''Caladenia fulva'', commonly known as the tawny spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to a small area in Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two creamy-white to pale yellow flowers. Only two small populations are known, although both are in nature reserves.

Description

''Caladenia fulva'' is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous,

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

with a small, spherical underground tuber. It has a single green, red-blotched, sparsely hairy leaf, long and wide. One or two, creamy-white to pale yellow flowers across are borne on a dark coloured, hairy spike tall. The sepals and

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s taper to thin, blackish, thread-like tips and sometimes have red stripes. The dorsal sepal is erect, long, about wide and the lateral sepals are about the same length but wider and spread widely with drooping tips. The petals are long, about wide at the base and arranged similarly to the lateral sepals. The labellum is narrow triangular to egg-shaped, long, wide with its edges turned up and its tip rolled under. It is tawny to deep red with many pale red teeth up to long on its sides, decreasing in size towards its tip. There are four or six rows of foot-shaped, reddish calli along the centre line of the labellum. Flowering occurs from September to October.

Taxonomy and naming

''Caladenia fulva'' was first formally described by

Geoffrey Carr Geoffrey Carr (22 January 1886 – 13 July 1969) was a Great Britain, British rowing Coxswain (rowing), coxswain who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. Carr was born in Putney and became a member of Thames Rowing Club. He was the coxswain ...

in 1991 from a specimen collected near Stawell. The description was published in ''Indigenous Flora and Fauna Association Miscellaneous Paper 1''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''fulva'') is a Latin word meaning “tawny” or "reddish-yellow".

Distribution and habitat

The tawny spider orchid is only known from woodland near Stawell where it grows in well-drained soil.

Conservation

''Caladenia fulva'' is listed as "endangered" under the Victorian Government ''

Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 The ''Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988'', also known as the ''FFG Act'', is an act of the Victorian Government designed to protect species, genetic material and habitats, to prevent extinction and allow maximum genetic diversity within the Au ...

'' and the Australian Government '' Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999''. Only two populations totalling an estimated 650 plants in 2010 are known. The main threats to the species are its small population size, habitat loss and disturbance, and weed invasion. Both populations are in nature reserves.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15287574 fulva Plants described in 1991 Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of Victoria (state)