Epidendrum marsupiale F.Lehm. & Kraenzl. 1899 GROUP Geminiflorum
Photos by © Jay Pfahl
Photo by © Allen Black
to 
THROUGH MID 
Common Name The Bag-Shaped Lip Epidendrum
Flower Size [1 5/8" [4 cm]
Found in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru in montane cloud forests on steep embankments at elevations of 1500 to 3200 meters as a large sized, cool to cold growing litho-terrestrial or epiphyte with branching, cane-like stems enveloped by tubular sheaths and carries a few, elliptic, acute, basally clasping leaves that blooms in the summer through mid winter on a short, two flowered inflorescence arising from the apex of a mature cane.
Epidendrum marsupiale is part of the GROUP Geminiflorum characterized by the sympodial habit, creeping rhizome, unbranched stem, 1 to 2 spathaceous bracts and a few-flowered inflorescence, the flowers non-resupinate, the disc of the lip with a pair of laminar calli. The species has a lip similar in both shape and size to Epidendrum cleistogastrium but the lateral lobes are separated by deep sinuses and spreading in front of the column instead of embracing it and overlapping. Epidendrum megagastrium has a triangular, cordate, entire lip and the sides do not cover the apex of the column. Epidendrum geminiflorum Kunth is very similar and often cited as synomonous with E marsupiale but E marsupiale differs in the lack of acute side lobes to the lip instead of rounded and is also less acute and shorter at the apex.
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Venezuelan Orchids Vol 5 Dunsterville & Garay 1966 as E geminiflorum drawing fide; Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 3 1970 as Epidendrum geminiflorum drawing fide; Orchids of Venezuela ; An Illustrated Field Guide Vol 1 Dunsterville & Garay 1979 as Epidendrum geminiflorum drawing fide; The Orchids of Surinam Werkhoven 1986 as Epidendrum geminiflorum; Icones Orchidacearum Peruviarum Plate 050 Bennett & Christenson 1993 see comments as E cajamarcae and E geminiflorum; Native Colombian Orchids Vol 5 COS 1994 as E geminiflorum photo fide; Native Colombian Orchids Vol 6 COS 1998 errata; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 304 Hagsater 1999 see recogntion section; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 394 Hagsater 1999 see recognition section as E geminiflorum; Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 1 Ramiro and Carnevali 2000 as E geminiflorum drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 428 Hagsater & Dodson 2001 see recognition section; Orquideas Nativas del Tachira Cesar Fernandez 2003 as E geminiflorum photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 428 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 2 Dodson 2002 drawing fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 5 2005 photo as E geminiflorum; Icones Orchidacearum Part 12 Plate 1269 Hagsater 2009 see recognition section as E geminiflorum; Las Orquideas del Peru Izerskyy & Bezverhov 2011 photo ok; Orchids of the Department of Valle De Cauca Colombia Vol 2 Kolanowska, Hagsater etal. 2014 as E geminiflorum drawing/photo fide; Orquideas, Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017; Icones Orchidacearum 16(1) plate 1687 Hagsater etal 2018 in recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 17(1) Plate 1742 Hagsater & Jimenez 2019 see recognition section; ; Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1853 Hagsater & Jimenez 2021 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1889 Hagsater & Jimenez 2021 see recognition section;
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