Trichosalpinx pusilla (Kunth) Luer 1983 SUBGENUS Tubella Luer 1986
Photos by Ecuagenera and their Ecuador Orchid Website
Common Name The Very Small Trichosalpinx [refers to the plant size]
Flower Size .1" [3mm]
Found in Costa Rica, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and northern Brazil in montane forests at elevations of 2500 to 3100 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cool to cold growing epiphyte with occasionally prolific, branching, erect, slender ramicauls enveloped by 2 to 4, closely lepanthiform sheaths with microscopicly ciliate ostia and carrying a single, apical, erect, thickly coriaceous, convex, broadly elliptical to orbicular, obtuse, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms on a loose, 4 to 6" [10 to 15 cm] long, 2 to 3 flowered, racemose inflorescence arising from near the apex of the ramicaul.
"Except for their minute size, the flowers are basically similar to those of T intricata and T scabridula.
Synonyms *Dendrobium pusillum Kunth 1816; Humboldtia pusilla (Kunth) Kuntze 1891; Karma pusilla (Kunth) Karremans 2023; Pleurothallis pusilla (Kunth) Lindl. 1842; Specklinia pusilla (Kunth) Lindl. 1835; Tubella pusilla (Kunth) Archila 2000
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Nov. Gen. Sp. 1: 357 HBK 1816 as Dendrobium pusillum;
Neu. Nachtr. Vollst. Lex. Gärtn. 3: 354 F Dietr. 1834 as Dendrobium pusillum nom superfl.;
Edwards's Bot. Reg. 21: t. 1797 Lindley 1835 as Specklinia pusilla;
Edwards's Bot. Reg. 28(Misc.): 82 Lindley 1842 as Pleurothallis pusilla;
Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 668 Kuntze 1891
Xenia Orchidaceae vol 2 Rchb.f 1862 drawing fide;
Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 2 1970 as Pleurothallis pusilla drawing good;
Flora de Venezuela Volumen 15 Parte 2 Foldats 1970 as P roraimensis drawing ok;
Venezuelan Orchids Illustrated Vol 4 Dunsterville & Garay 1972 as Pleurothallis roraimensis drawing ok;
Orchids of Venezuela, An Illustrated Field Guide Vol 3 Dunsterville & Garay 1979 as P roraimensis drawing ok;
Phytologia 54: 397 Luer 1983 as trichosalpinx pusilla;
Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XV Systematics of Trichosalpinx Luer 1997 drawing fide;
Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 3 Ramiro and Carnevali 2000 drawing ok;
Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana Vol 7 Steyermark, Berry, Yatskievych and Holst 2003 as T roraimensis drawing ok;
Manual de Plantas de Costa Rica Vol 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003;
Revista Guatemalensis 3(1): 62 Archila 2000 publ. 2009 as Tubella pusilla;
Orchid Species Of Peru Zelenko & Bermudez 2009 photo fide;
LANKESTERIANA 23(2). Karremans, Moreno, Gil-Amaya, Morales, Espinosa, Mesa, Restrepo, Rincon-Gonzales, Serna, Sierra-Ariza and Vieira-Uribe 2023 as Karma pusilla
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