''Caladenia ampla'', commonly known as the dainty spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to Victoria. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single flower which is sometimes yellowish-green flower with red stripes and sometimes entirely red.

Description

''Caladenia ampla'' is a terrestrial,

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

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 an underground tuber and a single hairy leaf, long and wide. A single flower (rarely two) is borne on a spike up to high. The dorsal

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

is erect, oblong to lance-shaped, long and about wide. It tapers near the end which terminates in a glandular structure long. The lateral sepals are oblong to lance-shaped, long, wide and end in a gland similar to the one on the dorsal sepal. The

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 are long, wide and taper to a point. The labellum is a broad egg-shape, curves forward, long and wide when flattened. The labellum is cream-coloured with red veins and a dark red tip, sometimes entirely red. There are 9 to 12 pairs of calli along the edge of the labellum, decreasing in length towards its front. There are four rows of foot-shaped calli in the centre of the labellum, also smaller towards the tip. Flowering occurs in September and October.

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first formally described by David L. Jones in 2006 and given the name ''Arachnorchis ampla''. The description was published in ''Australian Orchid Research''. In 2007, Gary Backhouse changed the name to ''Caladenia ampla'' and the change was published in "The Victorian Naturalist". 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 ...

(ampla) is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word meaning "large", referring to the unusually broad labellum of this orchid.

Distribution and habitat

''Caladenia ampla'' is only known from the

goldfields region of Victoria The Goldfields region of Victoria is a region commonly used but typically defined in both historical geography and tourism geography (in particular heritage tourism). The region is also known as the Victorian Golden Triangle. Description I ...

where it grows in mallee scrub and

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

Conservation

This species is classified as "Endangered" by the Victorian government.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q9673290 ampla Plants described in 1994 Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of Victoria (state) Taxa named by David L. Jones (botanist)