Caladenia subtilis
Caladenia subtilis, commonly known as the delicate spider orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to New South Wales. It has a single leaf and a single greenish to cream-coloured flower with dark red tips on the sepals.
Description
Caladenia subtilis is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single leaf, long and wide. A single greenish to cream-coloured flower wide is borne on a stalk tall. The sepals have dark red, club-like glandular tips long. The dorsal sepal is erect, long and about wide. The lateral sepals are long, about wide and spread apart from each other, curving downwards. The petals are long, about wide and arranged like the lateral sepals. The labellum is long, wide and whitish with a dark red, downcurved tip. The sides of the labellum have red teeth and there are four or six rows of dark red calli up to long, along the mid-line of the labellum. Flowering occurs from October to November.
Taxonomy and naming
Caladenia subtilis was first described in 1999 by David Jones from a specimen collected in a state forest near Nowendoc and the description was published in The Orchadian. The specific epithet is a Latin word meaning "fine", "delicate" or "nice".
Distribution and habitat
The delicate spider orchid is only known from areas near Nowendoc and Nundle where it grows in open forest.