Hexalectris arizonica (Arizona Crested Coralroot)

Photograph by Victor Engel at the-light.com/orchids/ldl1.html (2000)

Family

ORCHIDACEAE

Scientific Name with Author

Hexalectris arizonica (S. Watson) A.H. Kennedy & L.E. Watson

Synonyms

CORALLORHIZA ARIZONICA S. WATSON; HEXALECTRIS SPICATA (WALTER) BARNHART VAR. ARIZONICA (S. WATSON) CATLING & ENGEL

Common Name

Arizona Crested Coralroot

Agency Status
USFWS	State of NM	USFS	BLM	Navajo Nation	State Rank	Global Rank	NMRPTC Status
	E	SEN, SCC			S1	G5T3	R

Rare Plant Conservation Scorecard Summary
Overall Conservation Status	Documented Threats	Actions Needed
UNDER CONSERVED	No Information	Status surveys on abundance, distribution and threats

To download the Scorecard click here.

Counties

Description

Stems pinkish-red, pinkish-yellow, or pinkish white; flowers with sepals pale creamy yellow or dull pale pinkish-purple with pinkish-red, pinkish-brown or pinkish-purple veins, connivent or spreading apically; dorsal sepal lanceolate to oblong, 15-18 by 2.7-4.5 mm; lateral sepals 13-15 by 4-7 mm; petals, mostly cream to white with pinkish-red or pinkish-brown veins, obovate, falcate, 14-16 by 4-5 mm; lip white or creamy-white, 12-14.5 by 10-12 mm, the five central veins with keels 0.2-0.7 mm high, midlobe pinkish-purple, with darkened pinkish-red or reddish-purple veins, with several longitudinal crests, the margin whitish, the lateral lobes similar; column white to cream, arcuate, 11-14 mm long, rostellum absent (or occasionally present). Flowers May through July.

Similar Species

Hexalectris spicata, which does not occur in New Mexico, has larger darker colored flowers and the keels on the lip petal are taller, 0.7-1 mm, versus 0.2-0.7 mm for H. arizonica. Corallorhiza may be confused with Hexalectris, buts its lip petal has no longitudinal crests.

Distribution

New Mexico, Dona Ana, Hidalgo, Otero, and Sierra counties; Arizona and Texas; Mexico, Coahuila.

Habitat

In heavy leaf litter in oak, pine, or juniper woodlands over limestone.

Comments

This is primarily an autogamous species, the lack of a rostellum (in most plants) promoting selfing. Some plants of H. arizonica closely resemble H. spicata, which occurs from Texas eastward, but the species is genetically well defined (Kennedy and Watson 2010). It is widely distributed, but in very small colonies.

Conservation Considerations

Populations are small and might be easily obliterated by human activity. Careful observation is needed, with documenting collections, but collections should be made judiciously without digging the rhizome system.

References

Luer, C.A. 1975. The native orchids of the United States and Canada. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx.

*Liggio, J. and A.O. Liggio. 1999. Wild orchids of Texas. University of Texas Press, Austin.

Kennedy, A.H. and L.E. Watson. 2010. Species delimitations and phylogenetic relationships within the fully myco-heterotrophic Hexalectris (Orchidaceae). Systematic Botany 35(1):64-76.

Catling, P.M. and V.S. Engel. 1993. Systematics and distribution of Hexalectris spicata var. arizonica (Orchidaceae). Lindleyana 8:119-125.

Information Compiled By

Richard Spellenberg, Tom Todsen

For distribution maps and more information, visit Natural Heritage New Mexico