"A... species that was presumed extinct has been found on the slopes of Mount Wellington.
The dense midge orchid was last recorded in 1852 and had been listed as extinct in Tasmania. The orchids are about five centimetres high, with a cluster of tiny flowers. A Threatened Orchid Project Officer, Matt Larcombe, says 60 patches of the tiny orchid have been found on Council and private land in South Hobart. "A local field naturalist, Kevin Bonham, actually discovered it," said Mr Larcombe. "He saw some leaves [orchid ?] late last year that he though were a bit odd and went back up this year to have a look and see what they turned into... it turned out to be the dense midge orchid. "They're tiny... 4 to 7 centimetres tall and very fine so unless you're really down on your hands and knees looking you'd just miss them and you've got to be there at that right window when they're actually in flower to actually see them or else there's nothing above ground, just a tuber below ground." " URL : http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/17/2219931.htm?section=justin photos : 1) http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200804/r241768_981268.jpg 2) http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200804/r241769_981277.jpg ************** Regards, VB _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) orchids@orchidguide.com http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
