Epidendrum belloi Hágsater 1999 GROUP Spathiger SUBGROUP Coriifolium

TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website

LATE EARLY

Common Name Bello's Epidendrum [Mr Erik Bello Carranza - Costa Rican Naturalist and collector of type current]

Flower Size 1.6" [3.5 cm]

Found in Costa Rica and Panama on the Atlantic slope at elevations around 700 to 1400 meters as a medium to large sized, warm to cool growing epiphyte with simple, cane-like, laterally compressed, erect, slightly flexuous stems carrying 6 to 7, all along the stem, distichous, sub-coriaceous, oblong, unequally bilobed apically, margin entire leaves that blooms in the late fall and early winter on a terminal, racemose, occuring only once, distichous, erect, straight, laterally compressed, ancipitous, 6 to 8" [15 to 20 cm] long, several flowered inflorescence arising on a mature stem, with longer than the flower, longly triangular, acute, conduplicate, extended, not imbricating floral bracts and carrying 8 successively opening, to 5 open at a time, non-resupinate, white flowers.

This species is a large plant with 6 to 7 leaves that are less than 1" in width, the inflorescence as long as the apical leaves, the spaced acute floral bracts, the 3 nerved petals and a cordate, apiculate, 2 calli lip distinguish it from others.

"Epidendrum bello belongs to the GROUP Spathiger SUBGROUP Coriifolium characterized by the sympodial habit, coriaceous leaves, and the racemose, distichous inflorescence carrying fleshy green to purplish flowers. The species can be recognized by its large plants, stems 11.8 to 18.4" [29 to 46 cm] long, with 6 to 7 leaves more than 1" [2.5 cm] wide, the inflorescence about as long as the apical leaves, the spreading, non-imbricating, acute floral bracts surpassing the flowers which have 3-veined petals and a cordiform, apiculate, blcallose lip. It is closely related to E. beharorum Hágsater from Guatemala, which has a much longer inflorescence and an obreniform, ecallose lip. Epidendrum magnibracteatum has a very campact inflorescence with imbricating bracts shorter than the flowers, and an obreniform, ecallose lip and single veined petals." Hagsater etal 1999

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 313 Hagsater & Sanchez 1999 drawing fide; Manual de las Plantas de Costa Rica Vol 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 9 Plate 914 Hagsater & Sanchez 2007 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 11 Plate 1154 Hagsater 2008 see recognition section;

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