About Caladenia intuta (D.L.Jones) R.J.Bates
Caladenia intuta is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb that grows from an underground tuber. It produces a single narrow lance-shaped leaf, which measures 80–150 mm (3–6 in) long and 5–11 mm (0.2–0.4 in) wide, and has purple blotches near its base. Both the leaf and the flowering stem are densely covered in hairs. One or two white flowers, sometimes marked with faint reddish lines, are borne on a wiry flowering stem that reaches 100–350 mm (4–10 in) tall. Each open flower measures 45–65 mm (2–3 in) wide. The sepals of this species have thin blackish tips. The dorsal sepal is 32–40 mm (1–2 in) long and 2.5–3 mm (0.098–0.12 in) wide, while the lateral sepals are the same length as the dorsal sepal, 32–40 mm (1–2 in), and 4.5–6 mm (0.18–0.24 in) wide, and spread stiffly apart from one another. The petals are 27–35 mm (1.1–1.4 in) long and 2–3 mm (0.08–0.1 in) wide, and also spread stiffly apart from each other. The labellum is lance-shaped to egg-shaped, 13–16 mm (0.5–0.6 in) long and 7–11 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide, with many short white or purplish teeth along its edges. The tip of the labellum curls downward, and four rows of white or purplish hockey-stick-shaped calli run along the mid-line of the labellum. Flowering occurs between August and September. This spider orchid is only known from two sites, with a total population estimated at around 400 mature individuals as of 2006. All known individuals grow in woodland habitat.
