''Diuris aurea'', commonly known as the golden donkey orchid, is a species of orchid which is endemic to

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 ...

, growing in New South Wales and Queensland. It has one or two leaves at the base and two to five golden-yellow to orange flowers with some darker markings.

Description

''Diuris aurea'' is a tuberous, perennial, terrestrial

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 ...

, usually growing to a height of . There are one or two linear leaves, each long, wide and channelled. There are between 2 and 5 golden yellow to orange flowers with some darker markings on the labellum and dorsal sepal. The flower is about wide. The dorsal sepal is broad egg-shaped, long and wide and erect. The lateral sepals are linear to spoon-shaped, long, wide and hang below the flower, usually parallel to each other. 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 erect and spread, ear-like above the flower. They are broadly egg-shaped, long, wide on a dark coloured, stalk-like "claw", . The labellum is long and is divided into three lobes. The lateral lobes are narrow elliptic to wedge-shaped, long, wide with a few teeth on their edge. The medial lobe is wide with a ridge along its centre line and there is a two-part callus long. Flowering occurs from August to November. Diuris aurea labelled

Taxonomy and naming

''Diuris aurea'' was first formally described in 1804 by James Edward Smith and the description was published in his book ''Exotic Botany (Volume 1)''. 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 ...

(''aurea'') is derived from the Latin word ''aurum'' meaning "gold".

Distribution and habitat

In New South Wales, golden donkey orchid grows between Marulan and the

Hunter Valley The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and so ...

, growing in heathy and shrubby woodland and in grassy places in forest in areas near the coast. It also occurs in Queensland where its conservation status is "of least concern".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3032188 Orchids of New South Wales Endemic orchids of Australia

aurea Aurea, golden in Latin, may refer to: * Aurea (car), a former Italian automobile manufactured in Turin from 1921 to 1930 * Aurea (singer) (born 1987), Portuguese singer * Aurea Alexandrina, a kind of opiate or antidote * Áurea, a municipality in ...

Plants described in 1804 Taxa named by James Edward Smith