''Caladenia leptoclavia'', commonly known as the thin-clubbed spider orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and a single pale cream-coloured to yellow flower with dark reddish stripes.

Description

''Caladenia leptoclavia'' 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 an underground tuber and a single, lance-shaped, dull green hairy leaf, long and wide with a reddish base. Usually only a single cream-coloured to yellow flower with dark reddish, central stripes is borne on a thin, wiry, hairy spike tall. The sepals have thin, dark red to blackish club-like ends long. The dorsal sepal is erect, long and about wide near the base. The lateral sepals are a similar size and shape to the dorsal sepal but spread widely and stiffly. 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 and about wide and droop slightly. The labellum is egg-shaped to heart-shaped, about long and wide and is sometimes all red, or dark maroon with a white base. The tip of the labellum curls under and there are between eight and ten red teeth up to long on each side of the labellum. There are four rows of calli long along the mid-line of the labellum and which decrease in size towards the tip. Flowering occurs from September to October.

Taxonomy and naming

''Caladenia leptoclavia'' was first formally described by David Jones in 1991 from a specimen collected near Bethungra, and the description was published in ''Australian Orchid Research''. 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 ...

(''leptoclavia'') is derived from the Ancient Greek word λεπτός ''leptos'' meaning "thin" or "slender", and the Latin word ''clava'' meaning "club", referring to the thin "clubs" on the sepals.

Distribution and habitat

Thin-clubbed spider orchid has a restricted distribution in New South Wales where it is only known from near Bethungra, Cowra and

Eugowra Eugowra is a town in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is split between Forbes Shire and Cabonne Shire local government area, west of the state capital, Sydney. At the , Eugowra had a population of 779. Geogr ...

where it grows in forest.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q9673704 leptoclavia Plants described in 1991 Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of New South Wales Taxa named by David L. Jones (botanist)