''Luisia'', commonly known as velvet orchids
or 钗子股属 (chai zi gu shu),
is a genus of
epiphytic
An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...
or
lithophytic
Lithophytes are plants that grow in or on rocks. They can be classified as either epilithic (or epipetric) or endolithic; epilithic lithophytes grow on the surfaces of rocks, while endolithic lithophytes grow in the crevices of rocks (and are als ...
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 ...
s in
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus have flattened roots, long leafy stems, narrow, thick, leathery leaves and short-lived flowers that open sporadically. There are about forty species found from
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in
the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
and
subtropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Geographical z ...
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
to the
Western Pacific.
Description
Orchids in the genus ''Luisia'' are epiphytic or lithophytic,
monopodial
Vascular plants with monopodial growth habits grow upward from a single point. They add leaves to the apex each year and the stem grows longer accordingly. The word ''Monopodial'' is derived from Greek "mono-", ''one'' and "podial", "foot", in refe ...
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 ...
with long, fibrous stems and thick, more or less flattened roots. A large number of cylinder-shaped, narrow leathery leaves are arranged along the stems. Up to ten
resupinate
Resupination is derived from the Latin word ''resupinus'', meaning "bent back
with the face upward" or "on the back". "Resupination" is the noun form of the adjective "resupine" which means "being upside-down, supine or facing upward".
The word " ...
, usually small, fleshy flowers are arranged on a short, thickened flowering stem and open sporadically. Each flower has a short, curved stalk 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 that are longer than the
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...
s. The
labellum is large and fleshy with an upper
epichile separated by a groove from the lower concave hypochile. The labellum has a rigid connection to 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. ...
.
Taxonomy and naming
The genus ''Luisia'' was first formally described in 1829 by
Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré
Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré (September 4, 1789 – January 16, 1854) was a French botanist.
Biography
Gaudichaud was born in Angoulême, to J-J. Gaudichaud and Rose (Mallat) Gaudichaud. He studied pharmacology informally at Cognac and Angoulême, ...
and the description was published in ''Voyage autour du monde fait par ordre du Roi sur les corvettes de S. M. l'Uranie et la Physicienne''.
The name ''Luisia'' honours Don Luis de Torres who assisted the French expedition at
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
.
Distribution
Orchids in the genus ''Luisia'' occur in
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Indochina
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
,
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
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
,
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 ...
,
Micronesia
Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of about 2,000 small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: the Philippines to the west, Polynesia to the east, and ...
and
Melanesia
Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea.
The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Va ...
.
Species list
The following is a list of species of ''Luisia'' accepted by the
World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (usually abbreviated to WCSP) is an "international collaborative programme that provides the latest peer reviewed and published opinions on the accepted scientific names and synonyms of selected plan ...
as at December 2018:
* ''
Luisia abrahami''
Vatsala in A.Abraham & P.Vatsala, 1981
* ''
Luisia amesiana''
Rolfe, 1893
* ''
Luisia antennifera''
Blume, 1849
* ''
Luisia appressifolia''
Aver., 2000
* ''
Luisia balakrishnanii''
S.Misra 2010
* ''
Luisia brachystachys''
(Lindl.) Blume, 1849
* ''
Luisia cantharis''
Rolfe, 1895
* ''
Luisia celebica''
Schltr., 1911
* ''
Luisia confusa''
Rchb.f. in W.G.Walpers, 1863
* ''
Luisia cordatilabia''
Ames & Quisumb. (1933, publ. 1934)
* ''
Luisia curtisii''
Seidenf., 1997
* ''
Luisia filiformis''
Hook.f., 1890
* ''
Luisia foxworthii''
Ames, 1908
* ''
Luisia hancockii''
Rolfe, 1896
* ''
Luisia javanica''
J.J.Sm., 1914
* ''
Luisia jonesii''
J.J.Sm., 1914
* ''
Luisia longispica''
Z.H.Tsi & S.C.Chen, 1994
* ''
Luisia lui''
T.C.Hsu & S.W.Chung 2010
* ''
Luisia macrantha''
Blatt. & McCann, 1932
* ''
Luisia macrotis''
Rchb.f., 1869
* ''
Luisia magniflora''
Z.H.Tsi & S.C.Chen, 1994
* ''
Luisia megasepala''
Hayata, 1914
* ''
Luisia microptera''
Rchb.f., 1870
* ''
Luisia morsei''
Rolfe, 1903
* ''
Luisia occidentalis''
Lindl. 1853
* ''
Luisia parviflora''
Aver. 2015
* ''
Luisia primulina''
C.S.P.Parish & Rchb.f., 1874
* ''
Luisia psyche''
Rchb.f., 1863
* ''
Luisia ramosii''
Ames, 1911
* ''
Luisia recurva''
Seidenf., 1971
* ''
Luisia secunda''
Seidenf., 1971
* ''
Luisia taurina''
J.J.Sm., 1910
* ''
Luisia tenuifolia''
Blume, 1849
* ''
Luisia teres''
(Thunb.) Blume, 1849
* ''
Luisia thailandica''
Seidenf., 1971
* ''
Luisia trichorhiza''
(Hook.) Blume, 1849
* ''
Luisia tristis''
(G.Forst.) Hook.f., 1890
* ''
Luisia unguiculata''
J.J.Sm., 1926
* ''
Luisia volucris''
Lindl., 1853
* ''
Luisia zeylanica''
Lindl. 1853
* ''
Luisia zollingeri''
Rchb.f. in W.G.Walpers, 1863
Intergeneric hybrids
*x ''Aeridisia'' (''Aerides'' x ''Luisia'')
*x ''Aeridovanisia '' (''Aerides'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Ascogastisia'' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Gastrochilus'' x ''Luisia'')
*x ''Debruyneara '' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Dominyara '' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Neofinetia'' x ''Rhynchostylis'' )
*x ''Gastisia '' (''Gastrochilus'' x ''Luisia'')
*x ''Gastisocalpa '' (''Gastrochilus'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Pomatocalpa'')
*x ''Goffara '' (''Luisia'' x ''Rhynchostylis '' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Luascotia'' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Neofinetia'')
*x ''Luicentrum'' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Luisia'')
*x ''Luichilus'' (''Luisia'' x ''Sarcochilus'')
*x ''Luinetia '' (''Luisia'' x ''Neofinetia'')
*x ''Luinopsis '' (''Luisia'' x ''Phalaenopsis'')
*x ''Luisanda '' (''Luisia'' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Luistylis '' (''Luisia'' x ''Rhynchostylis'' )
*x ''Luivanetia'' (''Luisia'' x ''Neofinetia'' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Pageara '' (''Ascocentrum'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Rhynchostylis'' x ''Vanda'')
*x ''Papilisia'' (''Papilionanthe'' x ''Luisia'') One species of ''Papilionanthe'' was re-classified as a hybrid with this genus (''
× Papilisia taiwaniana'')
*x ''Pomatisia '' (''Luisia'' x ''Pomatocalpa'')
*x ''Scottara'' (''Aerides'' x ''Arachnis'' x ''Luisia'')
*x ''Trautara '' (''Doritis'' x ''Luisia'' x ''Phalaenopsis'')
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2456301
Vandeae genera
Epiphytic orchids