Alcock’s Duck Orchid
Paracaleana alcockii
Synonyms
- Caleana alcockii
Notes
Alcock’s Duck Orchid is one of the rarest Duck Orchids of Australia and only known from a small area north of the Murchison River near Kalbarri in Western Australia. It flowers in September and October and grows in sandy soil amid sedges and shrubs. It is distinguished from the similar Smooth-billed Duck Orchid (Paracaleana terminalis), which also occurs north of the Murchison River, by its slightly later flowering period and the fact that the black calli cover between a third and half of the length of the labellum. Alcock’s Duck Orchid was named after Prof. John Alcock from Arizona State University who was the first to recognise it as distinct from the Smooth-billed Duck Orchid with which it had been confused in the past.
Although locally common and often growing in small groups, Alcock’s Duck Orchid is easily overlooked as a result of its dull colouration and tendency to grow amid dense sedges or underneath shrubs where it is often hidden from view. Each plant normally carries only a single flower, although two-flowered specimens are occasionally encountered. The labellum is held in an almost vertical position, while the elongated leaf is usually withered at flowering time.
Photos
References
- Paracaleana alcockii in the Australian Plant Name Index
- Paracaleana alcockii in the Atlas of Living Australia
- Paracaleana alcockii in the Western Australian FloraBase