Thelymitra nervosa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Spotted sun orchid | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Orchidaceae |
| Subfamily: | Orchidoideae |
| Tribe: | Diurideae |
| Genus: | Thelymitra |
| Species: | T. nervosa |
| Binomial name | |
| Thelymitra nervosa | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Thelymitra decora Cheeseman | |
Thelymitra nervosa, commonly called the spotted sun orchid,[2] is a species of orchid in the family Orchidaceae that is endemic to New Zealand. It has a single broad, channelled leaf and up to ten blue flowers with darker spots.
Thelymitra nervosa is a tuberous, perennial herb with a single channelled leaf 60–200 mm (2–8 in) or more long and 8–20 mm (0.3–0.8 in) wide. Up to ten pale to dark blue, mauve, sometimes pink or white flowers usually with dark blue spots, up to 18 mm (0.7 in) wide are borne on a flowering stem sometimes up to 600 mm (20 in) tall. The column is pale pink at its base, dark purple near the top and 3–6 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long. The arms on the sides of the column have dense tufts of white hairs. The lobe on top of the anther is dark purple, curves forwards and has a yellow, horseshoe shaped top. Flowering occurs from October to February.[2][3]