Arthrochilus
Elbow orchids | |
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Arthrochilus latipes in Kakadu National Park | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Order: | Asparagales |
Family: | Orchidaceae |
Subfamily: | Orchidoideae |
Tribe: | Diurideae |
Subtribe: | Drakaeinae |
Genus: | Arthrochilus F.Muell.[1] |
Type species | |
Arthrochilus irritabilis F.Muell.
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Synonyms[2] | |
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Arthrochilus, commonly called elbow orchids, is a genus of about fifteen species of flowering plants from the orchid family (Orchidaceae) and is found in Australia and New Guinea. The flowers are pollinated by male thynnid wasps which attempt to mate with the flower and are held in place by hooks while the pollinium is transferred between insect and flower.
Description
Orchids in the genus Arthrochilus are terrestrial,
The
Taxonomy and naming
The genus Arthrochilus was first formally described in 1858 by Ferdinand von Mueller and the description was published in Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae. Mueller described Arthrochilus irritabilis at the same time and it is regarded as the type species.[6][7] The scientific name of the genus is derived from the Ancient Greek words arthron meaning "joint"[8]: 446 and cheilos meaning "lip"[8]: 200 referring to the jointed labellum.[3]
Distribution and habitat
Elbow orchids are found in all states of Australia except Western Australia and in southern Papua New Guinea and on the Torres Strait Islands. The majority of elbow orchid species occur in tropical regions but A. huntianus grows in eastern Australia with the subspecies nothofagicola occurring in Tasmania. The tropical species grow and flower in the summer wet season, usually growing in sand in forest or woodland.[3]
Ecology
The labellum of elbow orchids mimics wingless female thynnid wasps of the Superfamily Vespoidea, Family Thynnidae. In its attempt to fly off with the dummy female, the insect is thrust head-first against the column where the hooked wings hold the insect in place long enough for the pollinia to stick to its back. If it is carrying pollinia from another flower, the pollinia are crushed against the stigma. For three species of elbow orchid, a single species of wasp from the genus Arthrothynnus has been identified. In the case of some tropical species, the wasps struggle so violently with the labellum that the organ is often torn off. Some other orchids similarly employ thynnid wasps as pollinators but only Arthrochilus flowers have restraining hooks on the labellum.[3][9]
Species list
The following is a list of species recognised by the Index Kewensis:[2]
- Arthrochilus apectus D.L.Jones - untidy elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus aquilus D.L.Jones - dark elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus byrnesii Blaxell - sandstone truffle orchid (N.T., W.A.)
- Arthrochilus corinnae D.L.Jones - swamp elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus dockrillii Lavarack - green truffle orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus huntianus (F.Muell.) Blaxell - common elbow orchid (N.S.W., Tas., Vic., S.A.)
- Arthrochilus irritabilis F.Muell. - clubbed elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus laevicallus Ormerod (Papua New Guinea)
- Arthrochilus latipes D.L.Jones - robust elbow orchid (N.T.)
- Arthrochilus lavarackianus (D.L.Jones) Lavarack - glaucous truffle orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus oreophilus D.L.Jones - montane elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus prolixus D.L.Jones - wispy elbow orchid (N.S.W., Qld.)
- Arthrochilus rosulatus D.L.Jones - rosetted elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus sabulosus D.L.Jones - spotted elbow orchid (Qld.)
- Arthrochilus stenophyllus D.L.Jones - narrow-leaved elbow orchid (Qld.)
See also
References
- ^ Mueller, Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von. 1858. Fragmenta Phytographiæ Australiæ 1: 42
- ^ a b "Arthrochilus". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
- ^ ISBN 0198507100.
- ^ a b Bernhardt, Peter H. "Genus Arthrochilus". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney: plantnet. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ^ a b D.L.Jones; T.Hopley; S.M.Duffy (2010). "Arthrochilus". Australian Tropical Rainforest Orchids. Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
- ^ "Arthrochilus". APNI. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ^ von Mueller, Ferdinand (1858). Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae (Volume 1). London. pp. 42–43. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
- ISBN 0198507100.
External links
- Media related to Arthrochilus at Wikimedia Commons
- Australian Native Orchid Society (Queensland), Kabi Group, Arthrochilus prolixus
- Retired Aussies, Thynninorchis huntianus, Elbow Orchid, synonym Arthrochilus huntianus
- Orchids Online, Arthrochilus oreophilus, Synonym: Spiculea irritabilis sensu Dockr.