''Caleana disjuncta'', commonly known as the little duck orchid, is a species of

orchid 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 ...

that is found in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

but with a few disjunct populations in Victoria and

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. It has a single smooth leaf and a single greenish yellow and red flower with a flattened labellum, the calli only near its tip.

Description

''Caleana disjuncta'' has a single smooth, dull green or dull red leaf, long and wide. Usually only one greenish yellow and red flower, long and wide is borne on a thin, wiry stalk high. The dorsal sepal, lateral 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 are long, wide and hang downwards. The dorsal sepal is pressed against the column which has broad wings, forming a bucket-like shape. The labellum is about long on the end of a strap-like stalk about long. The labellum is flattened and only about one-third of the outer part of the labellum is covered with glossy black

glands In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

or calli. Flowering occurs from October to December.

Taxonomy and naming

The little duck orchid was first formally described in 2003 by David Jones from a specimen collected in the

Cox Scrub Conservation Park Cox Scrub Conservation Park (formerly Cox's Scrub National Park) is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located in the gazetted localities of Ashbourne and Nangkita about south of the state capital of Adelaide. The co ...

. Jones gave it the name ''Paracaleana disjuncta'' and published the description in '' The Orchadian''. A 2014 paper reported that molecular studies had suggested that ''Caleana'' and ''Paracaleana'' are congeneric, so the present species was renamed ''Caleana disjuncta''. The Western Australian Herbarium and several recent field guides to the orchids of Western Australia retain the name ''Paracaleana disjuncta''. 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 ...

(''disjuncta'') 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 "separate", "distinct", "different" or "remote", referring to the widely separated populations of this orchid.

Distribution and habitat

''Caleana disjuncta'' mainly grows in shrubland between Margaret River and

Israelite Bay Israelite Bay is a bay and locality on the south coast of Western Australia. Situated in the Shire of Esperance local government area, it lies east of Esperance and the Cape Arid National Park, within the Nuytsland Nature Reserve and the Grea ...

in Western Australia but there are small populations at three locations in the south-east of South Australia and two in Victoria in and near the

Grampians National Park The Grampians National Park commonly referred to as The Grampians, is a national park located in the Grampians region of Victoria, Australia. The Jardwadjali name for the mountain range itself is Gariwerd. The national park is situated betwee ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q42705427 disjuncta Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of South Australia Orchids of Victoria (state) Orchids of Western Australia