''Eriochilus'', commonly known as bunny orchids, is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s in the orchid family,

Orchidaceae 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 ...

that is

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 Australia. Orchids in this genus are distinguished from those in the similar ''

Caladenia ''Caladenia'', commonly known as spider orchids, is a genus of 350 species of plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Spider orchids are terrestrial herbs with a single hairy leaf and a hairy stem. The labellum is fringed or toothed in most s ...

'' by having a

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part o ...

leaf and a densely woolly labellum. Species occur in south-west

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...

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 ...

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_ ...

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 ...

, the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, and

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

. Their common name alludes to their prominent ear-like

lateral Lateral is a geometric term of location which may refer to: Healthcare *Lateral (anatomy), an anatomical direction * Lateral cricoarytenoid muscle * Lateral release (surgery), a surgical procedure on the side of a kneecap Phonetics *Lateral co ...

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 ...

Description

Orchids in the genus ''Eriochilus'' are 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, a ...

sympodial Sympodial growth is a bifurcating branching pattern where one branch develops more strongly than the other, resulting in the stronger branches forming the primary shoot and the weaker branches appearing laterally. A sympodium, also referred to a ...

herbs usually with a few inconspicuous, fine roots and a roughly spherical, succulent

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 growin ...

. Replacement tubers form at the end of short "droppers". There is a single, glabrous, egg-shaped to lance-shaped leaf either at the base, or in the middle of the flowering stem. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...

is a

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the sh ...

with up to 25

resupinate Resupination is derived from the Latin word ''resupinus'', meaning "bent back with the face upward" or "on the back". "Resupination" is the noun form of the adjective "resupine" which means "being upside-down, supine or facing upward". The word " ...

flowers, each with a small bract at the base of its stalk. 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 * Dorsal co ...

is smaller than the other two sepals, is dished and erect but curves forward to form a hood over the labellum. The

sepals are much longer, broader and more conspicuous than the dorsal sepal and are white to pink and spreading. As is usual in orchids, one

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 ...

is highly modified as the central labellum. The other two petals are usually smaller and narrower than the sepals and are either erect, spreading or curved backwards towards the ovary. The base of the labellum partly surrounds the lower part of 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 ...

forming a tube while the front is strongly curved downwards, covered with

glandular In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

hairs and often spotted. The sexual parts of the flower are fused to the

, which is erect, short, weakly curved and has narrow, wing-like structures. Bunny orchids flower from late winter to early summer, depending on species. The fruit that follows flowering is a non-fleshy,

dehiscent Dehiscence is the splitting of a mature plant structure along a built-in line of weakness to release its contents. This is common among fruits, anthers and sporangia. Sometimes this involves the complete detachment of a part; structures that o ...

capsule containing up to 500 seeds.

Taxonomy and naming

The genus ''Eriochilus'' was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown and the description was published in ''

Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae ''Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen'' (Prodromus of the Flora of New Holland and Van Diemen's Land) is a flora of Australia written by botanist Robert Brown and published in 1810. Often referred to as ''Prodromus Flora Nova ...

''. The botanical name ''Eriochilus'' is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

words ἔριον ''erion'' meaning "wool" and χεῖλος ''cheilos'' meaning lip referring to the hairy labellum.

Distribution and habitat

Ten species of bunny orchids occur in Western Australia where they are found in a range of habitats from areas that are swampy in winter to dry inland

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

s. They occur from north of Kalbarri to

Israelite Bay Israelite Bay is a bay and locality on the south coast of Western Australia. Situated in the Shire of Esperance local government area, it lies east of Esperance and the Cape Arid National Park, within the Nuytsland Nature Reserve and the Gr ...

on the south coast. Three species are found in the south-east of South Australia, including the

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named af ...

and

Yorke Peninsula The Yorke Peninsula is a peninsula located northwest and west of Adelaide in South Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. The peninsula is separated from Kangaroo Island to the south by Investigator Strait ...

. Two species are found in Victoria, three in New South Wales. Bunny orchids are also found in Queensland and Tasmania.

Species list

The following is a list of species recognised by the Australian Plant Name Index and by

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

. *'' Eriochilus collinus'' D.L.Jones & R.J.Bates (S.A.) ** ''Eriochilus collinus'' D.L.Jones & R.J.Bates ''collinus'' (S.A.) ** ''Eriochilus collinus'' subsp. ''sericeus'' R.J.Bates (S.A.) *'' Eriochilus cucullatus'' (Labill.) Rchb.f. – parson's bands (S.A., N.S.W., Vic., Qld. Tas.) *'' Eriochilus dilatatus'' Lindl. ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' Lindl. subsp. ''dilatatus'' – white bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' subsp. ''brevifolius'' (Benth.) Hopper & A.P.Br. – blunt-leaved bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' subsp. ''magnus'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – Easter bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' subsp. ''multiflorus'' (Lindl.) Hopper & A.P.Br. – common bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' subsp. ''orientalis'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – eastern bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' subsp. ''undulatus'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – crinkle-leafed bunny orchid (W.A.) *'' Eriochilus helonomos'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – swamp bunny orchid (W.A.) *'' Eriochilus magenteus'' D.L.Jones (N.S.W., Vic., Tas.) *'' Eriochilus paludosus'' D.L.Jones & R.J.Bates (S.A.) *'' Eriochilus petricola'' D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem. (N.S.W., Vic., Qld.) *'' Eriochilus pulchellus'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – granite bunny orchid (W.A.) *'' Eriochilus scaber'' Lindl. ** ''Eriochilus scaber'' Lindl. subsp. ''scaber'' – pink bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus scaber'' subsp. ''orbifolia'' Hopper & Brown – round-leafed bunny orchid (W.A.) *'' Eriochilus tenuis'' Lindl. – slender bunny orchid (W.A.) *'' Eriochilus valens'' Hopper & A.P.Br. – red-lipped bunny orchid (W.A.)

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q751477 Diurideae genera Orchids of Australia