Epidendrum brachythyrsus Kraenzl. 1911 GROUP Pseudepidendrum SUBGROUP Densiflorum

TYPE Drawing

TYPE Photo by D Scherberich/TYPE Drawing by Hagsater & Jimenez and The AMO Herbaria Website

MID LATER

Common Name The Short Branched Epidendrum

Flower Size 1.2” [3 cm]

Found in Espirito Santo, Rio de Janiero, Minas Gerais, Sao Paulo and Parana states of Brazil in the Atlantic rain forests as a large sized, warm growing orchid with cane-like, simple, terete, thin, erect, straight stems carrying to 10, alternate, spreading, articulate, subcoriceous, unequal in size, basally shorter, oblong-elliptic, acute, margin entire leaves that blooms in the mid fall through late spring on a terminal, erect, slightly paniculate, peduncle subsessile, enveloped by 2 to 3 prominent, widely triangular, acuminate, partly imbricate bracts, rachis 1.72 to 2" [4.3 to 5 cm] long, thin, straight, laxly, simultaneously 8 to 13 flowered inflorescence with prominent, much shorter than the ovary, linear-lanceolate, long-acuminate, amplexicaul floral bracts and carrying resupinate, sweetly fragrant, green overall flowers with the apex of column and the disc of the lip white.

Many references give this species as as synonym of E paniculatum BUT that is in error, the species are very different. In fact this species is closer to E densiflorum than E paniculatum.

"Epindendrum brachythyrsus belongs to the GROUP Pseudepidendrum which is characterized by caespitose plants, cane-like stems, acute to acuminate leaves, usually apical inflorescence, without any spathaceous bract, though it may have several bracts, the mostly filiform petals and the lip usually 3-lobed (with 3 parallel fleshy keels), the apical lobe often bifurcate, the “bird-wing” type pollinia, at least the inner pair, and SUBGROUP Densiflorum where the short-pedunculate inflorescence is paniculate, flowering only once, flowers are green, the apex of the column and disc of the lip creamy-white, the calli sometimes tinged purple, the petals are linear-oblong to linear-oblanceolate, never filiform, and the pollinia unequal in shape, only the inner pair “bird-wing” like. The species is recognized by the thin stems .2 to .4" [0.5 to 1 cm] in diameter, the lax-flowered inflorescence shorter than the apical leaf, sepals oblanceolate, obtuse, .48 to .52" [12 to 13 mm] long, petals linear-oblong, .6" [1.5 mm] wide; the lip as wide between the lateral lobes and the lobes of the mid-lobe. Epidendrum noackii Cogn. has shorter stems, 14 to 20" [35 to 50 cm]tall, with narrow leaves, .6 to .88" [1.5 to 2.2 cm] wide, sepals ligulate-oblanceolate, acute, petals linear; the lip is wider between the lateral lobes than between the lobes of the mid-lobe. Epidendrum hassleri Cogn. from Paraguay and Argentina, has robust stems .4 to .6" [1.0 to 1.5 cm] in diameter, sepals spatulate-oblanceolate, petals linear-oblanceolate to linear oblong, and the lip wider between the lateral lobes than between the lobes of the mid-lobe. Epidendrum densiflorum Hook has a much larger inflorescence, much longer than the apical leaf, clearly and densely branched, sepals .4 to .48" [10 to 13 mm] long, petals linear-oblanceolate, .04" {1 mm] wide, and the lip narrower across the mid-lobe than across the lateral lobes." Hagsater etal 2013

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1408 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; *Icones Orchidacearum 14 plate 1412 Hagsater 2013 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1436 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1450 Hagsater & Sanchez 2013 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1462 Hagsater & Sanchez 2013 see recognition section;

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