Species profile—Gastrodia crebriflora
Classification
Plantae (plants) → Equisetopsida (land plants) → Orchidaceae → Gastrodia crebriflora
Species details
- Kingdom
- Plantae (plants)
- Class
- Equisetopsida (land plants)
- Family
- Orchidaceae
- Scientific name
- Gastrodia crebriflora D.L.Jones
- WildNet taxon ID
- 7948
- Nature Conservation Act 1992 (NCA) status
- CR
- Conservation significant
- Yes
- Confidential
- Yes
- Endemicity
- Native
- Pest status
- Nil
- Description
- Gastrodia crebriflora is a glabrous, perennial, terrestrial, saprophytic herb. The rhizome is 6 to 12 cm long and 16 to 28 mm wide, irregularly swollen, fleshy, brown and covered with numerous papery scales. The inflorescence is 50 to 110 cm tall, thick, fleshy, pale brown and shiny. There are seven to nine sterile bracts, which are 6 to 10 mm long and 8 to 10 mm wide, oblong to ovate and closing sheathing. The fertile bracts are 3 to 5 mm long and 1 to 3 mm wide, linear-ovate, subacute, dark brown and closing sheathing. The pedicels are 6 to 10mm long, moderately slender and recurved. There are fifteen to thirty-five flowers which are 12 to 13 mm long and 6.5 mm wide, tubular, nodding, white, sometimes brownish towards the base, white within the perianth, verrucose near the base. The dorsal sepal is 12 to 13 mm long and 7 mm wide, united with the lateral sepals for all but the distal 2 mm. The lateral sepals are 12 to 13 mm long and 9mm wide, distal 4 mm free, hardly divergent, and the outer surface near the apex is strongly verrucose. The petals are 4 mm long and 3 mm wide, transversely obovate, white with entire to slightly irregular margins. Labellum is 11 to 12 mm long and 3.5 mm wide. The lamina callus consists of three raised yellow ridges in the proximal third. The capsule is 11 to 13 mm long and 6 to 7 mm wide, ovoid, light brown with whitish spots, held stiffly erect (Jones, 1991).
Gastrodia crebriflora has a superficial resemblance to G. sesamoides but it is distinguished by its numerous, white flowers crowded in a raceme. The labellum of G. crebriflora is of a similar shape to that of G. sesamoides, but is generally with much thicker basal margins, more strongly convoluted lateral margins and a much broader lamina callus (Jones, 1991). - Map
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- Habitat
- Gastrodia crebriflora grows in loose colonies on protected slopes in tall open forest, often close to fallen trees. Soils are sands derived from decomposed sandstone (Jones, 1991).
- Behaviour
- Gastrodia crebriflora has flowers which are self-pollinating and last only one or two days before closing. Capsule development is very rapid and dehiscence occurs within two weeks of flowering (Jones, 1991).
- Reproduction
- Gastrodia crebriflora flowers September and October (Jones, 1991).
- Status notes
- Gastrodia crebriflora is listed as Vulnerable under the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992.
- Notes
- Occurs in the following Queensland pastoral districts: Leichhardt.
- References
- Jones, D.L. (1991). New taxa of Australian Orchidaceae. Australian Orchid Research 2: 62.
Queensland Herbarium (2012). Specimen label information. Queensland Herbarium. Accessed 16/04/2012. - Profile author
- Lynise Wearne (17/04/2012)
Other resources
Data source
This profile data is sourced from the QLD Wildlife Data API using the Get species by ID function used under CC-By 4.0.
https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species/?op=getspeciesbyid&taxonid=7948.
This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.
