Bulbophyllum grandimesense explained

Bulbophyllum grandimesense, commonly known as the pale rope orchid,[1] is a species of epiphytic orchid with well-spaced pseudobulbs and brown bracts arranged along the stems. Each pseudobulb has a single, fleshy, dark green leaf and usually only a single white flower with thread-like tips on the sepals. It grows on rainforest trees in a small area of tropical North Queensland.

Description

Bulbophyllum grandimesense is an epiphytic herb with branching stems NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and covered with brown bracts. The pseudobulbs are NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long, about 3sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide and well-spaced along the stems. Each pseudobulb has a thick, fleshy, dark green leaf NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 wide on a stalk NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2. A single white flower NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long and NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 wide is borne on a thread-like flowering stem about 1.5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long. The sepals are fleshy, NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long, about 2sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide and the petals about 2.5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and 1.5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. The labellum is about 2.5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and 1.5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide, fleshy and curved. Flowering occurs from May to June.[2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

Bulbophyllum grandimesense was first formally described in 1989 by Bruce Gray who published the description in Austrobaileya from a specimen he collected near Rossville.[4] The specific epithet (grandimesense) is derived from the Latin word grandis meaning "great"[5] and the Spanish word mesa meaning "table", referring to the "Big Tableland" near Rossville where this species is found.

Distribution and habitat

The pale rope orchid grows on the upper branches of rainforest trees in the Cedar Bay National Park.

Notes and References

  1. Book: Jones. David L.. A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. 2006. New Holland. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.. 1877069124. 428.
  2. Web site: D.L.Jones . T.Hopley . S.M.Duffy . David L. Jones (botanist) . 2010 . 28 May 2021 . Factsheet - Oxysepala grandimesensis . . Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government.
  3. Gray . Bruce . New species of Bulbophyllum section Oxysepalum (Orchidaceae) in Australia . Austrobaileya . 1989 . 3 . 1 . 141–142.
  4. Web site: Bulbophyllum grandimesense. APNI. 8 December 2018.
  5. Book: Brown. Roland Wilbur. The Composition of Scientific Words. 1956. Smithsonian Institution Press. Washington, D.C..