Stelis freyi Luer & Toscano 2012 SECTION Stelis

TYPE Drawing by © Luer & Toscano

LATER

Common Name Frey's Stelis [Named for the late Michel Frey, who collected and cultivated this species at his Fazenda Capijuma in Espírito Santo]

Flower Size .12" [5 mm]

Found in Espirito Santo state of Brazil at elevations around 800 meters as a miniature sized, warm growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, relatively stout ramicauls enveloped by 2 to 3, tubular sheaths and carrying an erect, coriaceous, elliptical, obtuse to round apically, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms in the later spring on an erect, arising through a spathe near the apex of the ramicaul, subcongested, distichous, peduncle 3.2 to 4" [8 to 10 cm] long, to 12" [30 cm] long overall with most flowers open simultaneously, many-flowered inflorescence with oblique, acute, as long as the pedicel floral bracts and carrying red purple flowers. .

"Superficially similar to Stelis papaquerensis Rchb.f., this species from Espírito Santo is distinguished by a single inflorescence that surpasses the leaf more than twice its length. The many-flowered raceme is distichous with most flowers open simultaneously. The sepals are deeply connate to create a conical base to the flower. The sevenveined dorsal sepal is larger than four-veined lateral sepals. The rounded margin of the petals is broadly thickened. The lip is type A and rounded at the apex with three small calli on the dorsum. " Luer & Toscano 2012

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

*Harvard Papers in Botany, Vol. 17, No. 2, pp. 307–315 MISCELLANEOUS NEW SPECIES IN THE PLEUROTHALLIDINAE (ORCHIDACEAE) FROM BRAZIL Carlyle A. Luer and A. L. V. Toscano de Brito 2012 drawing fide

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