Curio

State Library of New South Wales
No. 1: Unidentified; No. 2: Golden donkey orchid (Diursis aurea), 1788–91

No. 1: Unidentified; No. 2: Golden donkey orchid (Diursis aurea), 1788–91

Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW; Purchased from Murray Marks, London, 1911; PXD 17, f. 16

Watercolour

Golden donkey orchids grow to around 60cm in height.
Golden donkey orchids get their common name from their two top petals, which stick up like ‘donkey ears’.
Golden donkey orchids flower from August to December.
Golden donkey-orchids belong to the genus Diuris, the Greek word meaning ‘double tail’.
The Golden donkey orchid is found in eastern Queensland and New South Wales.
Golden donkey orchids inhabit woodland and eucalypt forest areas.