Redwood Park Orchids

Can't see the plants for the birds? Your birding will be far more meaningful, particularly, once the plant-bird associations gel. Somebody find me a botanist!!
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Rod Hobson
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:03 am

Redwood Park Orchids

Post by Rod Hobson »

Follks,

Yesterday I spent the afternoon in Redwood Park just strolling about taking in the flora and fauna (and being distressed by the proliferation of weeds, plus the track erosion that is turning this once beautiful piece of dry vine scrub into an environmental disaster zone). Anyway, there are still a few areas that have resisted the rampant invasion of Cat's Claw Creeper, Madeira Vine, Coral Berry, Green Panicum, Lantana and a host of other weeds. And mountain bikers. One such area is along the Redwood Forest Walk just in from the Bridge Street entrance to the park. This is a pleasant, cool and shaded area with some lovely, mossy and ferny banks where, yesterday, I found two separate communities of the delicate little terrestrial orchid, the Nodding Greenhood (Pterostylis nutans), presently flowering. This is a good time of year to look for our terrestrial orchids, as many are autumn/winter bloomers.

About twenty species of native orchids have been recorded from Redwood Park including epiphytic, saprophytic, lithophytic and terrestrial forms. These include(d) such rarities as the Blotched Butterfly Orchid (Sarcochilus weinthalii), designated as an endangered species under Queensland legislation and the quite localised Russell's Greenhood (Pterostylis russellii). Other more common species likely to be encountered by the casual stroller include Straggly Pencil Orchid (Dockrillia bowmanii), Orange Blossom Orchid (Sarcochilus falcatus) and, in the open eucalypt woodland, the Black Orchid (Cymbidium canalicuatum).

Already the small area where I used to see the Blotched Butterfly Orchid is a wasteland of Cat's Claw Creeper festooning dying and dead trees; the butterfly orchids long since strangled into oblivion. And the bank where the little community of Russell's Greenhoods used to be is now a waving monoculture of Green Panicum sans any native species, orchids or otherwise.

Redwood Park used to be a sanctuary for a huge and biodiverse population of plants and animals but now is a sad and sorry shadow of what it used to be but still, if you look hard enough, it clings to some of it's little gems. But not for too much longer, I fear.

Checklist of Orchids - Redwood Park, Toowoomba SEQ

(Please note that this list should not be considered as comprehensive; compiled from the observations of M. Zink, M. Mathieson and R. Hobson)

Tangle Orchid (Plectorhiza tridentata) (e)
Fairy Bells, (Sarcochilus cecilae) (e, l) *
Brown Butterfly Orchid (Sarcochilus dilatatus) (e)
Orange Blossom Orchid (Sarcochilus falcatus) (e)
Myrtle Bells (Sarcochilus hillii) (e, l)
Southern Lawyer Orchid (Sarcochilus olivaceus) (e, l)*
Blotched Butterfly Orchid (Sarcochilus weinthalii) (e)
Pink Fingers (Caladenia carnea) (t)*
Blunt Greenhood (Pterostylis curta) (t)
Nodding Greenhood (Pterostylis nutans) (t)
Russell's Greenhood (Pterostylis russellii) (t)*
Small Climbing Orchid (Erythrorchis cassythoides) (s)
Brown Tea Tree Orchid (Cymbidium canaliculatum) (e)*
Grassy Boat-lip Orchid (Cymbidium suave) (e)
Lily-of-the Valley Orchid (Dendrobium monophyllum) (e)*
King Orchid (Dendrobium speciosum) (e, l)*
Straggly Pencil Orchid (Dockrillia bowmanii) (e)
Cucumber Orchid (Dockrillia cucumerina) (e)
Tick Orchid (Dockrillia linguiforma) (e, l)
Bridal Vale Orchid (Dockrillia teretifolia) (e, l)

e = epiphytic, l = lithophytic, s = saprophytic, t = terrestrial

* the taxonomy of these species has recently been changed (Jones 2006) in which the southern population of Sarcochilus ceciliae that includes those of the Toowoomba area is now S. eriochilus; S. olivaceus is now S. parviflorus; Caladenia carnea is now Petalochilus carneus; Russell's Greenhood, the Black Orchid and the Lily-of-the-Valley have all been assigned new genera viz. Diplodium, Cepobaculum and Australorchis respectively. Also in this work the King Orchid is now called the Pale King Orchid (Thelychiton tarberi). It should be noted that many of the changes in the taxonomy in this work remain contentious with other authorities.

Ref: Jones, David L. (2006). "A Complete Guide to Native Orchids of Australia including the Island Territories", Reed New Holland, Sydney.

Regards,
Rod Hobson
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