The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Corybas vitreus

Etymology

Corybas: helmet flower
vitreus: Meaning 'of glass or glassy' as in transparent, glass-like and often green tinged

Common Name(s)

spider orchid

Current Conservation Status

2016 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Authority

Corybas vitreus Lehnebach

Family

Orchidaceae

Brief Description

Terrestrial, seasonal orchid. Leaves solitary, heart-shaped, distinctly mucronate. Flowers solitary, central portion mostly translucent ('glass-like').

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Orchids

Synonyms

None - first described in 2016

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand, southern North Island and South Islands.

Habitat

Locally common in beech forest (Fuscospora or Lophozonia (Nothofagaceae)) and Kunzea / Leptospermum schrubland / forest, usually growing in leaf litter at altitudes between 600 to 1300 m.

Features

Terrestrial herbs, 14–30 mm tall at flowering. Leaf distinctly petiolate, petiole 3.3–24.7 mm long; lamina cordiform, 3.3–14.1 × 7.8–19.6 mm; margin entire; apex mucronate with mucro 0.2–2.8 mm long. Flower solitary, held erect on a peduncle 0.7–8.1 mm long; floral bract triangular to widely deltoid when flattened, 1.8–6.8 × 1.3–3.2 mm; dorsal sepal pale green and less often with a few maroon streaks, concave to cucullate, arching over the labellum, narrow at the base and widely spathulate towards the tip, apex retuse to emarginated; lateral sepals linear-filiform, whitish to pale maroon, 12.0–26.7 mm long; petals are similar to the lateral sepals but longer, 21.3–56.5 mm long; labellum lamina mostly translucent, less often with a few streaks of maroon, covered with short trichomes, auriculate at base, aperture 1.2–2.6 mm in diameter; lamina deflexed, ca. 7 mm wide, with a central groove formed by the inwards folding of the lamina, extending downwards half way the labellum and sunken pit formed at the point where the lamina bends; lateral margin of the labellum incurving, entire, with a non-isometric dark maroon to purple band, lower margin translucent, straight and erose. Ovary 4.5–8.4 mm long. Column 1.8 mm long, straight, round wings flanking the stigma. Senescent flowers with apex of the dorsal sepal pressing against the labellum blocking access to the column.

Similar Taxa

Corybas vitreus is morphologically close to C. walliae both having a similar overall pale coloured flower but C. vitreus differs from C. walliae by its translucent labellum lamina with a non-isometric, dark maroon to purple band along the lateral margin and straight translucent lower margin. Corybas vitreus is distinguished from C. trilobus by its broadly ovate flower in frontal view and emarginate to retuse dorsal sepal.

Flowering

September to October

Flower Colours

Green

Fruiting

November to early January

Propagation Technique

Difficult - should not be removed from the wild

Threats

Lehnebach et al. (2016) assess this species using the New Zealand Threat Classification System as "Not Threatened". This decision has yet to be ratified by the Threat Listing panel.

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 13 Aug 2018