Epidendrum weigendii Hagsater & Cisneros 2021 GROUP Arbuscula SUBGROUP Incomptum

TYPE Drawing by : R. Jiménez M. and Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1899 Hágsater, & Cisneros 2021

LATE EARLY

Common Name Weigend's Epidendrum [In honor of Dr. Maximillian Weigend (1969-) German botanist, who studied phytochemistry of macroalgae in South Africa, and later collected in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru in 1997, for his doctoral thesis “Nasa (Loasaceae) & the conquest of South America”. He is currently Director of the Botanical Garden of the University in Bonn. He has participated in the Flora de Colombia project with Loasaceae]

Flower Size 1.2" [3 cm]

Found in Amazonas department of Peru in cloud forest on sandstone at elevations around 2800 meters as a medium sized, cold growing, sympodial epiphyte with erect, simple, cane-like, terete, the new stems produced from a middle internode of the previous stem with the basal 3/4's of the stem covered with non-foliar sheaths and carrying 2 to 3, aggregate towards the apicval 1/4 of the stem, erect, alternate, tubular, striated leaf base sheaths, blades unequal in size, oblong, acute, sub-coriaceous, leaves that blooms in the late fall and early winter on a racemose, arcuate, without a spathe arising on a mature stem, peduncle .56 to .92" [1.4 to 2.3 cm] long, somewhat laterally compressed, not ornamented, rachis .92 to 2" [2.3 to 5 cm] long, arching-nutant, successsively until most all open at the same time, 76 to 11 flowered inflorescence with much shorter than the ovary, decreasing in size, triangular, acute, embracing floral bracts and carrying resupinate flowers without color or fragrance data.

"Epidendrum weigendii belongs to the GROUP Arbuscula SUBGROUP Incomptum which is characterized by the successive lateral growths produced from the middle of the previous growth, the few leaves aggregate towards the apex of the stems, a short apical inflorescence with fleshy green to violet-green flowers with short ovaries, and the lip entire to 3-lobed. The new species is recognized by the oblong leaves, sepals .52 to .6" [13 to 15 mm] long, the lateral sepals somewhat falcate, the oblanceolate petals .56 to .56" [13.5 to 14 mm] long, and the lip .592 x .68" [14.8 x 17 mm], wider than long, the lateral lobes semi-orbicular, mid-lobe formed by a pair of semi-orbicular lobules with a short isthmus. It is very similar to Epidendrum tamaense Foldats has larger flowers, the floral segments strongly reflexed, a strongly arcuate ovary, sepals about .6 to .84" [15 to 21 mm] long, lateral ones acute to acuminate with a conspicuous dorsal keel, petals obtrullate, and the lip longer, .8 to .96" [20 to 24 mm] long, with a median keel, the calli small, the mid-lob obcuneate. Epidendrum boekei Hágsater has narrowly elliptic leaves, a shorter ovary .56 to .76" [14 to 19 mm] long, floral segments smaller, sepals .52" [12 mm] long, spreading, with an inconspicuous dorsal keel, the lateral sepals acute, 6- veined,tamaense petals .46" [11.5 mm] long, narrowly oblanceolate, redounded, the lip .44 to .56" [11 to 14 mm] long, with lateral lobs obovate somewhat oblique, and the mid-lob somewhat emarginate, and the column smaller, .28" [7 mm] long." Hagsater etal 2021

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 18(2) Plate 1899 Hagsater & Jimenez 2021 TYPE Drawing/photo fide;

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