Another look at Shoalhaven Orchids - 31 August 2013

My friend Beth Boughton was invited to do a tour with Alan Stephenson and I, so she could see the Orchids she had heard about from me, and seen on my Blog.

Dockrillia pugioniformis
Dagger Orchid
Cambewarra Mtn

Dockrillia teretifolia
(These leaves are meant to be hanging down vertically)
please turn your head 90 degrees to the left.

Glossodia major
as seen at Myola Road, Myola.

Glossodia minor
A pure white form,
plus a regular coloured form

Not an Orchid.
A chance sighting and quick photo
of a Painted Button Quail
at Depot Road, Nowra

This was a surprise
when I looked closely at the photo
Petalochilus catenatus
Coonemia Creek.
I had assumed it was just a very pale form
of Petalochilus carneaBut it is too pure, too perfect.
Alan Stephenson has confirmed the ID as
"catenatus".

Petalochilus hillmanii

A nice pair of
Prasophyllum brevilabre

Pterostylis baptistii
A fine specimen of this handsome
King Greenhood.
Coonemia Creek

Pterostylis erecta colony
Barrengarry Mountain

Pterostylis erecta
Macquarie Pass,
1 September 2013

Pterostylis hildae
Macquarie Pass
1 September 2013

Speculantha vernalis
Depot Road, Nowra
31 August 2013
This is a spring flowering variant
of a group of tiny Greenhoods which
otherwise flower in summer.
Critically endangered and EPBC listed.

Sun Orchid
Thelymitra of indeterminate species
Probably Thelymitra ixioides variant.

Sarcochilus falcatus
Cambewarra Mtn.

Spring Tiny Greenhood starts to flower.

On this plant you can pick your own name to use: 

• Spring Tiny Greenhood
• Speculantha vernalis (the "new name")
• Pterostylis vernalis (the old form of name for a new species, if you follow me).
• Pterostylis sp. Flat Rock Creek (the name under which it is "listed")

Speculantha vernalis

What you do need to know is that it is listed as critically endangered under both the Federal EPBC Act and the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act.

For that we can thank David Jones (who originally nominated it under the EPBC Act in 2006) and Alan Stephenson, the ANOS Conservation Officer, resident of Nowra, and my guide on Sunday who nominated the plant for NSW TSCA listing. 

On Sunday, Alan Stephenson and I went out to see if these plants were yet in flower. They had just started to flower, much to my satisfaction.

Neither of those formal websites shows any details of the plant, as both listings are quite recent, and the necessary public information has not yet been produced. But it has been "listed" formally on both sets of legislation. It is reported by Alan, in this ANOS publication as having been listed.

EPBC Act listing advice 9 February 2010.

.

It is in the group known as Tiny Greenhoods. They were formerly grouped within the name of Pterostylis parviflora.

It differs from the other named species in that group by flowering in springtime and also by forming its leaf rosettes prior to flowering, whereas the other species in this group flower straight out of the ground with no leaves. In those species, the rosettes form when or after the flowers mature. Not so for Speculantha vernalis, as you can see here.

Leaf rosette of  Speculantha vernalis plus flower stem base visible

 Here is the flower seen from the rear.

rear view of  Speculantha vernalis

 Leaf rosettes of this Spring Tiny Greenhood.

This plant has a preference for growing 

on moss beds, 

sometimes on sandy soil under low shrubs, 

or otherwise on sandstone rock shelves.

Spring Tiny Greenhood in situ

  Multiple plants (leaf rosettes and some flowering)

Click to enlarge image

Speculantha vernalis in situ - multiple plants