Epidendrum hitchcockii Hágsater & Dodson 2004 GROUP Mancum SUBGROUP Mancum

TYPE Drawing by © Lopez and The AMO Herbaria Website

LATE

Common Name Hitchcock's Epidendrum [American Collector of the type 1900's]

Flower Size .5" [1.25 cm]

Found in Ecuador at elevations around 2000 to 2600 meters as a small to medium sized, cold growing, repent epiphyte with cane-like, erect, arising from the lower nodees of the previous stem, straight terete stems carrying 3 to 5, all along the apical 1/3rd of the stem, linear-lanceolate, obtuse, bilobed, aristate, margin entire, hyaline leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, arising through a single, ancipitous, oblong, acute spathe, racemose, short, rachis slightly flexuous, successively 10 to 12 flowered inflorescence with half as long as the ovary, triangular, acuminate floral bracts and carrying non-resupinate flowers with the tepals purple to nearly black, and a white lip.

" Epidendrum hitchcockii belongs to GROUP Mancum SUBGROUP Mancum which is characterized by the sympodial growth, narrow spathaceous bracts with parallel sides, erect raceme with non-resupinate flowers and a generally reduced, fleshy !ip. The species has short inflorescence, 2.8 to 5.6" [7 to 14 cm] long, flowers purple, nearly black with a white lip, lobes of the lip with the apical margin, crenate. It is similar to Epidendrum microglossum but this species has a longer inflorescence, 4.8 to 8" [12 to 20 cm] long white, creamy flowers with yellow calli and apex of the column, the suborbicular lobes of the lip entire, with 2 calli and a low keel. Epidendrum brachyglossum Lindl. has a longer sepals and petals, flowers yellow-greenish, the lip white, column with small purple spots, linear petals, lateral lobes of the lip suborbicufar, entire, the midlobe transversely rectangular, entlre, bicallose lip. Epidendrum microglossoides Hágsater & Dodson is similar, but the rachis is straight, flowers are chocolate-brown with the column and lip white, petals spathulate, 1-veined, and the lateral lobes of the lip bifid, ending in two triangular, acute lobes, the midlobe is subquadrate with a 3-lobed, rounded, apex." Hagsater etal 2004

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 744 Hagsater & Dodson 2004 drawing fide;

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

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