Epidendrum nephroglossum Schltr. 1921 GROUP Arbuscula SUBGROUP Incomptum

Photo by © Erica Moron de Abad

Drawing

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

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Common Name The Kidney Shaped Epidendrum [refers to the lip shape]

Flower Size 1.2" [3 cm]

Found in Junin department of Peru at elevations around 2000 to 2700 meters as a medium sized, cold growing epiphyte with an erect, simple, terete, short, slightly arching stem enveloped by non-foliaceous, tubular sheaths and carrying 4 to 6, towards the apex, unequal in size [basal one smallest] coriaceous, dark green, narrowly elliptic, margin entire, acute leaves that blooms in the summer on a terminal, on a mature stem, occuring only once, racemose, arching-nutant, peduncle laterally compressed, straight unornamented, 2.4" [6 cm] long, simultaneously 6 to 16 inflorescence with prominent, basal ones as long as the ovary, triangular, acuminate, amplexicaul floral bracts.

"Schlechter indicates the lip as being bicallose, and two calli are shown on the illustration published by Mansfeld; however, upon close examination of our material, there are two fleshy, thickened, curved ridges in place of well-formed calli, on photographs of live flowers, shadows may be reminiscent of calli, depending on the angle of illumination. Schweinfurth (1945) first recognized this species as a separate entity and indicated that it was “rather widely distributed in Peru, having been recorded in the Departments of Apurimac, Huancavelica, Huánuco and Junín at altitudes ranging from 800 to 3100 meters.” He later confused this species and lumped it into Epidendrum lechleri Rchb.f. in his Orchids of Guyana, (Schweinfurth, 1953). In Orchids of Peru (Schweinfurth, 1959) he cites a number of specimens again under E. nephroglossum; we believe they correspond to different species, all within the GROUP Arbuscula SUBGROUP Incomptum characterized by the successive lateral growths produced from the middle of the previous growth, few leaves aggregate towards the apex of the stems, a short apical inflorescence with fleshy greenish to violet-green flowers with short ovaries, the lip entire to 3-lobed. In his Supplement to the Orchids of Peru (Schweinfurth, 1970) he finally reduces the species to a synonym of E. lechleri again." Hagsater 2013

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI *Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 9: 89 Peru Schlechter 1921; Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. Figuren-Atlas 57: 469 Schlechter 1929 drawing fide; Orchids of Peru Vol 2 Fieldiana Schweinfurth 1959;Icones Orchidacearum 2 Plate 121 Hagsater & Sanchez 1993 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 2 Plate 134 Hagsater & Sanchez 1993 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 312 Hagsater 1999 see recogntion section; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 8 Plate 850 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 9 Plate 955 Hagsater 2007 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1401 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1461 Hagsater & Sanchez 2013 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [1] Plate 1524 Hagsater & Sanchez 2015 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 16[2] Plate 1674 Hagsater & Sanchez 2018 see recognition section;

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