Caladenia magnifica
(Nicholls) D.L.Jones & G.W.Carr Magnificent Spider-orchidFlowering plant c. 20–30 cm tall. Leaf 10–15 cm long, 15–20 mm wide, spotted with red at base. Flowers 1 or 2; perianth segments 6–10 cm long, entirely reddish crimson or yellowish, streaked and speckled with crimson, the tips red to blackish; sepals stiffly spreading, flattened at base, 3–5.5 mm wide, tapered to a long tail densely covered in sessile glands; petals shorter than sepals but otherwise similar. Labellum curved forward with apex recurved and lateral lobes erect, lamina oblong-triangular, very obscurely 3-lobed, 18–22 mm long and 16–20 mm wide (when flattened), purplish-black, apex somewhat fleshy; margins of lateral lobes fringed with linear calli to 4 mm long, margins of mid-lobe with shorter calli becoming tooth-like near tip; lamina calli in 4–6 rows extending just beyond the bend, foot-shaped, c. 2 mm long at base of lamina, decreasing in size towards apex. Flowers Sep.–Oct.
Best known from the Clydesdale area of central Victoria in open forested slopes on well-drained stony soil, but other records indicate that this species was sporadically distributed throughout central Victoria. Not seen since 1979 and possibly extinct.
The name C. magnifica has been attributed wrongly to other taxa. It differs from other species in the C. patersonii group in having large, dark-coloured flowers and a blackish labellum. See also notes under C. fulva.
Entwisle, T.J. (1994). Orchidaceae. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 2, Ferns and Allied Plants, Conifers and Monocotyledons, pp. 740–901. Inkata Press, Melbourne.