Leptoceras menziesii, has a number of common names including Rabbit Orchid, Hare’s Ears Orchid and Hare Orchid.
This orchid is named after Archibald Menzies (1754–1842), Scottish surgeon, naturalist and botanist who accompanied Captain George Vancouver on his voyage around the world in H.M.S. Discovery. Menzies collected plants in Western Australia, including orchids.
Caladenia menziesii was one of the first three orchids collected in Western Australia. Archibald Menzies was the collector of the holotype at King George Sound in 1791 during the Vancouver Expedition. It was first formally described by Robert Brown and the description was published in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. In 1840, John Lindley changed the name to Leptoceras menziesii in The Genera and Species of Orchidaceous Plants. Some herbaria continue to use the old name. The specific epithet (menziesii) honours Archibald Menzies.
Source: Wikipedia6
Leptoceras menziesii is the only member of the genus Leptoceras. A slender plant, it is usually found in large colonies and usually flowers after fire. The flowers are small, white, pink and red on a stem up to 30 cm tall. Endemic to southern Australia, found in Victoria, Tasmania, southern South Australia and the south-west of Western Australia.
Photographs © Terry Dunham
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Phylum: Charophyta
- Class: Equisetopsida
- Subclass: Magnoliidae
- Superorder: Lilianae
- Order: Asparagales
- Family: Orchidaceae
- Genus: Caladenia
- Species: Caladenia polychroma
Footnote & References
- Leptoceras menziesii (Rabbit Orchids), Stirling Range National Park WA. Photographs © Terry Dunham
- Leptoceras menziesii (R.Br.) Lindl., Hare’s Ears Orchid, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/taxon/apni/51406465
- Profile collections – Atlas of Living Australia, D.L. Jones. Leptoceras menziesii, in P.G. Kodela (ed.), Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. https://profiles.ala.org.au/opus/foa/profile/Leptoceras%20menziesii [Date Accessed: 06 October 2023]
- Rabbit Orchid (Leptoceras menziesii), iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/323922-Leptoceras-menziesii
- Leptoceras menziesii (R.Br.) Lindl., Rabbit Orchid, Western Australian Herbarium (1998–). Florabase—the Western Australian Flora. Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Accessed 6 October 2023), https://florabase.dbca.wa.gov.au/browse/profile.php/15418
- Leptoceras, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptoceras
- Leptoceras – Rabbit Orchid, Orchids of South-West Australia, https://chookman.id.au/wp_orchids/?page_id=589
OrchidaceaeOrchidaceae Index Caladenia barbarossa (Dragon Orchid) Caladenia bryceana subsp. bryceana (Dwarf Spider Orchid) Caladenia corynephora (Club-lipped Spider Orchid) Caladenia drummondii (Winter Spider Orchid) Caladenia integra (Smooth-lipped Spider Orchid) Caladenia latifolia (Pink Fairies) Caladenia lobata (Butterfly Spider Orchid) Caleana major (Flying Duck Orchid) Caladenia melanema (Ballerina Orchid) Caladenia polychroma (Joseph’s Spider Orchid) Caladenia pulchra (Slender Spider Orchid) Caladenia pusilla (Tiny Caladenia) Caladenia serotina (Christmas Spider Orchid) Caladenia tessellata (Thick-lip Spider Orchid) Cephalotus follicularis (Western Australian Pitcher Plant) Cryptostylis ovata (Slipper Orchid) Dendrobium kingianum (Pink Rock Orchid) Dendrobium speciosum (Rock Orchid) Drakaea glyptodon (King-in-his-carriage Orchid) Drakaea livida (Warty Hammer Orchid) Elythranthera emarginata (Pink Enamel Orchid) Epiblema grandiflorum (Babe-in-a-cradle Orchid) Ericksonella saccharata (Sugar Orchid) Glossodia major (Wax-lip Orchid) Leptoceras menziesii (Rabbit Orchid) Microtis cupularis (Cupped Mignonette Orchid) Paracaleana nigrita (Flying Duck Orchid) Pterostylis cheraphila (Floodplain Rustyhood) Pterostylis ciliata (Hairy Rufous Greenhood) Pterostylis picta (Painted Rufous Greenhood) Rhizanthella johnstonii (Southern Underground Orchid) Spiculaea ciliata (Elbow Orchid) Thelymitra antennifera (Lemon-scented Sun Orchid) Thelymitra sp. Ongerup (Orange Sun Orchids) Thelymitra speciosa (Eastern Queen of Sheba’s)
FloraFlora in Australia Flora Index Acacia Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws) Annual Yellowtop Apium prostratum subsp. prostratum var filiforme Apple Bush (Pterocaulon sphacelatum) Australian Bluebell Australian Gossypium Banksia Batswing Coral Tree Billy Buttons Birdsville Indigo Blue Pincushion Bush Banana Callistemon Callitris drummondii (Drummond’s Cypress Pine) Calothamnus quadrifidus Cape Honeysuckle Cassia fistula (Golden Shower) Cattle Bush Common Heath Crotalaria Darwinia wittwerorum (Wittwer’s Mountain Bell) Daviesia oppositifolia (Rattle-pea) Desert Oaks Drumsticks Eremophila Eucalyptus Ficus Flannel Cudweed (Actinobole uliginosum) Georges Indigo Goatshead Burr (Sclerolaena bicornis) Golden Everlasting Goodenia Gossypium Grass and Grasses Grass Trees Grevillea Grey Germander Hakea Kapok Bush (Aerva javanica) Lambertia sp Leptospermum MacDonnell Ranges Cycad Maireana scleroptera Mexican Poppy Minnie Daisy Mistletoe Family Nardoo Native Apricot Nicotiana megalosiphon subspecies sessilifolia Nuytsia floribunda Orange Spade Flower Orchidaceae Parakeelyas (Calandrinia) Pebble Bush (Stylobasium spathulatum) Perennial Yellow Top Pink Everlasting Pink Rock Wort Poached Egg Daisy Portulaca Proteaceae Ptilotus Quandong Resurrection Fern Rosy Dock Ruby Saltbush Santalum Solanum Spike Centaury Spinifex Storkbill (Erodum cygnorum) Striped Mint Bush Sturt’s Desert Pea Sturt’s Desert Rose Tall Saltbush Tangled Leschenaultia Tar Vine Tribulus eichlerianus Upside-down Plant Urodon dasyphylla Variable Daisy Waratah (Telopea) Wertabona Daisy White Cedar (Melia azedarach) White Indigo White Paper Daisy Wild Passionfruit Wild Stock Woolly-Headed Burr Daisy Woolly Bush Yellow-keeled Swainsona