Epidendrum calacaliense Hágsater & Dodson 2001 GROUP Megalospathum SUBGROUP Tigriphyllum

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

Common Name The Calacali Epidendrum [refers to the locality in Pichincha province, Ecuador of the type species]

Flower Size .6" [1.5 cm]

Found in north central Ecuador in the upper western slopes of the Andes in montane forests at elevations of 2500 to 2700 meters as a miniature sized, cold growing epiphyte with a pendent, cane-like, branching from the base of the previous stem, terete stem enveloped completely by imbricating, evanescent, foliaceous sheaths and carrying 4 to 12, deciduous, all along the stem, succulent, narrowly lanceolate, acute, margin finely ciliate, light green transversely barred with purple leaves that blooms in the winter and spring on a terminal, racemose, hanging, 1" [2.5 cm] long, few flowered inflorescence arising through 1, acute, conduplicate, oblique, semi-ovate, margin apically minutely dentate spathes and with much shorter than the ovary floral bracts that are enveloped completely by the spathes and carrying 2, simultaneously opening, resupinate, yellow, concolor flowers.

"Epidendrum calacaliense belongs to the GROUP Megalospathum characterized by the caespitose but branching habit, many leafed stem, fleshy, oblique leaves a short few flowered racemose inflorescence subtended by a large semi-ovate spathe carrying a few resupinate flowers with the column obliquely united to the lip, occasionally free. The species can be recognized by its bicallose, reniform lip, and a prominent clinandrium, the nectary does not penetrate the ovary. Epidendrum posadarum Hágsater is similar in size but the lip is cordiform with a single large callus and the ovary penetrates about half the ovary. Epidendrum escobarianum Caray has larger flowers, and a glossy, deep red acuminate lip. Epidendrum stanhopeanum Kranzlin has somewhat larger flowers, the sepals .52 x .2" [13 x 5 mm], lip .4 x .6" [10 x 15] mm and the green flowers suffused with pink, the lip intensely dotted with pink." Hagsater etal 2001

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidaceaum 4 Plate 424 Hagsater & Salazar 2001 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 472 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 474 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 18(1) plate 1824 2020 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 18(1) plate 1839 Hagsater, Santiago and Medina 2020 see recognition section

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