Madonna sun orchid
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Thelymitra
Species:
T. silena
Binomial name
Thelymitra silena

Thelymitra silena, commonly called the madonna sun orchid,[2] is a species of orchid that is endemic to Tasmania. It has a single thick, fleshy, channelled leaf and up to fifteen pale blue flowers with an almost spherical yellow lobe on top of the anther.

Description

Thelymitra silena is a tuberous, perennial herb with a single thick, fleshy, channelled, linear to lance-shaped leaf 120–200 mm (5–8 in) long and 25–35 mm (0.98–1.4 in) wide with a purplish base. Between five and fifteen pale blue flowers 30–35 mm (1.2–1.4 in) wide are arranged on a flowering stem 300–550 mm (10–20 in) tall. The sepals and petals are 14–20 mm (0.6–0.8 in) long and 8–14 mm (0.3–0.6 in) wide. The column is white to cream-coloured, 8–9 mm (0.31–0.35 in) long and about 5 mm (0.2 in) wide. The lobe on the top of the anther is light brown and gently curved with a yellow, almost spherical tip but with a deep notch. The side lobes are curved with sparse toothbrush-like tufts of white hairs. Flowering occurs in October and November.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

Thelymitra silena was first formally described in 1999 by David Jones from a specimen collected on Clarke Island and the description was published in The Orchadian.[4] The specific epithet (silena) is derived from the Latin word meaning "a bearded, bald, woodland deity, similar to but older than a satyr",[5] referring to the column of this orchid.[6]

Distribution and habitat

The madonna sun orchid usually grows in grassy forest and is found near the north and east coasts of Tasmania and on Clarke Island.[2][3]

References

  1. ↑ "Thelymitra silena". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. 1 2 3 Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 229. ISBN 1877069124.
  3. 1 2 Jeanes, Jeffrey A. (2011). "Resolution of the Thelymitra aristata (Orchidaceae) complex of south-eastern Australia" (PDF). Muelleria. 29 (2): 117–119. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  4. ↑ "Thelymitra silena". APNI. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  5. ↑ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 740.
  6. ↑ "Thelymitra silena". APNI. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
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