''Gastrochilus distichus'' is a small 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. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

and pendant growing

epiphyte An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

. It is known by the common name distichous gastrochilus. It is found in

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

and

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

. It grows in the shade on

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

covered

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

at elevations of 1520–2700 m.

Description

''Gastrochilus distichus'' has slim, clustered pendants with its branches stems enveloped by leaf bearing sheaths. Stems carry several narrow, two-ranked, stalkless, and long pointed fleshy leaves. The plant blooms in spring on a leaf opposed, hairless, slender, raceme-like, 2-4 flowered, more or less sigmoid-shaped inflorescence with 2 distant, lanceolate, basally tubular bracts and oblong, subacute floral bracts. The flowers are light green with reddy-brown spots. Sepals are similar, usually concave, oblong-elliptic, 4.5-5 × 2.5–3 mm, apex obtuse. Petals are somewhat obovate, slightly smaller than sepals, tip blunt, lip with an epichile and a saccate hypochile. Epichile is nearly suborbicular, about 3 × 5 mm, adaxially hairless, with a central cushion, near base with 2 conic calli, entire, obtuse at apex. Hypochile is subcupular, about 4 mm tall, 2–3 mm in diameter, apex rounded.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5526821 distichus Epiphytic orchids Orchids of China Orchids of Nepal Orchids of India Flora of Assam (region) Flora of East Himalaya Flora of West Himalaya Plants described in 1858