Petalochilus mentiens - reappears

My Orchid colleague, and friend, Alan Stephenson has told me about having found Petalochilus mentiens, "Lesser Fingers" Orchid at the very top of the Shoalhaven ridge, beyond Sassafras. Yesterday, we went to this spot, in search of those Orchids and some others,

In fact we found Pet. mentiens lower down on the Shoalhaven ridge, on Wandean Road, in an area which had been burnt out badly in autumn, by the so-called Dean's Gap Fire (which was no-where near Dean's Gap - but that's another story).

I have also seen Pet. mentiens, but in Kangaloon, near Robertson. But I looked for them last week, without success. But it is always fun searching for something one seldom finds.

We were on a slashed easement under some Power Lines, crossing Wandean Road.
The first things we saw were:

1. Masses of Patersonia sericea - the best display I have ever seen.
2. Prasophyllum elatum (which has a reputation for flowering after a burn-off)
3. Prasophyllum sp. nov AS (which also grows on Tourist Road, Kangaloon, but is not yet named)
4. Petalochilus mentiens (in an area where they have never been reported before)
5. and finally, what appears to be out-of-season flowers of Genoplesium baueri
6. Talking about being out of season - Christmas Bells - in flower (some finished) presumably another reaction to the fire. This is totally out of season for this area. In the Shoalhaven they are often found from December to February.
7. Something "in season" is the Sydney Rock Orchid from Tianjara Falls.

The fact that there had been a hot fire through this area seems to explain the remarkable flowering (of many species) which we saw yesterday. But that is speculation only.

Here are some photos of what we were seeing (just a few).

The most out-of-season flowers
"Christmas Bells"
Blandfordia nobilis

Here is a tiny "Caladenia"
the so-called "Lesser Fingers" Orchid.
Petalochilus mentiens

Possible Genoplesium baueri
These flowers were closed.
Had they already opened and been pollinated?
Some almost certainly, but
it is possible some are yet still to open.
One needs to see the flower
to know exactly what they are.

This is a real puzzle.
It has a long leaf (unlike Genoplesium baueri)
So, it is probably a Corunastylis species.

An as-yet un-named Leek Orchid
Prasophyllum sp. nov. AS
These plants may be the same species as
are found at Kangaloon.
They have been named as
Prasophyllum appendiculatum
but there is some puzzlement about that ID.

Patersonia sericea

Sydney Rock Orchids growing
below the lookout at Tianjara Falls
I love this place.

Tianjara Falls is associated with
one of my oldest and sweetest memories
of bird banding trips here in the early 1960s.
The area was burnt out totally by a huge fire
which burnt from Marulan to the
Princes Highway south from Nowra

Zoomed image of the waterfall
Tianjara Falls

Genoplesium baueri also on Nowra - Braidwood Road.

Further to my most recent post about the lovely Turquoise Parrots, I can now report that in a quiet period on Saturday afternoon, when the "Turqs" were resting amongst the trees, and while I was resting my hip, Alan Stephenson went looking along the grassy verge of the Nowra-Braidwood Road, and found a few specimens of Genoplesium baueri - the "Brittle Midge Orchid".

Genoplesium baueri on Nowra Braidwood Road

This species is listed on the NSW Threatened Species list as "vulnerable". It has been nominated for EPBC Act listing, by Alan, but so far, it has not yet been "listed' in the Federal environmental protection system.

Genoplesium baueri on Nowra Braidwood Road

The reason this lack of Federal environment protection is important is because of my last line comment on the previous blog post: 

• Alan has just learnt that the local National Parks office is preparing to "slash" the roadside verge in this area, which would be bad news indeed for the Parrots which are feeding on the low grasses there which are happily seeding at present. Lets hope that move can be delayed for a few weeks at least.

Because I had not got around to mentioning the Orchids, I did not refer to the threat posed to the Orchids by roadside slashing. Of course, when the Orchids are in flower or when carrying any seed capsules, then slashing could well be "terminal" for a small colony of these Endangered Orchids.

Lets hope the Nowra office of NPWS can be persuaded to hold back on their plans for roadside verge slashing along the Nowra-Braidwood Road, for a few weeks, to allow these important "threatened species" to at least complete their reproductive phase.

There are so few of these Orchids known to exist that Australia does not have any "to spare". The biology of this species is such that it does not appear to recover well from disturbance. It has a habit of simply dying out if disturbed.

Decisions about such matters are probably less likely to be considered important for relatively drab little flowers like these.

Let us hope that the "pretty Turquoise Parrots" can help attract enough attention to get both these Endangered Species protected from such a simple threat as "routine roadside slashing". At the very least, surely the 600 metres where both these Orchids and Turquoise Parrots have been identified could be spared from slashing.


After all, it is the same Department (currently the "NSW Office of Environment and Heritage") which has "Listed" both these species as threatened species, which currently poses a threat to their survival - within the Parma Creek Nature Reserve.

The irony of this situation surely cannot be allowed to go without comment.

Genoplesium baueri - the "Brittle Midge Orchid" - another Endangered Orchid

Today Alan Stephenson rang me to let me know that he had found a few flowering plants of Genoplesium baueri. This plant is closely related to the other Midge Orchids which are better known (now) as Corunastylis. I have posted about several of  these already this season, and hopefully many more will come of the next few weeks.

As this plant is a leafless saprophyte, (no leaves and uses energy from decaying material to grow, instead of using chlorophyll to convert energy from the sun) one can only find it when it is in flower. And then only with difficulty, as the flowers are small, and reddish yellow, so they hardly stand out against dead leaves on the ground.

Genoplesium baueri. as found - over dead leaves

Plus, it is rare, and even if one knows roughly where they are known to occur, one still has to search amongst the grasses, and dead leaves to find a skimpy little plant about 150 mm high.

Best of luck.

Genoplesium baueri. A closer look at the plant "in situ"

Naturally when given the chance to be shown these plants, one jumps at the offer. 

Genoplesium baueri

Jervis Bay - here I come: 

*traffic of holiday period notwithstanding. 

90 minutes later I was there.

Genoplesium baueri a close-up view (camera case as background)

Alan looking for more Genoplesium baueri

We also found three species of Tongue Orchids in this area (in the Heritage Estate).
No wonder Peter Garret moved to protect this area, under the EPBC Act.

Firstly, this is the endangered Cryptostylis hunteriana

We found a few plants on two sites, close by to the site 

where the Genoplesium baueri plants were growing.

Cryptostylis hunteriana - the other "leafless saprophyte" Orchid in this area

Cryptostylis subulata - the Large Tongue Orchid

This is the kind of image I was seeking to get 

when I wrote about this plant in December.

It clearly shows the glands underneath the flower

- the things which attract the pollinating wasps.

Underneath view of  Cryptostylis subulata

Cryptostylis erecta - the Bonnet Orchid

Other flowering plants found there include the photogenic
Christmas Bells

Blandfordia nobilis  - Christmas Bells

Thysanotus tuberosus Common Fringe Lily

This next plant is an odd little plant. 

It is a Pratia*** (Not quite), but it does not "fit" the general form of

Pratia purpurescens

The leaf shape is wrong. 

Flower colour is much bluer than the normal form.

but as Kirsten keeps telling me,

flower colour is the least significant factor in plant IDs.

a nice little Pratia - possibly Pratia purpurescens

Thanks once again to Alan for the opportunity to see these plants again.
One ought never pass up on this chance.

*** Kirsten has advised me that it is NOT a Pratia, but a Lobelia.

Oh well, I was close.

Both are in the Lobeliaceae

It is Lobelia anceps  (Formerly known as Lobelia alata)

Here is an image of  "Lobelia alata" from the ever-useful Bega Valley "List of Native Plants and Weeds". If you are not familiar with that website, I recommend it for people in coastal NSW, south from Sydney. I suggest you save it as a "favourite" or "bookmark it".