Corybas hatchii

Detailed description

Colonial, terrestrial, tuberous, glabrous, late winter to summer-green herb. Plant at flowering to 60 mm tall. Tuberoids globose to ellipsoid on extended roots. Leaf solitary, fleshy, shortly petiolate, 5–10 mm long; lamina 15–28 × 11–20 mm long, oval, orbicular, sometimes pandurate, apiculate, rounded to cordate at base; green to yellow green, margins and sometimes whole of upper surface flecked with purple or red, underside silvery, pellucid. Flower erect, large for plant, (16)–20–(23) mm long, held well above and back from leaf, mostly translucent white or red, rarely green, usually with much red or purple streaking and flecks, these colourings merging and darkening to maroon toward the back of flower; peduncle short and stout, 2.5–4.2 mm long. Ovary 6.2–8.3 mm long, narrowly oblong, yellow-green or cream, ridged, erect or slightly curving back from leaf; subtended by two unequal floral bracts, the smaller projecting toward leaf, 1.3–2.0 mm long or vestigial, linear-subulate, terete, pale green to cream, rarely spotted or flecked with crimson, the larger equal to normally exceeding the ovary, (6.0)–8.8–(11.0) mm long, lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, curved, deeply keeled and closely sheathing ovary for about one third of length, apex acute; green, or yellow-green, rarely flecked or striped with purple or red. Dorsal sepal membranous, more or less equal to labellum length 18–24 mm long, translucent white or pale greenish striped and flecked with purple-red or red, lanceolate-acuminate, apex acute, initially erect then arched forwards, and/or very slightly downwards. Lateral sepals and petals 25–30–(40) mm long, filiform, forward projecting in an almost parallel alignment, greatly exceeding labellum, translucent to cream, more or less flecked with red, held well above leaf. Labellum conspicuous, initially dark maroon, soon grading through to translucent green or cream, with weak to prominent purple-red or red stripes, then flecks or spots, auriculate at base; labellum tube 1.5–2.0 mm long, curving backwards and then abruptly deflexed at c. 90° and expanding into a rapidly broadening lamina; lamina (15)–20–(23) × (6)–10–(20) mm, obtuse when flattened, upper margins more or less folded inwards, upper ¼ more or less overlapping, otherwise widely spreading and flared shallowly grooved; apex usually held well back from leaf; margins initially entire, becoming finely denticulate to more or less erose on either side, and with a short down-curved apiculus; apiculus not touching leaf. Seeding peduncle up to 180 mm tall. Capsule narrowly ovoid up to 15 mm long.