Habenaria lucaecapensis Fernald 1894 SECTION Macroceratitae Kraenzl.

Photo by © Gerardo Alexander

Common Name The Cabo San Lucas Habenaria

Flower Size 3" [7.5 cm]

Found in southern Baja California and Jalisco states of Mexico as a medium sized, hot to warm growing terrestrial with an erect, leafy stem carrying thin, broadly elliptic, obtuse, lowermost smaller, orbicular, the uppermost reduced to lanceolate, acuminate bracts, rather abruptly narrowing below into the sheathing base leaves that blooms in the late summer and early fall on an erect, rachis 6" [15 cm] long, 8 to 10 flowere inflorescence with ascending, flat or concave shallow, truliform-lanceolate, acuminate, with five well-branched nerves, the reticulum dense, caressed along the central nerve, in most flowers it exceeds the ovary, in the terminal flowers are somewhat shorter.

Similar to H quinqueseta but differs in the broader leaves, the longer segments of the petal and lip and the shorter, more clavate spur.

Habenaria lucaecapensis is related to H. santanae ; in which the leaves are cuneate, elliptical-oblanceolate, obtuse, up to 4.8" [12 cm] long, 1.76" [4.4 cm] wide; the dorsal sepal ovate-elliptic, emarginate, .34" [8.5 mm] long, with three nerves, the lateral nerves bifid; the posterior petal segment obtuse, .32" [8 mm] long, .76" [1.9 mm] wide; the lateral lobes of the labellum are 1.12" [2.8] cm long, .032" [0.8 mm] wide at the breast, with two ribs; an arched column, with a shallow sinus, .136" [3.4 mm] long, .236" [5.9 mm] long, wide among the stelidia; an obtuse angled pollinia with respect to the caudícle, are among the most Remarkable differences. Habenaria macroceratitis is related to our species, but differs in the posterior lobe of the petals that are equally wide along the entire length; the anterior lobe is antrorse, 1.12 to 1.6" [2.8 to 4] cm long, .032 to .06" [0.8 to 1.5 mm] wide at the base; the side lobes of the labellum are antrorse, relatively thinner, the end more or less involute and larger, 1.2 to 1.84" [3.1 to 4.6 cm] long, .036 to .06" [0.9 to 1.5 mm] wide at the base; the column almost straight, in lateral view oblong, from the front trapeziform, emarginate, .18' [4.5 mm] long, .2 to .32" [5 to 8 mm] wide among the stelidia; straight, somewhat diversified anther channels; the trapeziform stelidia, allow us to see the sinus between the locules and the canals of the anther." Jorge Roberto González Tamayo y Lizbeth Hernández Hernández 2010

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Studies in the Family Orchidaceae Fascile 4 Ames 1910;

Las Orquideas del Occidente de Mexico Vol 1: 209 Jorge Roberto González Tamayo y Lizbeth Hernández Hernández 2010 drawing fide;

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