Sarcanthopsis
Introduction '''''Sarcanthopsis''''', commonly known as '''goliath orchids''', is a genus of six species of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are large epiphytes or lithophytes with long, thick, leathery stems, large, crowded leathery leaves and many yellowish flowers on a branched flowering stem. Orchids in this genus occur in New Guinea and islands of the south-west Pacific.
Description Orchids in the ''Sarcanthopsis'' are large epiphytic or lithophytic monopodial plants with smooth leaves and stems up to  long. A large number of leathery oblong leaves folded lengthwise have their bases wrapped around the stem. Yellowish resupinate flowers with brown spots,  in diameter are arranged on a branching flowering stem and face in many different directions. The sepals and petals are free from and similar to each other in size and shape. The labellum is rigidly fixed to the column and has three lobes, a concave upper "hypochile" and lower "epichile" and a sharp bend in its middle.
Taxonomy and naming The genus ''Sarcanthopsis'' was first formally described in 1972 by Leslie Andrew Garay and the description was published in Harvard University ''Botanical Museum Leaflets''. The name ''Sarcanthopsis'' refers to the similarity of orchids in this genus to those in the genus ''Sarcanthus'', now known as ''Cleisostoma''. The ending ''-opsis'' is an Ancient Greek suffix meaning "having the appearance of" or "like". '''Species list'''The following is a list of species of ''Sarcanthopsis'' accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families as at December 2018:* ''Sarcanthopsis chalmersiana'' (F.Muell. & Kraenzl.) Ormerod – Papua New Guinea* ''Sarcanthopsis hansemannii'' (Kraenzl.) J.J.Wood & Ormerod - New Ireland* ''Sarcanthopsis nagarensis'' (Rchb.f.) Garay - Fiji, Santa Cruz Islands, Wallis & Futuna* ''Sarcanthopsis quaifei'' (Rolfe) Garay - New Caledonia, Vanuatu* ''Sarcanthopsis warocqueana'' (Rolfe) Garay - Papua New Guinea* ''Sarcanthopsis woodfordii'' (Rolfe) Garay - Solomon Islands
Distribution Orchids in this genus are found in the Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia, the Santa Cruz Islands, Vanuatu and the Wallis and Futuna Islands. A single juvenile plant of ''Sarcanthopsis warocqueana'' has been seen on Moa Island, Queensland in the Torres Strait.
See also * List of Orchidaceae genera
References
External links *