About Caladenia straminichila A.P.Br. & G.Brockman
Caladenia straminichila, commonly known as the Tenterden yellow spider orchid, is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb that grows from an underground tuber, and sometimes forms clumps of up to five individual plants. It produces a single erect leaf 60–120 mm long and 4–6 mm wide, which is pale green with reddish-purple blotches. One or two yellow flowers, 80-110 mm across, are borne on a stalk that reaches 120–200 mm in height. The sepals and petals are linear to lance-shaped near their base, then narrow to a dark brown, thread-like glandular tip. The dorsal sepal is erect, slightly curved forward, 60–80 mm long and 2–3 mm wide. The lateral sepals are 60–80 mm long and 2–4 mm wide; they spread horizontally near the base, then curve downwards. The petals are 60–70 mm long and 1–3 mm wide, and arranged the same way as the lateral sepals. The labellum is 11–13 mm long and 9–11 mm wide, yellow with red lines and spots. The sides of the labellum have short, broad, forward-facing teeth, its tip is curled under, and two rows of creamy yellow, glossy anvil-shaped calli up to 1.5 mm long run along its centre. Flowering occurs from August to early October. This orchid occurs between Porongurup National Park and Manjimup, in the Avon Wheatbelt and Jarrah Forest biogeographic regions of south-west Western Australia, where it grows in open woodland with scattered shrubs.
