New dendrobium orchid species found in Sichuan

Researchers recently discovered a new dendrobium species in Ya'an, Sichuan province, and the findings were published in the botanic journal Phytotaxa, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The orchid flower was discovered by a research team led by Yang Hongbin, head of the national dendrobium plants germplasm resource center during a dendrobium resource survey in May 2023.

Through collaborative morphological comparisons and systematic molecular analysis with researchers from the Chinese Academy of Forestry, they identified it as a new species of the Gastrochilus genus in the Orchidaceae family.

Yang said the species was discovered at an altitude of 1,000 to 1,500 meters. Only two clusters have been found so far, separated by over 4 kilometers.

Researchers are conducting further studies on the population of this new species, he said.