Epidendrum estrellense Ames 1923GROUP Polychlamys SUBGROUP Polychlamys
TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website
TYPE Drawing by © Ames and The Epidendra Website
Common Name or Meaning The La Estrella Epidendrum [Origin of the type species]
Flower Size .8" [2 cm]
Found in Costa Rica and western Panama at elevations around 1500 to 1750 meters as a medium sized, cool growing terrestrial with simple, cane-like, terete, thin, straight at the base and somewhat flexuous towards the apex stems carrying 5, towards the apical half of the stem, alternate, articulate, coriaceous, narrowly elliptic-lanceolate, acute leaves that blooms in the fall and winter on a terminal, occuring only once, racemose, distichous, arching, 2" [5 cm] long including the 1" [2.5 cm] long peduncle enveloped completely by 7, narrowly ovate, subacute, conduplicate, imbricating, glumaceous bracts, successively single, to 7 flowered inflorescence with much longer than the ovary, ovate, subacute, conduplicate, glumaceous floral bracts and carrying greenish yellow, green to purple green flowers.
The rhizomatous plant with the roots arising from the basal nodes of the stem, the elliptic-lanceolate leaves are held at the apex of the stem, the very short inflorescence with the peduncle covered by several imbricate, conduplicate bracts, the longer than the ovary, ovate, acute floral bracts and the small flowers with a sub-orbicular-cordate lip distinguish this species from others.
"Epidendrum estrellense belongs to the GROUP Polychlamys SUBGROUP Polychlamys which is characterized by the successive lateral growths, the distichous, apical inflorescence with prominent, conduplicate, acute, glumaceous floral bracts. The species is distinguished by the thin stems, somewhat flexuous towards the apex, with elliptic-lanceolate, acute leaves, a dense inflorescence with 7 imbricating bracts covering the peduncle, successive, small, greenish yellow to green purple flowers the partly spreading sepals .26 to .4" [6.5 to 10 mm] long, and the lip suborbicular-cordate. Epidendrum barbae Rchb. f. has thin, straight, stems, linear-lanceolate, acute leaves, a lax-flowered inflorescence without bracts on the peduncle, and the rachis zigzag, simultaneous flowers with the ovary inflated, forming a prominent vesicle." Hagsater etal 2007
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; The Genus Epidendrum Ames 1936; Ceiba Vol 5 No 1 L O Williams 1956; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 310 Hagsater 1999 see recogntion section; Manual de las Plantas de Costa Rica Vol 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 8 Plate 839 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 9 Plate 924 Hagsater 2007 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 9 plate 934 Hagsater & Sanchez 2007 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 9 Plate 976 Hagsater 2007 see recognition section; Orchids of Costa Rica Vol 3 Morales 2009 photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 17(1) Plate 1740 Hagsater & Jimenez 2019 see recognition section
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