Orchideaceae

Orchideaceae

Eulophia dabia 

Orchideaceae

Dendrobium transparens 

Orchideaceae

Dendrobium amoenum

Orchideaceae

Spathoglottis ixioides

Orchideaceae

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium aloifolium

by GP Jürgens

(L.) Sw.

Nepal 97 589 P1136
Nepal Sabha-Khola 560m May
Nepal 97 590 P1138
Nepal Sabha-Khola 560m May

Description

Cymbidium aloifolium is a widespread tropical Asian orchid recorded by GBIF (638 occurrences) from India, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Myanmar and Bhutan, alongside cultivated records farther afield. It is a robust epiphyte, and occasional lithophyte, of warm, seasonally dry lowland and submontane forest, growing on tree trunks and large branches and on rocky outcrops, generally below about 1000 m. The plant photographed in the Sabha Khola of Nepal at only 560 m in May represents its characteristic low-elevation, pre-monsoon flowering, the lowest-altitude species treated in this group.

The species forms dense clumps of ovoid pseudobulbs largely concealed by leaf bases. The leaves are several, distichous, thick and rigidly coriaceous, linear-ligulate and unequally bilobed at the apex, recalling those of an Aloe and giving the species its epithet. The inflorescence is a long, pendulous raceme bearing numerous closely set flowers. The sepals and petals are similar, oblong, pale yellow to cream and marked with a broad central reddish-brown to maroon stripe; the three-lobed labellum echoes this colouring, with erect lateral lobes and a recurved mid-lobe, and bears two longitudinal keels on the disc. The stout column carries waxy pollinia, and the fruit is an ellipsoid capsule.

Cymbidium aloifolium belongs to the section of pendulous-racemed, drought-tolerant epiphytic species adapted to monsoonal climates, in which the rigid leaves and water-storing pseudobulbs buffer the long dry season. The flowers are bee-pollinated, and the species is much collected for horticulture and traditional medicine. Although still locally common, like all Cymbidium it is listed on CITES Appendix II to regulate international trade in wild plants.

Author: (L.) Sw. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, Flora of Nepal, The Genus Cymbidium (Du Puy & Cribb)

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium crassifolium

by GP Jürgens

Wall.

Nepal 97 58 G90
Nepal Mewa-Khola 1160m April
Nepal 97 59 G93
Nepal Mewa-Khola 1160m April

Description

Cymbidium crassifolium Wall. is an epiphytic to lithophytic orchid of the warm subtropical Himalaya and adjacent Southeast Asia, recorded from Nepal, Bhutan, north-east India, Myanmar, Thailand and southern China. It grows in broad-leaved evergreen and semi-deciduous forest at low to moderate elevations, frequently perched on mossy tree trunks, on shaded rock faces or on steep humus-covered banks in humid ravines. The photographed population from the Mewa-Khola valley of eastern Nepal at 1160 m, flowering in April, typifies its preference for lower hill forests near the warm-temperate transition, where it relies on free drainage, dappled light and a seasonal alternation of monsoon rains and a drier cool season.

The plant forms clustered, ovoid to spindle-shaped pseudobulbs partly enclosed by leaf bases, bearing several thick, leathery, linear-ligulate leaves (the epithet crassifolium referring to their fleshy texture). The inflorescence is an arching to pendent lateral raceme carrying numerous fragrant, relatively small flowers. Sepals and petals are narrow and spreading, yellowish to dull olive or brownish-green, often veined with maroon; the trilobed labellum is whitish marked with red-purple spotting and bears longitudinal keels on the disc. The fused column and stalked pollinia are typical of the genus, pollination being followed by an erect, ellipsoid dehiscent capsule.

The name has frequently been confused with the closely allied Cymbidium mannii, with which it shares the pendent, multiflowered habit. POWO accepts C. crassifolium as a distinct species within section Cymbidium. As a member of a genus heavily collected for the ornamental trade, wild populations are subject to over-collection and habitat loss; like all Orchidaceae it is listed under CITES, underscoring the need for in-situ protection of its subtropical forest habitat.

Author: Wall. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, The Genus Cymbidium (Du Puy & Cribb), Orchids of Nepal, CITES Orchid Checklist

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium devonianum

by GP Jürgens

Paxton

Bhutan2015 603
Bhutan Gasa 2200m, October

Description

Cymbidium devonianum is an epiphytic orchid of the Himalaya and northern Indochina, native to India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, China, Thailand and Vietnam, with a modest number of wild records reflecting its scattered, localised occurrence. It grows as an epiphyte and occasional lithophyte on mossy branches and rocks in humid, shaded subtropical to warm-temperate broadleaved and oak forest, typically between about 1500 and 2500 m. The plant photographed near Gasa in northern Bhutan at 2200 m in October exemplifies its preference for cool, moss-laden forest where high humidity persists through the year.

The species forms compact clusters of short, ovoid pseudobulbs almost concealed by the leaf bases. The leaves are few, large, broadly elliptic to oblanceolate and leathery, narrowed to a channelled petiole, distinguishing it from the grass-leaved cymbidiums. The inflorescence is a distinctive, dense, pendulous raceme bearing numerous flowers. The sepals and petals are olive-green to dull yellowish, heavily suffused and streaked with reddish-brown to maroon, while the broad labellum is whitish to pink, marked with two deep purple blotches and a short, fleshy callus. The column is stout, the pollinia waxy, and the fruit a pendent capsule.

Classified in Cymbidium subgenus Cymbidium, the species is named for the Duke of Devonshire and is horticulturally esteemed, having contributed to numerous pendulous-spike hybrids. Like all cymbidiums it is listed on CITES Appendix II, and wild populations are vulnerable to over-collection for the ornamental trade and to forest degradation, so that sustainable management and habitat protection across its Himalayan range remain conservation priorities.

Author: Paxton · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, The Orchids of Bhutan (Pearce & Cribb), Flora of China, The Genus Cymbidium (Du Puy & Cribb), CITES Appendices

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium erythraeum

by GP Jürgens

Lindl.

Bhutan2012 1133
Bhutan Trachiyangtse 1780m, October

Description

Cymbidium erythraeum is an epiphytic orchid distributed across the Sino-Himalayan region, native from China and the Himalaya (India, Nepal, Bhutan) into Myanmar and Vietnam, with cultivated material accounting for the Canadian GBIF records; about 116 occurrences are aggregated overall. It is an epiphyte, sometimes lithophytic, of humid evergreen and broad-leaved montane forest, growing on mossy trunks and shaded rock faces generally between roughly 1,400 and 2,800 m. The plant illustrated was photographed at Trashiyangtse (Trachiyangtse) in eastern Bhutan at about 1,780 m in October, the species typically flowering in autumn into winter.

It is a tufted epiphyte with ovoid to fusiform pseudobulbs sheathed by the bases of several distichous, narrowly linear, arching leaves. The inflorescence is a stout, suberect to arching lateral raceme carrying several large, fragrant flowers. The sepals and petals are green to olive, conspicuously veined and overlaid with reddish-brown lines, the petals spreading; the trilobed labellum is whitish to pale yellow, streaked and spotted with red, its disc furnished with two pubescent longitudinal keels and the side lobes erect about the slender column. The fruit is an ellipsoid, dehiscent capsule containing numerous minute seeds.

The species is referred to Cymbidium section Iridorchis, near C. iridioides, from which it differs in its narrower leaves and more strongly red-lined segments. Pollination is by bees, and germination requires mycorrhizal fungi. Prized in horticulture and subject to wild collection, it is, like the whole genus, protected under CITES Appendix II; over-collection and mid-elevation forest loss are the chief pressures.

Author: Lindl. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, The Orchids of Bhutan (Pearce & Cribb), Du Puy & Cribb's monograph The Genus Cymbidium

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium hookerianum

by GP Jürgens

Rchb.f.

Nepal1992 60 P85 ergebnis
Nepal Milka Danda 2700m March 
Nepal1992 157 P230 ergebnis
Nepal Milka Danda 2700m March 

Description

Cymbidium hookerianum is a large-flowered orchid of the Himalaya and southwestern China, distributed through China, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand, with around 185 GBIF records. It is chiefly an epiphyte, also growing on mossy rocks, in cool, humid temperate broadleaved and evergreen forest, typically between about 1500 and 2800 m. The gathering from Milka Danda in Nepal at 2700 m in March documents its early-spring flowering, when this mid-montane cloud-forest belt provides the moist, shaded, well-ventilated conditions the species requires.

It is a robust sympodial epiphyte forming clusters of stout, ovoid pseudobulbs partly sheathed by the bases of the long, arching, linear-lanceolate leaves. The inflorescence is a long arching to pendent raceme bearing several large, fragrant flowers. The sepals and petals are broad and spreading, apple-green to yellow-green, while the trilobed labellum is whitish to cream, spotted and blotched with crimson or maroon, with raised keels along its disc; the column is winged in typical Cymbidium fashion. The fruit is an ellipsoid capsule releasing innumerable dust-like seeds.

Cymbidium is a genus of tribe Cymbidieae long prized in horticulture, and C. hookerianum (commemorating J. D. Hooker) is an important parent in modern hybrids. Its showy, scented flowers are pollinated by bees, while the minute seeds depend on mycorrhizal fungi for germination. Wild populations are vulnerable to over-collection for the ornamental trade and to forest loss, and Cymbidium species are listed on CITES Appendix II, regulating their international commerce.

Author: Rchb.f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, The Genus Cymbidium (Du Puy & Cribb)

Orchideaceae

Cymbidium iridioides

by GP Jürgens

D.Don

Bhutan2012 1162
Bhutan Tashiyangtse 1900m, October
Bhutan2012 1163
Bhutan Tashiyangtse 1900m, October
Bhutan2012 1260
Bhutan Tashiyangtse 2000m, October

Description

Cymbidium iridioides is a large epiphytic orchid of the Sino-Himalayan and Indochinese region, native from China and the Himalaya (India, Nepal, Bhutan) through Myanmar to Vietnam, with the GBIF dataset reflecting both wild records and cultivated specimens in Europe and North America. It grows as an epiphyte, and occasionally a lithophyte, on mossy trunks and rocks in humid broad-leaved and evergreen montane forest, generally between about 1,200 and 2,800 m. The plants figured were photographed near Tashiyangtse in eastern Bhutan at roughly 1,900 to 2,000 m in October, where the species comes into flower at the close of the monsoon.

It is a robust, tufted epiphyte with stout, fusiform to ovoid pseudobulbs largely enclosed by the bases of several distichous, linear-ligulate, leathery leaves. The inflorescence is a stout, arching to pendent raceme arising laterally from the pseudobulb and bearing numerous large, showy flowers. The sepals and petals are yellowish-green, longitudinally veined and streaked with reddish-brown; the trilobed labellum is recurved, marked with red lines and crested with two longitudinal, papillose-pubescent keels, the side lobes erect about the column. The fruit is an ellipsoid, ribbed capsule releasing copious dust-like seeds.

The species belongs to Cymbidium section Iridorchis, marked by large pseudobulbs, many-flowered pendent racemes and hairy lip keels. Like other large Cymbidium it is bee-pollinated and depends on mycorrhizal fungi for establishment. Long valued in horticulture and medicine, it has been heavily collected; the genus is listed on CITES Appendix II, and over-collection with forest loss is the principal threat.

Author: D.Don · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, The Orchids of Bhutan (Pearce & Cribb), Du Puy & Cribb's monograph The Genus Cymbidium

Orchideaceae

Cymbilabia undulata

by GP Jürgens

(Lindl.) D.K.Liu & Ming H.Li

Bhutan2014 39
Bhutan Trashigang 1100m, May
Bhutan2014 40
Bhutan Trashigang 1100m, May

Description

Cymbilabia undulata (formerly placed in Vandopsis) is an epiphytic orchid of the eastern Himalaya and adjacent areas, recorded from Nepal, north-east India, Bhutan, Myanmar and south-west China across some 129 georeferenced occurrences. It grows as an epiphyte on the trunks and larger limbs of trees in warm, humid subtropical to lower montane forest, favouring bright, well-drained positions. The Bhutan collection at Trashigang at about 1100 m reflects its preference for the warm subtropical belt, typically between roughly 700 and 1600 m, where seasonal monsoon rainfall and high humidity prevail.

It is a robust monopodial epiphyte with a stout, leafy stem and thick, fleshy roots. The leaves are distichous, ligulate to strap-shaped, coriaceous and unequally bilobed at the apex. The inflorescence is an axillary, branching raceme or panicle bearing numerous fleshy, long-lived flowers; these are yellowish marked with reddish-brown blotches, with spreading, undulate-margined sepals and petals. The lip is small, fleshy, three-lobed and saccate at the base, a diagnostic feature, and the column is short and stout bearing a waxy pollinarium.

The transfer from Vandopsis to Cymbilabia reflects molecular reassessment of the Aeridinae (subtribe of Vandeae), in which generic limits have been substantially revised. As with many Vandoid orchids, the showy resupinate flowers are adapted to insect pollination, and the dust-like seeds are wind-dispersed. Although fairly widespread, populations are vulnerable to habitat loss and orchid collecting; like all orchids the species is listed on CITES Appendix II, regulating international trade.

Author: (Lindl.) D.K.Liu & Ming H.Li · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Bhutan, Flora of China, The Orchids of Bhutan (Pearce & Cribb), Genera Orchidacearum (Pridgeon et al.)

Orchideaceae

Cypripedium cordigerum

by GP Jürgens

D.Don

Bh09 315 G526
Bh09 314 G518
Bhutan Yetong-La, 3000m June
Nepal 99 86 ergebnis
West-Nepal Bhulbhule 3200m, June
Nepal 99 383.JPG ergebnis
West-Nepal Linji-Khola 3200m, June
Garh 07 213 ergebnis
India Garhwal Panwali 3200m, June

Description

Cypripedium cordigerum, the Himalayan slipper orchid, ranges along the temperate Himalaya from Pakistan through India, Nepal and Bhutan into adjacent China, with 190 occurrences in GBIF. It grows in cool, humus-rich habitats: open coniferous and mixed forest, forest clearings, shrubberies and grassy alpine slopes, generally between 2700 and 4000 m. The gatherings figured span this band, from Bhutan's Yetong-La at 3000 m through West Nepal (Bhulbhule, Linji-Khola, 3200 m) to Garhwal's Panwali at 3200 m, all in June, illustrating its early-summer flowering on moist, partly shaded mountain soils as the growing season opens.

The plant arises from a short, creeping rhizome bearing thick fleshy roots, producing an erect, pubescent leafy stem 20-45 cm tall. The leaves are several, alternate, broadly elliptic to ovate, plicate (longitudinally folded) and clasping at the base. The flower is usually solitary and terminal, subtended by a leafy bract; the sepals and lateral petals are greenish to yellowish-white, lanceolate and somewhat twisted, while the labellum forms the characteristic inflated, slipper-shaped pouch, white often flushed pink within. The fertile anthers flank a shield-like staminode; the fruit is an erect, ribbed dehiscent capsule containing innumerable dust-like seeds.

Cypripedium (Orchidaceae, subfamily Cypripedioideae) comprises the temperate lady's-slipper orchids, employing deceptive trap-pollination whereby insects enter the pouch and exit past the anthers. The input family is given as "Orchideaceae"; the accepted family is Orchidaceae. Like its congeners, C. cordigerum depends on mycorrhizal associations and is slow to establish, making it vulnerable to collection and habitat loss; it is listed on CITES Appendix II and warrants conservation attention across its Himalayan range.

Author: D.Don · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Bhutan, Flowers of the Himalaya, The Genus Cypripedium (A Monograph)

Orchideaceae

Cypripedium elegans

by G & P Jürgens

Rchb.f.

BhutanPG2011 228
Bhutan Tsochenchen, 3600m June

Description

Cypripedium elegans Rchb.f. is a diminutive lady's-slipper orchid of the eastern Himalaya, recorded by GBIF from India, Nepal, Bhutan and China across some 59 occurrences. It is a plant of cool, humid high-altitude habitats, growing in mossy alpine and subalpine scrub, beneath Rhododendron and dwarf bamboo, and on shaded humus-rich banks, generally between about 3000 and 4000 m. The individual photographed at Tsochenchen in Bhutan at around 3600 m in June, early in the alpine season, reflects its preference for sheltered, perennially moist sites with deep leaf litter and a stable cool microclimate.

The plant arises from a short creeping rhizome and produces a slender, low erect stem bearing usually two broadly elliptic to ovate, plicate, prominently veined leaves that are held more or less opposite or subopposite near the top of the stem. The single nodding flower is small for the genus; the dorsal sepal and the synsepal (the fused lateral sepals) are ovate and the petals narrow, the whole pale yellowish-green to greenish, often faintly marked. The labellum is modified into the characteristic inflated, slipper-shaped pouch that traps and temporarily detains pollinating insects, which exit past the staminode and stigma, effecting pollination.

Cypripedium belongs to subfamily Cypripedioideae, the slipper orchids, marked by their two fertile anthers and saccate lip. Cypripedium elegans is one of the smallest and most delicate Himalayan members of the genus. It is uncommon, slow to establish, and like all Cypripedium it is highly sensitive to collection and habitat disturbance; the genus is listed on CITES Appendix II and several species are of conservation concern. Its restricted high-Himalayan range makes it a notable narrow-altitude alpine specialist.

Author: Rchb.f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Bhutan, Flora of China, Cribb monograph The Genus Cypripedium, Pearce and Cribb Orchids of Bhutan

Orchideaceae

Cypripedium guttatum

by GP Jürgens

Sw.

Bh09 317 P521
Bhutan Yetong-La, 3100m June
Bh09 320 P525
Bh09 319 G523
Bhutan Yetong-La, 3050m June

Description

Cypripedium guttatum is a broadly circumboreal slipper orchid with one of the widest ranges in its genus, documented across Russia, China, Mongolia, Korea, Japan, Kazakhstan, Bhutan and into North America, the nearly 4900 records reflecting its extensive Eurasian-American boreal distribution. At the southern Himalayan limit of its range it ascends into cool montane forest, the images recording plants on the Yetong-La in Bhutan at about 3050 to 3100 m in June. It grows in coniferous and mixed woodland, forest margins, grassy clearings and on mossy, humus-rich or calcareous ground, typically in light shade with consistent soil moisture.

It is a small terrestrial orchid spreading by slender creeping rhizomes, often forming loose colonies. The erect stem bears usually two subopposite, broadly elliptic to ovate, plicate leaves with conspicuous parallel venation. A single terminal flower is produced; the characteristic inflated, pouch-shaped labellum and the sepals and petals are white boldly blotched and mottled with rose-purple to magenta, the lateral sepals being fused into a synsepal beneath the lip. As in all Cypripedium the column bears two fertile anthers and a shield-like staminode, and the flower offers no nectar reward, attracting small bee pollinators by deceit before the inferior ovary matures into a capsule of dust-like seeds.

The species is placed in section Trigonopedia of Cypripedium and is notable for its small stature and strikingly spotted bicoloured flower. Like other slipper orchids it depends on mycorrhizal fungi for seed germination and establishment, and reproduces both clonally via rhizomes and by minute wind-dispersed seed. Although its overall range is vast and it is locally abundant in parts of Siberia, populations at the range periphery, including the Himalaya, are sparse, and the species faces collection and habitat-loss pressures that warrant local conservation attention.

Author: Sw. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Genera Orchidacearum (Cypripedioideae), Cribb monograph of the genus Cypripedium