''Cephalanthera austiniae'' 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 ...

known as the phantom orchid and snow orchid because the entire plant is white except for a few yellow markings on the flowers. The orchid is native to the western

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

and

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

), and to

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. ''Cephalanthera austiniae'' is the only species of genus ''

Cephalanthera ''Cephalanthera'', abbreviated Ceph in horticultural trade, is a genus of mostly terrestrial orchids. Members of this genus have rhizomes rather than tubers. About 15 species are currently recognized, most of them native to Europe and Asia. The o ...

'' native to the

Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the term We ...

. This is also the only ''Cephalanthera'' species entirely dependent on symbiotic mycorrhizae for its nutrition. This

mycoheterotrophic Myco-heterotrophy (from Greek μύκης , "fungus", ἕτερος ', "another", "different" and τροφή ', "nutrition") is a symbiotic relationship between certain kinds of plants and fungi, in which the plant gets all or part of its food fro ...

orchid has no

chlorophyll Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words , ("pale green") and , ("leaf"). Chlorophyll allow plants to a ...

, so it makes no energy for itself.

Description

''Cephalanthera austiniae'' is a distinctive plant, rising from the dark, moist forest floor on waxy white stems and bearing orchid blossoms which are white or yellowish with yellow centers. Its leaves, if present, are rudimentary since such structures are not needed for collecting sunlight. Instead, this

mycoheterotroph Myco-heterotrophy (from Greek μύκης , "fungus", ἕτερος ', "another", "different" and τροφή ', "nutrition") is a symbiotic relationship between certain kinds of plants and fungi, in which the plant gets all or part of its food fro ...

derives both its energy and nutrients from

ectomycorrhiza An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycobi ...

l fungi representing a variety of taxa within the

Thelephoraceae The Thelephoraceae are a family of fungi in the order Thelephorales. This grouping of mushrooms is commonly known as the "leathery earthfans". Genera The family includes the following eight genera: * '' Amaurodon'' * '' Hypochnus'' * '' Lenzit ...

Conservation

The plant is becoming more scarce as its habitat—dense, isolated forest—becomes more rare. Climate change models forecast decline and possible extinction of this species by the year 2100Kolanowska, M., Kras, M., Lipińska, M. et al. Global warming not so harmful for all plants - response of holomycotrophic orchid species for the future climate change. Sci Rep 7, 12704 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-13088-7

References

External links

Info Sheet - Canadian Phantom Orchids

Photo gallery
{{Authority control austiniae Myco-heterotrophic orchids Orchids of Canada Orchids of the United States Orchids of California Flora of the West Coast of the United States Flora of British Columbia Flora of Idaho Flora of Nevada Flora of Oregon Flora of Washington (state) Flora of the Cascade Range Flora of the Klamath Mountains Flora of California Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California Coast Ranges Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges Plants described in 1877 Flora without expected TNC conservation status