Plate 086 · in flower on a twig, with an oil bee IdentificationSix marks on the plate
- 1Large two-lobed lip, yellow, like a skirt.
- 2Brown-spotted callus at the base of the lip.
- 3Petals and dorsal sepal small, with brown bars.
- 4Ovoid pseudobulb with two leaves at the tip.
- 5White aerial roots hugging the twig.
- 6Arching flower spike with several flowers and buds.
Easily confused with Other Gomesa / OncidiumGomesa spp.Several have similar yellow flowers. Check for two leaves per pseudobulb and a lip much larger than the rest of the flower. 086 / 100 · PLANTS · ORCHIDACEAENOT EVALUATED Two-leaved dancing lady
Gomesa bifolia
Patito · Oncidium bifolium
A small epiphytic orchid with yellow flowers and a large skirt-shaped lip. The flowers have no scent or nectar. They offer oil instead, gathered by specialised bees. In Tucumán it flowers in spring in the foothill and lower montane forest.
- Habit
- Epiphyte with pseudobulbs
- Leaves
- Two per pseudobulb
- Reward
- Floral oil
- Range
- Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay
- Epiphytic orchid
- Oil flower
- CITES Appendix II
- Native
Altitude rangeOn branches in the lower forest
Tucumán herbarium records Tucumán herbarium specimens range from 650 m (Río Loro, Capital) to 1,000 m (Villa Nougués). There are recent photos from Yerba Buena and San Pedro de Colalao.
EcologyFlowers that pay in oil
- Oil-collecting beespollinators · gather floral oil
- Thin branchesaerial roots on bark
- Mosseskeep the roots moist
- Dust seedsmillions, carried by wind
- Mycorrhizal fungineeded for germination
Like all orchids, its seeds are tiny and have almost no food reserve. They need a fungal partner to germinate.
Life cyclePseudobulbs and flower spike
J F M A M J J A S O N D FloweringLast flowers - Lives on branches. Its white roots cling to bark and take water from rain and mist.
- Stores water. The pseudobulbs are swollen stems that store water for the dry season.
- Long spike. In spring an arching spike with several yellow flowers grows from the base of a pseudobulb.
Where to look in Tucumán- Sierra de San Javier
- Reserva Experimental Horco Molle
- Parque Provincial La Florida
- Quebrada de Lules