Mormodes porphyrophlebia Salazar 1992

SECTION Mormodes

TYPE Drawing TYPE Photo by Eric Hagsater ©/TYPE Drawing by Salazar and The Herbario AMO Website

Part Sun Cool LATER Winter

Common Name The Purple Veined Mormodes [refers to the purple stripes on the floral segments]

Flower Size 1.6" [4 cm]

Found in Oaxaca state of Mexico on the Pacific slope in tropical deciduous forests as a cool growing epiphyte with aggregate, conical-fusiform, several noded pseudobulbs enveloped in youth by imbricate, papery, whitish leaf sheaths soon evenescent carrying leaves that were not seen, that blooms in the late fall and early winter on 2, aring laterally close to the nodes on the lower half of the mature leafless pseudobulb, racemose, peduncle green, slightly tinged with purple, terete, shorter than the rachis, with 3 clasping, scarious, transluscent, broadly ovate, obtuse bracts, rachis lax, ascending, mostly straight, 12.8 to 14" [32 to 35 cm] long overall, more or less two ranked, simultaneously 12 to 15 flowered inflorescence with scarious, triangular-ovate, cucullate, acute 3 reddish veined floral bracts and carrying perfect, apparently non-resupinate flowers

It is similar to M. atropurpurea but it is distinguished by the lax racernes, the f10wers with sepals and petals ochre with purplish-red stripes and lip white, suffused with lilac and with purplish-red stripes; the adaxial surface of the lip is granulosepapilIose, the lateral lobes in natural position are revolute and superposed below, when spread they are antrorse, semi-ovate, obtuse, occasionalIy erose and as long as the mid-lobe, which is broadly ovate, obtuse. Probably the most similar species to M. porphyrophlebia is M. ephippilabia, which has fewer (3-7) flowers per raceme, the sepals and petals brownish with reddish stripes, the lip chrome yeIlow, glabrous, with the sides deflexed, subparalIel, the mid-lobe proportionately shorter and broader and the lateral lobes rather divergent, with the mid-lobe conspicuously protruding from between them.

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *ORQUIDEA (MEX.) 12(2): 185. Salazar Febrero 1992 photo/drawing fide

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