Epidendrum elleanthodiceras Hágsater & E.Santiago 2004 GROUP Elleanthoides SUBGROUP Guacamayense

TYPE Drawing by © M Lopez R. and The AMO Herbaria Website

Partial shadeCold LATE Winter EARLYSpring

Common Name or Meaning The Two Horned Elleanthoides Epidendrum [refers to the two horned column]

Flower Size .8" [2 cm]

Found in southern Colombia at elevations around 2600 meters as a large sized, cold growing epiphyte with an erect, branched, terete, thin stem with the successive branches becoming shorter each carrying 2 to 7 on the branches, on the apical half, grassy, linear-lanceolate, acute, minutely crenulate margin leaves that blooms in the late winter and early spring on a terminal, paniculate, erect, .8 to 1.92" [2 to 4.8 cm] long, including the terete, thin peduncle, filiform, straight rachis, simultaneously 3 to 5 flowered inflorescence with shorter than the ovary, triangular, acuminate, single veined floral bracts without color or fragrance data.

"Epidendrum elleanthodiceras belongs to the GROUP Elleanthoides SUBGROUP Guacamayense characterized by the thin, branching stems, long, linear, grass-like leaves, filiform peduncle and rachis of the inflorescence. The new species is recognized by the relatively large flowers (for the group: sepals .4" [10 mm] long, acute teeth at the apex of the long, thin, arched, column, unlike any other species of the group, and triangular lip. Epidendrum elleanthoides has smaller flowers, the sepals .48 to .76" [3.7- to 4.4 mm] long, lip transversely ovate, and bicarinate callus. Epidendrum guacamayense Hágsater & Dodson, has sepals .28 to .3" [7.0 to 7.5 mm] long, the ecallose lip completely embracing and covering the column. Epidendrum montispichinchense Hágsater & Dodson has a short, thick, straight column, forming a wide cavity with the lip, sepals are shorter, .256 to .272" [6.4 to 6.8 mm] long, the apical margin of the leaves is entire. This species appears to grow in the general area, represented by G. Lozano et al. 4264, collected aboye Finca Palmira, Mpio. La Argentina, Colombia, slide at AMO." Hagsater etal 2004

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 718 Hagsater and Sanchez 2004 see recognition section; * Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 735 Hagsater 2004 drawing fide

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