Lady’s slipper orchid (Paphiopedilum druryi)
| Synonyms: | Cordula druryi |
|---|
| Kingdom | Plantae |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Tracheophyta |
| Class | Liliopsida |
| Order | Orchidales |
| Family | Orchidaceae |
| Genus | Paphiopedilum (1) |
| Size | Leaf length: 30 cm (2) Bloom width: 7.5 cm (2) |
The lady’s slipper orchid is listed on Appendix I of CITES (1).
This rare orchid has particularly exotic flowers with dark yellow petals surrounding a slipper-like pouch. Maroon stripes run from the heart of the flower to the tips of the three outer petals, and the centre is speckled with maroon.
The lady’s slipper orchid was once fairly extensive in its habitat in Southern India, but is now rarely seen (2).
Found at high altitude amongst dried grasses growing in poor and shallow limestone soil (2).
This robust species grows in full sun, propagating itself with long, woody rhizomes. It may become epiphytic on Euphorbia species.
All land in the range of the lady’s slipper orchid is under intense cultivation for agriculture, threatening the persistence of this beautiful species (2).
No direct conservation action has been targeted at this species, other than its listing on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which prohibits all international trade (2).
This information is awaiting authentication by a species expert, and will be updated as soon as possible. If you are able to help please contact: arkive@wildscreen.org.uk
- Epiphyte: a plant that uses another plant, typically a tree, for its physical support, but which does not draw nourishment from it.
- Rhizome: thickened, branching, creeping storage stems. Although most rhizomes grow laterally just along or slightly below the soil's surface, some grow several inches deep. Roots grow from the underside of the rhizome, and during the growing season new growth sprouts from buds along the top. A familiar rhizome is the ginger used in cooking.
-
CITES (March, 2005)
http://www.cites.org - Mammen, J. and Mammen, V. (1974) Rediscovering Paphiopedilum druryi on Southern India. Orchid Digest, 38(1): 31 - 36.