Broad-leaved Twayblade ((BETTER))
Listera convallarioides is a small, delicate-looking orchid 11-27 cm (4.3-10.6 in.) tall. It has 2 leaves attached just above or near the middle of the stem. The leaves are sessile, subopposite, broadly ovate to elliptical or nearly circular in outline, 2.5-5.7 cm (1.0-2.2 in.) long, and nearly as wide. The flowering portion of the plant is a terminal raceme with 6-20 small, yellowish green flowers. The diagnostic portion of the flower is the prominent lip, a modified petal that projects forward. The lip is 9-12 mm (0.35-0.47 in.) long with a broad, shallowly notched apex. The lip is evenly tapered to the base except for a pair of lateral "bumps" about 1/8 of the way up from the base. An easier way to tell L. convallarioides from its closest look-alike, L. auriculata (auricled twayblade), is the lack of gland-tipped hairs on the pedicels and ovaries (Smith 1993). A hybrid between these 2 species has been reported in states and Canadian provinces east of Minnesota (Catling 1976).
broad-leaved twayblade
Broad-leaved twayblade has a disjunct distribution in North America, with populations in the Northeast and Great Lakes regions, as well as west of the Great Plains, from Arizona to the Aleutian Islands. A study in New Hampshire, where the species is threatened, showed that populations near hiking trails showed signs of trampling.
Neottia convallarioides is a species of orchid known by the common names broad-lipped twayblade and broad-leaved twayblade. It was formerly placed in the genus Listera, but molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that Neottia nidus-avis, the bird's-nest orchid, evolved within the same group,[2] and all species of Listera have been moved to Neottia.[3]
Lily-leaved twayblade is declining in Minnesota due to loss of habitat and to forest management practices. It grows in upland oak forests with partial sun or light shade. It may be decreasing in part due to fire suppression and forest succession, as oak forest is overtaken by maple and basswood and becomes more densely shaded.
A sea of purple will take over the desert, as spreading phlox and the common purple mustard begin to bloom during April and May. Check out local hiking trails to see big-headed clovers and desert Indian paintbrushes. Part of the orchid family, the rare broad-leaved twayblade is predominantly located in Tahoe and can be found around small creeks.
The genus Liparis L.C. Richard (1817: 21), also known as false twayblade, belongs to the tribe Malaxideae of the subfamily Epidendroideae. It comprises about 320 species with cosmopolitan distribution from the tropics and subtropics to the temperate and alpine regions (Pearce and Cribb 2002, Pridgeon et al. 2005). Since its publication, various segregate genera have been proposed such as Alatiliparis Marg. & Szlach. (2001: 78), Disticholiparis Marg. & Szlach. (2004: 175), Seidenforchis Marg. (2006: 302) and Platystyliparis Marg. (2007: 35). Molecular phylogenetic studies indicated that Liparis in broad delimitation is polyphyletic (Cameron 2005, Li and Yan 2013). Pridgeon et al. (2005) concluded that Liparis sensu stricto should be restricted to a group of temperate Asian species with the type, L. loeselii (L.) Richard. It is as yet unclear whether the recognition of these splits provides a better taxonomy, thus we opted to maintain Liparis as a broad concept for the present.
Long-term monitoring of the rare southern twayblade (Neottia bifolia; Orchidaceae) and understorey of a black spruce-tamarack, swamp community was conducted after construction of an airport taxiway above the swamp edge. Succession documented over 14 years in the treed swamp edge following disturbance involved loss of the twayblade, invasion by guilds of annuals, and shifts between original and new guilds of wetland plants. Despite changes, the twayblade was the only plant extirpated from the swamp edge community although fungal richness (mainly basidiomycete) was substantially lower in the edge than the swamp interior. NMS ordination indicated that the orchid niche is an undisturbed swamp with an intact tree canopy and unbroken mat of Sphagnum which supports a diverse mycorrhizal community adapted to summer water table drawdown and low ionic groundwater chemistry (e.g. Cl 041b061a72