Earina

Earina
Earina mucronata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Orchidaceae
Subfamily:	Epidendroideae
Tribe:	Epidendreae
Subtribe:	Agrostophyllinae
Genus:	Earina Lindl., 1834
Type species
Earina mucronata Lindl., 1834

Earina is a genus of orchids (family Orchidaceae). At the present time (June 2014), 7 species are recognized, native to various islands in the Pacific Ocean.^[1]

The New Zealand species are all epiphytic, or sometimes lithophytic, found growing on mossy trunks in the rain forests of both the North and South Islands. The strap-shaped leaves grow from pendulous wire-thin pseudobulbs that arise from creeping rhizomes. E. mucronata flowers mainly in the spring, whereas E. autumnalis, as its name suggests, flowers in the autumn—its flowers are fragrant. The flowers are tiny, typically less than 1 cm across, but are produced in abundance. A large flowering specimen in the bush looks spectacular.

Species

1. Cheeseman.
   - New Zealand North Island
2. Hook.f.
   - New Zealand (North and South Islands, plus Chatham Island)
3. Rchb.f.
   - New Caledonia
4. Kraenzl.
   - New Caledonia
5. Lindl.
   - New Zealand (North and South Islands, plus Chatham Island)
6. Earina sigmoidea T.Hashim. - Vanuatu
7. Rchb.f.
   - Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji, Samoa