Lepanthes rhodophylla Schltr. 1921 SECTION Lepanthes SUBSECTION Lepanthes SERIES Mucronatae Luer 1996

Photo courtesy of Lisa Thoerle

Leaf

Photo courtesy of © Lourens Grobler

Drawing

Drawing by © Carl Luer

TYPE Drawing ???? has to be wrong

TYPE Drawing by © Schlechter

Common Name The Red Leafed Lepanthes

Flower Size .4" [1cm]

Found in Ecuador at elevations of 1300 to 1400 meters as a small to medium sized, warm to cool growing epiphyte with stout, erect, ramicauls enveloped basally by 13 to 30, long-acuminate, glabrous, lepanthiform sheaths and carrying a single, apical, thinly coriaceous, bent from the axis of the ramicaul, subplicate, purplish, elliptical, subacute, long-acuminate leaf that is cuneate below into a petiole that blooms in the spring on an erect, congested, distichous, 1" [2.5 cm] long, successively many flowered, racmose inflorescence. One of the larger species in this genus.

"Characterized by the tall habit with large, purple to red, subplicate, long-acuminate leaves that glow red when back lit, a long pedunculate, congested inflorescence and flowers somewhat like L cotyledon but the blades of the lip of L rhodophylla form a lid over sn ingflated sac composed of thinly dilated connectives and body which contains the column. The stigma is in contact with the appendix which is hinged to the anterior margin of the sac." Luer 1996

Also related to L abitaguae, L pelyx, L corrugata, L ortegae and L pilosaures.

There are 3 other species within Colombia that are very similar, L janitor, L posadae and L agglutinata which all have petals subequal in length and an uncinate process between the lobes.

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Die Orchideen der Sudamerikanischen Kordillerenstaaten III Ecuador Schlechter 1921; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XIV Systematics of Draconanthes, Lepanthes subgenus Marsipanthes and subgenus Lepanthes of Ecuador Luer 1996 drawing fide; Flora of Ecuador No 88 Lepanthes and affiliates Dodson & Luer 2011 drawing fide

Checked Luer OK

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