
Flying Duck Orchid
Paracaleana nigrita
Synonyms
- Caleana nigrita
- Sullivania nigrita
Notes
The Flying Duck Orchid is the most common and widespread species of Duck Orchid in south-western WA and is found mostly in near-coastal areas between Kalbarri and Israelite Bay. The orchids grow in a variety of different habitats and soils, including sandy clearings in forests and woodland, the edges of sandy tracks, in lateritic soil on the Darling Scarp near Perth and occasionally in mossy soil pockets on granite outcrops. The main flowering period is early to mid spring.
While the Flying Duck Orchid can be easily distinguished from most other Duck Orchids through its unique, distinctly humped labellum, more than half (typically about two thirds) of which is covered in black calli, the species is somewhat similar to Hort’s Duck Orchid (Paracaleana hortiorum) which is also found across south-western WA. The labellum of Hort’s Duck Orchid is usually more slender and not quite as strongly humped, and the black calli normally cover less than half of the length of the labellum. Both species are variable, though, making identification difficult in some cases.
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References
- Paracaleana nigrita in the Australian Plant Name Index
- Paracaleana nigrita in the Atlas of Living Australia
- Paracaleana nigrita in the Western Australian FloraBase