Trichosalpinx membraniflora (C.Schweinf.) Luer 1983 SUBGENUS Tubella Luer 1986

TYPE Drawing and Collection sheet by © Schweinfurth and The Epidendra Webpage

Common Name The Membraneous Foliage Trichosalpinx

Flower Size very small

Found in Costa Rica and Panama in very wet forests at elevations of 950 to 1000 meters as a mini-miniature sized, warm growing prolific epiphyte with erect, superposed ramicauls enveloped completely by 4 to 7, tubular, minutely hispid sheaths that terminate in spreading ovate, ciliate margined mouths, carrying 1 or more, thick, elliptic, minutely denticulate margined, shortly petiolate base leaves that blooms in the summer on an erect, peduncle .4" [1 cm] long, .4 to .6" [1 to 1.5 cm] long overall, successively single, few flowered inflorescence carrying flowers with yellowish white sepals, transluscent petals and a pale yellow lip.

"Similar to T dura but differs in the leaves with a minutely denticulate margin, a short inflorescence that bears only 3 to 4 pale yellow, tiny flowers in slow succession. The sepals are carinate and acute, the minute, elliptical petals are without a discernable vein, the lip is oblong with the apex and base broadly rounded and the disc of the lip is only slightly thickened with three veins. A pair of wings extends forward from the apex of the column to flank the anther similar to the columnar wings of T tropida." Luer 1997

Synonyms *Pleurothallis membraniflora C.Schweinf. 1938; Tubella membraniflora (C.Schweinf.) Archila 2000

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Bot. Mus. Leafl. 5(6): 91.Schweinf. 1938 as Pleurothallis membranifolia; *Phytologia 54(5): 396.Luer 1983; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XV Systematics of Trichosalpinx Luer 1997 drawing fide; Manual de Plantas de Costa Rica Vol 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003;

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