Thelymitra variegata

Thelymitra variegata (Lindl.) F.Muell.

Macdonaldia variegata

Queen of Sheba

Thelymitra spiralis/variegata (Lobed Sun Orchids, the Queens)

John Lindley in A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony: l (1840) as Macdonaldia variegata

Bullsbrook to Gracetown, growing in sandy soils in shrublands and woodlands.

· · · · · · · Aug Sep · · ·

An attractive species 100–350 mm high with a narrow, smooth leaf 40–90 mm long by 5–10 mm wide at its widest point and up to five deep pink, purple-blotched flowers 30–50 mm across.

It is distinguished from the related Northern Queen of Sheba (Thelymitra pulcherrima) and Eastern Queen of Sheba (T. speciosa) by its similarly coloured (rather than contrastingly coloured) petals and sepals and south-westerly distribution.

Threatened (Critically Endangered)