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Corallorhiza odontorhiza

species of plant

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionOct 19, 2025
Entity authorityQ15432276 ↗
Source-derived summary

Corallorhiza odontorhiza, common name fall coral-root or small-flowered coral-root, is a species of orchid widespread across eastern and central United States, and reported also from Mexico, Central America, Quebec and Ontario. In North America, it occurs in forested areas up to an elevation of 2800 m (9300 feet).

Corallorhiza odontorhiza is a non-photosynthetic species, with no chlorophyll. Hence it relies on fungi in the soil to supply it with nutrients. Stems are yellow to brown, bulbous at the base. There are no leaves. Flowers are typically reddish-purple with a white lip, the lip with small purple spots, though some plants are cleistogamous with non-opening flowers. The plant flowers from August through October in the eastern US.

Infraspecific taxa

Three infraspecific taxa are recognized as of May 2014:

Corallorhiza odontorhiza var. odontorhiza – Quebec, Ontario, eastern and central United States

Corallorhiza odontorhiza var. pringlei (Greenm.) Freudenst.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Corallorhiza odontorhiza” as species of plant. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA practical orientation to terminology and classification, particularly when read beside dated observations, specimens or technical literature. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2014—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. The account is most persuasive where Corallorhiza, odontorhiza and species can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as species of plant. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 19, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q15432276. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2014.

Critical limits

Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Corallorhiza odontorhiza”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Corallorhiza odontorhiza primary sources, Corallorhiza odontorhiza archive and Corallorhiza research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Corallorhiza odontorhiza”?
  2. Is the terminology current, historical or disputed?
  3. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Corallorhiza odontorhiza” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.