferred. Finally, in 2016, Carlos Lehnebach transferred the species to ''Corybas'' under its current name, ''Corybas hypogaeus.''

Distribution and habitat

''Corybas hypogaeus'' is endemic to New Zealand's

and

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 Tasma ...

. In the North Island, it is known from the

Hunua Ranges The Hunua Ranges is a mountain range and regional park to the southeast of Auckland city, in the Auckland and Waikato regions of New Zealand's North Island. The ranges cover some and rise to 688 metres (2255 ft) at Kohukohunui.

Waikato Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, t ...

, and

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...

. In the South Island it is known only from north-west

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

. It grows in lowland to montane habitats in

kānuka ''Kunzea ericoides'', commonly known as kānuka, kanuka, white tea-tree or burgan, is a tree or shrub in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to New Zealand. It has white or pink flowers similar to those of ''Leptospermum'' and from i ...

southern beech ''Nothofagus'', also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 43 species of trees and shrubs native to the Southern Hemisphere in southern South America (Chile, Argentina) and Australasia (east and southeast Australia, New Zealand, New Gu ...

-dominated forest and is usually found near the trunks of these trees or on the borders of swamps within the forest, half-buried in deep drifts of decaying leaves. The leaf of the plant is usually all that is exposed.

Gallery

File:Corybas hypogaeus flower detail.jpg, ''Corybas hypogaeus'' flower detail File:Corybas hypogaeus flower side view.jpg, ''Corybas hypogaeus'' flower side view File:Corybas hypogaeus upper view.jpg, ''Corybas hypogaeus'' flower upper view File:Corybas hypogaeus leaf.jpg, ''Corybas hypogaeus'' leaf

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q91259276 hypogaeus Endemic orchids of New Zealand