Research Article |
Corresponding author: Richa Kusuma Wati ( richa.kusumawati@naturalis.nl ) Academic editor: Vincent Droissart
© 2018 Richa Kusuma Wati, Rogier R. van Vugt, Barbara Gravendeel.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Wati RK, van Vugt RR, Gravendeel B (2018) A Linnaeus NG interactive key to the species of Glomera (Orchidaceae, Coelogyninae) from Southeast Asia. PhytoKeys 110: 9-22. https://doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.110.28435
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We present a multilingual interactive key available online (http://glomera.linnaeus.naturalis.nl) that can be used on any web browser without the need for installing additional software. The key includes 169 species of Glomera, a genus within the necklace orchids (Coelogyninae) not yet comprehensively treated in any recent field guide or web-based survey. With this key, plants can be identified using a combination of vegetative and floristic characters in addition to distribution and ecology as a first step to further taxonomic revisions. We urge anyone with an interest in wild orchids in Southeast Asia to contribute new observations to update current information on the distribution of these overlooked plants as a first step for a taxonomic revision and to gain more insight into their conservation status.
Studi ini menyajikan kunci identifikasi interaktif multibahasa yang dapat diakses secara online (http://glomera.linnaeus.naturalis.nl) dan dapat digunakan pada berbagai jenis peramban web tanpa perlu menggunakan aplikasi tambahan. Kunci identifikasi ini terdiri dari 169 jenis Glomera dalam genus anggrek kalung (Coelogyninae) yang belum pernah dibahas secara menyeluruh dalam panduan lapangan atau survei berbasis online. Tumbuhan dapat diidentifikasi menggunakan kombinasi karakter vegetatif dan bunga juga distribusi dan ekologi sebagai langkah pertama untuk revisi taksonomi lebih lanjut. Kami menghimbau bagi siapapun yang mempunyai ketertarikan dengan anggrek liar di Asia Tenggara untuk berkontribusi memberikan informasi terbaru dan menambahkan data distribusi dari spesies ini sebagai langkah awal untuk merevisi taksonomi dan untuk mendapatkan lebih banyak informasi tentang status konservasi spesies ini.
Cybertaxonomy, epiphytes, Indonesia, monitoring, necklace orchids, Papua New Guinea
Taksonomi Siber, epifit, Indonesia, pengamatan, anggrek kalung, Papua New Guinea
Southeast Asia is one of the richest biodiversity regions on earth. Its complex geological history contributed to unique biota and high concentration of endemic species (
The downside of photographs uploaded by orchid enthusiasts is that plants are often incompletely or wrongly identified, especially when it concerns orchids for which no comprehensive, up-to-date taxonomic information is available. To correctly identify a plant species, plants need to be keyed out with the help of field guides, containing a description or key of all species known to occur in an area. Plant identification can be challenging, especially for novices when they have to use dichotomous keys filled with specialistic terms (
Better identification of plants in the wild is especially needed for overlooked taxa. A prime example of such are the necklace orchids (Coelogyninae), a popular group often seen in cultivation because of their showy flowers. They belong to subfamily Epidendroideae and comprise a total of 16 genera (
Traditional keys that already exist for Glomera are in the English and German languages only and either restricted to genus level or specific geographical regions. Examples include keys for Fiji (
Linnaeus NG (http://linnaeus.naturalis.nl/) is a web-based species information management system. Linnaeus NG has several modules such as species and additional features such as media (in which distribution maps and illustrations can be found) and two types of keys. For this study, a single entry key and multi-entry key were built. Linnaeus NG has been developed using open source techniques (PHP, MySQL) and is hosted in a Linux environment. On the client-side, project administrators interact with the programme through a web browser. A recent version of all major browsers is supported for regular platforms and tablets. Currently, Linnaeus NG is proprietary software; updates and changes can only be made in agreement with the Naturalis Biodiversity Center. However, access to Linnaeus NG is not limited to employees or associates of Naturalis Biodiversity Center and can be granted on request.
Linnaeus NG version 2.5 is free to use for personal and non-commercial use. Data will be guaranteed for long term sustainable hosting if they are complying with national standards in research and education. The data must be sharable and free to access and, in later stages, the developer may include adequately licensed content in Bioportal (http://bioportal.naturalis.nl/).
Users can access the key at http://glomera.linnaeus.naturalis.nl and it can be used online using any web browser. No additional software is required. The interface was designed to be able to access from any device with flexible layout. The navigation menu is shown on the left side. The menu includes an index, species list, single-access key, multi-access key, two language options (English or Bahasa Indonesia) and a glossary. A user can directly search for a species by using the search box on the top. If the user does not yet have a clue about the identity of the species, a single-access key is available with 166 steps to help with the identification process. A multi-access key is also provided, in which remaining choices with 100% fit only are indicated at every step. A glossary is present to help novice users to understand terms used in the descriptions and keys.
Morphological characters used in the interactive key (Figure
Apart from morphology, geographical distribution and ecology can be informative as well. The key therefore also includes a few of these non-morphological characters (Table
Illustrations of a selection of key characters used in the identification keys. 1 Glomera acutiflora (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. with green leaves (photograph by Rogier van Vugt) 2 Glomera sp. with reddish-brown leaves (photograph by fotosynthesys deposited on FLICKR) 3 Glomera pungens (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. with upright flowers (photograph by Rogier van Vugt) 4 Glomera hamadryas (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. with flowers turned up-side-down (photograph by Rogier van Vugt) 5 Various shapes of the leaf blade, leaf tip, leaf sheath, leaf spathe, floral bract, entire flower, sepals, petals, lip and ovary present in Glomera and Glossorhyncha (illustrations by Esmée Winkel).
The 169 species of Glomera and their distributions included in the keys in alphabetical order.
Species | Distributions |
---|---|
Glomera acicularis Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. acuminata J.J.Sm | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. acutiflora (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. adenandroides (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. adenocarpa (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. affinis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. albiviridis P.Royen | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. altigena (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. altomontana (Gilli) J.M.H. Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. amboinensis (Ridl.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Bismarck Islands |
G. ambricaulis (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. ambuensis (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. angiensis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. antaresensis (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. appendiculoides Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. asperata Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. aurea Schltr. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. bambusiformis Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. bismarckiensis J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. bougainvilleana Ormerod | Papua New Guinea |
G. brachychaete (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. brassii Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. brevipetala J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. caespitosa (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. calocephala Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. carnea J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. carolinensis L.O. Williams | Republic of Kiribati |
G. celebica (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. chlorantha (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. compressa J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. confusa J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. conglutinata J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. crispa (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Indonesia |
G. cristata (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. cyatheicola P.Royen | Papua New Guinea |
G. dekockii J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. dentifera J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. dependens (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. diffusa (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Indonesia |
G. diosmoides (Schltr.) J.J. Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. dischorensis (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. distichifolia Ormerod | Vanuatu |
G. dubia J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. elegantula (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. emarginata Kores | Fiji |
G. ericifolia Ridl. | Indonesia |
G. erythrosma Blume | Indonesia |
G. flaccida (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. flamulla Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. fluviatilis (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. fransseniana J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. fruticula J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. fruticulosa Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. fusca Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. fuscosetosa Schuit. & de Vogel | Papua New Guinea |
G. gamosepalata P.Royen | Indonesia |
G. geelvinkensis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. geminata Ormerod. | Indonesia |
G. glomeroides (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. goliathensis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. graminifolia Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. grandiflora J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. grandilabella (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. hamadryas (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. hubrechtiana J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. hunsteiniana (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. imitans (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. inconspicua J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. inflata (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. jabiensis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. kamay-nolomi Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. kaniensis Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. kanke P.Royen | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. kerewensis (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. keysseri (Schltr.) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. keytsiana J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. kuperensis Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. lancipetala J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. latilinguis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. latipetala (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. ledermannii (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. leucomela (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. longa (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. longicaulis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. macdonaldii (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, New Hebrides, Fiji |
G. macrantha J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. macrophylla Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. manicata J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. mayuensis Ormerod | Papua New Guinea |
G. melanocaulon Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. merrillii Ames | The Philippines |
G. microphylla J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. minjensis (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. minutigibba J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. montana Rchb.f. | Papua New Guinea, Solomon, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu |
G. monticuprina (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Indonesia |
G. muscicola (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Indonesia |
G. myrtillus (Schltr.) Schuit. & de Vogel | Papua New Guinea |
G. nana (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. neohibernica Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. nigricans (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. nigrilimbata P. Royen | Papua New Guinea |
G. nigrimarginata (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. noroma (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. obovata (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. obtusa Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. oligantha Schltr. | Indonesia |
G. palustris J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon |
G. palustris var. subintegra J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. papuana Rolfe | Papua New Guinea |
G. parviflora J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. patens Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. pendulosa J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. pensilis (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. pilifera (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. pinifolia (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Indonesia |
G. platypetala Schltr. | Indonesia |
G. pleiotricha J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. plumosa J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. polychaete (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. pseudomonanthos Ormerod | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. pteropetala (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. pullei J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. pumilio J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. pungens (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. retusa J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. retusimentum J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. rhombea J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. rigidula J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. rubroviridis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. saccharipanis Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. saccosepala J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. salicornioides J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. salmonea J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. sandaveri Ormerod. | Papua New Guinea |
G. scandens J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. schlechteriana Mansf. | Papua New Guinea |
G. schultzei Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. scopulata (P. Royen) J.M.H. Shaw | Indonesia |
G. secunda J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. sepalosiphon Schuit. & de Vogel | Papua New Guinea |
G. similis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. sororia J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. squamulosa (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. stenocentron (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. stolonifera | Papua New Guinea |
G. subeciliata J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. sublaevis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. subnivalis J.M.H.Shaw | Indonesia |
G. subpetiolata Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. subracemosa J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. subulata (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. subuliformis J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. tamiana J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. tenuis (Rolfe) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. terrestris J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. torricellensis Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. tortuosa (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G. transitoria J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. triangularis J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. tubisepala (P.Royen) J.M.H.Shaw | Papua New Guinea |
G, umbrosa P.Royen | Indonesia |
G. uniflora J.J.Sm. | Indonesia |
G. verrucifera Schltr. | Papua New Guinea |
G. verrucosissima (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. verruculosa (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
G. versteegii J.J.Sm. | Indonesia, Papua New Guinea |
G. viridis (Schltr.) J.J.Sm. | Papua New Guinea |
Plant part | Character | States |
---|---|---|
Rhizome | Division | Heavily branched; not or only sparsely branched |
Leaf blade | Color | Green; reddish-brown |
Lamina | Fleshy; not fleshy | |
Dots | With brown dots; without brown dots | |
Tip | One lobe (obtuse or acute); | |
two lobes (acute-acute, obtuse-obtuse or acute-obtuse) | ||
Leaf sheath | Color | Green; black |
Tooth | With tooth; without tooth | |
Notch | Notched; not notched | |
Bristles | With bristles; without bristles | |
Warts | With warts; without warts | |
Spathe | Warts | With warts; without warts |
Hairs | With hairs; without hairs | |
Dots | With brown dots; without brown dots | |
Floral bract | Warts | With warts; without warts |
Hairs | With hairs; without hairs | |
Dots | With brown dots; without brown dots | |
Size | Longer than spathe; shorter than spathe | |
Inflorescence | Number of flowers | One; more than one |
Flower | Color | White; green; pinkish-salmon; orange; red |
Orientation | Upright; up-side-down | |
Spur length | Shorter than 10 mm; longer than 10 mm | |
Spur tip | One-lobed; two-lobed | |
Lateral sepals | Free; fused for more than two-thirds | |
Lip | With glands on tip; without glands on tip | |
Lip tip color | White; black; green; red; grey; pink | |
Odor | Fragrant; not fragrant | |
Sepal orientation | Straight; bent backward | |
Column foot | Present; absent | |
Ovary ribs | With ribs; without ribs | |
Ovary dots | With brown dots; without brown dots | |
Ovary warts | With warts; without warts |
Character group | Character | States |
---|---|---|
Ecology | Lifeform | Epiphyte; terrestrial |
Flowering season | Months | January; February; March; April; May; June; July; August; September; October; November; December |
Global distribution | Country | Indonesia; Papua New Guinea; Fiji; New Hebrides; Philippines |
Distribution in Indonesia | Island | Papua; Java; Moluccas; Sulawesi |
Occurrence over the elevational gradient | Altitude | Lowland; midland; highland |
The interactive key presented here for Glomera of Southeast Asia encompasses more species and geographic areas than any existing key currently available for this genus. Next to English, it was also written in a language commonly used in Southeast Asia, Bahasa Indonesia, which enables a much wider group consisting of both novice and advanced users in the region to identify these orchids correctly. The main challenges to construct this key consisted of the fact that type descriptions were often rather vague and that many type collections were lost after the bombing of the herbarium of the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum in Berlin in the second world war. Of the 169 species, a total of 52 types were lost. We therefore studied a lot of additional collections, all listed under Species, option Collection specimens on the website, to verify character states.
Compared with traditional dichotomous keys, interactive keys can be used much more easily by relatively novice users (
Our key will hopefully urge the users to further enrich the database and help update the distribution of species or detect possible new species. Pictures on the web placed there by enthusiasts are considered to be an essential source for the discovery of new data (
A first indication that the same might happen for Glomera orchids is illustrated by the fact that we could combine historical, literature-based data and recent photographs of plants taken by wildlife photographers of G. aurea Schltr., G. macdonaldii (Schltr.) J.J. Sm., G. tubisepala (P.Royen) J.M.H. Shaw and G. glomeroides Schltr. Pictures of flowering plants, taken in Papua of the first species, the Solomon islands of the second and Papua New Guinea of the third and the fourth and deposited on Flickr and SmugMug, came to our attention during this study. Once contacted by us, the photographers provided more detailed locality data and dates, which enabled us to update the distribution maps and also the flowering time of these species.
We also used our key to assign a name to a yet unknown Glomera species photographed. For example, on the photograph of Glomera sp. 2010-064 uploaded in the username PNG Collection of Smugmug, we could see details such as the shape of the leaf sheath, tooth and warts, colour and shape of the leaves and leaf apex and the colour of the flower (white with a green lip and red lip tip). After selecting all the characters that could be identified from the photograph and additional data such as location and altitude, we could reduce the number of species from 169 to 10. We ended up with identifying it as cf. G. glomeroides by comparing the photograph to a drawing made by Friedrich Richard Rudolf Schlechter in 1923 that accompanied the type description. The type of this species was lost in the herbarium of Berlin and no documented photograph has yet been published. The photographer could provide us with locality data in the Madang province of Papua New Guinea. With the aid of our interactive key, we could therefore simplify the process of identification of this unidentified species.
We expect that the interactive key presented here for Glomera of Southeast Asia will enable a higher number of people to collect more precise and more reliably identified observations of species of this overlooked orchid genus. It is user-friendly due to the many illustrations and colour photographs, encompassing a combination of historical, literature-based and recent, web-mined data of all species rather than subsets only and written in a language commonly spoken in parts of the world where these orchids occur in the wild. The key was designed for efficient use by both inexperienced and advanced orchidologists. This publication accompanies the release of version 1.0. We encourage all users to provide feedback to improve and further expand this version by contacting us by email to gain more insight into the current distribution of these overlooked orchids. This will enable us to accurately assess their conservation status. By obtaining more knowledge of the regions of distributions but without disclosing too detailed locality data, we hope to prevent extinction of these orchids in the wild.
We thank Mehd Halaouate, Benoit Henry, Gary Yong Gee and S.A. James for their willingness to contribute photographs. Esmée Winkel is thanked for producing the illustrations. Students of the Orchid Biology Course 2017 at Basel University are thanked for beta-testing preliminary versions of the key. Sanders Pieterse and Tekla Boersma are thanked for their help with the LINNAEUS platform, Rene Siep, Jeroen Creuwels, Roxali Bijmoer and Jan Wieringa are thanked for sorting material in the spirit collection of Naturalis Biodiversity Center and curation of the BRAHMS database. Nicolien Sol is thanked for her help with obtaining herbarium specimens on loan. The curators of the herbaria of Gothenburg (G), Harvard University (AMES) and Kew (K) are thanked for sending material to Leiden. Andre Schuiteman, Jim Cootes and Régine Vignes-Lebbe critically read earlier versions of the text and helped improving it. Last but not least, we thank the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) of the Ministry of Finance of Indonesia for funding the PhD project of RKW.