Microchilus carbonerae Ormerod 2008

TYPE Drawing by © Paul Ormerod and Harvard Papers in Botany, Vol. 13, No. 1 70 fig 17 Ormerod 2008

Common Name The La Carbonera Microchilus [A mountain range within Merida Venezuela]

Flower Size .12" [3 mm]

Found in Merida state of Venezuela in primary cloud forests at elevations around 2200 to 2300 meters as a small to medium sized, cold growing terrestrial with an erect, terete stem carrying 4 to 8, obliquely ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, acute, dull mid green above, glacous green beneath, petiolate base leaves that blooms in the winter on an erect, pubescent, terminal, 11.8" to 12" [29.5 to 30 cm] long, peduncle 8.76 to 8.92" [21.9 to 22.3 cm] long, provided with 3 to 4, lax sheathing bracts, rachis 2.88 to 3.2" [7.2 to 8 cm] long, laxly, several flowered inflorescence with ovate-lanceolate, acute, longer than the ovary floral bracts and carrying externally pubescent, white flowers.

"This species is closely related to its Venezuelan congener M. ruizteranii but it has a laxly (not subdensely) flowered inflorescence, flowers with narrower (.058 versus .074" [1.45 vs. 1.85 mm]) petals, a broadly elliptic (not subquadrate) labellum hypochile, obliquely obovate (not oblong-obovate) epichile lobules, and a longer (.011" versus .096" [2.75 vs. 2.40 mm]) column. The Colombian endemic M. scrotiformis differs from M. carbonerae in having an oblong- lanceolate (not oblong-elliptic) dorsal sepal, an oblong (not broadly elliptic) labellum hypochile, .04" [1 mm] (not .076 to .08" [1.9-2.0 mm]) wide epichile lobules, and a .12" [3 mm] (not .084" [2.1 mm]) long spur." Ormerod 2008

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* Harvard Papers in Botany, Vol. 13, No. 1 69 Ormerod 2008

Harvard Papers in Botany, Vol. 13, No. 1 70 fig 17 Ormerod 2008 drawing fide;

Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol 1: 261 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017 drawing fide;

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