IOSPE PHOTOS

Epidendrum herreranum C.Schweinf.1943 GROUP Saxicola

PHOTO/TYPE Drawing by Š Collantes and The AMO Herbaria Website

MID

Common Name Herrera's Epidendrum [In honor of Fortunato Luciano Herrera Garmendia (1873-1945), Peruvian Botanist and Anthropologist, Dean of the Universidad Nacional del Cusco (UNSAAC), and possibly the most prominent scientist of Cusco of the XXth Century.]

Flower Size 1.6 to 1.72 x 1.2" [4.0-4.3 x 3 cm]

Found in Pasco and Cusco provinces of Peru on the upper reaches of the Cordillera Oriental of the Andes in very wet sclerophytic and elfin forests with abundant sphagnum moss on the ground, at elevations of 2400 to 3650 meters as a miniature to medium sized, cold growing lithophye or epiphyte with terete, cane-like, somewhat thickened stems covered by non-foliar tubular, minutely striated, somewhat imbricated sheaths and carrying a solitary, apical, erect, narrowly elliptic to oblong-elliptic, apex rounded, base conduplicate leaf that blooms in the suumer through fall on a terminal, arising through a very small, hidden within the conduplicate base of the leaf single spathe, from the mature stem, shorter than the leaf, peduncle terete, thin, simultaneously 2 flowered inflorescence with much shorter than the ovary, triangular, acute floral bract and carrying resupinate, yellow tinged orange to reddish bronze, flowers without fragrance

"Epidendrum herreranum belongs to the GROUP Saxicola characterized by the pseudobulbous stems, racemose inflorescence subtended by a prominent spathaceous bract, and few, showy flowers, either resupinate or non-resupinate. The species is recognized by the creeping habit, fusiform, uni-foliate pseudobulbs, the lateral lobes of the lip are obliquely rounded-dolabriform, the anterior margin forming a very narrow angle with the isthmus, the flowers are yellowish, with the dorsal surface of the sepals red-brown. Epidendrum tetartociclium Collantes & Hágsater has resupinate pale green to citrine-yellow flowers, the petals nearly as wide as the sepals, 3-lobed lip, the lateral lobes shaped like a quarter-circle, the anterior margin forming a 80°-90° angle with the isthmus of the midlobe. Epidendrum monzonense Kraenzl. has shorter, oblong leaves 2.4 to 3.6" x .6 to .8" [6 to 9 x 1.5 to 2 cm], brown sepals .6 x .2" [15 x 5 mm] and a yellow lip .4 x .6" [10 x 15], with the mid-lobe widely obcordate, the sides semi-circular, and a fleshy mucro in the apical sinus." Hagsater etal 2013

Synonyms

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