Elleanthus capitatus (Poepp. & Endl.) Rchb.f. 1862 SECTION Cephaleleyna Photo by © Eric Hunt and His Orchid Website

Plant in situ Mexico Photo courtesy of Weyman Bussey

THROUGH

Common Name The Head Elleanthus

Flower Size 2/5" [1 cm]

Growing alongside Sobralia macrantha near La Esperanza. The flower head is over 4" across. This species has a wide range from Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Venezuela, French Guiana, Guyana, Surinam, Brazil, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Leewards, Trinidad and Tobago and the Windward Islands in cloud and elfin forests at elevations of 40 to 3800 meters as a large sized, clumping, hot to cold growing epiphyte or litho-terrestrial with thick roots and stout stems enveloped basally by tubular sheaths that become basally clasping, long acuminate, distichous, alternate, plicate leaves that become bractlike apically on the stem and blooms in the spring through fall on a terminal, short, enveloped by membranceous sheaths, many flowered, capitate or subcapitate, racemose inflorescence with an apical head of flowers that are covered in a glutinous material.

Synonyms Bletia capitata R.Br. in W.T.Aiton 1813; Elleanthus casapensis (Rchb.f.) Rchb.f. 1862; Elleanthus cephalophorus (Rchb.f.) Rchb.f. 1862; Elleanthus cephalotus Garay & H.R.Sweet 1972; Elleanthus cynarocephalus (Rchb. f.) Rchb. f. 1862; Epidendrum capitatum Sessé & Moc. 1894; Evelyna capitata Poepp. & Endl. 1836; Evelyna casapensis Rchb.f. 1852; Evelyna cephalophora Rchb.f. 1852; *Evelyna cynarocephala Rchb. f. 1856

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Symbolae Antillanae Vol VI Orchidaceae Urban 1909; Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 79. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923; Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 163. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923; AOS Bulletin Vol 27 No 6 1958; Native Orchids of Trinidad Schultes 1960; AOS Bulletin Vol 35 No 1 1966 photo; Venezuelan Orchids Vol 4 Dunsterville & Garay 1966; Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 1 1969; AOS Bulletin Vol 48 No 5 1979 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 48 No 7 1979; The Orchids of Cuba Llamacho & Larramendi 2005 as Elleanthus capitatus; Orchidaceae Antillanae Nir 2000 as Elleanthus capitatus; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 672 Dodson 1982; Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 2 Dodson 2002 as E capitatus; Orchids of Bolivia Vol 2 Laelinae Vasquez and Ibisch 2004

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------