Orchidaceae
Disa

Disa roeperocharoides Kraenzl.

First published in Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 51: 379 (1914)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is S. DR Congo to Zambia. It is a tuberous geophyte and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Orchidaceae, I. la Croix and P.J. Cribb. Flora Zambesiaca 11:1. 1995

Morphology General Habit
Terrestrial herb with separate fertile and sterile shoots.
Morphology General Shoots
Sterile shoots to 8 cm tall; leaves conduplicate, 20 × 1–2.5 cm, linear to narrowly oblanceolate, acuminate. Fertile shoots 30–70 cm tall; leaves imbricate, 5–12 cm long, narrowly lanceolate, acuminate.
Sterile
Sterile shoots to 8 cm tall; leaves conduplicate, 20 × 1–2.5 cm, linear to narrowly oblanceolate, acuminate.
Fertile
Fertile shoots 30–70 cm tall; leaves imbricate, 5–12 cm long, narrowly lanceolate, acuminate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence dense, 7–17 cm long, c. 30-flowered.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Floral bracts lanceolate, acuminate, somewhat longer than the ovaries.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers c. 15 mm in diameter, bright red, the posterior petal lobes and the inside of the galea usually yellow with bright red blotches, the anther purple to yellow.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Dorsal sepal erect, 7.5–11.5 × 5–8 mm, rhomboid, subacute; galea usually narrowly oblong, subacute, c. 2 mm deep. Lateral sepals suboblique, 9–10(12) mm long, ovate-oblong, obtuse to rarely apiculate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Spur
Spur pendent, 8–13 mm long, slender, cylindrical.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals 2-lobed; anterior lobe 4–7 × c. 3 mm, ± narrowly ovate rounded, spreading with the upper margin curved over the anther; posterior lobe erect inside the galea, 7–9 mm tall, oblanceolate, truncate, one third taller than the posterior lobe.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Labellum
Lip pendent, 9–10 mm long, linear.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Anthers
Anther erect, c. 4 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Stigma
Stigma sessile, 3-lobed.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary
Ovary 1.5–2 cm long.
[FZ]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/103430195/103430479

Conservation
DD - data deficient
[IUCN]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0