''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of about eighty 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 ...

s in the tribe

Cranichideae Cranichideae is an orchid tribe in the subfamily Orchidoideae. See also * Taxonomy of the Orchidaceae The taxonomy of the Orchidaceae (orchid family) has evolved slowly during the last 250 years, starting with Carl Linnaeus who in 1753 recogniz ...

. They are

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to parts of tropical

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

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 ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

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 ...

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 ...

and some

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

. They have relatively narrow, dark green leaves and small, dull-coloured

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 " ...

flowers with the dorsal

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 ...

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 overlapping to form a hood 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 labellum has a pouched base and its tip has two lobes.

Description

Orchids in the genus ''Zeuxine'' are terrestrial,

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

, sympodial

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 a fleshy, creeping, above-ground

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 ...

anchored by wiry roots. The leaves are thinly textured and stalked, arranged in a rosette at the base of the flowering stem or scattered along it. Small, resupinate dull-coloured flowers are often crowded along the short flowering stem which usually has protruding

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

s. The dorsal sepal and petals overlap, forming a hood over the column. The lateral sepals overlap the base of the labellum which is usually white, has a pouched base and a number of stalkless

glands In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

. The column is short with two stigmas.

Taxonomy and naming

The genus ''Zeuxine'' was first formally described in 1826 by

John Lindley John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley w ...

who gave it the name ''Zeuxina'' but ''Zeuxine'' is the nom. cons. The description was published in the appendix of ''Collectanea Botanica''. The name ''Zeuxine'' is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word ''zeuxis'' meaning "joining" or "yoking" in apparent reference to either the partly fused column or to the pollinia.

Distribution and habitat

Plants in the genus ''Zeuxine'' usually grow in dark, moist forests where the humidity is always high or near swamps and seepage areas. They occur in tropical regions between Africa and Asia, in Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some Pacific Islands. Fourteen species are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to China and ten in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. ''

Zeuxine strateumatica ''Zeuxine strateumatica'', common names lawn orchid or soldier orchid, is a species of terrestrial orchids. It is widespread across much of Asia, including China, Japan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Iran, the Indian Subcontinent, Afghanistan, and Southeas ...

'' is

naturalised Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...

on the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...

and in the south-eastern

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 ...

List of species

The following is a list of species of ''Zeuxine'' recognised 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 August 2018: *'' Zeuxine affinis'' (Lindl.) Benth. ex Hook.f. *'' Zeuxine africana'' Rchb.f. *'' Zeuxine agyokuana'' Fukuy. *'' Zeuxine amboinensis'' (J.J.Sm.) J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine andamanica'' King & Pantl. *'' Zeuxine arisanensis'' Hayata *'' Zeuxine baliensis'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine ballii'' P.J.Cribb *'' Zeuxine bifalcifera'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine blatteri'' C.E.C.Fisch. *'' Zeuxine bougainvilleana'' Ormerod *''

Zeuxine chowdheryi ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' Av.Bhattacharjee & Sabap. *'' Zeuxine clandestina'' Blume *'' Zeuxine cordata'' (Lindl.) Ormerod *''

Zeuxine curvata ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine diversifolia'' Ormerod *'' Zeuxine elatior'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine elmeri'' (Ames) Ames *''

Zeuxine elongata ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' Rolfe *''

Zeuxine erimae ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' Schltr. in K.M.Schumann & C.A.G.Lauterbach *''

Zeuxine exilis ''Zeuxine exilis'', commonly known as Ridley's jewel orchid or the slender jewel orchid, is a species of orchid that is Endemism, endemic to Christmas Island where it grows in rainforest. It has three or four egg-shaped leaves and up to thirty sm ...

'' Ridl. *'' Zeuxine flava'' (Wall. ex Lindl.) Trimen *'' Zeuxine fritzii'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine gengmanensis'' (K.Y.Lang) Ormerod *'' Zeuxine gilgiana'' Kraenzl. & Schltr. *''

Zeuxine glandulosa ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' King & Pantl. *'' Zeuxine goodyeroides'' Lindl. *'' Zeuxine gracilis'' (Breda) Blume *'' Zeuxine integrilabella'' C.S.Leou *'' Zeuxine kantokeiensis'' Tatew. & Masam. *'' Zeuxine kutaiensis'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine lancifolia'' (Ames) Ormerod *'' Zeuxine leucoptera'' Schltr. *''

Zeuxine leytensis ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some Pacific Islands. They ...

'' (Ames) Ames *'' Zeuxine lindleyana'' T.Cooke *'' Zeuxine longilabris'' (Lindl.) Trimen *'' Zeuxine lunulata'' P.J.Cribb & J.Bowden *'' Zeuxine macrorhyncha'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine madagascariensis'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine marivelensis'' (Ames) Ames *'' Zeuxine membranacea'' Lindl. *'' Zeuxine mindanaensis'' (Ames) Ormerod *'' Zeuxine montana'' Schltr. in K.M.Schumann & C.A.G.Lauterbach *'' Zeuxine mooneyi'' S.Misra *'' Zeuxine nervosa'' (Wall. ex Lindl.) Benth. ex Trimen *'' Zeuxine niijimai'' Tatew. & Masam. *'' Zeuxine oblonga'' R.S.Rogers & C.T.White *'' Zeuxine odorata'' Fukuy. *'' Zeuxine ovalifolia'' L.Li & S.J.Li *'' Zeuxine ovata'' (Gaudich.) Garay & W.Kittr. *''

Zeuxine palawensis ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some Pacific Islands. They ...

'' Tuyama *''

Zeuxine palustris ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some Pacific Islands. They ...

'' Ridl. *'' Zeuxine papillosa'' Carr *'' Zeuxine parvifolia'' (Ridl.) Seidenf. *''

Zeuxine petakensis ''Zeuxine'', commonly known as verdant jewel orchids, is a genus of about eighty species of orchids in the tribe Cranichideae. They are Indigenous (ecology), native to parts of tropical Africa, Asia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some ...

'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine philippinensis'' (Ames) Ames *'' Zeuxine plantaginea'' (Rchb.f.) Benth. & Hook.f. ex Drake *'' Zeuxine purpurascens'' Blume *'' Zeuxine reflexa'' King & Pantl. *'' Zeuxine regia'' (Lindl.) Trimen *'' Zeuxine reginasilvae'' Ormerod *'' Zeuxine rolfiana'' King & Pantl. *'' Zeuxine rupestris'' Ridl. *'' Zeuxine samoensis'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine stammleri'' Schltr. *'' Zeuxine stenophylla'' (Rchb.f.) Benth. & Hook.f. ex Drake *''

'' (L.) Schltr. *'' Zeuxine tenuifolia'' Tuyama *'' Zeuxine tjiampeana'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine tonkinensis'' Gagnep. *'' Zeuxine triangula'' J.J.Sm. *'' Zeuxine vietnamica'' Aver. *'' Zeuxine violascens'' Ridl. *'' Zeuxine viridiflora'' (J.J.Sm.) Schltr. **'' Zeuxine viridiflora'' var. ''latifolia'' J.J.Sm. **'' Zeuxine viridiflora'' var. ''viridiflora''. *'' Zeuxine weberi'' (Ames) Ames *'' Zeuxine wenzelii'' (Ames) Ormerod

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q782311 Cranichideae genera