''Corybas limpidus'', commonly known as the crystal helmet orchid, is a species of terrestrial orchid endemic to Western Australia. It has round or heart-shaped leaf and a translucent greenish flower with dark red or

burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

-coloured spots and blotches. The edges of the labellum have a few short, blunt teeth.

Description

''Corybas limpidus'' 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 single thin, round or broad heart-shaped leaf long and wide. The leaf is green on the upper surface and silvery green on the lower side. There is a single erect, translucent green flower with dark red spots and blotches, long and wide. The dorsal sepal is burgundy-coloured, long and wide and curves forward over the labellum. The lateral sepals are green, about long, wide, joined at their bases and taper to a fine tip. 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 about long, wide and taper to a thread-like tip. The labellum is longer than the dorsal sepal, long, wide with a greenish mound in the centre. The edges of the labellum have a few short, blunt teeth. Flowering occurs in August and September.

Taxonomy

''Corybas limpidus'' was first formally described in 1991 by David Jones, in ''Australian Orchid Research'', based on specimens collected near Albany in 1986. 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 ...

(''limpidus'') is a Latin word meaning "clear", "transparent" or "pure", referring to the dorsal sepal and part of the labellum. In 2002, David Jones and Mark Clements proposed splitting ''Corybas'' into smaller genera and placing this species into ''Corysanthes'' but the change has not been widely accepted.

Distribution and habitat

The crystal helmet orchid grows under dense shrubs between sand dunes in coastal areas from Esperance to Walpole in the Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest and

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...

biogeographic regions A biogeographic realm or ecozone is the broadest biogeographic division of Earth's land surface, based on distributional patterns of terrestrial organisms. They are subdivided into bioregions, which are further subdivided into ecoregions. De ...

Conservation

''Corybas limpidus'' is classified as " Priority Four" by the Government of Western Australia

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and e ...

, meaning that is rare or near threatened.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15434592 limpidus Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of Western Australia Plants described in 1991