Dracula terborchii Luer & Hirtz 1999 SUBGENUS Dracula SECTION Dracula SUBSECTION Dracula SERIES Dracula
Photos by © Eric Hunt
TYPE Drawing by © Carl Luer
Common Name or Meaning Terborch's Dracula [Dutch Orchid Enthusiast current]
Flower Size 4" [10 cm]
Found in Carchi province of Ecuador in cloud forests at elevations around 1200 to 1400 meters as a medium sized, cool growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, stout ramicauls enveloped basally by 2 to 3 loose, tubular sheaths and carrying a single, apical, erect, thinly coriaceous, carinate, subplicate, elliptical-obovate, acute, gradually narrowing below into the indistinct, conduplicate petiolate base leaf that blooms in the winter and spring on a horizontal to descending, arising from low on the ramicaul, loose, successively few flowered, 5 to 8" [12.5 to 20 cm] long inflorescence and carrying tubular, shorter than the pedicel floral bracts.
"Most similar to Dracula polyphemus but the large epichile of D terborchii is much broader with involute sides. In addition the sepals are subacute, less deeply connate and more widely diverging and the petals are distinctly smaller." Luer 1993
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XVIII Systematics of Pleurothallis subsection Antenniferae, Longiracemosae, Macrophyllae-racemosae and Subgenera Pseudsostelis and Acuminata Luer 1999 drawing fide; Draculas Del Ecuador Pupulin, Merino and Medina 2009 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 79 #6 2010 photo fide; Orchids Masdevallia with its segregates including Dracula Zelenko 2014 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 83 #3 2019 photo fide;
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