Stelis drosophila Barb. Rodr. 1859

SECTION Stelis

Photos by © Milan Vágner

Plant

Photo courtesy of Oliver Lenhard

Drawing

Drawing by Cogniaux

Drawing

Drawing by Helmut Seehawer

LATE

Common Name The Dew-Loving Stelis

Flower Size .1" [2 mm]

Found in Venezuela, Guyana, Surinam and Brazil in cloud forests in the upper tree canopy at elevations of 1100 to 1600 meters as a miniature sized, cool growing, epiphyte with erect ramicauls enveloped basally by 1 to 2, tubular, scarious sheaths and carrying a single, apicall erect, linear-lanceolate to linear-oblanceolate, obtuse to acute and minutely tridenticulate, gradually narrowing below into the elongate, attenuate, petiolate base leaf that blooms in the late spring on an erect, arising through a conduplicate, spathe, 1.4 to 3" [3.5 to 7.5 cm] long, from near the base, racemose, inflorescence and carrying yellow-green flowers.

Said to be a synonym of Stelis intermedia but I will leave them separate pending more information.

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* Gen. Spec. Orchid. 2: 88 Barb Rodr. 1881;

Flora Brasilense Vol 3:369 Cogniaux 1891 ;

Flora Brasilense Vol 3:tab 81 Cogniaux 1891 drawing fide;

Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 2 1970 drawing ok;

Orchidaceae Brasilense Band 1 Pabst & Dungs 1975 drawing ok;

Orchids of the High Mountain Atlantic Rainforest in SE Brazil Warren & Miller 1994 drawing/photo ok;

The Organ Mountain Range Its History and its orchids Miller, Warren and Seehauer 2008 drawing fide;