Kingdom Plantae Family Orchidaceae Tribe Podochileae Scientific name Phreatia listeri | Order Asparagales Subfamily Epidendroideae Subtribe Thelasiinae Rank Species | |
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Phreatia listeri is a species of epiphytic orchid. It is endemic to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the north-eastern Indian Ocean. Its specific epithet honours British zoologist and plant collector Joseph Jackson Lister, who visited the island on HMS Egeria in 1887.
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Description
Phreatia listeri is a small, clump-forming epiphytic orchid. The long, thin leaves are 40–110 mm long and 2–5 mm wide. The 40–80 mm long inflorescence has many tiny, greenish-white flowers, only about 1 mm across. The orchid's lip is concave and contracted at the base. The seed capsule is 25 mm long.
Distribution and habitat
Found only on Christmas Island, the orchid is common on rainforest trees growing on the plateau and the upper terraces of the island.
Relationships
The orchid resembles both P. limenophylax Benth. from Norfolk Island, and P. minutiflora Lindl. from Borneo, but differs from them in its larger size and in the contracted lip.