Cyclopogon ellipticus (Garay) Dodson 1993

SUBGENUS Beadlea [Small] Szlach 1993

Drawing by G Larsen/ Dodson / Luer 2005

Common Name The Elliptic Cyclopogon

Flower Size .08" [2 mm]

Found in Antioquia and Cundinamarca departments of Colombia and Imbabura, Tungurahua, Azuay, Pastaza and Zamora-Chichipe provinces of Ecuador in wet cloud forests at elevations around 2500 to 3000 meters as a medium sized, cold growing terrestrial with a basal rosette of 5 or so, green, elliptic to obliquely elliptic, acuminate, gradually narrowing and cuneate below into the canaliculate, petiolate base leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, erect, peduncle to 4.8" [12 cm] long, provided with infundibuliform, lanceolate, closely spaced, decreasing in size upwards, sheathing bracts, rachis 4" [10 cm] long, secund to subsecund, compact, loosely [not dense] to 50 flowered inflorescence with ovate-lanceolate, long-acuminate floral bracts that are shorter than the flowers.

"Distinguished by the green leaves, the inflorescence being generally compact, not dense, the sheathing bracts overlapping and the basal lobes of the lip about equal in width to the apical lobe." Dodson/Luer 2005

Often confused [see references below] with Cyclopogon estradae but it differs in the dense, elongate inflorescence with many overlapping basal sheaths, smaller flowers and a longer than the flower floral bract. It also differs by occuring in northwestern Ecuador in low coastal mountains in warm cloud forests at elevations of 500 to 600 meters.

Synonyms *Beadlea elliptica Garay 1978

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

Flora of Ecuador No 9 225[1] Garay 1978 as Beadlea elliptica this one is correct;

Icones Plantarum Tropicarum Plate 0004 Dodson 1980 as Beadlea elliptica Not = C estradae;

*Orquideologia 19: 92 Dodson 1993

Flora of Ecuador # 76 225 [2] Orchidaceae Dodson/Luer 2005 drawing fide;

Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia: 275 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2019 drawing fide

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