''Pterostylis echinulata'', commonly known as the hairy-leafed snail orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the

south-west The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

of Western Australia. Both flowering and non-flowering plants have a compact rosette of leaves flat on the ground and flowering plants have a single pale yellowish-green flower. Pterostylis echinulata rosette

Description

''Pterostylis echinulata'' 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 an underground tuber and a compact rosette of leaves in diameter. Flowering plants have a single pale yellowish-green flower long and wide on a densely hairy flowering stem high. There is a single stem leaf long and wide on the flowering stem. The dorsal sepal 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 are fused, forming a slightly inflated hood or "galea" over 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. ...

. The lateral sepals are held close to the galea almost closing the front of the flower and have erect, thread-like tips long. The labellum is broad but not visible from outside the flower. Flowering occurs in June and July.

Taxonomy and naming

''Pterostylis echinulata'' was first formally described in 2014 by David Jones and

Christopher French Christopher French could refer to: *Christopher French (theologian) (fl. c. 1650–c.1713), Irish professor of divinity *Chris French (Christopher Charles French) (born 1956), British psychologist *Christopher French (judge) (1925–2003), British ...

from a specimen collected near

Kulin Kulin may refer to: Places *Kulin, Western Australia, a small town in Australia ** Shire of Kulin, a local government area *Kulin, Iran, a village near Tehran *Kulin, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, a village in south-west Poland *Kulin, Kuyavian-Pome ...

and the description was published in ''Australian Orchid Review''. The species had previously been known as ''Pterostylis'' sp. 'hairy leaf'. 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 ...

(''echinulata'') is a Latin word meaning "with very small prickles, alluding to the impression imparted by the siliceous cells present on the leaves, scape and ovary of this species".

Distribution and habitat

The hairy-leafed snail orchid grows under small shrubs in open woodland in the Mallee

biogeographic region An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

Conservation

''Pterostylis echinulata'' is classified as " Priority One" by the Western Australian Government

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 it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q33429756 echinulata Endemic orchids of Australia Orchids of Western Australia Plants described in 2014