Masdevallia serendipita Luer & Teague 1993 SUBGENUS Polyantha SECTION Alaticaules SUBSECTION Alaticaules [Krzl.] Luer 1986

TYPE Drawing by © Carl Luer

Part shade WarmCool Winter

Common Name The Serendipitous Masdevallia [refers to the circumstances of this species discovery which was a delay due to road repairs]

Flower Size .8" [2 cm] wide

Found in La Paz department of Bolivia in forests along streams at elevations around 1000 meters as a miniature sized, warm to cool growing, caespitose epiphyte with stout, erect ramicauls enveloped by 2 to 3, thin, loose, tubular sheaths and carrying a single, apical, erect, coriaceous, elliptical, subacute, narrowly cuneate below into the subpetiolate base leaf that blooms in the winter on an erect, slender, triquetrous peduncle, 6.8 to 7.6" [17 to 19 cm] long, from near the base of the ramicaul, rachis short, congested, successively single, few flowered inflorescence with tubular shorter than the ovary floral bract and carrying flowers with red-purple sbove the middle, orange towards the base, minutely pubescent within sepals, the petals white and a red lip.

"The species is characterized by the smaller than average habit for the section with a long, slender peduncle much longer than the leaves. The flowers is of average size with the sepals deeply connate into a bell-shaped tube with a prominent conical mentum. The tails of the lateral sepals recurve. The petals are oblong with the longitudinal callus swollen above the base. The lip is pandurate with wing like folds that overlie the central constriction and the epichile is acute without verrucosites." Luer 2000

Synonyms Alaticaulia serendipita (Luer & Teague) Luer 2006

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Icones Pleuorothallidinarum XIX Masdevallia Part 1 Luer 2000 drawing fide; Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXVIII Luer 2006 as Alatacaulia serendipita

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