Stelis flexilis Luer & Hirtz 2002 SECTION Humboldtia

TYPE Drawing by Carl Luer

Common Name or Meaning The Flexuous Stelis [refers to the rachis]

Flower Size .12" [3 mm]

Found in Zamora-Chinchipe province of Ecuador at elevations around 1200 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cool growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, slender ramicauls enveloped by 2 close, tublar sheaths and carrying a single, erect, coriaceous, narrowly elliptical, acute to subacute, narrowly cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms in the summer on an erect, peduncle 1.2 to 1.6" [3 to 4 cm] long, arising through an insignificant spathe, from an annulus below the apex of the ramicaul, rachis 2.4 to 2.8" [6 to 7 cm] long, loose, flexible, flexuous, successively several, simultaneously 2 to 3 flowered inflorescence with oblique, longer than the pedicel floral bract and carrying purple flowers with glabrous sepals, thin petals and a thick lip.

"The species is distinguished by the thin, flexuous, loosely flowered racemse that eventually far surpasses the leaves, but only 2 to 3 flowers are open at any one time. The lateral sepals are connate to the apex into a deep, funnel shaped synsepal with a broad mentum below th elip. The petals are relatively thin and shallowly concave. The thickly subquadrate lip is shallowly concave and rounded at the apex, with a rounded callus on the dorsum." Luer 2009

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002

Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002 Drawing fide;

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------