Cheirostylis octodactyla Ames 1907
Photos by © Leo DC and the Skynet Orchid Website
LATE
EARLY
Common Name or Meaning The Eight Fingered Cheirostylis - In China Yu Chun Cha Zhu Lan
Flower Size .4" [1 cm]
Found in Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan in damp areas of forests at elevations of 1000 to 2400 meters as a mini-miniature to miniature sized, cool to cold growing terrestrial with an ascending pale reddish brown, fleshy stem carrying 3 to 6, scattered along the stem, abaxially pale green, adaxially green, ovate to elliptic or sometimes orbicular-cordate, acute, abruptly narrowing below into the petiolate base leaves that blooms in the late summer and early fall on an erect, short to less than .4" [1 cm] long, 2 to 3 flowered inflorescence enveloped below by leaf bases and not visible above the stem apex with pale green, ovate, shorter than the ovary, acuminate apically floral bracts.
This species and C pingbianensis are obviously related if not conspecific, more research needs to be done, if so then this species takes precedence.
Synonyms Cheirostylis inabae Hayata 1914; Cheirostylis oligantha Masam. & Fukuy. 1940
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Studies in the Family Orchidaceae Vol 3 Ames 1908 drawing fid Flora of China Vol 25 Zhengyi, Raven & Deyuan 2009; Flora of China Vol 25 Illustrations Zhengyi, Raven & Deyuan 2010 drawing fide; Flora Of Thailand Orchidaceae Vol 12 Part 1 Pedersen, Kurzweil, Suddee & Cribb 2011 drawing fide; Turczaninowia 2011, 14(2) : 15–100 Averyanov 2011
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
