''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy stems, pleated leaves and widely-opening flowers with thin, spreading 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. They are widely distributed in the tropics.

Description

Orchids in the genus ''Corymborkis'' are terrestrial, evergreen

herbs 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 ...

which often grow in clumps and have short

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

s and thin, wiry stems. One or more thin, unbranched stems arise from the same rhizome and have many papery, pleated, egg-shaped to elliptic leaves near their top half. A branching flowering stem develops from the upper leaf

axil A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

s and carry crowded, widely-opening flowers. The flowers are greenish white and usually have thin, spreading sepals and petals which are similar to each other, with the petals slightly wider than the sepals. The labellum is about as long as the sepals, closely surrounds the

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...

and has a tube-like base and two longitudinal ridges.

Taxonomy and naming

The genus ''Corymborkis'' was first formally described in 1809 by Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars and the description was published in ''Bulletin de la Société philomathique de Paris''. The name ''Corymborkis'' is derived from the Ancient Greek words ''korymbos'' meaning "bunch of flowers or fruit" and ''orchis'' meaning "testicle" or "orchid", referring to the bunched flowers of these orchids.

Distribution and habitat

Orchids in this genus are found in tropical Africa, India,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, including on Christmas Island. They usually grow in moist, shady places in rainforest.

List of species

The following is a list of species of ''Corymborkis'' recognised by the '' World Checklist of Selected Plant Families'' as at August 2018: * ''

Corymborkis corymbis ''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy stem ...

'' Thouars - Africa from Guinea to Ethiopia to South Africa; Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion * ''

Corymborkis flava ''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy stem ...

'' (Sw.) Kuntze - South America, Central America, Cuba, Jamaica * ''

Corymborkis forcipigera ''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy stem ...

'' (Rchb.f. & Warsz.) L.O.Williams - Mexico, Central America, West Indies, Colombia * ''

Corymborkis galipanensis ''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy ...

'' (Rchb.f.) Foldats - Venezuela * '' Corymborkis guyanensis'' Szlach. S.Nowak & Baranow - Guyana * '' Corymborkis harlingii'' Szlach. & Kolan - Colombia to Ecuador * ''

Corymborkis minima ''Corymborkis'', commonly known as cinnamon orchids, or 管花兰属 (guan hua lan shu) is a genus of eight species of orchids in the family Orchidaceae. They are evergreen, terrestrial plants which grow in clumps and have thin roots, leafy ...

'' P.J.Cribb - Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea * ''

Corymborkis veratrifolia ''Corymborkis veratrifolia'', commonly known as the white cinnamon orchid is a plant in the orchid family and is native to areas from tropical and subtropical Asia to Australia and the Pacific Islands. It is an evergreen, terrestrial orchid with ...

'' (Reinw.) Blume - China, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Queensland, Pacific Islands

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q133281 Tropidieae genera Terrestrial orchids Orchids of Africa Orchids of Asia Orchids of Oceania