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

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s in the orchid family,

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family (biology), family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan plants that ...

that is

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 ...

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 ...

. 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 ...

'' by having a

glabrous Glabrousness () 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 of a plant or animal, or be due to loss because of a physical condition, ...

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

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

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 ...

, the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, 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 ...

. Their common name alludes to their prominent ear-like

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 ( ...

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'' ...

Description

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

sympodial In botany, 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, als ...

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

succulent In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...

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 ...

. 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 In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

is a

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, 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 ...

with up to 25 resupinate flowers, each with a small

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves in size, color, shape or texture. They also lo ...

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 The fus ...

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 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 ...

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 A gland is a cell or an organ in an animal's body that produces and secretes different substances that the organism needs, either into the bloodstream or into a body cavity or outer surface. A gland may also function to remove unwanted substance ...

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 op ...

capsule containing up to 500 seeds.

Taxonomy and naming

The genus ''Eriochilus'' was first formally described in 1810 by

Robert Brown Robert Brown may refer to: Robert Brown (born 1965), British Director, Animator and author Entertainers and artists * Washboard Sam or Robert Brown (1910–1966), American musician and singer * Robert W. Brown (1917–2009), American printmaker ...

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 book by the botanist Robert Brown Robert Brown may refer to: Robert Brown (born 1965), British Director, Animator and ...

''. 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 classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

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 woody plants (trees and shrubs), 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 sunli ...

s. They occur from north of Kalbarri to

Israelite Bay Israelite Bay is a bay and locality of the Shire of Esperance in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located along the Southern Ocean. Except for a small strip in the north-west of the locality, Israelite Bay is completely take ...

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. Earlier called Eyre's Peninsula, it was named after e ...

and

Yorke Peninsula The Yorke Peninsula, known as Guuranda by the original inhabitants, the Narungga people, 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 ...

. 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

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. History Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...

as of April 2025. *'' Eriochilus collinus'' D.L.Jones & R.J.Bates (S.A.) **''Eriochilus collinus'' D.L.Jones & R.J.Bates subsp. ''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'' subsp. ''brevifolius'' (Benth.) Hopper & A.P.Br. – blunt-leaved bunny orchid (W.A.) ** ''Eriochilus dilatatus'' Lindl. subsp. ''dilatatus'' – white 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 glareosus'' G.Brockman & C.J.French (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