Epidendrum spathulipetalum Hágsater & Dressler 2001 GROUP Neowilliamsia

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

LATER THROUGH MID

Common Name The Spatulate Petal Epidendrum

Flower Size .8" [2 cm]

Found in Panama in montane forests at unknown elevations as a medium sized epiphyte with an erect, sinuous, cane-like, laterally compressed stem and carrying 9 to 13, all along the upper half of the stem, narrowly elliptic, apiculate, margin entire leaves that blooms in the later summer and to mid fall on a terminal, paniculate, occuring only once, erect, sinuous, ancipitous, 6.4" [16 cm] long, many flowered inflorescence arising on a mature stem, with 3, distributed along the inflorescence, progressively smaller towards the apex, basally tubular, acute bracts and with shorter than the ovary, ovate, carinate, acute, margin entire floral bracts and carrying 27 to 100, successively opening, non-resupinate, tinged pink sometimes with red blotched flowers.

"Epidendrum spathulipetalum belongs to the GROUP Neowilliamsia , recognized by the ancipitose stems and pedunde, 2 pollinia and lip 3-lobed, lateral lobes 1/4 of a circle, shallow to deeply divided into 3 more or less digitate lobules, with the petals spathulate, rounded and the margin erose, the flowers tinged pink, sometimes with red blotches, especially on the petals. It is similar to Epidendrum cuneatoides which has an obdeltoid-flabelliform, truncate lip, somewhat 3-lobed, the sepals around .2 to .24" [5 to 6 mm] long, and the flowers white with a few purple spots near the apices of the segments. Epidendrum alfaroi Ames & C. Schweinf. also has the lip divided into 6 to 9 slender, linear divisions, but 4 pollinia and the petals brown or greenish brown. Epidendrum wercklei Schltr. has 3 to 5 finger-like divisions, 2 pollinia, flowers white or yellow spotted and barred with brown or redbrown.

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 422 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; * Icones Orchidaceaum 4 Plate 486 Hagsater & Sanchez 2001 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 9 Plate 913 Hagsater & Sanchez 2007 see recognition section;

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