Epidendrum chinchaoense Hágsater, D.Trujillo & E.Santiago 2009 GROUP Elleanthoides SUBGROUP Rhombochilum

TYPE Drawing by © Trujillo and The AMO Herbaria Website

Common Name The Chinchao Epidendrum [A district within Huanuco Peru where the species is found]

Flower Size .4" [1 cm]

Found in northeastern Peru on the upper ridge of the Cordillera Oriental in very wet, moss covered forests at elevations around 2190 meters as a small sized, cold growing terrestrial or epiphyte with cane-like, terete, erect, branching above on mature stems carrying 13 on the main stem, all along the upper 2/3's, suberect, narrowly lanceolate, obtuse, coriaceous, margin finely crenulate, spreading leaves that blooms in the summer on a terminal, racemose to paniculate, arching-nutant, can produce new racemes from the same point even while the original is still in flower, peduncle short, thin, simultaneously to 3 flowered inflorescence with shorter than the ovary, ovate-triangular, acuminate floral bracts and carrying fleshy, yellow green flowers with the lip always facing the rachis.

"Epidendrum chinchaoënse belongs to the GROUP Elleanthoides SUBGROUP Rhombochilum recognized by the branching habit, small fleshy leaves and a short 3 to 4 flowered, nutant inflorescence on a short thick peduncle. The species is recognized by the long, coriaceous leaves to 2.24" [5.6 cm] long, relatively small flowers, lateral sepals .32" [8 mm] long, falcate, acuminate, and the linear-filiform petals. Epidendrum tolimense Lindl. has shorter, ovate-lanceolate leaves to 1.48" [3.7 cm] long, .4 to .44" [10 to 11 mm] long sepals, apiculate, sub-orbicular to ovate-sub-cordate lip when spread, and the wide nectary. Epidendrum rhodanthum Hágsater & Dodson also has 4 pollinia, the flowers white and old rose colored, the lip is proportionately wider, and the nectary narrow. Epidendrum chrysanthum Hágsater & Dodson has smaller flowers, sepals being about .18" [4.5 mm] long, and only has 2 pollinia. Epidendrum rhombochilum L.O.Williams has .28 to .32" [7 to 8 mm] long sepals, also has two pollinia, each with a slit along one side. Most species in this group are found in Ecuador and neighboring areas of Colombia and Peru. Epidendrum guacamayense Hágsater & Dodson belongs to the SUBGROUP Guacamayense with branching inflorescences with long, hair-thin peduncles." Hagsater etal 2009

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidacearum 12 Plate 1220 Hagsater, Trujillo & Santiago 2009 Drawing fide

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------