Pterostylis aneba is a species of orchid endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a recently described and poorly-known greenhood similar to Pterostylis alpina and P. monticola. It has a rosette of fleshy leaves at the base of the plant and a single green and white flower. It grows in alpine and sub-alpine habitats.

Pterostylis aneba
Pterostylis aneba growing near Jindabyne
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Cranichideae
Genus: Pterostylis
Species:
P. aneba
Binomial name
Pterostylis aneba

Description

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Pterostylis aneba is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a rosette of three to five egg-shaped leaves surrounding the base of the flowering stem. Each leaf is 30–60 mm (1–2 in) long and 8–16 mm (0.3–0.6 in) wide. A single green and white flower about 30–40 mm (1–2 in) long is borne on a spike up to 200 mm (8 in) high. The dorsal sepal and petals are fused, forming a hood or "galea" over the column. The dorsal sepal is the same length as the petals and curves forward with a pointed tip. There is a gap between the galea and the lateral sepals. The lateral sepals are erect and have thread-like tips 15–20 mm long and a slightly bulging V-shaped sinus between them. The labellum is 15–18 mm (0.6–0.7 in) long, about 3 mm (0.1 in) wide, green or brown and curved and protrudes above the sinus. Flowering occurs from December to February.[2]

Taxonomy and naming

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Pterostylis aneba was first formally described in 2006 by David Jones and the description was published in Australian Orchid Research from a specimen collected at Packers Swamp, west of Bemboka.[1]

Distribution and habitat

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This greenhood grows in moist grassy areas in montane forest and near streams in southern New South Wales and north-eastern Victoria.[2][3]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Pterostylis aneba". APNI. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b Jeanes, Jeff. "Pterostylis aneba". Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Pterostylis aneba". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney: plantnet. Retrieved 1 June 2017.