Cryptostylis

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Tongue orchids
Cryptostylis erecta
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Subtribe: Cryptostylidinae
Genus: Cryptostylis
R.Br.
Synonyms[1]
  • Chlorosa Blume
  • Zosterostylis Blume

Cryptostylis, commonly known as tongue orchids, is a

South Pacific
.

Description

Orchids in the

perennial herbs with a thick, branching underground rhizome with vertical shoots forming at nodes. The plant has thick, fleshy roots but lacks a tuber. There are one to a few erect leaves, each with a distinct petiole and often purple on the lower surface, although C. hunteriana is saprophytic and leafless. New leaves are produced each year after flowering but each leaf has a life of several years.[2][3]

The

capsule containing a large number of light coloured seeds.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

Cryptostylis was first formally described in 1810 by the prolific Scottish botanist, Robert Brown and the description was published in his book, Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. Brown described three species in the same publication (C. longifolia, C. ovata and C. erecta) but did not nominate a type species. (Cryptostylis longifolia is an illegitimate name and the species is now known as C. subulata.)[4][5]

The name Cryptostylis is derived from the Ancient Greek words kryptos meaning "hidden" and stylos meaning "pillar" or "column", referring to the column of these orchids which is partly hidden by the labellum.[2]

Molecular study of the DNA of tongue orchids shows the genus lies within the tribe Diurideae within the orchid family, having previously been considered part of the Cranichideae. The genera Cryptostylis and Coilochilus (endemic to New Caledonia) make up the subtribe Cryptostylidinae.[6]

Distribution and habitat

The genus comprises around twenty five species of terrestrial orchid distributed from

tropical regions and in well-drained to swampy sites. Cryptostylis arachnites has the widest distribution and grows in rainforest, often in mountainous areas.[2][3]

Ecology

All Australian species are pollinated by the ichneumon wasp known as the orchid dupe wasp (Lissopimpla excelsa). The male wasp mistakes the flower parts for a female wasp and attempts to copulate with it. Although the different species can occur together, they appear to inhibit cross-fertilisation and no hybrids are found in nature.[7] This discovery was made by Australian naturalist Edith Coleman in 1928, and the term coined was "pseudocopulation". The mimicking of flowers to resemble female wasp parts has since been recorded in other orchid genera but only in Cryptostylis has the insect been observed ejecting seminal fluid containing sperm cells. Coleman suggested that the males are more strongly attracted to the orchid flowers than to female wasps of the same species.[2][8][9] The flowers of Cryptostylis orchids and female wasp body parts are very similar in colour when viewed under a hymenopteran visual system, despite looking different to human eyes. Although the colours that ichneumon wasps see are unknown, bees and wasps have similar perception with green, blue and ultraviolet wavelengths.[10]

The Cryptostylis orchids are unusual in that several species are pollinated by the same wasp species; other orchids which mimic insects are often species-specific. The flowers have no smell detectable to humans, but have been shown to have an odour which attracts the orchid dupe wasp. Furthermore, gas chromatography and electrophysiology show that the single active compound for pollinator attraction is found in different species of Cryptostylis.[11]

Species

Species currently accepted as of July 2018:[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Cryptostylis". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. ^
    ISBN 0-19-850710-0
    . Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  3. ^ a b c Weston, Peter H. "Genus Cryptostylis". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  4. ^ "Cryptostylis". APNI. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  5. ^ Brown, Robert (1810). Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. London. p. 317. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  6. PMID 21669623
    .
  7. ISBN 0-521-45058-6
    . Retrieved 22 November 2010.
  8. ^ Peakall, Rod. "Pollination by Sexual Deception in Australian Terrestrial Orchids". Australian National University. Archived from the original on 13 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  9. S2CID 833763
    .
  10. S2CID 1729573
    .
  11. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.2003.00249.x
    .

External links
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