Habenaria heptadactyla Rchb.f. 1850 SECTION Subnudas Photo by © Julian Kenny

drawing Drawing by © Joćo A. N. Batista; Joćo Batista F. da Silva; Luciano de Bem Bianchetti and the The genus Habenaria (Orchidaceae) in the Brazilian Amazon

Common Name The Five Fingered Habenaria

Flower Size .4" [1 cm]

Found in Costa Rica?, Panama?, Trinadad, Surinam, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia and northern and central Brazil in savannahs at elevations of 15 to 1000 meters as a medium sized, hot to warm growing terrestrial with an erect stem carrying 3 to 5, linear-filiform, aristate leaves reducing in size to bracts above that blooms in the winter on a short, .8 to 2" [2 to 5 cm] long, more or less secund, 4 to 10 flowered inflorescence with ovate-lanceolate, long-acuminate floral bracts and carrying small, bright yellow flowers

+"This species is similar and apparently closely related to H. leprieuri and H. schwackei, but distinct by the congested inflorescence with many bright yellow flowers. Habenaria leprieuri has a lax inflorescence and completely green flowers, and H. schwackei has a longer pedicel (about 8-9 mm long vs. 2-3 mm long in H. heptadactyla), slightly larger flowers (dorsal sepal 4-5.5 x 3.5-4 mm in H. schwackei vs. 3-3.5 x 2-3 mm in H. heptadactyla) with white petals and lip. Habenaria heptadactyla grows mainly in seasonally humid places, but can also be found in rocky soil in drier areas."

Synonyms Habenaria leprieurii var. heptadactyla (Rchb.f.) R.E.Schult. 1956; Habenaria viridiaurea Lindl. ex Kraenzl.1893

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Flora Brasilica Vol XII I Hoehne 1940 drawing ok; The Orchids of Panama L.O. Williams & P Allen 1946; Native Orchids of Trinidad & Tobago Schultzes 1960 as H leprieuii var hepdactyla drawing fide; Venezuelan Orchids Illustrated Vol 5 Dunsterville & Garay 1971 as H leprieurii drawing fide; Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 2 Dunsterville and Garay 1979 as H leprieurii not = H hepdactyla drawing fide; Native Orchids of the Eastern Caribbean Kenny 1988 as H leprieurii var hepdactyla photo fide; Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 2 Ramiro and Carnevali 2000 drawing fide; Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana Vol 7 Steyermark, Berry, Yatskievych and Holst 2003 drawing fide; Manual de Plantas de Costa Rica Vol III Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003; +The genus Habenaria (Orchidaceae) in the Brazilian Amazon Joćo A. N. Batista; Joćo Batista F. da Silva; Luciano de Bem Bianchetti; Rev. bras. Bot. vol.31 no.1 Sćo Paulo Jan./Mar. 2008; Orquideas de Roirama Luz & Franco 2012 photo good; Orquideas Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017 drawing good; Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol 1 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017 drawing fide

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