Saturday 15 June
Orchid (Bifrenaria harrisoniae)
Orchid fact file
- Description
- Biology
- Range
- Habitat
- Status
- Threats
- Conservation
- Find out more
- Glossary
- References
- Print factsheet
Orchid description
| Kingdom | Plantae |
| Phylum | Tracheophyta |
| Class | Liliopsida |
| Order | Orchidales |
| Family | Orchidaceae |
| Genus | Bifrenaria (1) |
Like most epiphytic orchids, Bifrenaria harrisoniae has a swollen storage organ known as a ‘pseudobulb’ at its base (2) (3). The prominent pseudobulb is conical to egg-shaped and ranges in colour from yellow to green (2). Arising from the apex of each pseudobulb is a single dark-green, pleated leaf, and a one to three flowered inflorescence (2) (4). The waxy petals and sepals of the sweetly fragrant flowers are generally creamy-white to pale yellow (4) (5), while the hairy lip is reddish pink with a deep yellow centre (2) (4) (5).
- Size
- Height: 10 - 40 cm (2)
- Leaf length: 8 - 38.5 cm (2)
- Leaf width: 3 - 7cm (2)
- Inflorescence: 2 - 20 cm (2)
More »
Top
Related species
Orchid biology
Bifrenaria harrisoniae tends to grow as an epiphyte in closed forests, but in open areas is often found growing on rocks (2) (4). Its showy flowers can be seen from July to December and are visited by euglossine bees and bumblebees, which almost certainly act as pollinators (2) (6).
TopOrchid range
Endemic to Brazil, Bifrenaria harrisoniae occurs in the states of Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro, Santa Catarina and São Paulo (2).
More »
Top
Species with a similar range
Orchid habitat
Found at elevations from 750 to 1,800 metres in wet montane forests, riparian forests and ‘campos rupestres’, a shrubby grassland habitat of eastern Brazil (2).
More »
Top
Species found in a similar habitat
Orchid status
This species has not yet been assessed by the IUCN.
TopOrchid threats
Bifrenaria harrisoniae is commonly cultivated (4) and there are no known significant threats to wild populations.
TopOrchid conservation
There are currently no known conservation measures in place for Bifrenaria harrisoniae.
TopFind out more
For further information on the conservation of orchids see:
- Orchid Conservation International:
www.orchidconservation.org
Authentication
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.ukTopGlossary
- Epiphyte
- A plant that uses another plant, typically a tree, for its physical support, but which does not draw nourishment from it.
- Lip
- The enlarged third petal of an orchid flower that often acts as a landing platform for pollinators.
- Sepals
- Part of the flower (collectively comprising the calyx) that forms the protective outer layer of a flower bud.
References
- ITIS (January, 2009)
http://www.itis.gov - Koehler, S. and Amaral, M.C.E. (2004) A taxonomic study of the South American genus Bifrenaria Lindl. (Orchidaceae). Brittonia, 56(4): 314 - 345.
- Hew, C.S. and Yong, J.W.H. (1997) Physiology of tropical orchids in relation to the industry. World Scientific, Singapore.
- la Croix, I. (2008) The New Encyclopedia of Orchids: 1500 Species in Cultivation. Timber Press, Portland, Oregon.
- Cullen, J. (1992) The orchid book: a guide to identification of cultivated orchid species. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
- Davies, K.L. and Stpiczyńska, M. (2008) Labellar Micromorphology of Two Euglossine-pollinated Orchid Genera; Scuticaria Lindl. and Dichaea Lindl. Annals of Botany, 102(5): 805 - 824.
More »Related species
Sign up to our newsletter
Get the latest wild news direct to your inbox.
Get involved
ARKive relies on its media donors to donate photos and videos. Can you help? There are plenty of other ways you can get involved too!
Saturday 15 June
Friday 14 June
X
Close
Close
Image credit
Orchid - Bifrenaria harrisoniae
© John Varigos
John Varigos
Melbourne
Australia
jvarigos@mediclin.com.au
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jvinoz/
X
Close
Close
Link to this photo
Embed this ARKive thumbnail link by copying and pasting the code below.
Terms of Use - The displayed thumbnail may be used as a link from your website to ARKive's online content for private, scientific, conservation or educational purposes only. It may NOT be used within Apps.
Read more about
X
Close
Close
MyARKive
MyARKive offers the scrapbook feature to signed-up members, allowing you to organize your favourite ARKive images and videos and share them with friends.
X
Close
Close
Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials
Copyright in this website and materials contained on this website (Material) belongs to Wildscreen or its licensors.
Visitors to this website (End Users) are entitled to:
- view the contents of, and Material on, the website;
- download and retain copies of the Material on their personal systems in digital form in low resolution for their own personal use;
- teachers, lecturers and students may incorporate the Material in their educational material (including, but not limited to, their lesson plans, presentations, worksheets and projects) in hard copy and digital format for use within a registered educational establishment, provided that the integrity of the Material is maintained and that copyright ownership and authorship is appropriately acknowledged by the End User.
End Users shall not copy or otherwise extract, alter or manipulate Material other than as permitted in these Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials.
Additional use of flagged material
Green flagged material 
Certain Material on this website (Licence 4 Material) displays a green flag next to the Material and is available for not-for-profit conservation or educational use. This material may be used by End Users, who are individuals or organisations that are in our opinion not-for-profit, for their not-for-profit conservation or not-for-profit educational purposes. Low resolution, watermarked images may be copied from this website by such End Users for such purposes. If you require high resolution or non-watermarked versions of the Material, please contact Wildscreen with details of your proposed use.
Creative commons material
Certain Material on this website has been licensed to Wildscreen under a Creative Commons Licence. These images are clearly marked with the Creative Commons buttons and may be used by End Users only in the way allowed by the specific Creative Commons Licence under which they have been submitted. Please see http://creativecommons.org for details.
Any other use
Please contact the copyright owners directly (copyright and contact details are shown for each media item) to negotiate terms and conditions for any use of Material other than those expressly permitted above. Please note that many of the contributors to ARKive are commercial operators and may request a fee for such use.
Save as permitted above, no person or organisation is permitted to incorporate any copyright material from this website into any other work or publication in any format (this includes but is not limited to: websites, Apps, CDs, DVDs, intranets, extranets, signage, digital communications or on printed materials for external or other distribution). Use of the Material for promotional, administrative or for-profit purposes is not permitted.