Pterostylis ferruginea, commonly known as the Bangham rustyhood,[1] is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to the border area between South Australia and Victoria. It has a rosette of leaves and when flowering, up to ten upright, dark green and translucent white flowers which have an insect-like labellum.
Pterostylis ferruginea, is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber. It has a rosette of between six and ten egg-shaped leaves NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. Flowering plants have a rosette at the base of the flowering spike but the leaves are usually withered by flowering time. Between two and ten dark green flowers with translucent white panels and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long are borne on a flowering stem up to 400sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 tall. The flowers are erect and there are between three and eight stem leaves wrapped around the flowering stem. The dorsal sepal and petals form a hood or "galea" over the column with the dorsal sepal having an upturned, thread-like tip NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long. The lateral sepals turn downwards with their outer edges rolled inwards, and have tapered tips. The labellum is fleshy, insect-like, about 4sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and 2sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide and has a thickened "head" end with short hairs and four to eight longer hairs on each side of the "body". Flowering occurs from September to November.[2]
This rustyhood orchid was first formally described in 2009 by David Jones who gave it the name Oligochaetochilus ferrugineus. The description was published in The Orchadian from a specimen collected in the Padthaway Conservation Park.[3] In 2010 Gary Backhouse changed the name to Pterostylis ferruginea.[4] The specific epithet (ferruginea) is a Latin word meaning "rusty" or "rust-coloured".[5]
The Bangham rustyhood is only known from the Wimmera area of western Victoria and the far south-east of South Australia where it grows in heathy forest and woodland.[6]