Epidendrum birostratum C.Schweinf. GROUP Coronatum SUBGROUP Aristisepalum
Photo/Drawing by Collantes and The AMO Herbaria Website
LATE
THROUGH 
Common Name The Two Beaked Epidendrum [refers to the lateral sepals which are parallel to the lip giving the appearance of being 2 beaked]
Flower Size .8” [2 cm]
Found in Cusco department Peru and Bolivia in elfin cloud forests at elevations of 3000 to 3650 meters as a large to giant sized, cold growing epiphyte or terrestrial with simple, canelike stems enveloped in the lower half by nonfoliaceous tubular sheaths and carrying 7 to 12, distichous, suberect, subcoriaceous, articulate, oblong-elliptic, subacute, mucronate, irregularily crenulate margined leaves that blooms in the late fall through winter on a terminal, occuring only once, racemose, arching nutant, 5.8" [14.5 cm] long, dense, successively to 14 flowered inflorescence with basal, lunate, short, apex mamillate, the upper ones transversely sub deltate, caudate floral bracts and carrying successive flowers that open from the base up and eventually all are open at one time.
"Epidendrum birostratum belongs to the GROUP Coronatum SUBGROUP Aristisepalum, which has a caespitose habit, simple stems, subcoriaceous leaves, an arching-nutant, racemose inflorescence without spathaceous bracts, a thickened disc on the 3-lobed lip, and especially the lateral sepals which are apically prominently aristate-complanate, .6 to .8" [15 to 20 mm] long. The species is recognized by the has leaves 2.6 to 5.2" x .52 to .6" [6.5 to 13 x 1.3 to 1.5 cm], the lip with dolabriform-rounded lateral lobes, mid-lobe as long as the lateral lobes, cuneate, sub-quadrate, the apex sinuous-truncate, 3-dentate; disc with the thickened plate sub-quadrate-ovate, basal flowers open first. Epidendrum incahuamanii Collantes & Hágsater has linear-lanceolate leaves 1 to 6" x .12 to .36" [2.5 to 15 x 0.3 to 0.9 cm], lateral lobes dolabriform-sub-elliptic, oblique, the disc thickened into a semi-circular plate, traversed by a prominent mid-rib extending to the apex of the mid-lobe .1 x .24" [2.5 x 6 mm], semicircular, apex usually retuse; apical flowers open first. Epidendrum aristisepalum Hágsater & Dodson from southern Ecuador has similar leaves 2.4 to 5.8" x .28 to .44" [6 to 14.5 x 0.7 to 1.1 cm], but the ecallose lip has a sub-orbicular mid-lobe with the disc thickened into 3 prominent longitudinal ribs. Epidendrum jalcaënse Chocce-Peńa, Dalström, Hágsater & J.Arnaiz has wider leaves, 1.88 to 2.64" x .4 to .6" [4.7 to 6.6 x 1.0 to 1.5 cm], bright orange flowers with a wide, 4-lobed, ecallose lip, with 5 thickened ribs on the disc." Hagsater etal 2015
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Orchids of Peru Vol 2 Schweinfurth 1959; Machu Picchu Orchids Christenson 2003; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 412 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 413 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1446 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1488 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [1] plate 1504 Hagsater & Collantes 2015 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [1] Plate 1527 Hagsater & Sanchez 2015 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 16(2) Plate 1699 Hagsater & Jimenez 2018 see recognition section
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