Epidendrum isthmoides Hagsater & Santiago 2008 GROUP Pseudepidendrum SUBGROUP Paniculatum

TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website

Common Name The Isthmus-Like Epidendrum

Flower Size .6" [1.5 cm]

Found in Costa Rica at elevations around 900 meters as a large to giant sized, warm growing epiphyte or lithophyte with simple, cane-like, laterally compressed, erect stems carrying 9 to 11, all along the stem, spreading, elliptic, shortly acuminate, prominently veined on upper surface, entire marginally, articulate below into the base leaves that blooms in the winter through spring on a terminal, paniculate, suberect, occuring only once, 16 to 18" [40 to 45 cm] long, 150 to 300 flowered inflorescence without bracts, but on the lower branches, very prominent, narrowly triangular, conduplicate, long-acuminate, amplexicaul bracts and variable in size, from much shorter to longer than the ovary, linear-triangular, long-acuminate floral bracts and carrying simultaneously opening, resupinate flowers.

"Epidendrum isthmoides belongs to the GROUP Pseudepidendrum which is characterized by caespitose plants, cane-like stems, acute to acuminate leaves, usually apical inflorescence, the filiform petals and the lip usually 3-lobed with 3 parallel fleshy keels, the apical lobe often bifurcate, the "bird-wing" type pollinia, and Pseudepidendrum SUBGROUP Paniculatum which has green and white flowers, often marked wilh purple on the disc of the lip and apex of the column. The species is recognized by the large plants, chartaceous, elliptic leaves with the veins clearly marked, 5.2 to 9.2" x 1.2 to 2" [13 to 23 x 3 to 5 cm]; the creamy green flowers with the floral segments partly spreading, sepals .36 to .4" [9 to 10 mm] long, the lip immaculate, with a short isthmus between the lateral lobes and the midlobe. Epidendrum isthmii Schltr. has shorter, narrower, lanceolate to elliptic-Ianceolate leaves 2.2 to 5.2" x .52 to 1.36" [5.5 to 13 x 1.3 to 3.4 cm], a few-flowered inflorescence with larger flowers, sepals .52 to .62" [13 to 15.5 mm] long, the flowers greenish with the disc of the lip creamy white. Epidendrum piliferum Rchb.f. is vegetatively similar in size, but the flowers are larger, green, with the lip and apex of the column white, the disc with 5 purple lines, the reflexed sepals .5 to .68" [12.5 to 17 mm] long. Epidendrum horichii Hágsater has shorter plants, 14.8 to 30" [37 to 75 cm] tall, the elliptic to lanceolate leaves 1.4 to 6" [3.5 to 15 cm] long, the flowers green with the white lip often marked with a purple blotch." Hagsater etal 2008

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidacearum 11 plate 1133 Hagsater & Sanchez 2008 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 17(1) Plate 1736 Hagsater & Jimenez 2019 See recognition section

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