Website of Tobias Westmeier

Range of Spiculaea ciliata
Range of Spiculaea ciliata.

Elbow Orchid
Spiculaea ciliata Lindl. 1840

Synonyms

Notes

The bizarre-looking Elbow Orchid is one of Australia’s most unusual orchids. Its strangely-shaped, straw-coloured flowers imitate the appearance and scent of female thynnid wasps, thereby attracting male wasps which will pollinate the flowers in their attempt to mate with the orchid’s labellum.

Elbow Orchids are endemic to south-western WA and are very common and widespread south-west of a line from Kalbarri to Israelite Bay. They usually occur in mossy soil pockets on granite outcrops, although they have also been found growing in shallow sandy soils at the northern end of their range. Due to their ability to propagate vegetatively, the orchids often form dense clumps.

During the peak flowering season in late spring and early summer the leaves are already withered and the surrounding vegetation is often completely dry. Elbow Orchids manage to thrive in these hostile conditions by storing nutrients and water in their thick, fleshy flower stem, while the base of the stem is already hard and dry by the time the flowers emerge.

Photos

Spiculaea ciliata
Elbow Orchids are rather in­con­spicuous due to their dull colouration and minimalist flowers. (John Forrest NP, WA, 19 / 11 / 2011)
Spiculaea ciliata
Close-up view of the tiny flower and fleshy flower stem. (John Forrest NP, WA, 19 / 11 / 2011)
Spiculaea ciliata
View of the full plant with its small, in­con­spicuous flowers. (John Forrest NP, WA, 19 / 11 / 2011)
Spiculaea ciliata
The base of the flower stem is often already hard and dry while the orchids are in full bloom. (Midgegooroo NP, WA, 17 / 11 / 2013)
Spiculaea ciliata
The small, inconspicuous leaves can be seen in winter and early spring long before the flowers open. They often form dense clumps. (Midgegooroo NP, WA, 17 / 08 / 2014)
Spiculaea ciliata
By the time the flower stalks emerge, the leaves are already beginning to wither. (John Forrest NP, WA, 28 / 09 / 2013)
Spiculaea ciliata
Elbow Orchids often form large colonies in mossy soil pockets on granite outcrops. (Jarrahdale, WA, 26 / 10 / 2014)
Spiculaea ciliata
Due to their dull colouration the orchids are well camouflaged and easily overlooked. (Jarrahdale, WA, 26 / 10 / 2014)
Spiculaea ciliata
Close-up view of the tiny, minimalist flower. (Jarrahdale, WA, 26 / 10 / 2014)
Spiculaea ciliata
Close-up view of the characteristic labellum. (Hyden, WA, 31 / 10 / 2017)
Spiculaea ciliata
By the time the flowers emerge the habitat is already very dry. (Gidgagannup, WA, 16 / 11 / 2014)
Spiculaea ciliata
A comparison with the size of a thumb reveals the small size of the flowers. (Jarrahdale, WA, 26 / 10 / 2019)

References