Ophrys oxyrhynchos Tod., L’Imparziale, Giorn. Sci. Amen. Lett. 1840: 74

Pasta, Salvatore, Troia, Angelo, Rosa, Alfonso La & Scafidi, Filippo, 2025, Typification of the names of three Sicilian endemic Orchidaceae published by Agostino Todaro, Phytotaxa 693 (2), pp. 157-165 : 160-162

3. Ophrys oxyrhynchos Tod., L’Imparziale, Giorn. Sci. Amen. Lett. 1840: 74 (–75). 1840.

≡ Arachnites oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Tod., Orchid. Sicul. : 81, t. 1, f. 7–8. 1842 ≡ Ophrys arachnites var. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Parl., Fl. Ital. 3: 546. 1860 ≡ Ophrys arachnites subsp. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Arcang., Comp. Fl. Ital. ed. 1: 661. 1882 [January–April 1882] ( Ophrys arachnites subsp. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Nyman, Consp. Fl. Eur. : 697. 1882 [October 1882]) ≡ Ophrys arachnites f. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Bolzon, Bull. Soc. Bot. Ital. 1903: 39 . 1903 ≡ Ophrys fuciflora var. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) E.G.Camus, Icon. Orchid. Europ. : 310. 1929 ≡ Ophrys fuciflora subsp. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) Soó, Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 24: 26. 1927 ≡ Ophrys holosericea subsp. oxyrhynchos (Tod.) H.Sund. , Taxon 24: 625. 1975

= Ophrys arachnites var. todaroi Nicotra, Prodr. Fl. Messan. 3: 459. 1883

Type: not designated.

= Ophrys nicotrae Zodda, Malpighia 14: 183, tav. VII. 1900 ≡ Ophrys fuciflora fo. nicotrae (Zodda) Soó, Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 24: 26. 1927 ≡ Ophrys fuciflora var. nicotrae (Zodda) E.G.Camus, Icon. Orchid. Europ. : 311. 1929

Type: not designated.

Diagnosis (from the protologue):— Ophrys tuberis subrotundis, calycis segmentis lanceolatis, operculis brevissimis, villosiusculis marginibus reflexis, labello obsolete-bilobo, subquatrato [sic], latere antico postico vix latiori, appendiculato, in disco convexiusculo, atque macula, vel lineolis glabriusculis notato, appendicula sursum versa, columnae in labellum parum inclinatae rostrello acuto.

Ind. Loc.: — [SICILY] “Habitat in pascuis sterilibus calcareis montosis. Panormi alla Pizzuta, alla Portella di S. Anna, a Miccini”.

Neotype: (here designated): — [SICILY] “ Arachnites oxyrhynchos Nob. , in collibus Palermo a Miccini [manu A. Todaro], M.[isit] Todaro 1843 [manu Richard]” (MNHN-P-P 02101487! image available at: http://mediaphoto.mnhn. fr/media/1441305133558VigpKDoKgR8F4til).

We traced candidate specimens for typification in P, PAL, FI and NAP. In fact, Todaro sent some specimens of Ophrys oxyrhynchos to Bertoloni as well ( Bertoloni 1853). However, we could not consult any exsiccata from BOLO, because the genus Ophrys is part of the material in Bertoloni’s Hortus Siccus Florae Italicae that was destroyed or lost (U. Mossetti, pers. comm.).

In addition to the specimen we selected as neotype, in P we found two more specimens (barcodes P 02101486 and P 02101488), whose original labels contain the following information:

a) “ Ophrys oxyrhynchos Tod., Palermo ” (MNHN-P-P 02101486! image available at: http://mediaphoto.mnhn.fr/ media/14413051335398TtGaowNDwOnz7Xb). This specimen includes two individuals lacking the rhizome, fixed on the same sheet, and has no date. The label (including just the name and the provenance, i.e. “Palermo”) handwritten by Gussone, suggests that the specimen was collected and sent to him by Todaro and then forwarded to Richard, Gussone’s correspondent and orchid specialist, in Paris.

b) “ Arachnites oxyrhynchos Tod., Palermo, Todaro ” (MNHN-P-P 02101488! image available at: http://mediaphoto. mnhn.fr/media/ 1441305133577g 9jOITdGt2z4S5Vg). This specimen includes two mature individuals, fixed to the same sheet. Once belonging to the Herbarium of E. Drake, these specimens seem to have been collected by Todaro himself, who also in this case wrote the label after 1840 using the generic name Arachnites . The attribution of this specimen to O. oxyrhynchos is doubtful; in fact, the plant on the left could be referred to some Anacamptis sp. owing to the form of the labellum and the presence of nectar guides.

Two further specimens were found at PAL. The first one (PAL87516) bears five mature individuals fixed in the same sheet and includes three labels, “a Ponticapiddu, Ophrys oxyrhynchos, Mag. [18]41”, “ Arachnites oxyrhynchos Tod. Orchid. sic. p. 81, Aprili, In collibus calcareis—Piano della Stoppa nelle vicine colline, M. Occhio—Pizzuta, Mirto, etc.” and “1850, Ophrys oxyrhynchos Tod., Pizzuta ”; the last two mentioned labels are marked by Todaro’s stamp (PAL87516! image available at: https://herbarium.unipa.it/zoomify/view_img.asp?ic=87516).

The second (PAL87517) bears six mature individuals fixed in the same sheet and includes two labels marked by Todaro’s stamp, “ 31 Maggio 1842, Arachnites / Ophrys oxyrhynchos, M. Occhio ”; “Girgenti Aprile 1842, Arachnites oxyrhynchos Todaro / Ophrys oxyrhynchos Todaro, N. [ome] sic.[iciliano]—visparia cu lu beccu puntutu” (PAL87517! image available at: https://herbarium.unipa.it/zoomify/view_img.asp?ic=87517).

As for the samples kept at FI (FI002753 and FI002754), the first label reads “ Arachnites oxyrhynchos Tod. [ Ophrys arachnites Parl. Fl. It. , later pencil note] / Oph. [ris] oxyrhynchos Tod. / in collibus herbosis—Palermo / Todaro [manu A. Todaro] / da Todaro in Dic. 1876 [manu Parlatore?]”, the second “ Arachnites oxyrhynchos Tod. / Oph. arachnites Parl. Fl. It. / in collibus calcareis / Misilmeri” [manu A. Todaro] / “da Todaro 7bre 1845” [manu F. Parlatore?]”.

Several specimens kept at NAP are referred to Ophrys oxyrhynchos . NAP0003683 includes four flowered plants, two fragments of inflorescence and the following three labels: “ Ophrys oxyrhynchos Tod. / Palermo / Tineo” [manu G. Gussone], “Maggio / Sagana sopra Partinico” [manu G. Gussone] and “7. Ophrys oxyrhynchos Todar. giorn. am. 1840 p. 74 et Orch. Sic. p. 18 / Martio–Aprili / in herbosis demissis vel submontosis” [manu G. Gussone].

The label of NAP0003685 is associated with another floral scape and is accompanied by two labels in which we read “ Ophrys oxyrhynchos Nob. / O: arachnites Rich. [macr. Franc.?] Koch syn. [fl.] germ. et helv. non Will[d.].! Bert[ol.]:! DC.! Pers.! Seb. et Mauri! / O: oestrifera Reich. cent: non M. B. / O: fuciflora Reich. cent: non Curtis! / Floret Aprili Majo [manu A. Todaro] and “1840 Todaro” [manu G. Gussone].

Two flowering plants in NAP0003686 are associated with the label “ Ophrys tenthredinifera W. var.? / San Martino alla Portella di S: Anna. Pizzuta” [manu A. Todaro].

All things considered, the selection of a neotype is necessary since the available specimens bear no date, or, when occurring, is later than the year of publication of the name (see Art. 9 of ICN). The presence of two or more labels on the specimens conserved at PAL made it very difficult (or even impossible) to establish the origin of the plants fixed on each sheet, thus making the material from PAL unsuitable for typification purposes. The same problem occurred with NAP specimens. Therefore, preference should be given to the material kept at P. The specimen P 02101487 is here designated as the neotype. The label is handwritten by Todaro, who named the plant Arachnites oxyrhynchos , so the specimen was labelled after the publication of the name Ophrys oxyrhynchos ( Todaro 1840) and sent to Claude and Richard in 1843. P 02101487 includes a complete mature individual that matches the protologue and corresponds to the current application of the name (e.g. Delforge 2016, Grünanger 2017, Kreutz 2024) by showing useful diagnostic traits such as a wide trapezoid labellum with no gibbae and a prominent and erect apicule.

Note:—The original spelling “ oxyrhynchos ” proposed by Todaro (1840, 1842) is adopted here, according to ICN (Art. 60.1). The variant “ oxyrrhynchos ”, adopted by many authors after Todaro and also featured in IPNI (2024) and POWO (2024), is unjustified in this case from an orthographic point of view, because the doubling of the letter “r” after a vowel is neither mentioned nor prescribed by the ICN for such compound adjective. Moreover, both options (with one or with two “r”) are currently in use in Botanical nomenclature and were utilised in many similar cases, like for the desinence “- rhinum ” in the genera Antirrhinum and Chaenorhinum . Similarly, for the almost identical desinence “- rhynchus ”, there is no doubling of the “r” for the zoological names related to genus Ornithorhynchus and Otiorhynchus .

Ophrys oxyrhynchos ( Fig. 3 ) is a slender plant, with a green perianth, revolute sepals along the margin and very short petals (less than 1/3 of the sepals). The labellum is large, enlarged at the apex, sub-quadrangular with barely outlined humps, with a large macula typically surrounded by a white line; the apicule is large, robust and typically turned and folded upwards. Endemic to Sicily, it grows in grasslands, garrigues and forest clearings and edges up to 900 m a.s.l. It blooms from March to May. This taxon occurs across the entire island ( Bartolo & Pulvirenti 2005) .

Figures

FIGURE 3. Photo of Ophrys oxyrhynchos taken at Valle Vite, Monti Sicani, municipality of Chiusa Sclafani, province of Agrigento, on May 28, 2015 (photo by A. La Rosa).