Thelymitra sp. (pauciflora complex)

Sun Orchid at Sutton, NSW

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Identification history

Thelymitra sp. (pauciflora complex)	12 Nov 2022	MattM
Thelymitra sp. (pauciflora complex)	11 Nov 2022	Tapirlord
Unverified	10 Nov 2022	brunonia

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2 comments

DerekC wrote:

11 Nov 2022

This record's photo represents possibly the ACT and regions most common and numerous Sun Orchid species but the difficulty is, these are not truly either T. pauciflora nor T. peniculata when comparing to type definitions. In reality we desperately unconvincingly attempt to shoehorn them into one or other of these boxes based on our prefered choice of chosen feature/s. This flower shows a shallow groove in the top of the post-anther lobe which is also possibly slightly inflated and ignoring everything else I might say T. peniculata but most of these plants, as I expect this one has, have thin 3-6 mm 'V' shaped channelled leaf which would suggest it must be T. pauciflora. Both the flower and leaf form are variable to some degree just adding to the complexity. I have seen plants with multiple flowers where one will have features considered T. peniculata and the next flower those of T. pauciflora on the same plant or flower features considered T. peniculata like but with a very narrow channelled leaf.
During a conversation regarding this issue yesterday with Mark Clements, he suggested these most common plants are most likely an ACT region subgroup or form of T. peniculata but not truely either of the exact type species. Further DNA analysis may provide an answer in the future. But in the light of this yet to be resolved difficulty then T. pauciflora complex may be the next best we can do, though this complex grouping involves many more species than just the two I have reference and includes several other ACT region species.

brunonia wrote:

12 Nov 2022

Thanks Derek. Margaret

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Location information

Places Sutton, NSW

Sighting information

5 Abundance
brunonia Recorded by
Collections
brunonia Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr Orchids Plants

Additional information

10cm to 30cm Plant height
True In flower

Species information

Thelymitra sp. (pauciflora complex) Scientific name
Sun Orchid Common name
Sensitive
Local native
Non-invasive or negligible
Machine learning
In flower

Record quality

Images or audio
More than one media file
Verified by an expert moderator
Nearby sighting(s) of same species
GPS evidence of location
Description
Additional attributes

Australian Capital Territory

New South Wales

Queensland

Northern Territory

Western Australia

South Australia

Victoria

Tasmania