Epidendrum apiciliatum Hagsater & Santiago & Uribe Velez 2021 GROUP Pseudepidendrum SUBGROUP Porphyreum

TYPE LCDP Photo by © RC Uribe V & A. Cisneros and Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1856 Hagsater & Jimenez 2021 and the AMO Herbaria Website

Common Name The Apically Widest Epidendrum [refers to the lip which is widest in the apical lobes]

Flower Size 1.4" [3.8 cm]

Found in Valle de Cauca and Boyaca departments of Colombia at elevations around 2800 meters as a giant sized, cold growing terrestrial with terete, cane-like, basal half covered by non-foliar, sheaths, thin, erect stems carrying 14 to 15, alternate, articulate, subspreading to the stem, light green on both sides with red brown veins, narrowly elliptic, acute apically, subcoriaceous, margins entire, slightly revolute leaves that blooms in the winter and spring on an erect, without a spathe, paniculate, peduncle, 4 to 5.2" [10 to 13 cm] long, elongate, straight, provided with 3 to 4, basally tubular, conduplicate towards the apex, acuimnate, white bracts, rachis 6.4 to 8" [16 to 20 cm] long, up to 10 short racemes, each subtended by a narrowly triangular, long acuminate, embracing bract, 10.4 to 13.2" [26 to 33 cm] long overall, simultaneously densely 150 to 200 flowered inflorescence with triangular, acuminate, embracing, much shorter than the ovary floral bracts and carrying non fragrant flowers.

"Epidendrum apicilatum belongs to the GROUP Pseudepidendrum which is characterized by the caespitose plants, canelike stems, the acute to acuminate leaves, the inflorescence usually apical, the mostly filiform petals and the lip usually 3-lobed (with 3 parallel fleshy keels), apical lobe often bifurcate, the “bird-wing” type pollinia, at least the inner pair, and THE SUBGROUP Porphyreum which has flowers colored reddish orange, deep purple or lilac-pink, and the calli generally prominent, sometimes horn-like. The new species is recognized by the leaves 4.08 to 4.93" x .68 to 1.4" [10.2to 12.3 x 1.7 to 3.5 cm], the small flowers, sepals 3.36" [7.6 to 8.4 mm] long, dorsally, and minutely verrucose, the lip widest between the apical lobes, the lateral lobes quadrate, with the basal margin undulate. It is very similar to Epidendrum atacazoicum Schltr. but that species has leaves 2.8 to 7.2" x 1 to 2" [7 to 18 x 2.5 to 5.0 cm], and pyramidal inflorescence, the racemes decreasing in size towards the apex of the inflorescence, the sepals clearly verrucose dorsally, the lip equally wide between the lateral and apical lobes, and the lateral lobes of the lip obliquely ovate-dolabriform. Epidendrum arnoldii Schltr. is also vegetatively similar, with a non-pyramidal, few-flowered inflorescence, sepals .32 to .4" [8 to 10 mm] long, dorsally glabrous, and the lip equally wide between the lateral and apical lobes. Epidendrum laeve Lindl. has a densely flowered pyramidal inflorescence, the basal racemes longer than those at the apex, sepals .36 to /4" [9 to 10 mm] long, dorsally glabrous, and the lip equally wide between the lateral and apical lobes. Epidendrum coconucoënse Hágsater, E.Santiago & Uribe-Vélez has somewhat larger flowers, sepals .44 to .48" [11 to 12 mm] long, pink, sepals and lip unevenly blotched with purple, the lateral lobes of the lip dolabriform, and the lip equally wide between the lateral and apical lobes." Hagsater etal 2021

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1856 Hagsater & Jimenez 2021 drawing/photo fide

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