Large Tongue Orchid

This plant is one of the first Orchids I found after I moved to Robertson, and got into the habit of scouring the surrounding countryside, especially on the sandstone plateaux which subtend the basalt hills of Robertson. Although I had often found leaves of this plant, I had not seen flowers for the last 4 years. I did see one very fine specimen when south from Nowra with Alan Stephenson ten days ago. But none in my own "backyard".
Consequently, when Colin and Mischa turned up here last week, and commented, in an almost off-handed manner that they had stopped off on the way over to take some photos of Cryptostylis subulata - I was keen to find out where they were. My amateur Orchid hunter's "professional pride" was at stake, if you know what I mean.

Mischa told me where she had first seen these plants, along the Belmore Falls Road, and as I knew the area well, I was confident that I could find them from her descriptions. Wrong!

The next day I rang Mischa and tried to obtain some more explicit instructions, and went back again. Still no luck!

Oh well, why not just look for different plants in the same general area?
At last, some success, along the side of the road near Missingham Lookout, near Belmore Falls.

Once I had found several of these Tongue Orchids, I was then able to go back to the area Mischa had told me about, and sure enough, I was able to find them. Of course they were there all the time, but it is just a case of knowing where to look. I had been looking in the open areas, beside the road, whereas the plants were growing a few metres back from the road, and growing amongst rushes and other dense ground covering plants.The flower structure of this Tongue Orchid is quite bizarre (but all the others are, so why not this species?).

The main structure one sees is the Labellum. These Orchids are non-resupinate, which means the Labellum is on top of the column (not forming a "cup" under the as many popular "slippper orchids" do). The labellum, in this species hangs out at about 45 degrees to the ground. In this regard it is quite different from the closely related Cryptostylis hunteriana, which holds the labellum vertically. I wrote about that plant last week.

The next thing one notices about this flower is the odd "bump" underneath the labellum, clearly visible from the side. It is called a "callus".In fact it is a prominent part of the sexual attraction process by which this flower achieves pollination. The "callus" is in fact a two-part protrusion, (a gland no doubt) by which the flower produces chemicals to attract wasps, in a process now described as sexual deception. The odours produced mimic the pheremones produced by females of certain species of wasps. The male wasps engage in what is called "pseudo-copulation". The male wasps get confused, (poor dears). One might think of these flowers as the plant equivalent of a "blow-up doll".

In this angle (from underneath the flower) you can
see the "double bump" of the callus I have been talking about

In the next image, you can actually see the entire area of the "callus", which has a relatively long series of glands, (shiny, dark red glands) leading up to the "double bump" part. You can also see clearly the yellow dot, where the column of the flower is located. That is where the pollinia are located, and where the receptive part of the flower is. This photo has been taken from underneath the flower. One does not see this part, unless you look very closely indeed.Here is another view from low down, and it shows nicely the parallel lines of the glands which are all part of the "callus" structure of the flower. Click to enlarge the image.In this last image I want to show why this plant earns the "nick-name" Cow Orchid. The lateral sepals in this flower (as in all the local Tongue Orchids) are reduced to thin, rolled protrusions. In this case you can see how some people say they resemble the horns of a cow. But to get the full picture, you ought see how the labellum has rolled back edges (revolute), and they form a kind of protruding "lip", which could be thought to resemble the snout of a cow's head. OK, you have to squint a bit, and use your imagination, but I did not invent the name. It is safer to stick with the name Large Tongue Orchid.

I have a sentimental attachment to this Orchid, as I mentioned and I am glad to have seeen it again, this season. Thanks to Colin and Mischa for having told me it was flowering this year.